One of my favorite YouTube channels is The1920sChannel. Founded in 2013, there are a wealth of videos related to the 1920s, and several related to Houdini. Below is a recent upload. This collects several "weird and crazy tales of the 1920s "and is pretty terrific. Houdini appears at 34:58, but I would recommend watching them all. The straw hat riot is especially wild, and maybe relevant as Houdini was known to wear a boater in the 1920s.
Wow! A photo of Margery inside the Margery Box! I don't remember ever seeing that before. Lots of photos out there of Houdini inside the box. That thing is big. Hard to believe it's missing.
ReplyDeleteThat's an uncommon photo, but I've seen it. The box can look big in photos, but I think if we ever saw it, we would be shocked how small it is.
DeleteLink to Margery photo: https://library.umbc.edu/specialcollections/garrett/mediumship/margery-crandon/margery-in-box/
DeleteOh neat! I have seen one of Houdini in the box instead.
DeleteOn an unrelated note, his pants are very shiny! 😂 - Abby Martin
Wasn’t the bell box placed in front of the box on a table? If I remember the first test was without the hasps and locks. Margery was able to ring the bell via pushing her head forward using the top of her head to activate the bell box. The second test Houdini fastened the hasps and locks and once again the bell box rang. This time a folding ruler was found under the cushion Margery was sitting on in the box. Margery supposedly pushed the folding ruler out through the neck opening using it to make the bell ring. Third test Houdini made sure Margery had no tools and the bell box remained silent.
DeleteClose! In the first test, the bell rang, and, yes, HH believed Margery had done it with her head, as the front of the box was broken open. The second test with the fortified box didn't make it to the bell-ringing stage. As soon as the lights went out, "Walter" accused HH of planting something in the box. The box was opened, and the ruler was found. HH said he suspected Margery had intended to use it through the neck hole. In the third test, Houdini's box was jettisoned, and another device created by Dr. Comstock was used on Margery. No manifestation occurred.
DeleteI want to go inside The Margery Box. - Abby Martin
DeleteIs there a photo or description of that box?
DeleteYou can see published photos of the box with Houdini inside in quite a number of Houdini books.
DeleteThat Margery photo is strange. She's smiling in the box like it's a photo op. Biographers would have us believe this was a serious contest between her and HH. Yet this photo and the Lime Street photo of those two smiling at each other contradicts that narrative.
DeleteAnon -- you can see photos of the box with HH inside front and back HERE.
DeleteSorry, I’m referring to the devise made by Dr Comstock. Is there a photo of it?
ReplyDeleteOooooo... Unfortunately, no. I don't think it was a box. I think it was more like a pair of stocks for the hands and feet.
DeleteSpeaking of stocks, have you seen the pic of Houdini in stocks reading Variety John? It’s so cute! - Abby Martin
DeleteI have. It's a great shot. He took several playful photos in these stocks.
DeleteOoo! Do you know where I can find the rest of these photos? - Abby Martin
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