The fatalist in Seattle

Here's a nice clipping of Houdini doing a suspended straitjacket escape from the Seattle Times building on October 19, 1915. This was during Houdini's week-long run at Seattle's Orpheum Theater located on 3rd & Madison. It was his first appearance in the city.

Seattle Daily Times, Oct. 20, 1915

While finding a new photo of Houdini is always great, I get just as excited when I discover a nugget such as the below. This is an early mention of Houdini's belief in reincarnation and fatalism, and how he came to hold these beliefs.

Seattle Daily Times, Oct 22, 1915

A fatalist is a person who believes that all events are predetermined and therefore inevitable. A fatalist believes in destiny. Houdini would often describe himself as a fatalist. The earliest mention I've found was in 1909, and the latest was in 1924. You could say that it was a core philosophy. 

Hey, let's see what Google's A.I. has to say about this:

WRONG

This week, Houdini sat for a new series of publicity photos at the studio of F. C. LaPine at 1109 Third Avenue in Seattle. One of those famous portraits is below.

The Fatalist

What's left of Houdini's Seattle? Not much. The Orpheum was demolished in 1949. The Seattle Times building stood on the northeast corner of 2nd Ave. and Union St. Like so many Houdini locations, a parking lot stands on the site today.

You can read more about Houdini in Seattle at HistoryLink.org. You can also continue on to his next stop, Portland.

Want more? I've uploaded a file of newspaper clippings related to Houdini's 1915 Seattle engagement, along with a few more articles in which he describes himself as a fatalist, to my Patreon.

Related:

• Original Houdini portrait photo nabs $887 on eBay
• Houdini, reincarnation, and a man named Von Treck
• Houdini in Portland