Houdini and The Last Action Hero

The Last Action Hero is an awful movie—famously awful. It was the first bomb after a string of successes for star Arnold Schwarzenegger. However, The Last Action Hero has a Houdini reference that's integral to the plot. Luckily, you don't need to watch the movie to see it. The entire "Houdini's Magic Ticket" scene is below.

If you're curious, the theater we see here is the 1927 Orpheum in downtown Los Angeles. The exterior is the Empire Theater on 42nd Street in New York. Houdini never played either theater.

Related:

• Houdini nods in Disney's new OZ
• The best Houdini movie without Houdini
• List of surviving Houdini theaters

Houdini and The Doctor share a long hot summer

It's become somewhat of a tradition for a new Doctor (Who) to namecheck Houdini. That was the case again in the Doctor Who 2023 Christmas Special: The Church on Ruby Road, which introduced Ncuti Gatwa as the 15th Doctor. 

In the episode, the Doctor and his latest companion, Ruby, are tied up in an alien ship. The Doctor quickly frees himself, and Ruby asks how he did it...

Later in the episode, Ruby figures out the Doctor is a time traveler by recalling his reference to Houdini...

Even the official Doctor Who Facebook page (below) celebrated the reference. Are they setting us up for a proper Houdini meets the Doctor episode? The summer of 1926 was a hot and wet one. Just saying.

Thanks to Whovian Athena Stamos for the tip and pics.

Related:

• Houdini and the Doctor reunite in STAR TALES
• Harry Houdini's War is at peace with the facts
• Houdini and The Doctor meet again!

Houdini sighting in The Sentinel

Over the weekend I spotted two Houdini posters in the 1977 movie The Sentinel. This was made during the "Houdini Renaissance" of the 1970s, and the same year we got Houdini posters in Looking for Mr. Goodbar. I love this kind of thing.

I caught this while watching my favorite Mystery Danakia Theater on Twitch.

You can see more "Hidden Houdinis" from the 1970s below.

Related:

• Houdini living on the air in Cincinnati
• Phantasm Mama
• Looking for Mr. Houdini

Houdini and The Mummy's Hand

My bedtime reading these days is Tom Weaver's latest "Scripts from the Crypt" series about Universal's The Mummy's Hand (1940). I'm a big fan of Universal horror (an interest that pre-dates Houdini) and I love these books just as I loved Philip Riley's MagicImage Filmbooks that inspired them. But what does this have to do with Houdini, you ask?

The other night I popped in The Mummy's Hand and I was surprised to hear Houdini get a name check when the character of Steve Banning says, "This hopeless Houdini is Babe Jenson." (In the the script he says "fumbling Houdini".) 

Normally this wouldn't warrant a post as Houdini gets name checked in many movies. However, it struck me that this is the earliest mention I've yet encountered in a film made after Houdini's death (Cops would be the earliest movie overall). I also tend to think of the 1940s as a decade in which Houdini went into a bit of cultural eclipse, so that made this reference all the more surprising.

If you know of an earlier mention, please share in the comments. And if you want to pick up Tom Weaver's The Mummy's Hand, you can do so on Amazon.com.

Related:

• Houdini on King Tut's Curse
• Houdini and the first Frankenstein
• The amazing afterlife of Harry Houdini

Huber's Palace Museum on The Knick

This came to my attention via one of my favorite blogs, Travalanche, where the great Trav S.D. did a post about Huber's New York Dime Museum for International Museum Day. Huber's was a regular haunt of Houdini's in his early career. Trav pointed out that Huber's was recreated for the Cinemax series The Knick. Above is an image of that recreation. You can see a Houdini poster on the upper right of the building. Cool stuff.

I also found this promotional video for The Knick Season Two that provides a nice look inside their Huber's recreation and some Houdini factoids to boot.

We would love a photo of the real Huber's for the diary book. If you have or know of any Huber's images, please get in touch.

Check out On Huber’s Palace at Travalanche. Below are some more posts related to Houdini and Huber's.

Related:

• Houdini and his electric chair
• Memories of "Dime Museum Harry"
• Deconstructing Houdini '53: Dime Museum

Houdini creeps into 'Wednesday'

Did anyone spot the Houdini reference in the popular new Netflix series Wednesday? Check out the third paragraph.

Click to enlarge.

Houdini may be in the DNA of this show. Wednesday creator Tim Burton made a short film about Houdini when he was a young Wednesday-like lad (below).

Thanks to Deborah Wexler for the alert and Groucho Marxist @antipyrine for the screen capture.

Related:

• See Tim Burton's HOUDINI at LACMA
• Houdini living on the air in Cincinnati
• The Office continues to tease us with hidden Houdinis

More "Hidden Houdinis" from Disney

Disney keeps on feeding us Hidden Houdinis. Here are two new ones from just this week. (Click images to enlarge.)

The first is found in the trailer for Hocus Pocus 2. Looks like the characters visit a magic shop and there's a Houdini poster on the wall. This is a reproduction of his "Do Spirits Return?" poster used during his second 3 Shows in One tour. Prints are widely available online.

The next one shows up in episode 4 of the Marvel series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. You can see Houdini's 1911 Water Torture Cell poster and a 1926 Buried Alive poster on the wall of the "Mystic Castle" (a thinly disguised Magic Castle). Quite a few golden age posters in general can be glimpsed in this episode.

You know, I continue to hear rumors of some kind of Houdini project active inside Disney. I have no idea what this is. But, hey, I'm right down the street! Just saying...

Thanks to George Lescay for the alert.

Related:

• Is Houdini about to join the MCU?
• Houdini nods in Disney's new OZ
• Disney Channel Spain launches 'Club Houdini'

Houdini living on the air in Cincinnati

Reader Dutch Schantz checks in today with a "Hidden Houdini" he spotted in the classic TV show WKRP in Cincinnati. As you can see below, a "King of Cards" poster can been seen in the background of season 2, episode 7, Mike Fright. The episode first aired November 12, 1979.

You can bet this is a Lee Jacobs reproduction King of Cards poster. You can read the history this famous magic bedroom mainstay HERE.

But what of the real Houdini in Cincinnati?

Houdini appeared in Cincinnati ten times between 1899 and 1925. Eight of those engagements were at the Columbia/B.F. Keith's theater on 5th and Walnut streets. During these runs he did handcuff and a jail escapes from the local police station. He also did a suspended straitjacket escape from the Pickering Building in 1916. Houdini gave his spiritualism lecture at the Emery Auditorium in 1924. His final appearance in Cincinnati was at the Shubert Theater in 1925 with his 3 Shows in One.

Here's something that ties in nicely. Houdini also appeared on Cincinnati radio! During the week of September 20, 1925, Houdini broadcast nightly from station WLM. He addressed spiritualism and even gave magic lessons. I doubt he was as smooth as Dr. Johnny Fever, but I bet he didn't get mike fright!

Rushville Daily Republican, Sept. 20, 1925.

Eagle-eye Dutch also made an interesting sighting in The Greatest American Hero. A pair of straitjackets from the 1953 Tony Curtis Houdini biopic can be spotted in the season 3 episode, "The Resurrection of Carlini", which first aired November 19, 1982. As I covered in my last installment of Deconstruction Houdini '53, these straitjackets where custom made for the movie by Abbott's Magic Co. Wild to see them still available to productions in 1982. I wonder if these are still lurking in some Hollywood prop or costume shop?

Thanks for the trip down memory lane, Dutch!

Related:

• LINK: When Houdini escaped in Cincinnati
• Houdini's known radio broadcasts
• Everyone's first Houdini poster

Is Houdini about to join the MCU?

If you saw Disney-Marvel's Eternals this weekend you may have spotted a surprise during the end credits. When the credit for Lia McHugh appears, it is set against a large Houdini poster. It's not a real Houdini poster. It's a mock-up created for the movie and features what appears to be Lia's character Sprite beside the great magician.

So what's this all about? Well, the character of Sprite is a centuries old "eternal" who like all the eternals has helped shape human history. Sprite possesses powers of magic and illusion, so presumably she assisted Houdini at some point. But the reference is so prominent that I'm wondering if this is a setup for a future Eternals movie or even a Sprite spin-off series? So is Houdini about to join the MCU?

Eternals isn't the only new release to feature a glimpse of a Houdini poster. In Paramount's Clifford The Big Red Dog we see a "Do Spirits Return?" poster hanging in the apartment of an amateur magician played by comedian Russell Peters.

UPDATE: Here is the poster as it appears in Eternals. This image comes from Screen Rant who also tackled the question of Houdini's cameo.

Related:

• Houdini nods in Disney's new OZ
• Hidden Houdini in Creed II
• Disney Channel Spain launches 'Club Houdini'

Phantasm Mama

Inspired by last week's post about "Hidden Houdinis", magician Ash Adams sends over this shot from the 1979 horror cult classic Phantasm. Look at this tombstone closely. Hello Mama!

So is this a deliberate nod to Cecelia Weiss? Maybe not. This appears to be part of the exedra that was used in the 1976 television biopic The Great Houdinis. According to Ash, the production rented the tombstones from 20th Century Fox. The Great Houdinis was filmed largely on the Fox lot, although the graveyard scenes were shot at Home of Peace Memorial Park in East Los Angeles (you can tour that with me here). So the selection of this tombstone might have just been a happy accident.

I've always wondered what happened to The Great Houdinis mockup exedra, especially the bust of Houdini/Glaser. Now we know that it went to the Fox property depart and was still there in 1979. Would love to think it might still be there today!

Below is the real exedra marker for Mama. This was her original standalone headstone from 1913 that was later incorporated into the exedra in 1916.

Thank you Ash!

Related:

• Machpelah of the West
• Making the great Great Houdinis
• Hidden Houdinis

Hidden Houdini in Creed II

Last night I was watching Creed II and was excited to spot a hidden Houdini! It happens when Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) comes to see Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) at his bar. As Drago leaves, he motions to the wall and says, "Is good picture." We then cut to this shot at 00:24:17.

We can assume Drago is talking about the photo of Carl Weathers' Apollo Creed, which is in sharp focus. But right beside Apollo is a photo of Houdini! Even out of focus you can see this is the well-known photo of Houdini being playfully restrained by lightweight champion Benny Leonard while heavyweight champ Jack Dempsey winds back for a punch. (Another photo taken at this time shows Houdini refereeing a "bout" between Leonard and Dempsey.) I'm still not sure what this photo is all about nor when it was taken (I've seen 1920), but it's likely this was some kind of a war benefit as we see armed doughboys watching the antics.

Of course, Houdini was a boxer in his youth, so you might say there are three famous boxers in this photo! Worthy of Rocky's wall of fame.

Click the related links below for more hidden Houdinis.

UPDATE: It appears this photo is related to the 1920 New York City Police Field Day Games held on August 21 & 29. Houdini, Dempsey, and Leonard were all present at the event (Houdini did a suspended straitjacket). I also think the men may have served on the games "Athletic Committee", and that is what we are seeing in the photo below. There is still some discrepancy as to the exact day the photos were taken. It's possible they were taken before the games to help promote the event.

 

Thanks to Joe Fox for helping crack the case! 

Related:

• Looking for Mr. Houdini
• Houdini visits The Office
• Houdini nods in Disney's new OZ

The best Houdini movie without Houdini

I can't believe I've never blogged about the 1982 movie Death Trap starring Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve. Based on a hit play by Ira Levin, it features a major nod to Houdini having to do with a pair of handcuffs. In fact, the cuffs are integral to the plot. But I won't say anything more because if you've never seen Death Trap, don't Google it! Just sit down and enjoy one of my all time favorite twisty thrillers. It's the best Houdini movie without Houdini.

Related: 

• Looking for Mr. Houdini
• Houdini nods in Disney's new OZ
• Houdini in the 1981 Ragtime movie

Spotting Mr. Houdini

When I'm not blogging about that man from Budapest, my day job these days is to quality control movies for the major studios. This pretty much means I sit in a screening room all day and watch movies which, yes, really is the world's greatest job for a movie nut (if you don't mind watching Brave 64 times -- my record).

One movie I had the pleasure of working on recently was Saving Mr. Banks. I even got to QC some versions in Walt Disney's original screening room on the Disney lot (called "the Sweatbox"). Of course, I'm always excited to catch a reference to Houdini in the films I screen. In the past I've pointed out nods in OZ The Great and Powerful, John Carter, and The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. But it wasn't until my umpteen viewing of Saving Mr. Banks that I noticed Houdini is in that film as well!

So did anyone else catch "Houdini" in Saving Mr. Banks? If so, leave a comment below. And if you haven't yet seen the movie, I would highly recommend it. It's a great movie for movie lovers.

The answer after the jump:

Buster Keaton gives Houdini a plug

Houdini's connections to the famous silent movie comedian Buster Keaton are well-known. Harry and Bess performed with Keaton's parents in their early days, and lore has it that Houdini gave the comedian his famous nickname after seeing baby Buster take a fall down a flight of stairs.

Now reader "JC" has altered me to another Houdini-Buster connection. Keaton's classic 1922 short COPS starts off with a quote from Houdini: "Love laughs at locksmiths."

COPS features Keaton evading the entire Los Angeles Police Department in a series of comedic set-piece escapes. Maybe this is why the movie starts with a Houdini quote? Or maybe this was Buster's way of retuning the favor of famous name. It could also be that the attribution of this Shakespearean proverb to Houdini is a joke in itself.

In 1997 COPS was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in their National Film Registry. So this cinematic nod to Houdini from the great Buster Keaton will now live forever.

You can watch COPS in its entirety on YouTube (Houdini quote is at 0:21).

Thank you JC.

Houdini materializes in The Incredible Burt Wonderstone

Another week, another major Hollywood movie about a magician. The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, which opens today, contains fewer nods to Houdini than did last week's OZ The Great and Powerful, but the Master Mystifier still puts in an appearance.

While Houdini doesn't get a proper name-check in this film, you can spot his famous "Prison Cell & Barrel Mystery" poster on the wall of the apartment belonging to assistant and aspiring magician, Jane, played by Olivia Wilde. In fact, it looks like Houdini might be the only male magician to make it onto Jane's wall of fame. My kind of gal.

But the real Houdini connection might lie deeper within this film. Actor Jim Carrey, who steals the movie as Steve Gray, "Brain Rapist", is a self-confessed Houdini admirer. In a May 1998 Q&A with Movieline magazine Carrey was asked if he could dine with any group of people from history, who would they be?

Carrey answered: "Harry Houdini. Benjamin Franklin. Gandhi, I suppose. Jesus."

I was able to catch an advance screening of The Incredible Burt Wonderstone for Magic Castle members last week in Hollywood. I enjoyed it!

Prison Cell & Barrel Mystery poster image from Carnegie: Magic Detective.

Houdini nods in Disney's new OZ

Houdini gets a few nice nods in the new movie, OZ The Great and Powerful, which is released today by Disney. The movie is a prequel to the 1939 classic The Wizard of Oz and tells the origin story of the Wizard as well as the Wicked Witch. Lance Burton is credited as the film's magic consultant.

In the early part of the film (which is in black and white and a 1:33 aspect ratio) there are two Houdini playbills on the wall of the traveling circus wagon belonging to magician Oscar Diggs a.k.a. "Oz" played by James Franco. If you have an eagle eye, you can identify the first as an advert for Houdini's short-lived Grand Magical Revue of 1914. The other playbill is actually a Hardeen advert with Hardeen's name masked off. However, Princess Yvonne's name is still visible and gives it away.

Houdini/Hardeen playbills spotted in OZ.

During these same opening scenes, Oscar/Franco gives Houdini himself a nice name-check when he says, "I want to be Harry Houdini and Thomas Edison all rolled into one."

Of course, Franco could have said he wants to be a combination of Harry Keller and Thomas Edison. It's said that Oz author L. Frank Baum modeled his wizard on Kellar, who was then the leading American magician of the day. But I won't deny Houdini the honor. By the way, Baum wrote his OZ novels in a house he called Ozcot, which sat very close to what is today The Magic Castle.

Houdini with OZ inspiration Harry Kellar (NYPL)

While maybe not a deliberate nod to Houdini, it's also worth noting that James Franco's costume bears a striking resemblance to a famous photo of Houdini. If you think I'm looking too hard, know that this same Houdini photo was used as the bases for the costume worn by Harvey Keitel in FairyTale: A True Story, so we know it's a reference photo Hollywood costumer designers have used to in the past. Just saying...

OZ The Great and Powerful co-stars Rachel Weisz as Evanora, and we all know about Rachel's Houdini connection. The magnificent score was composed by Danny Elfman who was originally hired to write the music for the upcoming Houdini Broadway musical. Finally, Mila Kunis, who plays Theodora, once starred in a movie written by a familiar Houdini enthusiast...

For the record, I really enjoyed OZ The Great and Powerful, even beyond the nods to our Harry. I hope we get more OZ adventures from the Mouse House.

Looking for Mr. Houdini

You just never know where Harry is going to show up next. Check out this screen capture from the 1977 movie Looking for Mr. Goodbar starring Diane Keaton. Does that poster back on the wall look familiar?

The poster is a well-known Houdini lithograph by J. Zier advertising Houdini’s escape from an Amsterdam jail in 1903. Because the poster used here is in black and white, my guess is it's most-likely a blow-up from the book 100 Years of Magic Posters (1976).

Related:

• The Office continues to tease us with hidden Houdinis
• Houdini visits The Office

The Office continues to tease us with hidden Houdinis

Once again Houdini made a stealth appearance on NBC’s The Office last Thursday. In an episode called “New Leads” a Houdini refrigerator magnet pops up in the office kitchen. You can catch it on HULU at 14:38.

So why is there a Houdini magnet on the Dunder Mifflin refrigerator? As we speculated when we spotted our first hidden Houdini, The Office is set in Scranton, Pennsylvania, so it’s possible this is a nod to the Scranton Houdini Museum run by Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz, a popular Scranton tourist stop.

Or it could be they are just messing with us.

Stay tuned!

UPDATE: Hungarian in a sack.

Houdini visits The Office

Did you happen to catch Houdini’s stealth appearance on NBC’s The Office last Thursday?

In an episode of Season 6 called “Shareholder Meeting,” Jim dresses down lazy temp Ryan. In the background, tacked up on the Dunder Mifflin bulletin board, is what appears to be a Houdini postcard. You can catch it on HULU at 17:20.

The postcard image is one of Houdini’s most famous lithographs, now referred to as the “Houdini for President” poster (this may have started when Grosset & Dunlap first suggested this resembled a presidential campaign poster in 100 Years of Magic Posters, 1976). It was originally created in 1911 by the Strobridge Lithograph Company in Cincinnati and was used by Houdini throughout his career.

The image we see in The Office is a little odd in that it has been shortened -- the name block has been moved up over Houdini’s folded arms.

So why is there a Houdini postcard on the Dunder Mifflin bulletin board? I’m not sure, but as The Office is set in Scranton, Pennsylvania, it is possible this is a clever nod to the Scranton Houdini Museum run by Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz, a popular Scranton tourist stop.

Interestingly, this poster has a history of showing up in the background of films, including the famous “vanishing man” short film featuring Houdini himself.

Here is the full “Houdini for President” lithograph, truly one of my favorite Houdini images. The original poster stands over six feet.

UPDATE: The Office continues to tease us with hidden Houdinis.