Opening up The Margery Files

I have been hearing some very nice things about you lately, so I am glad to able to say I know "The Great Houdini".

- Mina Crandon aka "Margery"

This will be a very special week here at WILD ABOUT HARRY. Anna Thurlow, the great granddaughter of Mina Crandon aka "Margery the Medium", has graciously allowed me to share several original and unique items related to Houdini and Margery from her own private family archives -- the Libbet Crandon de Malamud Collection -- or what I'm calling, The Margery Files.

These items have only ever been seen by a select handful of people, and have certainly never been posted on the internet. Some give new insight into the complicated relationship between Houdini and Margery. Others are just amazing to see in the light of 2013! It's going to be quite a week, and I'm honored and thrilled that Anna has chosen my blog to share these treasures with the magic world.

So hold onto your ectoplasm, because what Anna and I have to share is Wild enough to raise the dead!

Monday: Photo play

Tuesday: Subtle betrayals

Wednesday: Inside man

Thursday: Have a seat

Friday: Keepsakes

Saturday: Bonus!

and

The Margery Files revisited

Now here's a little something to set the mood.

The secrets of The Secrets of Houdini

Today I continue my examination of books about Houdini with images and insights from my own collection.

The Secrets of Houdini by J.C. Cannell is a remarkable and somewhat mysterious book. First published in the UK in 1931, the book does indeed expose some key Houdini methods and contains an impressive collection of rare photographs. The book is arguably superior to the officially sanctioned Houdini's Escapes by Walter B. Gibson, which was published in the U.S. the previous year. So how did this book come to be without the apparent involvement or blessing of Beatrice Houdini and Bernard Ernst?

1931 UK first edition hardcover.

Not all that much is known about the author, J.C. Cannell. According to MagicPedia, John Clucas Cannell was a journalist, author, amateur magician and also Vice-President of the Magician's Club in London. Cannell is only credited with two other works, In Town Tonight (1935) and Modern Conjuring for Amateurs (1938).

But reading The Secrets of Houdini, it's pretty clear that famed magic publisher and Magicians Club President Will Goldston had a hand in this book, even though his name does not appear as publisher or even as a contributor. Cannell makes reference to "his friend" Will Goldston within the first few paragraphs of his introduction (he says Goldston is a "spiritualist"?), and you don't have to go very deep into the book before you find a photo of Houdini and Goldston. I can't help but wonder whether Goldston was the true author of this book and used Cannell as a front? It's possible.

The Secrets of Houdini was first published in hardcover by Hutchinson & Co. in the UK in 1931. Hutchinson released a revised hardcover edition in 1932 promoted as the "First cheap edition." Added to the text was a dedication ("To my wife Dorothy") and a new "Author's Note" in which Cannell expressed surprise at the controversial reaction of the book:

Since this book appeared I have received a large number of letters from people who have read it, and their reactions to the exposure of the method and technique of a would-famous illusionist and professional deceiver interested me mightily. Some of the letter writers declared that I had struck a deadly blow at the popular belief in the supernatural by revealing the coldly materialistic explanation of this modern wizard, Houdini. Others affirmed that, in spite of my revelations their belief in the psychic powers of Houdini had not been shaken.

A paperback edition of "J.C. Cannell's famous book" was released by Hutchinson's Pocket Library in 1938. The title page notes that it's the "38th Thousand" printing(!). The Author's Note does not appear in this printing.

UK "cheap edition" and the 1938 paperback.

The Secrets of Houdini wasn't published in the United States until 1971. The first U.S. edition was put out by Gyrphon Books and was a facsimile of the UK printing. The two Gyrphon editions that I've been able to examine (my own and one in the Arthur Moses collection) have different bindings, but both state "Third Impression" on the title page, so it appears the facsimile was struck from the British 3rd edition.

This was followed by another hardcover published by Gale in 1974, also a facsimile of the Third Impression. As far as I know, neither the Gyrphon nor Gale editions were issued in dust-jackets, and neither contains the "Author's Note" (which tells us the Author's Note was unique to the UK second edition?).

1971 Gryphon editions (red) and the 1974 Gale edition (blue).

But the way most American readers (including yours truly) first discovered The Secrets of Houdini was via the Dover trade paperback first published in 1973. This edition added 24 new illustrations. Like Dover's other popular Houdini title, Houdini on Magic, it's still in print to this day. There have been dozens of printings of the Dover paperback over the years that offer subtle changes in the color of the cover art. And speaking of cover art, it was the Dover edition of The Secrets of Houdini that inspired a young David Blaine.

Original 1973 and current Dover editions.

The Secrets of Houdini was published in a new hardcover edition by Bell in 1989. This edition contained a new forward by Bud Masterson and is unique in that it restores Cannell's "Author's Note" -- the first time the Author's Note had ever appeared in any U.S. edition to my knowledge. The Bell edition also retouched some of the photographs and credits the poster and props on the attractive dust-jacket to "Flosso Hornmann Magic Inc., the world's oldest magic shop" (which had once been owned by Houdini).

In 2010 The Secrets of Houdini was made available as a print-on-demand in hardcover and paperback.

The 1989 Bell hardcover and the 2010 print-on-demand.

But perhaps the strangest "reprinting" of The Secrets of Houdini happened in 2012 when Amazon listed six new "books" by J.C. Cannell with titles like: Harry Houdini the True Escapist Extraordinaire and Houdini and the Art of Illusion and Disillusion. Some of these showed prices as high as $26 and page counts as low as 30 pages.

But this was just the good-old Secrets of Houdini carved up into sections and offered up under new titles, part of an epidemic of sneaky public domain reconfigurations that have sprung up in the digital age.

Thanks to Arthur Moses for his help sussing out details on the U.S. editions. Also thanks to John Bushey for the image and details about the 1932 "cheap" edition.

Also enjoy:

• "This book is full of lies"
• "Had Houdini lived he would have written this book"
• The perennial Houdini on Magic

Harpodeon's The Man From Beyond

In June of 2010 Harpodeon, specialists in rare early feature films and niche genres titles on DVD and for download, released Houdini's The Man From Beyond. What I like about the various DVD versions of The Man From Beyond is each provides a different musical soundtrack, and that is especially true of this release.

According to Harpodeon's W. Dustin Alligood, the score on their DVD "is an original compilation unique to it." He also points out that The Man From Beyond was released before the company started listing each piece of music in the credits, so he's generously provided us with the full The Man From Beyond cuesheet "for those who want to perform it live."

So enjoy the music, and if you'd like to purchase The Man From Beyond (or other cinema rarities), you can do so at the Harpodeon website.

The Man From Beyond cuesheet
----------------------------
0:00:00 0:01:07 Church Music (Sam Fox Moving Picture Music, vol. 1) - J.S. Zamecnik
0:01:07 0:04:38 Plaintive (Sam Fox Moving Picture Music, vol. 3) -  J.S. Zamecnik
0:04:38 0:14:28 Elegie - Ernst Luz
0:14:29 0:17:36 Creeping Shadows - Erno Rapee & William Axt
0:17:37 0:18:56 Andante Dramatico #62 - Gaston Borch
0:18:56 0:21:52 La Petite …trangËre - P.B. Metcalf
0:21:52 0:24:27 For Her - Norman Leigh
0:24:27 0:26:59 Une Parole d'Amore - Domenico Savino
0:26:58 0:33:45 Intensley Dramatic (Sam Fox Moving Picture Music, vol. 2) - J.S. Zamecnik
0:33:46 0:36:06 Misterioso Infernale - Gaston Borch
0:36:07 0:40:07 Weekly Maneuvers (Sam Fox Moving Picture Music, vol. 2) - J.S. Zamecnik
0:40:07 0:40:50 Burglar #2 (Sam Fox Moving Picture Music, vol. 1) - J.S. Zamecnik
0:40:50 0:42:43 Poppy Love Theme - Ernst Luz
0:42:43 0:45:20 Battle Music - Hugo Riesenfeld
0:45:20 0:50:00 Music For a While - Henry Purcell
0:50:01 0:52:34 Lento (Motion Picture Moods) - Berthold Tours
0:52:34 0:58:23 Conspiracy - Domenico Savino
0:58:23 0:59:59 Vanity - I.J. Shanes
0:59:59 1:01:57 Hurry, Combat/Struggle (Sam Fox Moving Picture Music, vol. 2) - J.S. Zamecnik
1:01:57 1:07:04 L'Ermite - R. Gruenwald
1:07:05 1:13:43 Gigue in B-Flat Minor - Karl Heinrich Graun
1:13:43 1:16:01 Solemn Scenes From Nature (Ditson's Music for the Photoplay) - Christopher O'Hare

'Harry the Great' escapes

Looks like I completely missed Harry the Great when it played last July at the Creede Repertory Theatre and later at the Lone Tree Arts Center in Colorado. Harry the Great features a battle of magicians set against the backdrop of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, with one of those magicians being, yes, Houdini!

Erik Weisz (Brian Kusic) prepares to vanish Bess Rahner (Kyra Koelling).

However, Houdini is not the "Harry" of the title. That is Harry Robenstein played by Steven Cole. Here Houdini is "Erik Weisz" (their spelling) played by Brian Kusic. The play was written by John DiAntonio and offers up an alternative history of how Houdini/Erik embarked on his career, met Bess (Kyra Koelling), and came up with the idea for the Water Torture Cell.

I only learned about Harry the Great from a report and rave review by Joe Given in the January issue of MAGIC. Unfortunately, the show has finished its limited run.

Where might it play next? MAGIC reports that if playwright John DiAntonio has his way, "it'll be seen 'playing across the street from the Hugh Jackman Broadway musical, Houdini!'"

Houdini's underwater epic that wasn't

When Houdini let it be known he was interested in becoming a cinema star, he was courted by filmmakers both aspiring and established. In 1915 he met with Universal about playing Captain Nemo in an adaptation of Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. But negotiations broke down. "I'm afraid I want too much money," said Houdini.

In 1917 Houdini's salary demands were met by the Williamson Brothers Submarine Film Company, who specialized in underwater photography and had been contracted for the aborted 20,000 Leagues project. It was reported that Houdini would be paid "the largest sum of money ever paid to any one performer for a single motion picture."

The Williamson Brothers announced their Houdini project -- along with the hiring of writer Arthur Somers Roche -- in a full page ad in The Moving Picture World on May 5, 1917. "Houdini's Sub-Sea Miracle" would be released in November 1917 as the Williamson Brothers second film of that year.

Click to enlarge

The idea this time was to produce an "Epic of the Elements" featuring daredevil escapes underwater, on land, and in the air. The underwater escape would be from a steel-chambered bathysphere. Houdini would free himself without letting any water inside. Shooting was planned for the Bahamas.

"Through the aid of the Williamson's devices for submarine photography, I will be able to release myself in full view of the camera," Houdini told the movie press. "There can be no doubt whatsoever henceforth as to the authenticity of my performance."

However, the ambitious project did not make it off the page, possibly because of America's entry into World War I at the very time the film was scheduled to shoot. Houdini later sued the company for back salary.

Houdini would instead make his film debut a year later on dry land in The Master Mystery for producer B.A. Rolfe and the newly formed Octagon Films, Inc. But Houdini would return to the idea of underwater and submarine action in his 1920 feature for Famous Players-Lasky, Terror Island.

Thanks to Arthur Moses for the advert. Background information from The Secret Life of Houdini by William Kalush and Houdini!!! The Career of Ehrich Weiss by Kenneth Silverman.

Look who's wild about Harry

Houdini was an avid follower of the latest technology, so it's no surprise to see him with an iPad. Also no surprise which blog he reads everyday.

Thanks to Harry Houdini (real name) for this little photographic treat. I think this makes a terrific WILD ABOUT HARRY advertisement.

The Houdini Box lands a writer-director

Variety reports that 20th Century Fox-based Chernin Entertainment has tapped tap Irish filmmaker Kealan O'Rourke to write and direct an adaptation of Brian Selznick's young adult novel The Houdini Box. Chernin purchased the film rights to the book in August of last year.

O'Rourke is a veteran of short films, animation, and TV work. The Houdini Box would mark his feature film debut.

First published in 1991, The Houdini Box tells the story of an aspiring young magician who meets Houdini at a train station. The boy receives a letter inviting him to Houdini's house -- only to discover that the magician died that day and left him a mysterious, locked box.

Peter Chernin and Jenno Topping will produce The Houdini Box, while Kerry Foster will oversee the project. Variety notes that a representative for Chernin had no comment.

Considering O'Rourke's background, I'm wondering if they are considering making this as an animated feature?

"Weapon of Choice!" chooses Houdini

A new art exposition featuring a work by James Flames called "Houdini's Key" opens this Friday at the Design Matters gallery in Los Angeles.

"Weapon of Choice!" showcases art inspired by prominent characters from fiction, history, or pop culture, and their relationship with their iconic "weapon".

There will be an opening reception on Friday, January 11, from 7-11pm at Design Matters, 11527 Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064. You can RSVP at the "Weapon of Choice!" Facebook page.

For more on the exhibition visit Hero Complex Gallery. You can also buy a signed and numbered print of "Houdini's Key" for $30 via Limited Paper at Collider.

Thanks to Richard Kaufman.

Miss Undina in color

Not long ago I did a post about Miss Undina, the German imitator Houdini shut down in 1912 for lifting his Water Torture Cell escape. I included the famous and familiar black and white Miss Undina poster image, first published in Gibson's Houdini's Fabulous Magic (1961). But now thanks to Chuck Romano of Chuck Romano Magic, here's the poster in its original full color!

Apparently this color image has been hiding in plain sight. Chuck explained to me that he discovered it in Time Life's The Encyclopedia of Collectibles: Lalique to Marbles (1979). He tells me this find even surprised the late Sidney Radner.

This is really awesome because I don't believe I've ever seen this poster in color before. Even Tachen's seminal MAGIC 1400s-1950s reproduces this poster only in black and white.

Thank you Chuck.

LINK: History's hidden connection between Houdini and The 3 Stooges

Okay, listen up, chowderheads. Michael Lauck over at iTricks has an investigation into the supposed link between Houdini and The 3 Stooges. Yeah, you heard me you numbskulls, The Stooges! Were one of the boys related to Houdini?

Click the headline and have a read at iTricks before I murderize you.

Nuk nuk nuk.

Houdini's favorite detective

Today is Sherlock Holmes' 159th birthday. Holmes scholars agree (more or less) on January 6, 1854 as the great detective's birthday based on information given in His Last Bow. The first Sherlock Holmes story, A Study In Scarlet, appeared in 1887.

But why are we celebrating this milestone? Because Houdini was a Holmes buff -- a "Sherlockian", if you will. According to the recent book Houdini and Conan Doyle, Houdini had in his library "1,343 items of correspondence, heirlooms, souvenirs [and] merchandise pertaining to Sherlock Holmes." And while Houdini and Holmes creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had a relationship in real life, Houdini has been teamed with Sherlock himself in several fictional adventures.

The very first Houdini-Holmes mash-up appears to have been a 1908 German dime novel called Auf den spuren Houdinis ("On the Trail of Houdini"). More recent adventures have included: The Pandora Plague by Lee Matthias (1981); The Adventure of the Ectoplasmic Man by Daniel Stashower (1985); Sherlock Holmes and the Houdini Birthright by Val Andrews (1995); The Adventure of the Magician's Meetings by Larry Engle and Kevin VanHook (2012); and the graphic novel Houdini & Holmes by Polly Guo (2011).

Happy birthday, Sherlock.

Holmes-Houdini artwork by Carles Demiguel for the Spanish edition of The Adventure of the Ectoplasmic Man.

LINK: In search of the lost plane to plane transfer from Houdini (1953)

Our friend Joe Notaro of Harry Houdini Circumstantial Evidence is branching out from his singular focus on The Grim Game and today has a terrific investigation into the missing plane transfer footage from the classic 1953 movie, Houdini.

Joe has done some digging in the Margaret Herrick Academy Library and has uncovered new details about the cut scene, including that it was shot on October 31, 1952 (Halloween - nice). It's also interesting to note that the scene was shot in black and white.

This is great stuff, so click on the headline to read about Houdini's lost plane transfer at Harry Houdini Circumstantial Evidence.

Houdini Seance Room (and the Castle around it) turns 50

The Magic Castle in Hollywood celebrated its 50 Anniversary this week. The official home of the Academy of Magical Arts opened on January 2, 1963. Of course, no visit to the Castle is complete without a peek inside their famous Houdini Seance Room.

The Houdini Seance Room was originally one of four bedrooms inside the Lane Mansion. It was converted by John Shrum, Dr. Tom Heric and Milt Larsen on February 27, 1969 (so technically it's not yet 50, but I like my headline). The centerpiece of the room is a beautiful signed Lalique bronze chandelier which hangs over the large round seance table. The room was remodeled in 1997 and again in 2008.

The room contains a wonderful collection of authentic Houdini artifacts, some of which were handed down from Bess and Edward Saint to the parents of Magic Castle co-founders Bill and Milt Larsen (Bess and Ed lived very near the Lane Mansion in their final years). There is a truly intense "Houdini vibe" in the room that I'm convinced emanates from these artifacts which, after all, are only a few hands away from Houdini himself. There's also a beautiful Houdini portrait painting by Craig Vilaube.

Celebrities and dignitaries of all kinds have attended seances in the Houdini Room, including a famous 1991 visit by President Ronald Reagan. At one point the room had a full-size Houdini mannequin that would lower from a secret trap in the ceiling during the dark of a seance. According to long-time medium Leo Kostka, one night the mannequin's head fell off and landed in the lap of a Japanese woman, sending her entire tour party screaming from the Castle.

The Houdini Seance Room has seen artifacts come and go over the years. For several years Houdini's original Metamorphosis trunk (the one owned by Patrick Culliton) sat in a corner and actually played a role in the seance. Today a Milk Can sits inside the room. While it isn't an authentic Houdini Milk Can, it was the can used in a cut scene from the 1953 movie, Houdini (I'm not sure the Castle even knows this).

Originally the room had three large display cases filled with Houdini artifacts. At some point one case was removed and replaced by a faux fireplace (you can see a photo of the now absent case in Gibson's The Original Houdini Scrapbook, page 219). The room also holds an official proclamation by Mayor Tom Bradly naming October 31, 1975 "Harry Houdini Day" in the City of Los Angeles. There's also a walnut magic wand touted to be "Harry Houdini's Personal Magic Wand".

But my single favorite item in the Houdini Seance Room is a photo of an 8-year-old Milt Larsen showing a magic trick to an attentive Bess Houdini on the porch of the Larsen home in Pasadena. Priceless.

Happy 50th Anniversary to The Magic Castle!

Discovery Channel shooting Houdini documentary?

The Sun reports that Irish escape artist Steve Spade won a "priceless" pair of original Houdini handcuffs from a U.S. film crew shooting a documentary about Houdini for the Discovery Channel in Dublin.

The crew challenged Spade to perform "Houdini's famous 100 foot of rope escape" and was told he could have the handcuffs if he escaped in 60 seconds. Spade made the escape in record time and won the cuffs, which according to the article were "issued in Paris in 1906 and are signed by Houdini's brother Theo Hardeen." The crew reportedly purchased the handcuffs at an American auction along with authentication paperwork.

Nice story, and quite a prize for Spade, but what I find most intriguing is the revelation that Discovery is doing a new "Houdini documentary". This is the first I've heard about this.

However, as Spade was asked to do an appraisal on the cuffs, it's possible this is just a segment for one of Discovery's many auction/pawn/pickers-type reality shows. I'm not even sure Discovery makes traditional documentaries anymore.

Still, this is one I'll be tracking.

Steve Spade with his Houdini handcuffs (The Sun).

UPDATE: As I suspected, this was a reality show. Read and watch: Houdini handcuffs on Baggage Battles.