Dedication To Dr. Edward Saint, The Great Leon, Floyd G. Thayer, Caryl S. Fleming, Judge Charles W. Fricke, William W. Larsen, Dr. Raymond Stone, Max Holden, Dell O'Dell, Dr. Jacob Dailey, Jean Hugard and to my father.
Special Autographed Edition Copy Number
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Printed in Tokyo, Japan by Komiyama Printing Co.
GREAT MAGIC SHOWS
Reviewed By Arnold Furst
Published By THE GENII PUBLISHING COMPANY As A Memorial To
W. Larsen, Sr. Arnold Furst - 1968
HOUDINI A Review of His Show at The Maryland Theatre
Baltimore, Maryland, August 31, 1925
"The greatest necromancer of the age — perhaps of all time," was the designation given to Harry Houdini by The Literary Digest and it was certainly well deserved. His name became known throughout the world as a synonym for escape and it is now found in all dictionaries as part of our English language. He was a genius of publicity; a master showman; a vaudeville headliner for 20 years; a writer, director, producer and star in several motion pietures and was one of the first Hollywood stuntmen with such notable exploits as jumping from one airplane to another in mid-air; a psychic investigator and relentless enemy of spiritualistic frauds; the author of a dozen books and editor of several magazines; an intrepid avaitor who piloted his own aircraft and made history by completing the first airplane flight ever made in Australia. He was an intimate of presidents and an entertainer of kings. Erich Weiss, the son of a Jewish Rabbi, wished to be a great magician like Robert-Houdin and with Jack Hayman as his partner, performed a magic act in Coney Island as The Houdini Bros. From that humble beginning he rose to the pinnacle of success where his ability was recognized by those of his own profession as well as by the critics and members of the general public. For example, in The Sphinx for May, 1926, Dr. A. M. Wilson wrote, "All we who know Houdini only as an Escape Artist or Handcuff King or as an exposer of spiritualistic fraud will have to now recognize him as a real magician. I saw his show twice while in Chicago. To say I was astounded, surprised and delighted is putting it too faint. Houdini's 45 to 60 minutes of magic is equal to and in many aspects superior to any magic act I have seen since the days of Kellar. Houdini seemed to improve
with every performance and was certainly a magician in all that the name implies." This full evening show was billed simply — HOUDINI and that was enough for every one who knew of him and his various accomplishments. There were 13 assistants plus an executive staff of three others, who traveled with the show which is reported to have cleared an average of $15,000 a week during the year of 1925. The orchestra played Pomp and Circumstance as the overture and then the curtains opened and Houdini made his first entrance wearing a cloak. As this was removed, other assistants brought out a bare table and the other props used in this opening effect which was the performer's original conception. A sheet of glass was placed on the table and covered with the newspaper. A large bowl of ink was placed on the newspaper and covered with a foulard which was also immediately removed to reveal that the ink had been transformed into a bowl of goldfish. The magician reached into the water and produced one large silk after another. The production of silks became faster and faster until they presented the effect of a whirlwind of color and that was indeed the listing given to this in the program. Six of the large silk handkerchiefs were retained by Houdini as he proceeded to perform a series of ties with the large silks and then he placed one handkerchief in a bottle at one side of the stage and it flew across the stage into another bottle. The routine was concluded with six silks being used in a version of the classic Sympathetic Silks, effect. The master showman then presented a rather incredible card star which was the original masterpiece of Herr Doebler. In this effect jumbo cards were used and they were actually three times as large as the center
of the card star. After any five cards had been selected by the audience, the card star was brought on to the stage and was suspended by the use of wires which hung at the center of the stage. After mixing the cards, the magician threw the entire pack at the card star which was listed in the printed program as Marie Antonette's Glove and as the cards dropped to the stage, the five chosen cards were seen at the tips of the five points of the star. A crystal box was then seen swinging in the air. Eight coins were produced and thrown across the stage and they appeared in a small glass. The coins were removed from the glass, counted and again thrown, this time appearing in the suspended crystal casket. Houdini next presented the Conradi Alladin Lamp in this fashion. Two small table lamps were seen to be lit and they were resting on two small tables at each side of the stage. The first lamp was covered briefly and vanished, only to appear on another table. When the magician vanished the second small lamp the audience was greatly surprised to see that the lamp had been transformed into a rose bush. Next Houdini presented his version of The Miser's Dream which he called "Money for Nothing." When performing at military camps during World War 1, he produced real $5 gold pieces and threw them out to the audience. During one such tour of military bases he tossed out to the servicemen a total of $8,000 in gold coins. A torn and restored paper effect then followed as the magician pattered about Little Boy Blue. The most topical effect was listed in the program as Radio 1925. In this illusion a large console radio was turned on and remained playing until it burst apart and an attractive young lady made her appearance. Houdini then spoke briefly with the girl and her obvious french accent was noticed by the audience. This girl stood on a pedestal and was covered by a large cone which was lowered over her body. When the cone was removed it revealed a large Orange Tree on the pedestal and nothing more. Fruit from the tree was plucked and thrown out to various members of the audience. Suddenly there was a commotion in the theater as the audience became aware of the presence 6f the young lady who had the french accent. She was in the midst of the audience and her discovery brought forth an enthusiastic burst of applause. The first act was concluded with an effect called Paligenesia. The program carried the following information concerning this effect which Harry Houdini had seen as a young man and which impressed him greatly and which he included perhaps due to its nostalgic effect as well as its other merits. "Paligenesia" is the taking of a living man to pieces and restoring him by installments. This is an invention of the celebrated late Dr. Lynn and was performed by him over the civilized world and upwards of 5,000 times in London, England. Houdini takes pleasure in presenting this mystery; being the only living performer legally authorized to do so. Having obtained it from the son of Dr. Lynn with full permission to present it in public as a matter of historical record for magicians. The apparatus used is the identical, original, built and used by Dr. Lynn." For this illusion, an unwilling volunteer from the audience was led up to the stage and into a cabinet. The magician then proceeded to cut off first one leg and then one arm and finally the victim's head was removed. The amputation of the various limbs was done by the use of dangerous looking swords and with great dramatic effect. The second act opened with Houdini's version of the substitution trunk. He called this effect Metamorphosis and presented it on this occasion, as always, with the assistance of his charming wife, Beatrice Houdini. This exchange of two human beings was presented with Beatrice being locked and sealed inside the tightly roped trunk. In an instant the transformation took place and the audience saw the magician's wife opening the bound trunk and then the performer emerged, showing that he had indeed exchanged positions with his attractive partner. Next followed the East Indian Needle Mystery *which has the distinction of being perhaps one of the smallest magical effects and yet it became as important
and impressive as a large stage illusion in the hands of this master showman. Several dozen sewing needles were apparently swallowed along with a great amount of white thread. When the thread was removed from the mouth and stretched clear across the stage, the needles were seen to be threaded upon it. Now the curtains parted for the Water Torture Cell which was perhaps the greatest escape Houdini had ever invented. It seems to have been his ultimate effort in this field. The assistants came on stage wearing rain coats and the magician left the stage briefly to return wearing only a bathing suit. During his absence the large glass cell was filled with water from a fire hose. Attention was called to the utter impossibility for anyone to obtain air while in the inverted position he was about to assume in the cell. The program carried the following notice: ''A reward of $1,000 will be paid to anyone proving that it is possible to obtain air from the upside down position in which Houdini releases himself from the water filled torture cell." Once his ankles were clamped together, the escapeologist was hoisted into the air and quickly lowered into the cell. Water splashed out on all sides and then the curtains were drawn and an assistant took his position in readiness with a fire ax to be used in the event of an emergency. To all appearances, the magician was flirting with death and might drown during this spectacular demonstration. However, after three minutes passed, the performer came forth, dripping wet and many in the audience stood while applauding this presentation which was perhaps the highlight of the evening. The third act of this show was devoted to spiritualistic exposes and talks about various fraudulent mediums. Houdini explained his attitude and intention with these program notes: "Do the dead come back? Houdini presents a magician's idea of spiritualism. A series of natural phenomenena puzzling the most intelligent and erudite people in the world. The majority of the problems are frequently attributed to demonology and witchcraft. That there is no mistaking Houdini's attitude, he wishes it to be fully understood that he is not attacking any religion in any way. He is not a sceptic and respects genuine believers. He does not say that there is not such a thing but that he has never met a genuine medium. He is simply exposing the fraudulant mediums. At the end of this performance there will be a limited amount of time for an open forum. In this Houdini is ready to answer any and all rational questions on this subject. He has no desire to spread false propaganda and if wrong will be delighted to be corrected. Any medium who can prove to a selected committee that they possess a weird or psychic power can win the following rewards offered in America: $10,000 by J. F. Finn; $500 by Dr. J. Allen Gilbert; $5,000, the Scientific American; $5,000, The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology and Houdini's $10,000. For the public record, Houdini is on the committee of the Scientific American and a member of the committee of The Journal of Abnormal and Social Phychology." After a brief lecture, the magician demonstrated some crystal gazing and then took the audience into his confidence, explaining how he was able to secure much of the information he had just revealed. Then he presented a slate test using the standard flap and a second slate test in which he was assisted by Mrs. Houdini in making the exchange. Houdini discussed the famous medium, Margery, and demonstrated the use of the box which eventually trapped her. With his hands and feet held, the performer was able to ring bells and shake tambourines and he illustrated how the medium could remove a foot from his shoe without the victim's knowledge and also he showed how bells could be rung by the use of a slide rule. The open forum period allowed for a few questions and gave everyone a feeling that the evening had been well spent. In reviewing this show for his book, Programs of Famous Magicians, Max Holden wrote, "The Houdini show was one of the most interesting I have ever witnessed. The spiritualistic part being worth many times the price of admission and it was real entertainment, besides being an education to everyone."