LINK: The House Where Houdini Stayed Was Disappearing… Not Anymore

Here's a terrific post by our friend Scott Markus at What's YOUR Ghost Story? about the current state of the house in Delavan, Wisconsin, that belonged to the Flitcroft family. Click the headline or the image below to have a read.

In the article, Scott says he couldn't confirm that Houdini visited the house in 1908. Well, I can confirm it. The date was February 17, 1908 (a day later than what I reported in my 2021 post). It was part of an adventurous journey for Harry and Bess that I will cover in my upcoming book, Handcuff King: The Conquests of Harry Houdini, 1900-1909.

Thank you, Scott!

Related:

• Mrs. Flitcroft day
• Homeless Houdini
• Mystifier, Second Quarter 1994

Mrs. Flitcroft day

In case you haven't noticed, I moved my "TODAY in Houdini History" sidebar feature exclusively to my Twitter (#HoudiniHistory). I thought this was a good day for the reminder as today marks Houdini's 1908 visit to Mrs. Flitcroft at her home at 328 S. Sixth Street in Delavan, Wisconsin.

Mrs. Flitcroft was the woman who took in the 12-year-old Ehrich Weiss during his runaway days and looked after him. Houdini never forgot her kindness and looked after HER for the rest of her life. The below pic from Houdini His Life Story (which may or may not be 1908). In it we see she's wearing a mink stoll Houdini bought for her.

According to a 1994 Mystifier, Mrs. Flitcroft's house was still standing (at that time). A Google search does turn up what appears to be an old house at this address. But is it old enough to be the original? Wouldn't that be wild.

 

 Here's to all the caring Mrs. Flitcrofts out there!

Related:

• Homeless Houdini
• Mystifier, Second Quarter 1994
• Houdini takes on the truant officer

Mystifier, Second Quarter 1994

Continuing my issue by issue look back at the Mystifier, the newsletter of the Houdini Historical Center that ran from 1991-2003.

The Second Quarter 1994 Mystifier kicks off with the news that Morris N. Young has donated his collection of books and materials related to cryptography to the HHC. Young had penned and article in the Fourth Quarter 1993 Mystifier about Houdini's own fascination with the subject. An article by Arthur Moses about The Master Mystery follows. This piece originally appeared in the Texas Magic Collectors Newsletter.

We then get a surprise; an obituary for Houdini's nephew, Samuel M. Weiss. This is a family member I had not heard of before. The obituary is short enough to reproduce in full here:

Houdini's Nephew Passes Away

Samuel M. White (Weiss), age 86, passed away on April 4, after a battle with cancer. Samuel was born in New York in 1908, and was named after his grandfather, Rabbi Samuel Mayer Weiss [sic]. The son of William Weiss, Houdini's brother, Samuel was the last of the second generation of Houdini's family.

A a young man, Samuel attended medical school and became a cardiologist. His schooling was sponsored by another Weiss brother, Leopold. The young Samuel Weiss changed his name to "White" when he joined the United States Army.

Samuel was known to have been very fond of his uncles Theo and Ehrich (Houdini). As Manny Weltman, an acquaintance of Samuel's, recalled during a May phone interview, "Samuel said that throughout his childhood, he always referred to Houdini as 'Uncle Houdini,' never 'Uncle Harry' or 'Uncle Ehrich'." Samuel also remembered fondly an occasion upon which Houdini gave him a military outfit. The young boy would march for and salute his "Uncle Houdini." We extended our sympathies to his wife, Barbara.

The issue continues with another obituary, this one for the great Houdini historian, author, and collector Manny Weltman, who died on May 16, 1994. It chronicles Manny's many varied interests and achievements, and includes a nice photo of Manny with Patrick Culliton, Sidney Radner, Stanley Palm, and Diego Domingo at Pat's home in Laurel Canyon. (Some day I will do post about my own memorable first meeting with Manny in 1980.)

A very good article from the 1989 Delavan Enterprise by W. Gordon Yadon about Houdini's connection to the Flitcroft family of Delavan follows. The Flitcrofts famously took in the 12-year-old "Harry White" during his runaway days. The article includes a letter, reproduced in full, that Houdini wrote to Mrs. Flictcroft in December 1907. It also states that their house at 328 S. Sixth Street is still standing!

Benjilini contributes a fine article called "What Houdini Means to Me," which includes a poem by 11-year-old Yaniv Amar, a member of The Great Benjilini Society of Young Magicians, Assembly 33.

A Clio Award winning poster designed for the HHC by Birdsall Voss & Kloppenburg, Inc. of Milwaukee is showcased. The poster features the iconic 1903 image of Houdini in loincloth and chains with the superimposed text: "Handcuffs, Chains and Leather Restraints. No, It's Not Another Madonna Video." (For context, this was during Madonna's controversial S&M period.)

In "Backstage with Sid Radner," Sid tells the story of Mario Cockrell who saved 20 trapped miners in South Africa by using a trick "he had learned from a book by Houdini." Cockrell was able to make his body rigid, creating a bridge that allowed the miners to cross to safety. Sid says, "Of course, all Houdini buffs know where Houdini described this stunt." Do we? Miracle Mongers and Their Methods, I'm guessing?

Sid then reports on the annual Magic Collectors Convention, held this year in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. "Houdini items disappeared first, as always." He then reflects on the sad news of Manny Wetlman's passing, and thanks Arthur Moses and Benjilini for their contributions to the newsletter. He finishes with his usual sign off: "Houdini Lives!"

Mystifier

Volume 4, Number 2

Second Quarter, 1994

6 pages

Contents:

Code, Cipher Collection Comes to HHC

Each Week a New Title

In Memoriam: Manny Weltman

Houdini Came to Delvan

What Houdini Means to Me

Backstage with Sid Radner

PREVIOUS ISSUE| INDEX | NEXT ISSUE

Related:

• Homeless Houdini
• A Houdini photo you've never seen
• Genii & Houdini: November 1993

Homeless Houdini

Once again Houdini has appeared on a Top 10 list, but this time this list is somewhat unusual. Houdini comes in at #7 on Prafulla.net's list of 10 Celebrities Who Were Once Homeless. Others on the list include Daniel Craig, Halle Berry, Sylvester Stallone and Jim Carrey (who once named Houdini as one of the historical figures he'd most like to meet).

Of course, the website is talking about Houdini's days as a runaway. At age 12 Houdini ran away from his Milwaukee home and is said to have lived by his wits for an amazing two years. The website states that, "during his two year journey, he had to live in streets, had to camp outside in the open or sometimes stay in shelters."

The truth is, precious little is known about Houdini's years as a runaway, in which he apparently went by the name of Harry White. You would think Houdini would have later spun some fanciful mythology around his exploits on the road, much as Disney did in their film, Young Harry Houdini. But Houdini remained conspicuously quite about this period of his life. It's hard to fathom why a boy so devoted to his mother and family would run away in the first place.

The only incident Houdini would later relate was how he was discovered sleeping on the streets by a kindly couple, the Flitcrofts, who took him into their their Delavan, Wisconsin home. Years later the adult and now famous Houdini would return to the Flitcrofts with a mink coat as thanks. (You can see a photo of Houdini and Mrs. Flitcroft wearing her mink in Kellock, page 37).

There is also the postcard that young Ehrich Weiss sent home to his mother and later annotated on the back (below). This famous memento of his runaway days recently toured with the Houdini Art and Magic exhibition. It is now back in the collection of the Library of Congress.

I've always thought the reason we know so little about this time might be because Houdini was somewhat ashamed of these days, especially as he appears to have failed in his purpose to "earn some money." It also might have proven to be a harrowing and humbling experience for him that was best forgotten. But as with others on this list, it probably helped give him the drive to never experience such hardship again.