Discover Houdini's legacy in Scranton

Here's a nice news report showcasing the famous Houdini Museum and Theatre in Scranton, Pennsylvania, run by our friends Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz. Enjoy.

Related:

• Scranton honors Dorothy Dietrich and Houdini Museum
• "Haunted" Houdini printers block MISSING
• Ambassador's Tour

Houdini on Stage 4

Over the Christmas break, I found something that I have been on the lookout for a long time. A report in the September 24, 1952, San Antonio Express-News mentions that Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh are currently shooting the movie Houdini on Stage 4 at Paramount. Specifically, the scene mentioned is the Tony Pastors scene.

San Antonio Express-News, September 24, 1952.

While I knew Houdini (1953) was shot entirely on the Paramount lot in Hollywood, I never knew which soundstage they used. Now I do!

Of course, it's possible they used more than one stage as the movie utilized many large sets. But at least I know one.

Now, if we can just get Houdini (1953) added to the historic plaque listing the films shot on the stage.

Check out the links below for more Houdini-Paramount locations.

Related:

• Finding Houdini's 278 at Paramount
• Houdini rises at Paramount
• Bessie visits Paramount (and so do I)

Instructions for a Séance with Katie Bender

Here's our first Houdini play of 2026. Katie Bender is bringing her Houdini-themed Instructions for a Séance to OKC Rep Theater in Oklahoma City, January 22-24.

You’re invited. For one week in January Katie Bender—playwright, performer, mom—will host a series of séances at OKC Rep to contact Harry Houdini to teach her how to escape her life. And maybe you have things you want to escape from?

Instructions for a Séance is a playful yet poignant exploration of motherhood, artistic ambition, and the urge to escape. Inspired by the Houdini archives at the Ransom Center, Séance is a 70-minute theatrical gem: compact, gleaming, and utterly unforgettable.

For more information and to buy tickets, visit the official website.

Related:

• Houdini Plays
• Treasures of the Harry Ransom Center
• Harry Ransom Center reopens Houdini and magic collections

Interview in NEMCA's latest Discoveries

Last year, I was honored to receive the New England Magic Collectors Association Founders Award for 2025. You can now read an interview I did with them in the latest issue of their newsletter, Discoveries. I've not seen it yet, but I hear it came out well. We covered a lot of ground, and I shared images of a favorite Houdini collectible that has a New England connection.

Join NEMCA and receive Discoveries at their official website. Their next Yankee Gathering will take place in Nashua, New Hampshire, in November.

Related:

• October surprise
• NEMCA announces 2026 Gathering in Nashua

Houdini's Escapes escapes copyright

Over the past few years, Public Domain Day has become increasingly popular. On January 1st of each year, a new tranche of books, movies, and music falls out of copyright. This became big news when Micky Mouse (the Steamboat Willy version) became Public Domain. Admittedly, copyright is tricky and varies by country, but in general, this year sees anything from 1930 joining the Public Domain.

So are any Houdini books entering the public domain this year? Yes! Houdini's Escapes by Water B. Gibson was first published in 1930 and, presumably, is now out of copyright. The combo edition, Houdini's Escapes and Magic, also shows a 1930 copyright. However, later editions list a 1932 copyright for Houdini's Magic (released as a separate edition), which may complicate matters. But the solo Escapes has escaped!

I have a fond memory of this book. When I first became interested in Houdini, I would peruse bibliographies in the backs of my books to see what other Houdini books had been released in past years. I fixated on the title, Houdini's Escapes. There was a book just about Houdini's escapes!? That sounded like a dream book. But at the time, I had no idea how to find an out-of-print book.

Then, like magic, one day I walked into my local Waldenbooks, and there on the shelf was a gleaming new mass-market paperback called Houdini's Escapes. It took me a while to process that this was the same book from 1930. It was like it had been reprinted just for me! (By the way, the mass-market format is also essentially going away this year.)

Now, truth be told, I was a bit disappointed in the book back then. I had expected a highlight book about Houdini's most famous escapes and the stories behind them. Instead, this is largely a collection of escape concepts from Houdini's notebooks. And no pictures! That all came in the book Houdini's Fabulous Magic (1961), which had its own magical reprint around this same time.

But I still have my Houdini Escapes Bantam paperback (right), and when I eventually found a first edition hardcover from 1930, I flipped for that cover! And today I value the book as a glimpse inside Houdini's mind and a record of unusual escapes that could have been.

For a full list of new copyright-free properties, check out the Public Domain Day 2026 website.

Related:

• "Had Houdini lived he would have written this book"
• Walter Gibson interviewed in 1973
• Full bibliography

Wild About Harry PRESS is coming soon

Over the holiday break, I got down to business and created my new online store and publishing arm, Wild About Harry PRESS. This is where I plan to sell my upcoming Ultimate Houdini Chronology books. I've done a soft launch today with early access for my patrons. I'll be opening the store soon for everybody. You can sign up to be notified when by clicking below.

www.wildaboutharrypress.com

Related:

• ANNOUNCEMENT: I'M DONE WITH HOUDINI!
• YOU CAN NOW OWN HOUDINI'S FIRST DIARY
• Early access to my new online store (Patreon only)

Houdini Voisin model creator Ian Satur passes away

Sad news out of Australia. Ian Satur, who built the one-third-scale model of Houdini's Voisin biplane for the 2010 Centenary of Flight celebrations in Diggers Rest, has passed away. The below was posted over the weekend on the Diggers Rest Facebook page. Funeral services were held today.

Below are links where you can see more of Ian's work.

Related:

• Building Houdini’s Voisin
• Model of Houdini's plane is safe for now
• Houdini's plane has nowhere to land

LINK: Escape To A Magical New Cafe In Houdini’s Old Haunt

Here's some great news that I received over the Christmas break. The building that once housed Houdini's Film Developing Corporation and later his magic workshop is now a cafe called Beni Coffee. The building had been private, but now anyone can visit the famous space and have a coffee at the same time! I'm super excited about this. 

Click the headline or any of the images below to read a nice report by Susie Felber at the Weehawken Gazette.

At the moment, Beni Coffee is only open on weekends. It's located at 216 19th St Union City, NJ 07087. Tell them Houdini sent you!

Thank you Susie Felber for the news.

Related:

• The saga of Houdini's Film Developing Corporation
• Houdini in his workshop
• It's now the "Houdini Studio" in New Jersey

Houdini & Me 2026 by Trudy Monti

Our friend Trudy Monti has released a new Houdini datebook, Houdini & Me 2026: 100th Anniversary Edition. Below are details.

Unlock the mysteries of one of history's most fascinating figures with this one-of-a-kind journal that documents over 425 milestones from Harry Houdini's incredible life. This book offers a window into the mind of a master escape artist. Interspersed with these historic events, you will find space for your own reflections, allowing your personal journey for posterity with that of Harry Houdini. Fill the pages of this journal with your own adventures and make it your own personal saga. This isn't just Houdini's story it's Houdini's and yours.

I have Trudy's 2025 book. I keep it with my other Houdini books as a collectible. But this one I'm actually going to use to journal this memorable year. I think that will make it an even better collectible!

You can buy Houdini & Me 2026 on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk. If you'd like a signed copy, you can contact Trudy on Facebook.

Related:

• Houdini & Me 2025 by Trudy Monti
• Trudy Monti's new edition of The Zanetti Mystery

Welcome to the Harry Houdini Centenary year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR, and welcome to another year of WILD ABOUT HARRY. Of course, 2026 is no ordinary year. This year marks the 100th anniversary of Houdini's death on Halloween in 1926. As such, there will be various Houdini celebrations, several new books, a major new documentary, and more that's yet to be announced. If you were around in 1976 and experienced the 50th anniversary, you're about to experience it all over again. But even more so!

I'm super excited that this will be the year I launch my new e-store and publishing arm, Wild About Harry PRESS, where I will soon be offering the first volume of The Ultimate Houdini Chronology. My commitment to this new enterprise may result in fewer posts here on WAH, but I won't let anything major slip past.

So strap in for what promises to be one WILD year!

The World of Magic aired 50 years ago tonight

Had to jump back in to note the 50th anniversary of a magic milestone and a personal one as well. It was 50 years ago tonight that Doug Henning's first "World of Magic" television special aired LIVE on NBC. Doug's magic and his climactic performance of Houdini's Water Torture Cell was a ratings hit, and this special has been attributed to launching Magic's second Golden Age. Having just seen Houdini (1953) the previous month, this special only cemented my newfound Houdini mania.

San Francisco Chronicle, Dec 25, 1975.

Did you see this special live? If so, share your memories in the comments below.

Related:

• "Houdini must have been crazy to do this."
• My first look at the real Houdini
• Doug Henning's World of Magic aired 35 years ago today

Escaping obscurity in 2025

It's time for me to wrap up 2025 and take my year-end break. It was another great year for Houdini, and for me personally with the release of Escaping Obscurity: The Travel Diary of Harry Houdini 1897-1899. I'm looking forward to continuing the story next year in Handcuff King: The Rise of Harry Houdini, the first book in my 3-volume Ultimate Houdini Chronology.

With more and more AI slop flooding the online space, I'm happy to be moving into the world of books, which is where I learned about Houdini in the first place. I hope you'll join me. But don't worry. WILD ABOUT HARRY will continue into 2026 and beyond.

Here's a look back at the year that was.

2025 in Review:

January (18 posts)

February (16 posts)

March (19 posts)

April (20 posts)

May (19 posts)

June (20 posts)

July (19 posts)

August (13 posts)

September (19 posts)

October (25 posts)

November (19 posts)

December (5 posts)

Most Viewed New Post of 2025

YOU CAN NOW OWN HOUDINI'S FIRST DIARY (June 29)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

Top image: Street advertising for Houdini's 1912 engagement at the Gayety in Washington, DC. Screen capture from The Truth About Houdini (1970).

Exploring Houdini's Boston

While on a recent research trip for my next book, I passed through Boston, which is a fantastic city for Houdini locations. Among these is the site of Keith's Theatre, where Houdini appeared many times and did so many famous feats, including his escape from a sea monster. However, identifying the theater's location can be tricky. Most photos and vintage postcards (such as the above) show an impressive entrance on Tremont Street. This is what stands on that site today.

However, this was not the theater. This was just a facade built along the well-trafficked street that led patrons into an arcade and through a tunnel under Mason Street, bringing them up into the actual theater on Washington Street. 

Below is the original building on Washington Street that once housed Houdini's Keith's Theatre. You can see a billboard above it listing the many venues that once occupied the building, including Keith's (I didn't even notice this billboard when I was taking this pic).

The pic below shows a different perspective. On one side of the building is the Paramount Theater. This is where the Adams House Hotel once stood. Houdini stayed at Adams House whenever he was in Boston. It was there that he took the first of his famous ice baths. On the other side is the current Opera House, which was once called the B.F. Keith's Theater. But this was a newer Keith's, opened in 1928, so don't be fooled by this one, especially as it resembles the Tremont Street facade.

This wasn't my only stop. I've shared a series of videos on my Patreon exploring the other locations, including the real location of Houdini's famed "Boston Tombs" jailbreak, which I think might come as a surprise to most folks. I know it was a surprise to me!

If you're a patron, you can continue the tour below.

Still need more Houdini in Boston? Below are a few links you might enjoy.

Related:

• Houdini plays Boston in 1895
• Houdini's return to form
• Houdini comes out swinging

The Dream Big Folio: Houdini’s Illusion That Inspired David Copperfield

Here's a nice holiday gift idea. "The Dream Big Folio: Houdini’s Illusion That Inspired David Copperfield" is a new release by History By Mail. Below is a photo and details.

Step into the moment that redefined what humans believe is possible.

Dream Big Folio – Houdini’s Illusion That Inspired David Copperfield brings you inside the legendary 1918 Vanishing Elephant performance at the New York Hippodrome—an act so audacious it later inspired a young David Copperfield to imagine making the moon disappear.

This folio is built around one extraordinary centerpiece: a replica of Houdini’s original letter to Harry Kellar, preserved exclusively in David Copperfield’s International Museum and Library of the Conjuring Arts, the world’s largest private collection of magic memorabilia. Kellar, widely known as the “Dean of American Magicians,” was the most celebrated magician in the United States before Houdini and one of Houdini’s early heroes and mentors. The original letter resides only in Copperfield’s museum.

Everything in the folio is designed to give you the same spark Copperfield describes in his letter—the spark that later helped fuel some of the most iconic illusions in modern history.

You can purchase "The Dream Big Folio: Houdini’s Illusion That Inspired David Copperfield" at the History By Mail website.

Related:

• 100 years ago Houdini vanished an elephant
• Revisit my visit to the Copperfield Collection
• David Blaine's Beautiful Struggle started with Houdini