Saturday, April 26, 2025

Houdini traveling trunk rolls away with $48,000

The bidding was fast and furious at Potter & Potter's auction of Houdiniana and Magic Memorabilia today. As expected, the Houdini traveling trunk, which was featured on the catalog cover, was the top seller at a $48,000 (hammer price).



The real surprise was a 1925 challenge playbill from Gimbel Bros, which sold for a whopping $8000! Most challenges like this sell in the neighborhood for $400. I have no idea why this challenge went so high. Apart from the recognizable Gimbels name, I see nothing special about it. Maybe two deep-pocketed Gimbels collectors were competing?


Many of the Houdini lots in today's auction came from the Kevin Connolly collection. As always, congrats to the buyers.

Thursday, April 24, 2025

Houdini's spirit trumpet on Ghost Adventures


If you watched the latest episode of Ghost Adventures: The Houdini Seance, you saw I brought a Houdini spirit trumpet to the investigation at the Winchester Mystery House. I did not do a very good job explaining it on the show, so I wanted to do so now, because this is an incredible artifact!

This trumpet belongs to Diego Domingo. Diego acquired this from George Hippisley in 1970, along with Houdini's seance flashlight. Hippisley received it directly from Edward Saint in 1936. When George listed items from his collection for sale in The Linking Ring, Diego got the jump on other collectors and acquired the trumpet and flashlight.

When the show invited me to come to San Jose for an interview, I reached out to Diego and asked if I could bring the trumpet. For this type of show, I knew I needed a good visual. I was thrilled when Diego said yes and grateful that he entrusted me with it. I also brought a signed Magician Among the Spirits and a program from Houdini's spiritualism lecture. But, as expected, the trumpet is what they really flipped for, especially Zak Bagans. For that one night, it was the star of the show!

I should clarify that this isn't the only Houdini spirit trumpet out there. Roger Dreyer's Houdini Revealed museum has a trumpet that best matches some Houdini photos. Fred Pittella has a Houdini trumpet the size of a person. Brandon Hodge has what he believes to be the Benninghofen trumpet. But Diego's trumpet has excellent provenance and shows the ravages of use. And what I said during the show is true. It has never been shown before. So I'm happy to have brought it into the light (so to speak).

As for the episode itself, I thought it was bonkers and an absolute blast! Our great friend George Hardeen was magnificent. I loved it when he said Houdini has been present at every seance; we've just been unable to perceive him. I also loved that they visited Houdini locations in San Francisco to collect "energetic trigger objects." And that photo from the seance and those voices they captured are pretty freaky! They know what they're doing as paranormal investigators and as showmen. Where the line is, I'm not sure. But it's great television.

However, I cringed when I heard myself say, "He was a believer in Spiritualism.” I think what I said was, "He was a believer in Spiritualism in his youth.” Because that is true. It's also true that Houdini always believed in the possibility of spirit communication, although he was very skeptical of people who called themselves mediums and the Spiritualist movement. Sorry Harry.

One thing that didn't make the cut is when we left the "Witches Cap," we became lost in the tangled maze of the house. Nothing to do with ghosts, but it was awesome. It was also near midnight, the very time Houdini himself visited the house.

I tried hard to get the Official Houdini Seance to bring their 2024 seance to Winchester Mystery House to mark the 100th anniversary of Houdini's visit. That didn't work out. So I'm happy to have had an amazing anniversary experience in the house, and I thank Zak Bagans and the Ghost Adventures team for providing that experience. And, of course, a huge thank you to Diego Domingo for allowing me to bring his incredible Houdini spirit trumpet along for the ride!


Ghost Adventures can be seen on Discovery+ and MAX. This episode is also now available on Amazon.com for $2.99 HD or $1.99 SD.

Want more? I've uploaded several high-resolution photos of Diego's Houdini spirit trumpet to my Patreon. You can also see photos of the Winchester Mystery Houses' own Houdini relics.

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Tuesday, April 22, 2025

I hate AI and the feeling appears to be mutual

WILD ABOUT HARRY has just crossed over 16 million pageviews. You know who isn't impressed by that? Google's AI. 15 years, 5782 posts, 21781 comments, and 16 million page views. Yet when I asked Google's generative AI to recommend a good Houdini blog, here's the list I got:


Hey, at least Joe Notaro's Harry Houdini Circumstantial Evidence made the list. I can't argue with that choice. And to be fair to Google, my blog does very well in the traditional links. It can even land at #1. Which makes the AI results even more bizarre. But as Houdini would say, "Such is life."

Thank you for visiting and supporting WILD ABOUT HARRY over the years. Even you bots!


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Monday, April 21, 2025

Houdini in Paris

In 1920, Houdini shot footage on the streets of Paris for a film he was planning about counterfeiting. Some of that footage appeared in Haldane of the Secret Service (1923), but a lot never made the cut. Now you can watch nearly 4 minutes of that unused footage on my Patreon.


This is not an exclusive. You can find and view this at Historic Films. But I make things like this easy for patrons!

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Friday, April 18, 2025

Who were the holdouts?

The Houdini community is fortunate to have many generous collectors who open their doors to researchers and biographers. I know I have benefited from this generosity. When Ken Silverman was working on his biography, Houdini!!! The Career of Ehrich Weiss (1996), he was grateful for the help of collectors, and he thanked them in his book.

However, not everyone gave him access. In his sourcebook, NOTES to Houdini!!!, Ken shares the following:

Most collectors generously allowed me to see and quote from material they owned. (I thank them individually in the book.) But to my frustration, two collectors with sizable Houdini holdings gave me only limited access, and two others refused to let me see anything at all. May they live and be well, these folks.

Silverman was clearly miffed, but he was classy enough not to name these individuals. That just makes me all the more curious. Who were they? What were their reasons for denying him access? Ken Silverman was a Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer, so he was clearly going to produce a quality Houdini book. And he did.

Below are the individuals that Ken thanks by name in Houdini!!! The Career of Ehrich Weiss, so we know it's not any of these folks:

No less of my information about Houdini has come from the holdings of private collectors. Tom Boldt of Appleton, Wisconsin, invited me to read investigative reports prepared for Houdini by Rose Mackenberg and Stewart Griscom, Houdini’s account of his visit to Anna Eva Fay, and a hundred-page stenographic record of Houdini’s Philadelphia confrontation with J. Malcolm Bird. Mario Carrandi Jr., of Belle Mead, New Jersey, graciously allowed me to take notes on Houdini’s quarrelsome correspondence with Martin Beck, and to examine rare cabinet photographs of Houdini. From the large collection of the late Milbourne Christopher (1914-84)— magician and historian of magic—Mrs. Maurine Christopher permitted me to select for study manuscripts that include some of Houdini’s letters to Will Goldston, Harry Kellar, and others, and Houdini’s draft of A Magician Among the Spirits. David Copperfield gave me entry to his magic museum in Las Vegas, housing many of Houdini’s notes on tricks, his wax cylinder recording of patter for the Water Torture Cell, and many unique Houdini posters, lockpicks, and photos. I spent a full day at the home of David Meyer in Glenwood, Illinois, researching his choice scrapbook of clippings and personal memorabilia amassed by Houdini between 1900 and 1905. Stanley Palm of Brooklyn, New York, gave me unlimited consultation of a scrapbook gathered by Houdini in the 1890s and of Houdini’s first diary (ca. 1878-79)—key items in my account of Houdini’s early career. Most of Houdini’s other diaries—indispensable to writing his biography—are owned by a collector who generously allowed me to read them but wishes to remain anonymous.

Other collectors who own and have furnished me with original Houdini material are Roger W. Barrett, Marie Blood, John Bryce, Jr., Mike Caveney, Kevin Connolly, James Crossini, Patrick Culliton, Frank Dailey, John Daniel, Paul Daniels, Edwin A. Dawes, David De-Val, Diego Domingo, Roger E. Dreyer, John Gaughan, Ron Hilgert, Edward Hill, John Hinson, Don Hinz, Volker Huber, Ann M. James, Gene Keeney, Dorothy Young Kiamie, Ken Klosterman, George S. Lowry, William Mcllhany, Arthur E. Moses, Henry Muller, Norm Nielsen, Fulton Oursler, Jr., Charles Reynolds, Tom Rozoff, Stephen Sparks, the late Manny Weltman, and Herb Zarrow. They all have my liveliest gratitude, although my exact debt to each is made clear only in the full notes.

Others from whom I received valuable information about Houdini include Barbara Belford, John Booth, Dick Brooks, Mildred L. Buckley, David Charvet, Ormus Davenport (Ira Davenport’s great-grandson), Dorothy Dietrich, Carol Durgin, Tom Ewing, Jack Flosso, Ken Force, Stephen James Forrester, Lewis Frumkes, Alfred Holden, Ricky Jay, Walter Johnson, S. T. Joshi, Frank Koval, Kathy Leab, Bill Liles, Norman Mailer, Brooks McNamara, Marion Meade, Joel Miller, Ona Nowina-Sapinsky, Dr. James G. Ravin, Mrs. Alfred W. Roberts, David Roth, Clarice Stasz, Ken Trombly, the late M. Samuel White (Houdini’s nephew). Dr. Richard Wresch, and W. Gordon Yadon.

You might notice that Sidney Radner is not on this list. But that's because he was given his own thank you paragraph. One person, now deceased, is conspicuously absent. I strongly suspect he was one of the holdouts. But absence from this list does not necessarily identify the holdouts. Heck, I'm not on this list! And some people who are active today might not have been active in the early to mid-1990s.

Anyway, I've often puzzled over this, especially as I travel many of the same roads that Silverman traveled. It's also an intriguing part of this important book's legacy as we near its 30th anniversary.

Silverman with Sid Radner in 1991.

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Expedition Files: The Real Cause of Houdini's Death

Well lookie here. Season 2 of the Discovery series Expedition Files with Josh Gates has an episode about Houdini's death. I was almost going to skip this one until I saw that it features this serious young man. 


For the record, I did not "discover a lost trove of letters hidden in Houdini's archive." This letter was in Wayne Wissner's The Houdini Correspondence File, and I first shared my thoughts about it HERE. But it is a legit, unreported aspect of Houdini's final days. It's just presented here with a bit of showbiz and cheese.


You can watch Expedition Files on Discovery. Seasons are also eventually uploaded to Amazon Prime.

Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Ghost Adventures: The Houdini Seance airs April 23 & 24

Ghost Adventures season 21, episode 12, The Houdini Seance, will air April 23 & 24 on Discovery. Zak Bagans and the gang go in search of Houdini at the historic Winchester Mystery House with our friend George Hardeen. I was also along for the ride with a unique Houdini artifact courtesy of Diego Domingo. It was pretty wild!

On the 100th anniversary of Harry Houdini's midnight visit to the fabled Winchester Mystery House, Zak and a team of paranormal experts attempt to summon the legendary magician's spirit. Will escaping death’s grip be Houdini's greatest trick?

Now, how one goes about watching anything on traditional cable these days is the real mystery. But you can start HERE.

Monday, April 14, 2025

Philip Yordan, the man who wrote Houdini (1953)

While working on a recent installment of Deconstructing Houdini '53, I realized that I rarely mention screenwriter Philip Yordan by name, even though the series is basically all about his work on the movie. In fact, I never even looked him up to see what else he may have done. As it turns out, Yordan had a very full career with over 100 credits, including Dillinger, El Cid, King of Kings, and Broken Lance, for which he won an Oscar. But there was one factoid that instantly jumped out at me.

Philip Yordan died on March 24, 2003. Houdini's 129th birthday!

I also found an excellent profile of Yordan in the Nov/Dec 2009 Noir City Sentile. I've shared that on my Patreon.


Check out my series Deconstructing Houdini '53, in which I bring to light the many hidden accuracies of this first and, IMO, still the best Houdini biopic.

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Friday, April 11, 2025

Henry Marcus does the Overboard Box in 1907

Today, we have a new contender for who first did the Overboard Box.

On Aug. 6, 1907, the Cleveland Plain Dealer advertised that Henry Marcus would be nailed into a packing case and "thrown" into the lagoon at Luna Park. This is six years before Houdini's first overboard box and three years before Hanco did the stunt with a trunk in Australia. At this time, Houdini was just beginning to do bridge jumps as his main outdoor feat.

The Plain Dealer, Aug 6, 1907.

Did Marcus go through with the escape? Try as I might, I couldn't find any follow-up, nor could I find confirmation of Marcus appearing at Luna Park. It appears Luna Park was in competition with White City, another summer resort, which was featuring "Sensational Free Acts" by Capt. E.C. Wilson. Luna also advertised "Free Open Air Acts." Was the Marcus stunt one of those free acts?

The Plain Dealer, Aug 8, 1907.

Houdini was spending the summer months at home in New York when Marcus did this stunt. He would not play Cleveland again until March 1908. So if this was a one-off stunt, Houdini may have never learned of it. But he was aware of Marcus himself. In the April 15, 1907 issue of the Conjurers' Monthly Magazine, we read:

Marcus, "The man in the box," is featuring Houdini's packing case trick and is industriously seeking engagements. When last heard he was in Coxsackie, N.Y.

If someone wants to take up the challenge and try to find Marcus doing his overboard box anywhere else, I'd love to hear what you find. For the moment, we can add this to the mysterious origins of the Houdini Blackstone Hanco Marcus overboard box.

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Thursday, April 10, 2025

$5000 Houdini pen because why not

Here's more high-end Houdini-inspired merchandise for people with more money than...well, for people with money. I do think this is pretty cool, but at 5K, I'll have to stick with my Sharpie.

Step into the world of magic and illusion with the Montegrappa Icons Harry Houdini Limited Edition Rollerball Pen. Part of Montegrappa’s acclaimed Icons series, this enchanting limited edition celebrates the legendary illusionist and escape artist, Harry Houdini, known for his incredible feats of escapology. With only 150 pieces of this remarkable rollerball pen being produced, this is an exclusive opportunity to own a piece of history, ready to break free from the ordinary.

You can get more info and see more pics at Appelboom. Buy one for each day of the week!

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Tuesday, April 8, 2025

Pins and Needles: Love Letters to a Dead Magician

The 2025 Houdini book boom continues with Pins and Needles: Love Letters to a Dead Magician, a chapbook of Houdini poetry by our good friend Colleen Bak. You can buy it for $10 from Bottlecap Press. Colleen loves Houdini and has always been a huge supporter of this site. Let's share the love!


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