They think I’m dead — and then I break free, and they can breathe again
ERIK
WEISZ
1874
1874
Houdini’s real name — Erik Weisz
His father was deeply religious and kept sweets locked away, believing he was protecting his children from the sin of gluttony
Yet young Houdini always found a way to pick the locks, reveling in the admiration of his younger siblings
This inspired his dream of working in the circus
First
Performance
Houdini began working in a traveling circus. He amazed the owner with a trick in which, suspended upside down, he collected pins and needles using only his eyelashes and eyebrows
houdin
1890
1890
At sixteen, the aspiring performer purchased a copy of Memoirs of Robert-Houdin. The book became his personal Bible
He was so inspired that he adopted a stage name inspired by it
I
Y
R
A
H
T
R
E
B
O
R
Bess Rahner
The magician’s wife and assistant. Petite Bess could easily fit into stage boxes and props, and later joked with a smile that Houdini married her for exactly that reason
Cecilia Steiner
She was always the one who believed in and supported him. In 1912, he fulfilled a childhood promise to his mother — showering her with gold coins
He later called it the happiest moment of his life
When she passed away, he was overcome with grief
The tragedy drove him to seek out mediums
the Fight
He attended a séance meant to connect him with his deceased mother, after which he was deeply angered and disillusioned
From then on, exposing fraudulent mediums became part of his work
Against Mediums
He later said:
There are only two kinds of mediums :
the mentally deficient and the perfectly sane frauds
Tricks
The most dangerous and spectacular in Houdini’s career
The fatal
blow
1926
1926
Houdini often demonstrated that he could withstand a punch to the stomach
One day, in his dressing room, a student struck him several times without giving the magician a chance to prepare. Houdini felt intense pain but showed no sign of it
The blow ruptured his appendix and caused acute peritonitis
It seems this will destroy me
I’m tired of fighting…
longread author
Ekaterina
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