Bask in 'Houdini’s Shadow'

Whoops! This one slipped right past me. A new book, Houdini's Shadow, by Leo Brent Robillard was released in March of this year.

Houdini's Shadow tells the story of Jake O'Sullivan, a young man possessed by a fatal childhood fascination with Harry Houdini. After seeing one of Houdini's 1912 performances in New York City, Jake realises that to "escape – to tempt death – is to live. Is to understand existence." While it's hard to believe that someone as young as Jake could come to such a substantial realisation, it becomes clear that he does not simply wish to escape from sealed milk containers, or unlock the chains around his wrists at the bottom of the St. Lawrence. Rather, he hopes to escape from his past, the failures of his pugilistic father, the failures of his own life as he grows into a young man, clinging helplessly to his dream of becoming a famous escape artist.

Houdini's Shadow can be purchased from Amazon.com.

Second Houdini & Nate novel released

The second book in Tom Lalicki’s Houdini & Nate Mystery series, Shots At Sea, is released today.

Shots At Sea finds young Nate Fuller and Houdini in action aboard the Lusitania, where a cunning killer tries to assassinate former president Teddy Roosevelt. Nate and Houdini must race to find and foil their suspect before he makes a second attempt.

The first Houdini & Nate novel, Danger in the Dark, was included in the The Bank Street Children's Book Committee’s 2007 edition of "The Best Children's Books of the Year."

Shots At Sea can be purchased on Amazon.com. Details on the entire Houdini & Nate series can be found at the official Houdini & Nate website.

Melville Shavelson dies at 90

Variety reports that writer-producer-director Melville "Mel" Shavelson died Wednesday of natural causes at his home in Studio City. He was 90.

Houdini buffs will best remember Shavelson as the force behind the 1976 ABC TV-movie The Great Houdinis, starring Paul Michael Glaser and Sally Struthers. Shavelson wrote, directed, and produced the 2-hour tele-film. He also penned the novelization.

For my money, Shavelson’s The Great Houdinis is probably the best of all the films made about Houdini. While at the time the movie seemed to be steamy collection of fictionalization, over the years many of the themes and incidents portrayed in the film have been revealed to be fact; such as Houdini’s affair with Daisy White and Bess Houdini’s alcoholism.

Shavelson’s film career saw him work with many famous faces, including Jimmy Cagney and Frank Sinatra, Cary Grant and Sophia Loren. Shavelson directed Cast a Giant Shadow, starring Kirk Douglas and Yours, Mine and Ours, starring Lucille Ball. His 1956 film, The Seven Little Foys, and his 1958 romantic comedy Houseboat were both nominated for Oscars.

Shavelson also served three terms as president of the Writers Guild of America, West.

Recently, Shavelson served on the faculty of USC's Master of Professional Writing Program; he funded a special closed-circuit television network for the Motion Picture and Television Fund Home in California; he established a film scholarship fund at Cornell U. (his alma mater); and he was acclaimed for his contributions to the Shavelson-Webb Writers Guild Foundation Library.

LINK: The man who taught Houdini to make an elephant disappear

The Daily Mail has a very interesting profile of Charles Morritt, who made several illusions for Houdini, including his famous Vanishing Elephant:

While Houdini performed his illusions, Morritt spent World War I touring the provinces. One evening he appeared in Houdini's dressing room. "Of course," he said, as Houdini peered in the mirror, applying greasepaint for the stage lights, "if you really want to make headlines with your magic, you shouldn't bother with little tricks like rabbits and pigeons. Make an elephant disappear."

Houdini remonstrated that even if the necessary equipment could be devised, having an elephant on stage would hardly be practical.

"I've got a very efficient way to do it," retorted Morritt.

Click on the headline to read the full story at The Daily Mail.

Houdini handcuffs at Comic Con

A pair of Mattatuck handcuffs used by Harry Houdini are currently on display at the Profiles in History booth at the San Diego Comic Con.

The Con -- the worlds largest gathering of all things pop culture -- started on Thursday and runs through Sunday at the San Diego Convention Center. Attendance is expected to top last year’s 200,000.

The cuffs are auction lot #664. Bids can be placed via eBay. Price estimate is $7,000 to $9,000.

The Mattatuck cuffs were first sold at Butterfields Houdini auction in Los Angeles in 1999 as part of the Sidney Radner Houdini Magical Hall of Fame collection.

Jail time, fine for Houdini collection arsonist

The man convicted of burning a priceless collection of Harry Houdini memorabilia might have to conjure up $100,000 as part of his sentence.

Jarrod Frederick pleaded guilty to the arson charge Wednesday and said he would attempt to pay the money as part of his proposed three-year prison sentence.

Frederick is accused of destroying Dr. Randall Wolf’s collection of the magician’s memorabilia when he broke into an Indian Hill home on Dec. 30 and set a fire that caused more than $1 million damage.

Prosecutors said Frederick, who once did lawn work in Indian Hill and knew the area, was looking for an out-of-the-way place to smoke crack cocaine.

He went into the Park Road house, prosecutors said, and set the fire while attempting to light his crack pipe.

The proposed sentence would give Frederick a choice of serving three years and attempting to pay $100,000, or serving five years and paying none.

Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Dennis Helmick became irritated with Frederick when he asked a question about paying the money.

“I have absolutely no sympathy for you,” Helmick said. “I’m asking you to pay 10 cents on the dollar. If you don’t want to, OK, you’ll go to the penitentiary. You were the one who caused the loss.”

The judge will decide whether to accept the proposed sentence Aug. 21. If he does, Frederick would be expected to begin making payments for the first five years after his release from prison.

His attorney, Hal Arenstein, said the hope is Frederick will be able to pay something, although it’s unlikely he will be able to repay anything close to $100,000.

If he makes an effort, Arenstein said, he should be able to avoid going back to prison.

Helmick said insurance companies already have paid $500,000 to cover property lost in the fire and would likely pay much more.

“Do you want to tell me … why you have a right to screw somebody else’s life up?” the judge asked.

“I have no right,” Frederick answered.

“You seem to be doing it,” Helmick said. “Every time you decide to use crack, it was a conscious decision. Nobody held a gun to your head.”

by Dan Horn
Cincinnati.com The Enquirer

AICN reviews Death Defying Acts

The first review of Death Defying Acts starring Guy Pearce as Houdini and Catherine Zeta-Jones has appeared over at Ain’t It Cool News. While the review isn’t exactly glowing, the reviewer did note that some in the focus group he attended liked the film...so that’s something.

Click to read: Bobo Vision Wants To Escape From DEATH-DEFYING ACTS

Death Defying Acts is a “supernatural romantic thriller” that tells the fictional story of Houdini’s relationship with a Scottish psychic played by Zeta Jones. It will be released by The Weinstein Co.

Houdini Lives! on Amazon

First published in October 2006, Houdini Lives! by Al Blanchard and Adam Steinfeld is a fun fictional novel that finds Houdini alive and well and living in Miami Beach in 1966. Originally available only as an eBook or print on demand, Houdini Lives! is now available on Amazon.com.

It's 1966, and world famous magician, escape artist, Harry Houdini, did not die 40 years ago as people thought. He's has been in hiding from his political enemies and is planning a dramatic comeback. Who are these enemies from the 1920's, and why are they still trying to kill him? Can Stanford, the young, hip, up-and-coming magician, and his sultry assistant, Solea, save his life? A magician creates a world of wonder and asks people to believe in that world. It is the highest form of entertainment. What is Houdini's secret identity? Will this be his final illusion? Ladies and Gentlemen, prepare for a tall tale of murder, mystery, romance, and political drama. Houdini lives or dies is only a matter of time.

Purchase Houdini Lives! from Amazon.com

Pamela Anderson gets signed Houdini book for her 40th

Pamela Anderson received a twice-signed copy of Houdini’s A Magician Among The Spirits for her 40th birthday. The book was a gift from magician Hans Klok.

The former Playboy playmate and Baywatch star celebrated her birthday last Saturday at the Planet Hollywood Hotel in Las Vegas where she is currently assisting Klok in his show The Beauty of Magic.

Pamela is reported to have let former husband Tommy Lee and photographer David LaChapelle touch the signature for good luck.

Dita Von Teese is “Houdini of Burlesque”

Burlesque star Dita Von Teese has likened herself to Houdini because of the speed at which she can remove her clothes.

The former wife of rocker Marilyn Manson believes she can disrobe in just 15 seconds. "No one's ever timed me with a stopwatch but it would be interesting to find out. I do consider myself to be a Houdini of burlesque. I can remove my clothing very quickly if I choose to but, of course, part of the art of burlesque is taking your time."

On that last count, Dita may very well share a key performance philosophy with the great magician. While Houdini could escape his constraints very quickly, he would sometimes delay making a reappearance until the tension in the audience reached its zenith. Indeed, legend has it that Houdini would even read the newspaper while the audience fretted about whether he’d escape from an air-tight safe.

And now, another pic of Dita.

Houdini mobile phone game coming

PRESS RELEASE: Tag Games today signed an agreement with Oasys Mobile which brings Tag's critically acclaimed debut title Dead Water to North America, where it will be released as Houdini: Escape from Dead Water.

Paul Farley, the managing director of Tag Games, said, “The Houdini license is not only a great fit in terms of the titles theme and game-play but also comes at an opportune time with Houdini's controversial demise is back in the news.”

Houdini: Escape From Dead Water is scheduled for release in Q3 2007. The title will be available from all major North American carriers.

Dead Water was released in Europe in early 2007, to widespread critical acclaim. The game was awarded 81% from MobileGameFaqs.com, 8/10 from MidletReview.com and prompted MobGames.tv to proclaim, “With brand new original innovative game-play, designed specifically for your mobile phone, could this be a glimpse of what's to come from Tag Games and for the industry as a whole?”

Tag Games has a number of games in development to follow Houdini: Escape from Dead Water. These include Rock’n’Roll - an innovative casual action/puzzle title that features unique one button game-play and Granny In Paradise, which brings Sandlot Games' popular casual PC franchise to mobile for the very first time.

“We're delighted to be working with Oasys to release Houdini: Escape From Dead Water to the American market,” says Farley.“We've had a great response to the game throughout Europe and we believe its combination of simple, fun gameplay and the unique setting of a sinking ship– with the constantly rising water, will prove just as popular with an American audience.”

Oasys Mobile CEO, Doug Dyer commented, “We are excited about our partnership with Tag Games to release Houdini: Escape From Dead Water. We believe, together, we will release a successful and compelling game with large appeal in the American market.”

‘Mein Training’ nabs $1,400 on eBay

A copy of Houdini’s first German pitchbook Mein Training and Meine Tricks shot past its auction estimate of $300 to $400 and sold for $1,400 on eBay.

At 80 pages, Mein Training is substantially longer than most of Houdini’s pitchbooks. In fact, it could be considered a proper Houdini book in the vein of Handcuff Secrets.

This eBay copy came from the library of the famous Mentalist Joseph Dunninger, a close personal friend of Houdini who later served as technical advisor on the 1953 Paramount movie HOUDINI.

'Biography for Kids' captures Houdini

The Biography Channel series "Biography for Kids" recently added Houdini to its lineup of hour long profiles.

Unfortunately, this is not a new documentary, but is the 1994 A&E produced, Houdini The Great Escape, re-recorded with a young person reading the narration.

Still, this is one of the better Houdini biographies and one that Houdini fans young and old will enjoy.

Check your cable listings for air dates.

Last photo...no! True location revealed

Thanks to reader Mike Castle, we can now firmly establish that the above picture is not the last photo ever taken of Houdini at McGill University in 1926, as was claimed in a recent eBay auction. This is actually a photo of Houdini posing outside the White House in Washington D.C.

Check out the postcard below. There can be no doubt that Houdini is standing in the pathway of the West Wing at approximately the area of the red dot (determined by counting off 12 windows along the wing).

Red dot marks where Houdini is standing

This suggests the photo was taken in either February or May of 1926 when Houdini traveled to the capitol to testify before Congress on a bill to outlaw fortune telling in the District of Columbia.

But this hardly takes the shine off this image. Sure, it isn’t Houdini’s “last photo.” But it is the only image I know of showing the master magician at the White House.

Thank you Mike!

UPDATE: It's likey this was taken on Wednesday, May 19, 1926, when Houdini visited the White House to deliver an affidavit related to his congressional testimony to Everett Sanders, secretary to President Coolidge.