I actually think Houdini and Knievel were very different in how they approached their life and art. I think the only real parallel is how they gripped their respective eras and have maintained a timeless hold in the public's imagination. There have been many motorcycle daredevils since Knievel who have jumped further and performed stunts far more breathtaking. Even his own son Robbie Knievel had a spectacular career. Yet, ask someone to name a motorcycle daredevil, and the only name that comes up is Knievel. He pioneered his unique art and owns it to this day.
We can say the same about Houdini. Over the years, numerous escape artists have performed Houdini's escapes faster, higher, and with greater danger. Yet when we think of an escape artist, the only name that survives is Houdini.
If only Houdini did motorcycle jumps!
Here's a kids' book from 1978 by Robert Kraske that collects tales of daredevils. (Kraske also penned the book, Harry Houdini: Master of Magic.) This book has a nice section on Houdini with some terrific illustrations by Ivan Powell. But the guy who made the cover was Knievel. Hey, he was a hero to kids at this time.
Interestingly, this cover shows Knievel jumping a tank of sharks. This was a stunt he planned to do on live television in 1977, but he cancelled the jump after a crash during a practice run. Jumping a shark would be left to another icon of the 1970s.
Wait, Fonzie also did the Milk Can escape. And Houdini once planned to battle a live shark, but canceled the stunt, just like Knievel did. This is starting to get a little too tangled! Let's move on.
Need more? You can read the full Houston Post piece as a "Scholar" member of my Patreon.
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How Houdini and Knievel made their stunts THEIR OWN, making the efforts of other performers irrelevant is very true.
ReplyDeleteWhat Knievel acheived for himself is amazing. Head of ABC sports Roone Arledge said 2 personalities dominated their coverage in the 1970s: Muhammad Ali and Evel Knievel.
So hypothetically if Houdini DID fight a shark… do you think he’d win? 😂 Most likely he’d lose an arm but a girl can dream. He can cartoonishly punch a shark like Mr. Gru in the first Despicable Me movie in my head. *fangirling* 🤭❤️ - Abby Martin
ReplyDeleteOkay I read the man eating shark post on the actual planned stunt. I’m glad he didn’t do it. I’m just being silly. - Abby Martin
DeleteA compilation of Evel's jumps. That he accomplished this in those clunky, heavy, Harley type motorcycles with bad suspension is incredible:
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/0CBpQnGMgaE?si=x7VvbK9HR88WXE2j
Fonzie did the Milk Can Escape. Don't watch it, the secret is accidentally revealed.
ReplyDelete