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From 1991 to 2003, the Houdini Historical Center in Appleton published a quarterly newsletter called Mystifier. Each issue ran 4 to 6 pages and provided news on current events, reviews, as well as deep dives into Houdini history. Every issue also contained a column by Sidney Radner, who had his finger on the pulse of all that was happening in the Houdini world. It was a treasure trove of information written by people with a passion for Houdini.

I have a complete set of Mystifiers and reviewed every issue HERE. But there's nothing like reading the issues themselves. So I will be sharing downloadable PDFs on my Patreon as periodic Monthly Rewards.

I've started this month with the Fourth Quarter 1996 issue, which reviews Ken Silverman's Houdini!!! The Career of Ehrich Weiss and has a terrific interview with Penn & Teller. This will only be available for the month of September.

Just another good reason to become (and remain) a patron! Thanks for your support.

Related:

• Announcing WILD ABOUT HARRY on Patreon
• Mystifier, Fourth Quarter 1996
• The Mystifier file

The Foolers channel Houdini in Akron tomorrow

Just a reminder that our great friend and fellow Houdini Nut Jessica Jane Peterson will hanging above the same stage as Houdini tomorrow, February 26, when The Foolers play the historic Goodyear Theater in Akron, Ohio. Jessica joins magicians Matt Donnelly, Vinny Grosso, and Alex Ramon in the new Penn & Teller production.

As you can see below, Houdini played his "3 Shows in One" at the Goodyear for three days in May 1926. On his final night he was challenged by the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. to escape from a packing case.

You can find more information and book tickets at The Foolers official website.

Related:

• See The Foolers in a Houdini theater!
• Houdini's grand finale: 3 Shows In One
• Houdini sheet music

See The Foolers in a Houdini theater!

Our great friend and fellow Houdini Nut Jessica Jane Peterson will be appearing in the new Penn & Teller production The Foolers this month. Jessica joins magicians Matt Donnelly, Vinny Grosso, and Alex Ramon in the show. The tour kicks off at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee on February 24. It then moves to Clowes Memorial Hall of Butler University in Indianapolis on February 25.

But it's the final stop in Akron, Ohio, on February 26 that has me most excited. That's because The Foolers will be playing the historic Goodyear Theater where Houdini himself appeared with his "3 Shows in One" for three days in May of 1926. So if you are in the Akron area, this would be The Foolers show to see! And how exciting for Jessica to be doing her escapes on the same stage as Houdini.

You can find more information and book tickets at The Foolers official website.

Related:

• Houdini sheet music
• Did Houdini return?
• Houdini's grand finale: 3 Shows In One

A fabulous start to 2023

Before I take my traditional year end break, I wanted to give a shout-out to the first big Houdini happening of 2023. In January the excellent 1961 book Houdini's Fabulous Magic by Walter B. Gibson and Morris N. Young will be reprinted in a new edition with a forward by Gabe Fajuri. Here's a teaser from publisher Vine Leaves Press.

You can pre-order the 2023 edition of Houdini's Fabulous Magic at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk. Release date is January 17.

Related:

• The best forgotten Houdini book
• 'Houdini's Fabulous Magic' returns in 2023
• Houdini on Magic gets a cover revamp (update)

Houdini's curious cross escape

One of the more unusual pieces of surviving Houdini apparatus is his "Cross Escape." There are actually two crosses. One is gaffed for quick release and was acquired by Sidney Radner from Hardeen. Today it is owned by Teller. The other was acquired by Henry Muller from Dunninger and was displayed for many years at the Houdini Magical Hall of Fame. The photo in the right shows this latter cross as it appeared in the museum. (Fun fact: I now own that mannequin head.)

I admit this particular escape has always perplexed me. The Houdini Magical Hall of Fame described it as "a famous Houdini challenge escape," yet I've never been able to find any account of Houdini ever performing it. The quick release gaff seems more like a spiritualism or magic effect than a Houdini escape, and the overt religiousness doesn't seem to be Houdini's style. Recall how he took offense to Carl Mysto's use of a coffin onstage.

But David Muller recently sent me extraordinary audio of Joseph Dunninger going through the collection he sold to David's father in 1967, describing each piece of apparatus and its history. Here's what he says about the cross:

Dunninger: "The Houdini cross escape, used in Houdini's earlier performances. Made in his museum days. He would be tied to the cross, a screen would be placed in front of it and in a few moments he would liberate himself. It needs some repair as is obvious, but it's of very great historical value as it belonged to Houdini and was one of his first sensational escapes."

Hearing Dunninger call this an effect from Houdini's "museum days" is informative. Maybe this explains why I've not been able to find an account of it? And its similarity to a spiritualism or magic effect fits with the evolution of the escape act.

Teller also describes it as a "carnival item." In an interview Two Magicians One Mic Podcast, in which we get a glimpse of his cross in his "Houdini alcove", Teller says:

Teller: "It's a carnival item. It would be erected on stage and the person who's doing the spiel on the bally would take, usually, a runaway 13 or 14-year-old drug addicted girl, who happens to be with the carnival, and tie her neck and wrists to this cross. And then at the moment when they were trying to turn the tip and bring the whole group into the tent, all of a sudden she would just walk away from it. The ties would be gone."

The cross escape coming from dime museums or carnivals does makes sense. It's even possible Houdini didn't build the effect himself, but acquired it as he did his electric chair. But I'll keep on searching for some account of Houdini doing the escape himself.

In the 1970 BBC documentary The Truth About Houdini, Sidney Radner demonstrated his gaffed cross. This scene was cut scene from the documentary––possibly because The Magic Circle objected to the exposure––and it does not appear in any version of the doc today. But you can watch the full clip as a member of my Patreon below.

Thanks to David Muller for the Dunninger audio and Dan Bowen for the Teller interview alert.

Related:

• The Truth About Houdini's mysterious missing scene
• Purchase David Muller's 'Growing Up With Houdini'
• Houdini's head

R.I.P. Gilbert Gottfried, Shoedini spokesman

Yesterday came the sad news that comedian Gilbert Gottfried passed away at age 67. While Gilbert will be remembered for his ground-breaking standup and iconic film roles, I think he wins a seat at Houdini's table in heaven with this.

Gilbert was also close friends with Penn Jillette. Check out this video posted yesterday by Harrison Greenbaum in which Penn and Gilbert share a story. 

You can read Gilbert Gottfried's obituary here.

Related:

• Houdini...the corkscrew
• Houdini the Budget Gourmet
• Huggies Houdini commercial from 1992

The Man From Beyond screening in Greenfield, MA

Houdini's The Man From Beyond will screen this Saturday, February 5, at 6pm at the Greenfield Garden Cinemas in Greenfield, Massachusetts. The screening is part of Greenfield's 100th Annual Winter Carnival which begins Friday.

"This was the perfect film to feature for Greenfield's 100th Winter Carnival," said Garden Cinemas owner Isaac Mass. "It was the Frozen of 1922."

The film will will have live musical accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis, who has provided accompaniment for several Houdini films over the years. Says Rapsis: "These films are audience favorites, and people continue to be surprised at how engrossing and exhilarating they can be when shown as they were intended: in a theater, and with live music."

The Greenfield Garden Cinemas also has a connection to magic history. Greenfield native Penn Jillette had his first job at the theater. Penn gave the screening a special shout-out in a video he prepared for the theater's Facebook page.

Tickets for The Man From Beyond are available online at www.gardencinemas.net. For more information, call (413) 773-9260.

Thanks to the Greenfield Recorder.

Related:

• The silent cinema of Harry Houdini
• Did Houdini secretly announce his return date?
• Houdini, Penn's mom, and a "nut" in England

Opening up 'Houdini's Lost Diaries'

The BBC produced Houdini's Lost Diaries appears to have been very popular with those who caught its debut on History's Greatest Mysteries last Tuesday. (Thanks to everyone who sent me kind words about my own small part.) If you're a cord-cutter like me and missed that initial airing, know you can now stream the episode free for one week at the HISTORY website. You can also buy the episode on Amazon Prime, which is exactly what I did last night.

Even though I'm not a fan of the quick-cut, sound-clipy style of HISTORY shows (and that bombastic music), I thought this documentary was cut above in every other aspect. It really does feel we get something new here. There are several photos I've never seen before. They eschew all the easy mythology and work to get their facts right. I especially liked how they characterize Ehrich Weiss as making a conscious effort to transform into the mythic HOUDINI. It's a well told story.

The line-up of talking head experts is also impressive. But it's Teller who steals the show by not only speaking on-screen for the first time in a Houdini documentary, but tearing up twice. It's also a joy to see the great Patrick Culliton, "Houdini's Ghost", back in front of the camera talking Houdini.

So what about the diaries? While offering no real bombshell revelations, there is still gold. The fact that Houdini paid some challengers isn't new, but I love that he apparently coded these payments in the diaries as "be quick." The diaries are really used more to provide the kind of deep character insight that you don't get in other Houdini documentaries. Many pages are shown on-screen, and you can bet I'll be doing some pausing! Bill Kalush, who also gives a rare on-screen interview, is described as "the custodian of the diaries."

I was a little surprised by the sparse use of film footage. Instead they relied heavily, maybe too heavily, on reenactment photographs. And where the heck is Bess!? They also fall into the familiar narrative trap of jumping from Mama's death to spiritualism, ignoring Houdini's war work and movie career. However, they do not conflate his mother's death with spiritualism and correctly root it in his relationship with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Spiritualism comes in for the harshest treatment of any Houdini documentary, with Penn Jillett taking off the gloves and likening it to organized crime. Sounds right.

In the end, they do amp up the sensationalism around Houdini's death and hint at possible murder, which I guess is just de rigeur for anything that airs on HISTORY. But they ultimately come down on the side of reason and discount any conspiracy.

Houdini's Lost Diaries is definitely one to watch. The option to stream free or buy on Amazon Prime appears to only be available to U.S. viewers at the moment. But as this was made by the BBC, I expect it will be getting a UK airing sooner than later. Below is an extended preview.

Related:

• 'Houdini's Lost Diaries' will be revealed Tuesday
• History's Greatest Mysteries teases Houdini episode
• Bill Kalush has been to the mountaintop

"The escape artist is the hero. Full stop."

I don't typically report on feats by modern escape artists unless there is a very direct connection to Houdini (such as Lee Terbosic's "Houdini 100"). But I felt compelled to share this clip of Miranda Allen on Penn & Teller's Fool Us as it's just such a superbly staged classic escape using elements both old and new. And there is a key Houdini idea at play here.

A female escape artist doing a barrel escape should instantly bring Minerva Vano to mind. In fact, Miranda Allen played Minerva in a recent stage play. So this works as an unspoken tribute to that pioneering female escape artist. I also love that she is using wine instead of water. This, of course, is a Houdini idea. He would regularly have his Milk Can filled with beer by a local brewery. But I love the idea of wine and I like how Miranda plays up the added danger of the darkness and "sting" in the eyes.

I'm still not sure how I feel about seeing this kind of escape play out in full view of the audience, which is now common among modern escapists. But every moment of this is tense and entertaining, so...it works! And you gotta love Penn's comment: "This is what an escape should be––what Houdini always did––which is; the escape artist is the hero. Full stop."

Thanks to Gene Franklin Smith for the alert.

Related:

• Minerva vs. Houdini in new play
• Was Houdini a chauvinist? (Minerva play review)
• Did Houdini do the Water Torture Cell in full view of the audience?

R.I.P. Roy Horn

Today the entire magic world is mourning the loss of Roy Horn of the legendary magic duo Siegfried & Roy. Roy succumbed Friday from complications related to Covid-19. He was 75.

A wonderful artist, a legend - Roy gave so much to entertainment and our community. https://t.co/HsBhXCtV0Q

— David Copperfield (@D_Copperfield) May 9, 2020

We are all mourning the loss of #RoyHorn of #SiegfriedandRoy. S&R invented, created, pioneered the very idea that a magic show could be a full evening in Vegas. If not for S&R there would be no P&T in Vegas. He was so full of life, wild, and unpredictable. We will miss him. pic.twitter.com/sHW5NAyBMu

— Penn Jillette (@pennjillette) May 9, 2020

I am heartbroken to hear the news of Roy Horn’s passing. My heart goes out to Siegfried and the entire S&R extended family.

The loss for Las Vegas is enormous. For me the loss is personal. As a boy I saw Siegfried and Roy on television and was inspired.

— Lance Burton (@LanceBurtonMM) May 9, 2020

So sorry to hear about the loss of Roy, a very pivotal magician that opened the doors to many of us. In this photo I asked both Siegfried and Roy to do a serious pose (it was tough for Siegfried but Roy managed!) In… https://t.co/FhSbnVOQ40

— David Blaine (@davidblaine) May 9, 2020

Photo from The Academy of Magical Arts on Facebook.

Houdini did not approve this message

Here is an untypical advertisement for Houdini's spirit lecture at the Music Hall in Akron, Ohio, on February 25, 1924. This appeared in the Akron Beacon Journal. But this is an ad Houdini himself would not approve of, as I'll explain below.

This ad appeared during Houdini's first spirit lecture tour during the early months of 1924. When he signed with the Lyceum Circuit for a second tour in the Fall, he annotated his contract by hand with some specific stipulations. Below is a look at the actual document from the Ken Trombly Collection showing one key stipulation:

"In all billing matter I object to the use of the words of Hocum and Fakery. They are too vulgar."

In the Akron ad we see both offending words featured prominently, exactly the kind of "vulgar" advertising Houdini wished to avoid. This could even be the ad that motivated him to add this stipulation, although I have seen the words used elsewhere at this time. You'll also notice the bottom of the ad containing the lecture details is a mismatch with the top of the ad, which is curious. By the day of the lecture, the advertising had been tamed more to Houdini's liking.

So why didn't Houdini like the words hocum (hokum) and fakery? I think it's simply a matter of him wanting his lectures to perceived as serious presentations and not magic or spook show entertainments. Another stipulation for this second tour was that he would not perform his Milk Can escape as he had during his first tour. Of course, this perception didn't aways come across, as was most acutely demonstrated during the Chattanooga debacle.

It's interesting to note that Milbourne Christopher makes reference to this contract stipulation on page 200 of Houdini The Untold Story. However, the book contains a misprint, saying Houdini objected to the use of the words fakery and hocas. This was never corrected in any edition, and I'm sure more than a few folks were puzzled as to why Houdini would object to the word "hocas." This is a good example of why going back to original source material is so important.

Oops.

I, for one, like the word hokum, and it has gone on to be associated with Houdini. In fact, Hokum was the original proposed name for Penn & Teller's skeptical television series Bullshit. Now there's a word Houdini would have objected to!

Related:

• Houdini's Spiritualism Lectures
• Houdini and the Spiritualists with Ken Trombly
• Houdini describes his spiritualism lecture in full

Houdini ('53) screenings cancelled and other closures

Due to COVID-19 concerns, AGO's screenings of Houdini (1953) on March 18 have been cancelled. The art gallery, which is currently home to the Illusions: The Art of Magic exhibition, has temporarily closed.

The AGO’s highest priority is the health and safety of our visitors, staff, volunteers and extended community. Upon the advice of Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, the AGO is closing temporarily as of 9 p.m. on Friday, March 13 through Sunday, April 5.

AGO recently screened The Man From Beyond and Haldane of the Secret Service with live musical accompaniment by Marilyn Lerner.

Other Houdini-related closures include The Magic Castle, Harry Ransom Center, Catalina Island Museum, McCord Museum, Appleton's History Museum at the Castle, and The House of Houdini in Budapest. The David Copperfield and Penn & Teller shows in Las Vegas are temporarily dark. The Houdini Museum in Scranton is open on select days (call ahead).

For the latest information on COVID-19 visit the CDC website.

Hope everyone stays safe and well!

Related:

• Three Houdini movies screening at AGO in March

The A&E Houdini Biography

For some reason I'm feeling nostalgic for the documentary Houdini: The Great Escape, which first appeared as part of the popular A&E Biography series in 1994. But this doc, which was once so ubiquitous, is now among the hardest to see (unless you held onto your VHS machine).

Launched in 1987, A&E's "Biography" series offered up hour long profiles of famous figures in history. The series was hosted by Peter Graves and later Jack Perkins. It took them a while to get to Harry, but they finally did so with Houdini: The Great Escape, first airing on June 20, 1994.

The documentary is well written by Alan Goldberg and is narrated by Jack Perkins. It includes interviews with Patrick Culliton, Harry Blackstone, Jr., James Randi, John Bohannon, Charles Reynolds, Penn & Teller, Mark Edward, Dorothy Young, and Marie Blood. It's especially nice to see Marie as she did not do many onscreen interviews. There's plenty of Houdini footage and photos to enjoy. It's also interesting to see Ken Silverman in the credits as this was well before the release of his book. The documentary was dedicated to Manny Weltman, "In memoriam for his extraordinary archive and love for Houdini." Manny had passed away a month before the first airing.

A&E released select episodes of Biography on home video in the 1990s, and Houdini was among the first. I always felt the photo they used on the box (above) was an odd choice--certainly they could have found something more iconic? But I was also happy for this odd choice as it was a pic I had never seen. And if there's anyone out there who collects VHS, know there was an earlier release with a plain purple box with just Houdini's name on the cover.

With many repeats on cable and the home video always in stock in big bookstore chains like Barnes & Noble and Borders, Houdini: The Great Escape was inescapable. I suspect for many it was their introduction to Houdini's (non-fictional) story. It was later revamped with new narration for the Biography Channel's "Bio 4 Kids" series.

But the doc did not make the jump to DVD, and as far as I know, it has yet to appear on any streaming platform. And while some of the Biography episodes can be found on YouTube, Houdini is not among them. So now seeing this classic documentary is a magic trick in itself.

Here's a bit of related trivia. In a May 1998 interview in Movieline magazine, actor Jim Carrey was asked, "If you could dine with any group of people who have been featured on A&E's Biography, who would you choose?"

Carrey's answer: "Harry Houdini. Benjamin Franklin. Gandhi, I suppose. Jesus."

Related:

• Houdini Documentaries (page)
• 'Biography for Kids' captures Houdini
• The first great Houdini documentary

Penn talks magic in movies, including Houdini (1953)

Here's a short video by Vanity Fair in which Penn Jillette "reviews" magic in movies. Among the movies is Houdini (1953), which seems to delight Penn. Enjoy.

Related:

• Houdini, Penn's mom, and a "nut" in England
• Penn wants to play Conan Doyle to Kevin Pollak's Houdini
• HOUDINI (1953)

Mystifier, Fourth Quarter 1996

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

The Houdini world experienced a peak moment in the Fall of 1996 with the 70th anniversary of Houdini's death and the release of Houdini!!! The Career of Ehrich Weiss by Kenneth Silverman. The Fourth Quarter 1996 Mystifier captures this time, starting with a rave review of the book by HHC curator Benjamin Filene.

I breathed an "Aaah" of relief after reading only a few pages of Kenneth Silverman's new biography Houdini!!! The Career of Ehrich Weiss. My job as curator of the Houdini Historical Center had just become immeasurably easier. Finally I had an authoritative, clearly organized, properly indexed source to which to turn when seeking information about Houdini.

This newsletter also contains a report on Penn and Teller's visit to the HHC on October 16. The magic duo were performing in nearby Green Bay, Wisconsin. They also sat down for a quick interview, which includes the following intriguing exchange:

Penn: We've talked to three people who saw Houdini perform, They all came up to us after seeing our show––they were all in their eighties. They mentioned it because Teller does the needles and they mentioned seeing Houdini do the needles. All three said the exact same thing––that they found [Houdini's] shows kind of disappointing. The Vanishing Elephant was supposed to have really stunk. But you know, it was the excitement of going and being part of it. 

Teller: Although I'm convinced very much by [Kenneth] Silvermans's description of the water tank [the Water Torture Cell] that it was a really fine piece of theater, just a killer piece of theater. It was paced completely differently from the way we should see something nowadays, but certainly within the realm of an event in that time. 

Penn: I'm afraid I can't be accused of having any sense of how the performance was in its time. I'm just ruined for that––it's like reading Dickens. So all I have are the accounts of these three people that saw him. Of course, once you've seen something big like this, once you've seen Houdini, you have two choices: either it was the best thing you've ever seen or a disappointment. You don't really have any sort of middle ground.

The newsletter continues with a report on radio interviews conducted by HHC curator Benjamin Filene on Halloween, as well as the Halloween AOL online conference co-hosted by Filene and D.L. Shiloh. It reports that "at any given second as many as 60 to 80 people hand 'logged on' to the conference." The article provides a URL of where a transcript can be retrieved, but the link has long since died. But a new age of online Houdini information had begun!

In his "Backstage" column, Sid Radner offers a ringing endorsement of Gene Gamache's new documentary, Houdini People Came to See Him Die, saying he feels it is "the best one to date." He also offers praise for the Silverman book, saying: "This biography surpasses everything written previously about Houdini, and no magic buff should be without it."

Sid then alerts readers that the first HHC publication, Houdini Comes to America, is now available from the museum shop. He also corrects a statement he made in a previous newsletter that Houdini had no nieces. "My statement was true, but Houdini did acquired nieces through his marriage with Bess, and his niece Marie Blood is well known in the magic profession."

Mystifier

Volume 6, Number 4

Fourth Quarter, 1996

6 pages

Contents:

Houdini!!! Reviewed
Penn & Teller Visit HHC
Museum Shop
Center On Line for Halloween
Center Staff on Radio

Backstage

PREVIOUS ISSUE | INDEX | NEXT ISSUE

This issue is available as a PDF download on my Patreon for the month of September 2024. Just click below.

Related:

• What is the best Houdini biography?
• Penn & Teller & Houdini's Needles
• No joke! Never before seen footage of Houdini and Marie Blood

Penn Jillette on the importance of magicians

AM New York has a brief Q&A interview with Penn Jillette promoting the season 4 return of his TV show Penn & Teller Fool Us. The interview concludes with the following, which I think is pretty insightful and important:

What’s the importance of magic as a creative medium these days?

Magic, the way you’re using that word . . . starts with Houdini. He said, "I’m doing tricks. There is nothing supernatural here." In that sense, magic is a very modern art form. There are some idiots who go on TV and say, "I have real, magical powers," and then do a card trick. Let’s throw those people out. In this day and age, where everybody yells "fake news," the most important skill is the skill to determine what is true. Magicians deal with that, playfully. They say, "what appears to be real may not be." That simple sentence, "some people can do tricks," is one of the most important sentences you will encounter though the 21st century. "Some people can do tricks," and some will do it playfully, some will do it maliciously, and the most dangerous people will not know they are doing it.

I know some may balk at the idea of modern magic "starting" with Houdini. Most would say it started with Robert-Houdin or even Scot's Discoverie of Witchcraft. But it could be argued that Houdini's standard and repeated statement that what he was doing was accomplished purely by natural means -- "there is nothing supernatural about it" -- was a very untypical and modern thing to hear from a magician during the Golden Age of Magic. Of course, the more Houdini said this the more people insisted he was supernatural, so...

Click below for more Houdini talk from Penn. I also highly recommend his podcast Penn's Sunday School where Houdini is frequently mentioned.

Related:

• Houdini, Penn's mom, and a "nut" in England
• Penn Jillette: "Houdini was not a magician. Houdini was a superstar."
• "You get this huge burst of change in magic with Houdini..."

Houdini, Penn's mom, and a "nut" in England

In a recent episode of the podcast Penn's Sunday School, magician Penn Jillette told a story about how his mother one day mentioned that she saw Houdini when she was 9 years old. At this point Penn had been involved in magic for some 30 years, so he was a little surprised that his mother had never thought to mention this before! So he decided to "be a smart ass and fact check my mom."

Penn contacted Ken Silverman, author of Houdini!!! The Career of Ehrich Weiss--which Penn called "a serious Houdini biography" (and I certainly agree)--to see if Houdini ever performed in Turner Falls, Massachusetts as his mother claimed. Silverman referred him to someone whom Penn affectionately described as a "nut in England" who was attempting to document every day of Houdini's life. Penn does not reveal the name of this "nut," but I suspect it was the late Frank Koval, who in 1993-94 produced the phenomenal six volume The Illustrated Houdini Research Diary (which I use constantly and, being a "nut" myself, have been updating for years).

The upshot of the story is that Koval (if he was the "nut") was able to confirm that Houdini did indeed perform in Turner Falls around the time Penn's mother was 9 years old. As far as Penn's mother not telling him, co-host Michael Goudeau quipped, "This raises the question. Who does you mother truly not give a shit about; Houdini or you?"

Of course, Penn tells the story much better and much funnier that I just did here, so I'd recommend giving episode 282, "First Liar Doesn't Stand A Chance," a listen.

Below are all six volumes of Frank Koval's The Illustrated Houdini Research Diary.

Related:

• Penn wants to play Conan Doyle to Kevin Pollak's Houdini
• Penn Jillette: "Houdini was not a magician. Houdini was a superstar."
• Teller flips the bird on his 2016 holiday card 

Teller flips the bird on his 2016 holiday card

This is Teller's 2016 Christmas card. I love this because not only is Teller one of my favorite magicians and magic thinkers, but his card provides a nice Houdini fact check. Maybe it's tacky to post a personal Christmas card online, but this one is just too awesome to not share, and I think Teller would be happy to extend his holiday greeting to all Houdini fans. So enjoy.

Click to enlarge.

The card photos are by Mike Jones and W. David Mason. The hawk was wrangled by Civon Gewelber and Dave Kanellis. Houdini scan by Catherine Wallace. Graphic design by T. Gene Hatcher.

Thanks to Tom Ogden.

Related:

• Teller on Houdini: "He's one of the few magicians who mattered."
• Houdini and his eagle shine in auction
• Teller on Houdini and The Grim Game

LINK: Harry Houdini Was an Ingenious Inventor, He Just Didn't Want Anybody to Know

Check out this excellent article by Jackson Landers about Houdini the inventor. The piece includes some good observations by Teller and a few scatterbrained quotes from yours truly (I need to get better with phone interviews). It also includes some very nice photos from National Air and Space Museum Archives, including the infamous "photo Houdini didn't want you to see."

Click the headline to read at Smithsonian.com.

The Greatest: Houdini (1999)

If the 1970s was a boom time for Houdini books, then the 1990s was the heyday of Houdini documentaries. This was largely due to the proliferation of cable channels and the success of A&E's "Biography" series (which did a Houdini episode in 1994). Soon every history and entertainment channel had a similar  weekly documentary series, and a Houdini episode was de rigueur.

One of those Houdini documentaries appeared on TLC's short-lived series The Greatest. Produced by Whatabout Me Entertainment, the 60 minute doc aired on August 5, 1999. It includes interviews Ken Silverman, Penn & Teller, Patrick Culliton, Dorothy Young, Joe Fox and The Pendragons. Jim Bentley, who also co-produced, plays Houdini in several well done dramatizations.

It's a good documentary with some great Houdini footage and Bentley's reenactments make it a standout. On the downside, it gives us the acid-on-dress version of the Houdinis courtship, exposes the Milk Can, and makes no mention of Houdini's movie career.

The Greatest: Houdini was never released on VHS or DVD, and is one of the few '90s docs that has not yet found its way onto YouTube. So I've taken the liberty of uploading my own recording of the original 1999 broadcast. YouTube monetized it for music copyright holders (so you will see pop-up ads), but it looks like they are letting it remain, so I'm happy to share it here. Enjoy.

You can see more videos like this at the WILD ABOUT HARRY YouTube Channel.

Related:

• Houdini on Mysteries & Scandals
• Houdini one of 1000 Ways To Die
• Watch Houdini Never Died