Listen to the new Houdini voice audio!

PLEASE NOTE: If you are linking here from Genii Magazine, know that this post is an April Fools Day joke. The post you were supposed to navigate to is HERE.

Here's something exciting to kick off the month! This is the new Houdini voice audio that was recently transferred from the original wax cylinders in David Copperfield's collection. Don't tell David I'm sharing this! Just click below and enjoy. 

  

Click here for special message about this rare recording.

Related:

• ALL the Houdini wax cylinder audio has been saved!
• The Magic Castle announces name change

Misquoting Dumb Houdini

Recently I discovered the sardonic magic blog The Jerx (a take off on The Jinx). It's pretty funny and now a blog I follow. Of course, I had to see if Houdini had even gotten The Jerx treatment, and he certainly has! In fact, they have somewhat regular series called "Dumb Houdini".

In their initial post, "How Dumb was Houdini?", they point out that his oft-quoted, "My brain is the key that sets my mind free" is pretty dumb and makes no sense. But they correctly point out this is NOT what Houdini said. What Houdini actually said was, "My brain is the key that sets me free." That is much less dumb.

They also point out that people are selling merchandise online featuring the incorrect quote. This inspired The Jerx to launch their very own Dumb Houdini Store. That isn't a joke. Well, it is a joke, but the merchandise is real. At least I think it's real?

Speaking of quotes... 

Another quote you will frequently see attributed to Houdini is: "What the eyes see and the ears hear, the mind believes." It's a good quote and it sounds like something Houdini would say. I've never questioned it. But recently someone contacted me asking if I could verify that the quote really was from Houdini.

I did a little research and found a page at Goodreads that attributes the quote to Houdini's A Magician Among The Spirits. I figured it came from one of his books, so that tracks. However, when I did a keyword search of my PDF of the book, I turned up nothing.

I then searched Miracle Mongers and Their Methods, Houdini's Paper Magic, The Right Way to Do Wrong, The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin, the Margery pamphlet, even Elliott's Last Legacy. Still nothing. The closest I came was the quote, "Has your brain deceived your eyes, or your eyes your brain?" (Unmasking p 308).

I then plugged the quote into newspapers.com and the earliest hit that came up was from 2008 when a Durham Academy valedictorian named it as his favorite quotation. A search of Ask Alexander turned up a single mention in a 2015 Genii. So not only can I not find this quotation during Houdini's lifetime, I can't even find it before the 21st century!

Then I found this clip from the 2001 film Swordfish.

So there's the quote. At the moment, this is the earliest utterance that I've been able to find. But is it even a quote? It's not all that clear if John Travolta's character is actually quoting Houdini or if this is his own definition of misdirection. But even if he is quoting Houdini here, this is a movie, which is under no obligation to be factual. So it's possible these words are entirely the creation of the screenwriter.

I'm still holding out hope that Houdini did say this. There is still a lot of his written material that I haven't searched. Like I said, it's a good quote and it sounds like something he might say. I really don't want to believe that we've been quoting John Travolta all this time. Because as The Jerx might say, that would be really dumb.

Related:

• Houdini in the classroom
• "I'm not an advertiser, I'm news."
• "It's not egotism, Hilliar; it's Houdini-ism."

Houdini vs. Spiritualists in three easy tweets

The Twitter account First Amendment Museum lays out the story of Houdini's 1926 congressional testimony in three efficient tweets. I like how they did this.

In honor of #SpookySzn, let's talk about that time Harry Houdini took on Spiritualists! (1/3) pic.twitter.com/ZRjTtCgakt

— First Amendment Museum (@1stAmendmntMus) October 27, 2021

Harry Houdini vs. Spiritualists (2/3) pic.twitter.com/cBDokqplxT

— First Amendment Museum (@1stAmendmntMus) October 27, 2021

Harry Houdini vs. Spiritualists (3/3)#Spiritualism #HarryHoudini #Houdini #FortuneTelling #FreedomofReligion pic.twitter.com/XIsFK6pL6o

— First Amendment Museum (@1stAmendmntMus) October 27, 2021

Related:

• Guest blog: Mr. Houdini Goes to Washington, Part I | Part II | Part III
• Own a printed copy of Houdini's congressional hearing
• That meme you've seen

That meme you've seen

This meme has been making the rounds on Facebook and I've received a few emails asking if it's real. Well, it is real in the sense that this is an image of Houdini in 1918 when the flu pandemic was raging. But it has nothing to do with the pandemic. This is a screen grab from Houdini's The Master Mystery. Houdini is wearing a mask here to protect himself from the dreaded "Madagascar Madness." I'm actually the one who first shared this image on Facebook. But then someone made it into this meme and it has taken on a life of its own. 

So while it's a little misleading, the sentiment is certainly legit. Wear a mask!

Here's wishing everyone a safe and Covid free Labor Day.

Related:

• Houdini and the 1918 flu pandemic
• LINK: Houdini’s Guide to Coronavirus safety
• Houdini's Movies

The great debate

As I wind down 2019, I couldn't resist offering up my own version of this viral meme. One only a Houdini nut might appreciate.

Related:

• Time to rethink the rethinking on the Houdini punch
• Conan Doyle did not believe a punch killed Houdini

Does the Jawa in Star Wars say "Houdini"?

Ok, today we delve into the important stuff. In the original 1977 Star Wars, does the Jawa who, after zapping R2-D2, call out "Houdini!"? I know I've always heard that. But if a car backfires I think I hear Houdini!, so I've largely kept this to myself. But recently I found this meme online.

So it looks like I'm not the only one who hears this afterall. So what do we think? Is there a Houdini namecheck in the original Star Wars? Is George Lucas a closet Harryphile!?

Below are a few more "Houdini!" Star Wars connections. Today sees the release of the latest movie, The Last Jedi.

Related:

• Fraud Jedi Exposed!
• Yes, The Force Awakens has a Houdini connection