Houdini arrived in Montreal with a fractured ankle, suffered from a mishap with the Water Torture Cell on October 11th.
We previously shared comments from Dr. Nelles and Dr. William D. Tait WRT to Houdini’s health:
Dr. Nelles, who interviewed Houdini on October 18th, thought “He looked not very well, pretty white and his wife Beatrice was worried about him.”
At the lecture, Houdini had a nurse with him who had nursed his wife a short time previously.
Dr William D. Tait Professor of Psychology at McGill, commented that “Houdini was in poor health when he arrived in Montreal” And that “When Houdini concluded his address, he sat down immediately as he was suffering great pain from his fractured ankle. His nurse came up to the platform and insisted upon Houdini leaving, so gangway was made for him.”
What has not been shared previously are the comments from a writer, Genevieve Lipsett-Skinner, who was sitting on a chair in the center aisle in the front row on the day of Houdini’s appearance at McGill Union:
LOOKED DEATHLY
To the writer had fallen the assignment of covering Houdini at McGill on October 19. During the dinner that evening Houdini was the subject of conversation. “I want my 11-year old daughter to see Houdini while he is in Montreal,” remarked one of the gentlemen present. “You had better send her as soon as you can. Houdini is not long for this world,” the writer advised. “How do you know?” the astonished company asked in chorus. “The stamp of death is on his countenance. I saw death approaching once before and there can be no mistake. Houdini’s days are numbered,” was the reply which was received with a volley of arguments about the magicians wonderful physique and powers of endurance, coupled with a reminder that he was only 48 [52] years of age.”
Source:
- Montreal Daily Star Nov 1st 1926
Related:
Eerie–but then hindsight is always 20/20.
Interesting, but for me this has a ring of untruth about, of someone boasting after the fact — I knew he was a dead man!
BTW, I recently learned that Houdini’s last diary entry was made on this day. I don’t know (yet) know the exact wording, but it’s essentially that he lectured on his broken ankle. Seems it was painful. If there was some other pain, he hid it, even from his diary.
Yes–HH’s last diary entry is in Silverman. He alluded to his broken ankle. Absolutely, Monday morning quarterbacking doesn’t count if you want to be clairvoyant.
Interesting point about the diary. The article also points out that he was in great pain from his fractured ankle [not his abdomen that was causing his distress]. And, until I read the article, I wasn’t aware that there was a dinner after the lecture; not surprising that Houdini was the subject of conversation and people in attendance argued about the magician’s wonderful physique and powers of endurance. The conversation and arguments continue to this day.
According to Silverman, HH’s last diary entry was: “I spoke for an hour, my leg broken.”
The Whitehead punch was three days later, so Harry’s abdomen could not have been causing distress. Unless he was suffering from the early stages of appendicitis during his lecture.
Thanks Leo. According to Silverman on the Mysteries & Scandals 1998 Documentary (20:17- 20:24): “Ruptured appendix caused peritonitis to set in. Peritonitis comes from bacterium and appendicitis comes from the bacterium and he couldn’t have got that from a punch in the stomach so he must have had it before.”
I wonder if the food poisoning Bess suffered from the dinner a few days before may have also affected HH. Did he eat tainted food? Did it trigger the beginnings of appendicitis?
Manny Weltman wondered the same thing. And Gertrude Hills letter if true certainly would answer some questions as to the condition of Houdini’s appendix, which would have been weakened and more susceptible to the blows Whitehead struck in the dressing room that fateful day:
“Here are the facts of Houdini’s illness, as told to me [Gertrude Hills] by him [Harry Houdini], and the first results of which I [GH] saw when working with him [HH].
“During the summer he was asked to contribute his services toward raising funds for a charitable cause. He was delighted to do so and promised to perform his ‘straitjacket’ act and to try to beat his own record in escaping from it. In attempting this he injured himself internally so badly that for days he suffered pain in his side. Closely following upon the injury he had an attack of what was diagnosed as ‘ptomaine poisoning’. From this he really never seemed to recover. When he left on his tour he told me that he still felt the effects of the injury and the poisoning.” I said to him: ‘This might be very serious. Suppose you should die from it?’ He replied: ‘No man should regret dying because of a good act; in fact, it’s a privilege.’” Dated and signed October 31, 1926
From what I’ve read on the Internet, food poisoning is most likely not the trigger for appendicitis, which is caused by a blockage to the colon. Food poisoning and appendicitis can be mistaken for one or the other.
Whitehead’s punch is still the prime suspect. The broken left ankle didn’t help.
Yeah, the November 1, 1926 New York Times reported:
Houdini first attributed his pain on the train to something he ate, but as it increased, he called in the company’s nurse, who in turn arranged by wire to have a physician meet the magician in Detroit. Dr. Leo Kretzka, a prominent physician, made a hurried examination and told the patient there were symptoms of appendicitis. He left it to Houdini to decide whether it would be advisable for him to appear that evening at the Garrick Theatre for the opening night of the show. Houdini would not disappoint his admirers.
He suffered continuous pain ever since breaking his left ankle and really needed to cancel his engagements and rest, but as we know he did not miss a show. By the time, he went to Montreal his whole system was in a weakened state, but he managed to lecture, perform, get punched in the stomach, perform some more, board a train where his appendix ruptures, and then perform one last time.
A friend of mine is a doctor. His theory is that the punches by Whitehead forced feces INTO Houdini’s appendix. This led to an infection quickly and eventual bursting.
Interesting theory that also sounds plausible. Appendicitis is defined as an inflammation of the appendix that is often caused by an obstruction, but it may be caused by an infection; If untreated, an inflamed appendix can rupture, causing infection of the peritoneal cavity. Thank You for sharing.