Tales of Magic and Mystery was a short-lived but highly regarded pulp magazine that released five issues between December 1927 and April 1928. Each issue had an article on Houdini by Walter B. Gibson.
- Dec 1927 – Houdini
- Jan 1928 – Houdini in Europe
- Feb 1928 – Daring Exploits of Houdini
- Mar 1928 – Further Famous Escapes of Harry Houdini
- Apr 1928 – Houdini’s Rendition of Mazeppa’s Ride
Today I share Dec 1927 from my collection:
Houdini
Relating Some of the Hazardous Adventures
of This Famous Escape Wizard
By Walter B. Gibson
FOR twenty years the name Houdini has held a peculiar significance in the minds of the public—a significance which did not decrease with his passing in October, 1926.
This is because Houdini was unique. He attempted amazing feats which were new and unusual, and he was invariably successful. To the average person he was an enigma, and his secrets were unexplainable. His famous escapes were a source of wonder to millions of people, and they could hardly attempt to explain his methods.
The “secrets of Houdini” were looked upon with awe. Some believed he was a contortionist; others considered him as a being of almost superhuman power; but those who really knew him realized that he was a great showman who understood the public. Houdini began his professional career as a magician, but he did not gain his fame through magic. It was his development of the escape act that brought him into the limelight. The dictionary describes him as a “mystericist, wizard, and expert in extrication and self-release.” It was not until he had attained twenty years of fame in extrication and self-release that he appeared with his full evening magical show; and then nearly half of his program consisted of escapes, and exposures of fraudulent spirit mediums.
Harry Houdini cannot properly be placed in the line of famous modern magicians that includes Robert-Houdin, the Hermanns, de Kolta, Kellar and Thurston. Instead of gradually achieving a reputation in the art of magic, he rose to sudden prominence with a new type of mystery which he developed to an amazing degree. He was an outstanding figure of the twentieth century— a stage performer whose greatest exploits occurred off the stage.
Houdini had competitors in his own field. There were others who claimed to be handcuff kings, but none of them attained great fame, because they were not equal to the task of presenting such a difficult type of entertainment.
In his early days, Houdini would appear on the stage, invite a committee from the audience, and allow himself to be shackled or locked in some contrivance. Then a cabinet was lowered over him, and for ten, fifteen, twenty minutes—or even an hour—he was hidden from his audience. At the end of the particular period he would emerge from the cabinet free of his bonds. The spectators saw nothing of the actual release. They spent their time looking at a closed cabinet, yet they enjoyed it! This was because Houdini was a master showman who could convince his audience that he was about to attempt something sensational; who could make their interest endure while he was out of sight; and who could win their acclaim when he had achieved his escape. Other performers who presented similar acts succeeded only in boring their audiences.
The fact that Houdini had no great rivals and that most of his work was done out of sight are two important reasons why his secrets did not become generally known. А man who knows magic can figure out the method of a new illusion when he sees it on the stage; but to explain something which takes place out of one’s view requires a good deal of guesswork.
Houdini a Great Challenger
NEXT to his showmanship, the great secret of Houdini’s success was his willingness to accept any challenge, on or off the stage. Не was always ready to attempt the unusual, and he gained immense publicity through his challenges. In many cities where he appeared he performed the celebrated jail escape. He worked his way out of cells and prisons in New York, Philadelphia, Brooklyn, Newark, Detroit, Chicago, Washington, Buffalo and other American cities; during his European travels he escaped from jails in London, Sheffield, Moscow, Liverpool, Manchester, Amsterdam, and The Hague.
On the stage, he escaped from piano cases, milk cans, cages, straight-jackets, desks, and mail pouches. He also freed himself from safes, vaults, and other contrivances.
About the year 1911, Houdini produced one of his greatest escapes, the Chinese Water Torture Cell, which remained in his program until his last performance in 1926. His feet were locked in stocks, and he was lowered head foremost into an upright cabinet filled with water. The front of the cabinet was made of glass, so that the audience could see him upside down, while the top of the casket was padlocked. Then the cloth was lowered over him, and in about three minutes he came through the curtains, dripping wet. The cloth was raised to show the water cell still locked. All this took place while a committee from the audience was on the stage.
Needless to say, there was an element of danger in this performance. The same was true of Houdini’s celebrated under water escape, in which he was dropped overboard from a bridge, handcuffed in a packing case which was nailed tight shut. The case was weighted with three hundred pounds of pig-iron which made it sink immediately, and a quick escape was absolutely necessary. Houdini performed this feat in many cities.
In all of these amazing exploits Houdini relied upon his great strength and his iron nerve. He was powerfully built, and a very dynamo of energy. He studied his escapes and he knew what he could do. The public is always fascinated by a dangerous exhibition, and Houdini played upon that fascination.
Many of the feats which thrilled the public were merely incidents in the career of Houdini. But there were others in which the element of danger was present to an unusual degree—times when Houdini accepted a challenge which nearly cost him his life.
Strangely enough, few of these adventures were told to the public. It was a known fact that Houdini exposed himself to great risks and frequently defied death. Several of his imitators lost their lives attempting to duplicate his exploits. But in all the long list of Houdini’s amazing adventures, only one man could tell which were the most dangerous and the most thrilling, and that man was Houdini himself.
A few months before his death, I spoke about this to Houdini, and expressed surprise that he had not told these stories. He agreed that they were worth telling, and offered to relate them. He gave the subject consideration, and in Worcester, Massachusetts, a few weeks before his death, he dictated notes which appear in this article. These stories are personal glimpses of Houdini’s active life, and they form one of his last important interviews.
The Famous Milk Can Escape
ONE of Houdini’s greatest escapes was that of releasing himself from a milk can. In London, England, he was playing at the Euston Music Hall, and it was proposed that he escape from a huge milk churn. As the escape was to be a long and difficult one, holes were bored in the top of the churn to admit air. Houdini was placed in the churn; the lid was clamped down; the cabinet was lowered over him, and the adventure began.
“The churn,” said Houdini, “was a huge one, but I was cramped for space, and realized that my position was a difficult one. A few moments elapsed, during which I had made little progress, when I suddenly realized that it was difficult for me to breathe. The small holes that admitted air were too tiny to supply the amount I needed, and I was in great danger of suffocation.
“I realized that in my efforts to escape I was exhausting the available oxygen. It was useless to shout for help, as my cries would not be heard. It was up to me to get out in record time.
“I struggled my hardest to effect a quick release. I rocked the churn back and forth, but could not escape, and precious moments were passing. Suddenly, in my thrashing, I overturned the churn, and it fell on the stage.
“The cover was held down by clamps, and as luck would have it, the churn fell so that one of those clamps struck the floor, and the blow dislodged it. The cover came loose, and I pushed it off. The air rushed in. I was safe, and free from the churn! Yet it was a narrow escape—one that seemed impossible, and that came in the nick of time.
“While in England, I offered to meet all challenges, and I received many ingenious proposals. I effected all the required escapes, but finally one arrived that involved mental as well as physical hazards.”
Here is a copy of the challenge, which was mailed on Valentine’s Day!
Chatham, February 14, 1911.
Mr. Harry Houdini,
Dear Sir—We challenge you to stand in front of a loaded Government 8 cwt. steel gun, to which we will secure you, insert a fuse which will burn twenty minutes, and if you fail to release yourself within that time you will be blown to Kingdom Come.
In lashing you to the muzzle of the gun we will place a rifle barrel between your arms behind your back, bringing your hands on your breast, where we will securely lash them. Your feet we will tie to an iron ring which we will nail into the floor. Your body we will lash against the muzzle of the gun in such a manner that we believe it will be impossible for you to free yourself.
Test must take place in full view of the public.
The challenge was signed by four petty officers of the navy, all skilled in tying the intricate knots only a sailor knows.
“I accepted the challenge,” said Houdini, “and it was arranged to take place a few days later. The naval men were there with their cannon and ropes, and a large crowd was present. I had often escaped from coils of ropes, but never at the mouth of a cannon!
A Test of Nerve and Skill
THE naval men lived up to their part of the agreement. They lashed me firmly to the gun, and used every effort to make escape impossible. My elbows were in back of me, with a rod thrust through, and my hands were tied in front. It was a most difficult and dangerous position. Then they set off the fuse, allowing me twenty minutes to go.
“The situation required quick action. I struggled and worked at my best. I lived up to my reputation, and freed myself in twelve minutes!
“But there is one incident about that adventure that stands out in my mind even more than my thrilling race against destruction—one of those humorous occurrences that happen in the face of danger. That was a remark made by the Chatham chief of police.
“Before the tying commenced, that officer approached me, shook his head dubiously, and said:
“‘Houdini, this is a foolish and dangerous stunt, and I should not allow it. It is not only dangerous to yourself, but also to the spectators. Before you begin, I want you to understand clearly that if anyone is hurt, I will hold you responsible!’
“You can imagine what chance he would have had of holding me responsible! If anything had gone wrong, he would have had to collect me first!”
