tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post2984937695678977035..comments2024-03-28T21:34:40.656-07:00Comments on WILD ABOUT HARRY: Bill Kalush has been to the mountaintopJohn Coxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-20320021511666732602018-07-01T16:57:44.301-07:002018-07-01T16:57:44.301-07:00Yep--the list of acknowledgements, those who had d...Yep--the list of acknowledgements, those who had died, and alive, at the time his book was published reads like a who's who of big names in magic that were connected to Houdini.<br /><br />Sometimes the stars fall into the right alignment. Christopher was the right guy at the right time to write the next Houdini bio after Gresham.Leo Heviahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12990057178465581105noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-91863779393318920872018-07-01T16:14:09.056-07:002018-07-01T16:14:09.056-07:00The credit to Roberta Ernst I think is a pretty go...The credit to Roberta Ernst I think is a pretty good clue that he had access. Also he was Milbourne Christopher. He was plugged into the Houdini world in a major way.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-72057747353808373002018-07-01T12:30:36.144-07:002018-07-01T12:30:36.144-07:00I believe Bess still owned those Ernst diaries bef...I believe Bess still owned those Ernst diaries before the stack changed hands, so one can see how Kellock was able to look at them. Christopher doesn't list those diaries in the General Bibliography section at the back of Untold Story, but he does list a Mrs. Roberta Ernst in the Sources and Acknowledgements section among a list of others for their for their recollections and helpful Leo Heviahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12990057178465581105noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-28186948568783954462018-07-01T11:54:53.732-07:002018-07-01T11:54:53.732-07:00We know Kellock had access because the diaries are...We know Kellock had access because the diaries are quoted throughout that book. Not sure about Gresham. I expect Christopher might have. He doesn't quote from them, but his timeline is extraordinarily exact. And Christopher was a true magic historian.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-91497559835872942772018-07-01T10:58:32.676-07:002018-07-01T10:58:32.676-07:00Our impatience? It took three generations for the ...Our impatience? It took three generations for the material in the Ernst diaries to surface. I wonder if Kellock, Gresham, and Christopher tried and were denied access to those diaries.Leo Heviahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12990057178465581105noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-21078848205716579082018-07-01T10:30:30.984-07:002018-07-01T10:30:30.984-07:00There's no problem here except our impatience....There's no problem here except our impatience. I think the only responsibility of the owners is to provide access to legit historians for the purposes of real research, and that is what's happening. I don't think every dip-shit with screenplay idea needs to rummage through Houdini's diaries. I'm fine with the constraints and control.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-80906141724687889812018-07-01T10:05:51.495-07:002018-07-01T10:05:51.495-07:00Good points by everyone posting. I want to thank M...Good points by everyone posting. I want to thank Michelle for revealing herself here and for asking Bill the spy question. I find it telling that it's not in an important set of diaries. <br /><br />The Ernsts did indeed grant Silverman limited access to their HH diaries. But he was given a very short amount of time that forced him to record the contents he read in a small tape machine. What Leo Heviahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12990057178465581105noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-72405790773373057162018-07-01T08:53:57.321-07:002018-07-01T08:53:57.321-07:00Oh! Well we knew about Wanda Timm aka Miss Trixy. ...Oh! Well we knew about Wanda Timm aka Miss Trixy. That was the performer HH created to do the USD in Germany to undermine Miss Undina. But I had never heard the name Oceana. So I guess that isn't a revelation after all. Thanks.<br /><br />Glad you asked that question, Michelle. Maybe one day the smoking gun will emerge. But I'm happy to move on from this and maybe Bill is too? Houdini'John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-81337219862091879322018-07-01T08:00:55.527-07:002018-07-01T08:00:55.527-07:00Hi, thanks for the post. Two comments.
First, acc...Hi, thanks for the post. Two comments. <br />First, according to my notes of the talk, Oceana was born Wanda Tim and became the first woman performing as "Miss Trixy." I hope we learn more about this. <br /><br />Second, if you'll forgive me the ego, I was the one who asked about HH as a spy, and Kalush said he didn't have any new info from the diaries or any other source since Michellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18176561648732261182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-685826689590452362018-07-01T07:44:42.999-07:002018-07-01T07:44:42.999-07:00I don't consider the Ernst family collectors. ...I don't consider the Ernst family collectors. I think this belongs in a different category. This is a family inheritance and a legacy (and there may be be a foundation in the mix here somewhere). In an interesting way, I think they are continuing Bernard Ernst's work -- protecting his most famous client. And they DO grant access. We see that here. They also gave Ken Silverman access, and John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-83702502315596781402018-06-30T23:54:38.666-07:002018-06-30T23:54:38.666-07:00Super interesting, to say the very least. At the r...Super interesting, to say the very least. At the risk of sounding negative (apologies upfront), it irks me that some collectors, for whatever reasons, hoard their stashes that would otherwise be so incredibly useful in piecing together Houdini's biographical puzzle. I mean no disrespect to the Ernst family, but why are they so protective of the content in those diaries? I understand if they Tom Intervalhttp://www.intervalmagic.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-91750043138352593902018-06-30T07:17:43.813-07:002018-06-30T07:17:43.813-07:00Ah, thanks for catching that.Ah, thanks for catching that.John Coxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04391313393222271260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4732721553418878547.post-85276307264675045432018-06-30T07:00:05.303-07:002018-06-30T07:00:05.303-07:00Wow! Great stuff John! Thanks to Bill for this new...Wow! Great stuff John! Thanks to Bill for this new info. Let's hope it comes out in a future issue of Gibeciere. <br /><br />That's Voisin--not Vision.Leo Heviahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12990057178465581105noreply@blogger.com