Is it true that Houdini never smoked?
While I don’t have a real photo of Houdini smoking, I do have some circumstantial evidence that he did:
On Monday 18th April, it was a cold and windless morning. As Houdini waited for final preparation to be made, he smoked a cigarette. This was highly unusual for Houdini and it indicated that he was nervous. He gave orders in a ‘quiet yet incisive manner’ and watched with a ‘critical though quite unmoved eye.’
At approximately 8 am he took off and made a flight lasting between three to four minutes which covered a few hundred meters. This marked the first officially recorded successful powered, controlled flight in New South Wales [Australia]. [Houdini’s Tour of Australia by Leann Richards]
After reading the above account, I searched for more evidence and was able to find a newspaper that documented this:
Houdini himself seemed the least perturbed of the party. Cooling smoking a cigarette, he watched preparations with a critical though quite unmoved eye. That he was taking an interest in the proceedings could be observed from the quiet yet incisive manner in which he ordered minor defects to be remedied. [The Sydney Morning Herald, Tuesday 19 April 1910, page 8.]
I also found the following:
Though personally frugal, and except on their anniversary, rarely known to join Bess in a glass of champagne, Houdini may have explored other mood-altering substances around the time he went to Hollywood. Will Goldston believed he sometimes partook of a ‘nip of opium’ of the kind widely available in Edwardian music-hall circles, if only for its analgesic properties. The drug may have numbed the pain of a damaged kidney and other health-related issues collected over the years, but, as with Bess’s drinking, it didn’t always produce a felicitous state. [Masters of Mystery by Christopher Sandford]
Does anyone else have knowledge or evidence of Houdini smoking or exploring mood-altering substances.?
Wow, this is great. I’ve heard the opium thing, but never knew the source. The cigarette in Australia is new to me. Well done.
Pat Culliton says Houdini might have smoked an occasional cigar later in life.
Very interesting that he might have smoked an occasional cigar later in life. I wonder where Patrick picked that tidbit up.
I could see Houdini smoking a cigar later in life, but cigarettes? That’s pretty hard to fathom. Even so, here’s another news clip that mentions it. (Keep in mind the same news article also mentions the Detroit hole-cut-in-the-ice story, which we all know Houdini made up and was popularized in the 1953 biopic, five years before this particular article was published:
“The prison warden then returned to his office. A minute later there was a knock at the door. He opened it—and saw Houdini standing outside, fully dressed and smoking a cigarette, the handcuffs dangling from a finger!”
(The Sydney Morning Herald, March 8, 1958, p. 10)
Thanks for sharing an additional source for smoking a cigarette. If he did in fact smoke cigarettes or cigars later in life, I got to belief it was very rarely.
I seem to remember in at least one Houdini bio that Houdini was mentioned drinking beer with his assistants backstage. I may have been connected to a beer escape challenge.
As for cigarettes and booze, with Bess a heavy drinker and a smoker, Houdini had easy access to either one.
As for Goldston, he seemed on the slimy side, especially after Houdini Died. IMHO
Thanks for the beer reference, and the excellent point WRT Bess and him having easy access. I respect your humble opinion.
Don’t be fooled. I make it up as I go along. 🙂
As for smoking, his name and image was associated with many tobacco items when he was alive. Did he get comped with tobacco products from these companies? Who knows?
Likewise.
Another interesting point.
I remember reading in the Bill Kalush book that Houdini smoked cigars. It was a surprise to me at the time. But one thing that we have to remember, smoking wasn’t considered bad at the time. Some Doctors even thought it was a good thing apparently.
Thanks for the cigar reference and excellent point about smoking during that time. It is much appreciated.
Let’s realize that smoking wasn’t linked to lung cancer until much later in the 20th century. I think it was in Gresham’s book where he describes Houdini sharing a beer with his backstage assistants. I think Houdini may have had an occasional beer and may also have sipped champagne on special occasions.
People who don’t regularly smoke cigarettes like Arnold Schwarzenegger seem to enjoy lighting the occasional cigar. Houdini may have been a part of this club.
Thank you for joining the club; That is, thank you for the comment. So Gresham is the source for a beer and Kalush and Culliton is the source for an occasional cigar.
Thank you everyone for all of the great comments and references. So it looks like, Houdini on occasion, had some champagne, beer, a cigarette, cigar and maybe even partook in a nip of opium.
I have a pipe from my grandfather. Harry and him were pals. In Missouri and later in life in Chicago.
The story goes it was Harry’s…
Wow! Would love to see a photo of the pipe and here more about the story. Any photos of your Grandfather and Houdini. BTW, what was your grandfather’s name?
I DO HAVE A PIPE MADE FOR HARRY HOUDINI,
THE MAKER NAME IS ON THE INSIDE STAMPED IN GOLD WRITING ON A VELVET LINING. THE CASE IS TAN LEATHER DATED 1901.
MADE OF IVORY, CARVED IN HARRY HOUDINI`S BUST & A MEARSHAM MOUTHPIECE.
WAS GIVEN 2 HIM ,BUT H,HOUDINI NEVER SPOKED A PIPE !!
IT HAS 1 INSERTS ON THE TOP OF THE PIPE, >> 1 FOR A CIGARETTE & >>1 INSERT FOR A CIGAR.
IT WA GIVEN 2 ME MANY YEARS AGO AS A PRESENT BY MY STEP FATHER IN AW , AN ,AMERICAN.. GIVEN 2 HIM BY H,HOUDINI,S ATTORNEY IN CHICARGO.HOUDINI`S ATTORNEY & GOOD A FRIEND.
WHAT IT`S WORTH. ? ? ? ?
Wow! Priceless!!