tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post1001093485335339476..comments2024-03-28T21:34:40.656-07:00Comments on WILD ABOUT HARRY: Hardeen dials in Radio of 1950John Coxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-34392412687837907942017-10-29T12:45:16.767-07:002017-10-29T12:45:16.767-07:00Interesting material, as always. There’s one point...Interesting material, as always. There’s one point of historical interest up for debate, however. Depending upon which source you believe, the very first broadcast of a radio commercial is very hard to pin down. Two sources place it in New York (on WEAF Radio), on different days, and for different sponsors. Another has it, as mentioned above, in Pittsburgh. My initial research showed the firstAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03288772498250894112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-22962411068863924482014-04-19T11:45:15.496-07:002014-04-19T11:45:15.496-07:00My copy of The Key along with many other of my Hou...My copy of The Key along with many other of my Houdini/magic books is locked away in public storage for now. The small storage rooms looks like an attic jam packed with "stuff". That can be frustrating when you want to pull a book out to look up something like Radio 1950.Leo Hevianoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-15013074763070223362014-04-19T09:40:58.192-07:002014-04-19T09:40:58.192-07:00Thanks, Patrick. Yes, the skirt! I saw that mentio...Thanks, Patrick. Yes, the skirt! I saw that mentioned in your description in The Key. Cool that the Hardeen shot shows it. Another reason to love this pic.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-4235732463382850962014-04-18T19:07:09.568-07:002014-04-18T19:07:09.568-07:00He opened the back doors and either rocked the &qu...He opened the back doors and either rocked the "works" back or took them out. Then he leaned through from the back and waved the cane to show the interior was empty. But, I thought the "works," tube and lights were inside when Dorothy burst out the top. Also, if the lights were practical there would be a power chord--a lot of illusions have had power chords for various reasonsPatrick Cullitonhttp://www.houdinisghost.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-68487740114417030522014-04-18T17:39:06.797-07:002014-04-18T17:39:06.797-07:00If you have Pat Culliton's Houdini The Key the...If you have Pat Culliton's Houdini The Key there a much larger version of the same photo. Comes from our buddy Kevin Connolly's collection, btw.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-46929462815195625362014-04-18T17:35:57.904-07:002014-04-18T17:35:57.904-07:00The photo looks vaguely familiar. You know that fe...The photo looks vaguely familiar. You know that feeling you get when you know you've seen it before, but you don't remember where?<br /><br />Will check my Silverman bio later tonight for the cane pic in Hello Summer.Leo Hevianoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-25606551140794463002014-04-18T16:58:28.949-07:002014-04-18T16:58:28.949-07:00Have you not seen that shot before, Leo? I love it...Have you not seen that shot before, Leo? I love it! Dorothy used to give out signed copies (I have one). <br /><br />It looks like he's holding a cane to me. Instead of a magic wand, I guess Houdini use a magic cane, which seems very Houdini. You can also see the cane in a pic in Silverman of HH doing Hello Summer.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-86371588633310343892014-04-18T14:32:20.101-07:002014-04-18T14:32:20.101-07:00By the way, that's also a great shot of Houdin...By the way, that's also a great shot of Houdini posing next to Dorothy and the Radio. He definitely mastered the art of the dramatic pose. And what the heck is he holding? Some kind of bamboo rod?Leo Hevianoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-29530329862597628912014-04-17T20:49:57.709-07:002014-04-17T20:49:57.709-07:00Interview quote now replaced with the passage from...Interview quote now replaced with the passage from Dorothy's booklet. A much better description. Thanks again, Joe.<br /><br />BTW, in Patrick's book he says the back of the cabinet was also opened so the audience could see through it.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-34218095291451951282014-04-17T20:19:32.872-07:002014-04-17T20:19:32.872-07:00Oh, excellent idea to look in Dorothy's book! ...Oh, excellent idea to look in Dorothy's book! Why the heck didn't I think of that? Maybe I'll replace that quote with one from the book. Good work, Joe.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-13533798526907023702014-04-17T19:54:41.902-07:002014-04-17T19:54:41.902-07:00Indeed! In the booklet, Touring with Houdini by Do...Indeed! In the booklet, Touring with Houdini by Dorothy Young, she said: “he opened the entire front, which consisted of two doors, and removed a panel that held various coils and transformers and large glass tubes the size of light bulbs that were used before transistors were invented. The audience could see there was nothing else inside. He replaced the panel and closed the front.”Joe M. Notarohttp://harryhoudinicircumstantialevidence.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-51244150911973453102014-04-17T13:21:44.185-07:002014-04-17T13:21:44.185-07:00Glad you also had this reaction, Dean. Mark was sh...Glad you also had this reaction, Dean. Mark was sharing with me some of his Houdini's treasures. He has many wonderful things. But I lost it when I came to this photo and said we HAD to put this up on the blog. Just seeing inside the "radio" blew my mind.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-74762852834006637382014-04-17T13:19:07.536-07:002014-04-17T13:19:07.536-07:00Wow! That is one of the coolest pictures I've ...Wow! That is one of the coolest pictures I've ever seen. Thanks for sharing this! What a treat!Carnegiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10142955905272650610noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-86961754355847308922014-04-17T13:00:32.233-07:002014-04-17T13:00:32.233-07:00Sorry, Leo, we don't know the date. But, yes, ...Sorry, Leo, we don't know the date. But, yes, I'd also guess late '20s or '30s. Gladys also looks young.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-74095922583799311382014-04-17T12:57:26.403-07:002014-04-17T12:57:26.403-07:00Thanks to Mark and John for this photo! Does anybo...Thanks to Mark and John for this photo! Does anybody know the date? I'm guessing early 1930s or late 20s. Hardeen looks relatively young here.Leo Hevianoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-10741960373040727562014-04-17T11:54:42.312-07:002014-04-17T11:54:42.312-07:00Of course, removing the tubes was what maybe made ...Of course, removing the tubes was what maybe made this a radio from "the future." Wait. Wireless!John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-65098231015901732692014-04-17T11:41:37.974-07:002014-04-17T11:41:37.974-07:00The sentence I was looking at was: "He'd ...The sentence I was looking at was: "He'd lift out a panel like tubes and things. Then he would close it up..." You could be right, he could have lifted it out to show there was noting but the panel/tubes inside, and then put it all back and close it up. Hard to tell what's she's saying exactly.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-85161949931379772582014-04-17T11:20:54.955-07:002014-04-17T11:20:54.955-07:00From the photo it looks like there was a false pan...From the photo it looks like there was a false panel with the tubes, etc., and then the girl was hidden behind it. When she says, 'Houdini would open the doors, would prop them back and show there was nothing inside.', maybe she meant 'no person inside'. Just a thought.<br />She could've been describing the trick from her perspective, as Houdini pulled it off. And also from Mantoonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-52401528147464907592014-04-17T09:41:53.861-07:002014-04-17T09:41:53.861-07:00By the way, I'm wondering if Dorothy was confu...By the way, I'm wondering if Dorothy was confused in how she remembered the presentation of this. She says they'd remove the inner workings. Seems like a much more effective presentation to show the inside workings -- a box too full to hold anything -- and then from it would appear the girl. It's a nice twist on a box production. Not an empty box. A box too full.<br /><br />She could John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.com