Film Treatments by Houdini – Floating Through Space

Houdini wrote, produced and starred in two of his feature films; he wrote a number of treatments – plots for potential productions; and he self-published several of these treatments. *

This post continues a series of posts where I summarize (or share tidbits about) the film treatments he wrote:

* “Film Treatment” can be found in Patrick Culliton’s book, Houdini’s Strange Tales – A Collection of fiction by the legendary Harry Houdini [1992]

Today, we look at Floating Through Space, which was one of four treatments (The Great Tontine, The Monster, The Vulture, and Floating Through Space) that turned up in 1990 and was published in 1992*.

Per Culliton:

[These treatments] turned up in 1990, when an East coast book dealer offered them for sale. This dealer was under the impression that he had in his possession several manuscripts hand-written by Houdini, and he was asking a small fortune for them (which, if genuine, they were worth). Houdini bibliographer Manny Weltman asked to see a sample and the dealer sent along a xerox of one of the stories. Weltman correctly identified the manuscript as having come from Houdini’s mind, but not written in his hand. The dealer was crushed. He put the material up for auction and Tom Boldt of the Houdini Historical Center in Appleton, Wisconsin was able to obtain all of it. It is through his kindness that we are able to include these four previously unpublished film treatments.

Floating Through Space (Story Summarized)

During one of Hero’s journeys, a wicked and cruel Hindu girl before she dies, tells him of her everlasting love, also of her peoples belief – of the souls of the dead at some time inhabiting the body of some living person.

After a strenuous career abroad, our hero returns home and falls in love with a sweet girl and asks the girl to wear a particular amulet, and asks her to swear she won’t remove it ever until her wedding day.

Fade in the sweet girl, preparing for bath, removing amulet – then retires to bed. You see the shadow of Hindu girl gloatingly over sleeping girl. You see the transformation in the girl’s face.

Fade in our Hero, who finds her seated in a chair kissing his picture. He asks her had she removed the amulet. She answers, “No.”

He realizes he had fallen asleep and dreamed she removed the amulet. The girl smiles in his face with love and trust in her eyes, both parents look indignantly at the smiling lovers–

–as the curtain falls.

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