Armistice Day (which coincides with Remembrance Day and Veterans Day, public holidays) is commemorated every year on 11 November. The First Official Armistice Day was held on the Morning of 11th November 1919. This would set the trend for a day of Remembrance for decades to come.
Please honor and remember those who have served in the Armed Forces.
The Official Houdini Séance 2015 – A day of science, history, escapes, and magic on Halloween
And I was there for it all at the Brava Theatre in San Francisco.
In September, Robert Strong who was producing The Official Houdini Séance with William Radner and Tom Boldt contacted me to see if I was interested in attending this event and if so he would provide me a VIP ticket. I appreciated the offer, but I had already backed the Houdini Séance for 3 VIP tickets via Kickstarter and the proceeds were going to a good cause, Wonderfest, a non-profit that usually produces free science education events and online content.
Robert Strong also contacted me 5 days before the event to see if I was available for dinner Friday night (10/30) if he got a group together. I appreciated this offer as well, but I wasn’t going to be in San Francisco until Saturday (10/31).
I also got a nice text from Fred Pittella (who I met in person in March at the Premier of The Grim Game in Hollywood and also at his Houdini and Escapes Museum in New York) asking me when I got in on Friday so we could spend some time which I also appreciated. I told him I would see him on Saturday.
On Friday (10/30), I worked and then drove up to San Jose from Los Angeles to visit my son and daughter-in-law who were going to attend the Official Séance with me on Saturday evening.
After spending quality time with my son, I took the bullet train Saturday morning from San Jose to San Francisco. The hotel I was staying at in SF was only a mile away so I walked to it, checked in, got ready for the day of shows, and then took a cab to the Brava Theater in San Francisco.
I arrived just in time for The Greatest Halloween Magic Show of All Time featuring Robert Strong, Paul Draper, & Justin Willman. I sat with Fred Pittella (New York resident) and Tom Boldt (Appleton resident).
Robert Strong kicked off the show with some great comedy magic routines (Bowling Ball from sketch pad, disappearing ketchup bottle, pom-pom stick and needle thru balloon).
Paul Draper then performed some great comedy mentalism which included 5 pieces of candy (1 white, 4 gold) and 5 members of the audience; a soap bubble that became solid; mind blowing revelations of two volunteer’s drawings that matched while his eyes were covered with coins and duct tape, and a beautiful Linking Rings routine he performed while singing.
MC Robert Strong then took the stage again where he did a plastic cup gag, a twisting arm illusion, and a time travel routine where two one hundred dollar bills are placed in one of three envelopes and then one by one shredded until the bills are finally revealed inside of a twinkie.
Justin Willman then closed the show with some amazing magic with a lighter, a light appears and then disappears LoL; 2 cups filled with coke (one on top of Justin’s head and one on his protégé head) get turned over with some funny results; the empty dented coke can then magically seals itself and becomes full again right before our eyes; Siri from the iPhone teaches a magic trick with a cloth napkin and a bandana (banana) that was hilarious; a bar stool from Houdini’s dressing room floats; and then a borrowed iPhone and the calculator app along with a number of members from the audience is used in an amazing prediction, where you had to be there to “Live in the moment” on 31 October 2015 at exactly 3:15pm.
After the show, Fred Pittella asked if I saw the Grim Game Ad’s on the table for the San Francisco Film Festival on December 5, 2015. It is another opportunity for people to see The Grim Game on a big screen with live music.
Tom Boldt then asked if I wanted to join Fred and him for some ice cream. We walked down the street where they got ice cream and I got a bite to eat. What a privilege and honor to talk to two Houdini experts and major collectors. We sat at the counter and talked about the Potter & Potter auction, Haversat auction, Houdini’s father in Appleton, Larry Weeks, The Grim Game, and missing footage of Terror Island and The Master Mystery. It is a conversation that I will cherish. Fred graciously picked up the check.
Well, it was time to head back to the theater for the discussion of “Skepticism and the Supernatural” with Jamy Ian Swiss and Michael Shermer. It was here we met up with John Cox of WildAboutHoudini and the Great David Saltman of HoudiniFile.com. Earlier that morning John Cox led an expedition to find a few San Francisco Houdini sites. See his report for full details on this.
The Skepticism and Supernatural talk which I found very interesting was broken up into four parts: Part 1 – Shermer; Part 2 -Jamy Ian Swiss; Part 3 – Shermer and Swiss and Part 4 – Q&A
After the talk, I got a chance to talk with David Saltman before my son and daughter-in-law arrived to experience the Houdini Séance VIP treatment. We shared our stories of how we got interested in Houdini and magic and the paths that led us to each have our own Houdini blogs. I am only sorry I didn’t get to spend more time talking with David.
My son and daughter-in-law arrived and I introduced them to John Cox. We then went upstairs where they were having appetizers and wine for the VIP ticket holders. As it turns out, my son knew the gentleman that was walking around doing magic and looked like Merlin; his name is Kim Silverman and he is the president of the Society of American Magicians in Palo Alto.
After some appetizers, we headed downstairs to the lobby to get a beer and experience the scientific experiments going on. My son got to lie on a bed of nails.
It was now time to take our VIP seats for the show.
Robert Strong kicked off the show with some introductions and great comedy magic routines (Bowling Ball from sketch pad, vanishing hanky, and shackle handcuff escape).
Escape Artist Brian Brushwood of Austin was to perform next, but the Austin airport was closed due to flooding from a Hurricane. Apparently Austin is the only thing Brian cannot escape.
John Cox was up next and he did not disappoint. His entertaining talk on Houdini’s background and history was well received by all. To John’s credit, he was able to share a lot of great information on Houdini (from early years to final years) in the short amount of time he was allotted. This also included information on Houdini’s four appearances (June 1899, September 1907, November 1915, and March 1923) in San Francisco. He left quite the impression with my son.
Next up was the Earnest Séance. While they were setting up the table on the stage for that, Robert Strong entertained the audience with a card prediction that had everyone in the audience think of a card, and then change their mind to another card. He then randomly had a member of the audience (my son) selected to come up on stage and his thought of card was the only one reversed in the deck.
Robert then introduced the members of the inner circle: William Radner, Tom Boldt, Bruce Averbook, John Cox, Midge Markey, Fred Pittella, Robert Somerdin, and two guest attendees (John Michael Zorko and Sophia Liu’s 11 year old son) from San Francisco.
Medium Terri Huberman then tried her best to summon Houdini and the spirits which included references to a mother and a brother that appeared to resonate with one of the members of the inner circle, but ultimately this spirit was not Houdini and the medium had to end the Earnest Séance because her time was up.
Next up was the Psychology part of the show with Melina Uncapher, a UCSF Neuroscientist.
This was followed by Magician/Skeptic Jamy Ian Swiss who made a strong psychic connection (LoL) with the audience by asking for a show of hands how many people in the audience have a mother and then asked how many of them had a brother. He also played a recording of Harry Houdini’s voice introducing the water torture cell; talked about Houdini’s connection with Conan Doyle and Margery, discussed Randi’s million dollar challenge; and played a recording of Bess Houdini at the Final Houdini Séance.
Next up was Justin Willman who I met at a Houdini Historical Roast in Los Angeles earlier this year where he played Houdini.
He stole the show IMHO. He performed some mind-blowing routines with a lighter, soup ladle, wireless printer, and borrowed iPhones. He closed his part of the show with an amazing prediction where you had to be there to “Live in the moment” on 31 October 2015 at exactly 9:48 pm.
This was followed by Skeptic Michael Shermer who spoke on skepticism, science and doubt.
Next up was the Magical Séance part of the show with Mentalist Paul Draper, who was born on Halloween and sang “Asleep in the Deep” which the orchestra used to play when Harry Houdini was performing the Water Torture Cell. The solo was a big hit. He followed his solo with some spoon bending, ESP cards and slate writing. The lights were then turned off. When the lights were turned back on, the randomly selected audience members sitting around the séance table holding hands said they felt the table rise.
Robert Strong then thanked everyone for attending the 2015 Official Houdini Séance and hoped everyone had a great time. We did!
The next day, my daughter-in-law planned a surprise Birthday and Sunday Football Watching Party for my son and all his friends at the Firehouse Gastropub in San Jose. It was nice to see everyone before I had to drive back to Los Angeles.
All in all, it was a great trip.
The week of October 18-23, 1926 Houdini was at the Princess Theatre, Montreal Canada. It was on October 22, 1926 that Houdini got punched in the dressing room of the theatre. According to Silverman, the dressing room was small, about eight feet by ten. What follows is a Montreal Daily Star newspaper ad from my personal collection that is reported to be Houdini’s last interview in October 1926. This interview by Viola Cameron would have taken place in the dressing room at the Princess Theatre during the week Houdini was there.
Viola Cameron interviews him in his dressing room with folks coming and going: “three secretaries” with reports on his investigations and “three assistants” awaiting his orders.There was also mention of him, “helping in an unbelievable measure those who visit him hourly with woeful tales of fraud through the medium, the fortune teller and the magician. Houdini is their friend and their voluntary advisor”.
The opening quote by Houdini is also of interest: “no man is great while he is alive because the last day before his death he might do something that would discount all else of greatness in his career”.
Houdini died shortly after this interview on October 31, 1926.
Thoughts?
I attended The Official Houdini Seance in 2012 and now have the pleasure of attending the 2015 Official Houdini Seance in San Francisco. I plan to do a full report of all the shows and activities going on October 31st. See below for details. Hope to see you there.
***THREE GREAT SHOWS ON HALLOWEEN***
Get your tickets to all three before they disappear!
– Sat, Oct 31, 2015 at 2pm – The Greatest Halloween Magic Show of All Time!, with Robert Strong, Paul Draper, Brian Brushwood, & Justin Willman ($10)
Get your tickets here.
– Sat, Oct 31, 2015 at 5pm – Skepticism & the Supernatural, with Michael Shermer & Jamy Ian Swiss ($15)
Get your tickets here.
– Sat, Oct 31, 2015 at 8pm – The Official Houdini Seance ($39 to $69)
Welcome – Robert Strong, MC/Moderator
Escape Artist – Brian Brushwood, Scam Scool Creator
Background – John Cox, Houdini Historian
Earnest Séance – Terrie Huberman
Psychology – Melina Uncapher, UCSF Neuroscientist
Doubt – Michael Shermer, Skeptics Society Founder
Magic – Justin Willman, Magician
More Doubt – Jamy Ian Swiss, Magician/Skeptic
Magical Séance – Paul Draper, Mentalist
Get your tickets here.
More info here.
Thank you to all the generous sponsors!
Wonderfest – The Bay Area Beacon of Science
Robert Strong – The Comedy Magician
Bay Area Science Festival
Bay Area Skeptics
100th anniversary of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition (PPIE)
The Great Houdini Escape Room
California Academy of Sciences NightLife
Champions of Magic Live!
The Mac King Comedy Magic Show
Clean Comedians
Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
Rostami Magic – The World’s Most Creative Magic Apps
After Dark – Exploratorium
Samuel J. Smilovitz a.k.a “Smiley” was the art student who sketched Houdini during his lecture at McGill’s Union Hall on October 19, 1926. Houdini was so impressed with the sketch that he invited Smiley to come see him backstage at the Princess Theater and do another for him. Smiley invited a friend, Jacques Price, and together they visited Houdini on October 22. It was during this visit that a third student, J. Gordon Whitehead, who was unknown to both Smiley and Price, joined the gathering. The rest is Houdini history or is it.
According to Frank Koval in the Illustrated Houdini Research Diary, Houdini is struck in the stomach by Smiley on October 22nd. What?
And according to Walter B. Gibson in The Master Magicians, all three students delivered punches, which would have included Smiley. What?
During the week of October 17, 1926, Houdini appeared in Montreal, and one morning toward the end of his engagement, a group of college students [Smiley, Price, Whitehead] stopped at the theater to interview him. Houdini talked about the physical fitness needed in his escapes acts, and demonstrated how he could brace the muscles of his abdomen to offset heavy blows. One student, then another, delivered punches at Houdini’s invitation.
As a third hesitated, Houdini relaxed, thinking the youth had given up the idea. Instead, the student made a belated swing. Houdini received the punch off guard, and it nearly crumpled him, but he managed to brush it off as if had not hurt him.
That night, he complained of a pain in his side, which grew steadily worse. When the show reached Detroit, he was running a fever, but still insisted upon giving his performance when he learned that the theater was sold out. That was Houdini’s last show. He collapsed at the finish and was rushed to hospital, suffering from an acute case of appendicitis. Surgeons operated immediately, but peritonitis was so far advanced that they were unable to save the patient’s life. He died on Halloween, 1926.
All of this said, the full story of the events leading to Houdini’s death was first told, to the best of my knowledge, in a well-written, detailed article by Stanley Handman which appeared in the Canadian Weekend Picture Magazine for 12th September, 1953.
But wait a minute! Sam J. Smiley is the source of the article. It is believed that Stanley Handman gave his column that week to Smiley.
As far as I know, Smiley’s 1953 article is the first time that Whitehead’s name was first publically mentioned as the one that struck Houdini in the stomach. What?
And a letter from Ernst, Fox and Cane to Smilowitz says:
“we understand you and your friends were in Houdini’s room, and one of your friends struck the blows, and so forth, we understand it was purely accidental. Our sole interest is in collecting on a double indemnity accident insurance policy for Mrs. Houdini. Would you help by telling us what happened?”
Notice the only name they have is Smilowitz because he had given Houdini the sketch and his address. We know Jacques Price was Smiley’s friend, but what about Whitehead?
So who punched Houdini in the dressing room at the theatre? Smiley, Price, Whitehead or some other young man?
According to Silverman’s book,
[Smiley] identified the young man as Whitehead, a first-year student at McGill, and some biographers of Houdini have identified him further as J. Gordon Whitehead, but the only freshman with that surname, according to the school’s yearbook, was named Wallace (Wallie) Whitehead, a good-looking twenty-two-year-old with slicked-down hair, manager of the class hockey league.
Believed to be J. Gordon Whitehead at McGill
Since Silverman’s book, both Wallie and Gordon Whitehead have been found at McGill and they may have been brothers. What?
Whitehead, Smiley and Price were the only ones besides Houdini who knew what happened in the dressing room.
While anyone of the three students could have punched Houdini in the dressing room, the only real evidence that it was only J. Gordon Whitehead (30 years old) and not Wallace I Whitehead (22 years old), Smiley or Price is the affidavit from a J. Gordon Whitehead that has recently been made available.
According to the affidavit from J. Gordon Whitehead (3/16/1927),
I struck Houdini quite moderately and he smiled and laughingly said – “Why! Hit me.” I hesitated and he repeated – “Hit me”; I struck him a second blow slightly harder than the first, he gave not the slightest indication of any discomfort at either of the blows. Both blows were struck on the left side of his body and above the navel.
The first affidavits from Samuel Smilovitz (2/10/1927) and Jacques Price (2/14/1927) don’t mention Whitehead by name, they refer to him (“about 25 years of age“) as the Third McGill Student and first year student of McGill in Arts. Interestingly, their second affidavits (SM 4/19/1927 JP 4/16/1927) do mention his name was Whitehead. The affidavit (11/26/1926) from Houdini’s First Assistant, James Collins, mentions that Houdini was in the company with one Smilovitz and two other students (no names given) of McGill University, Montreal…On such occasion one of the said students struck Houdini with two blows in his stomach merely for the purpose of showing his resistance to blows. Other affidavits from Sophie Rosenblatt (2/15/1927), Julia Karchere (5/7/1927), Julia Sauer (5/7/1927) mention that Houdini stated he had been violently struck a number of times by a student (no name given) of McGill University.
Based on the evidence, I think it is obvious, who punched Houdini?
“The Grim Game” makes its Television debut tonight on TCM:
Originally, The Grim Game made its debut at the B.S. Moss Broadway Theatre on August 25th, 1919. Below is the front and back of a program from the opening:
I hope everyone enjoys the restored 1919 thriller that will keep you guessing from start to finish. The question is –who did it? Watch as the screen unfolds the secret!
Enjoy!
I recently did a post, 3 video Grim Game Clips with new piano music, that had a link to Turner Classic Movies (TCM) Videos for The Grim Game Webpage:
If you click on the same link above, you will find they have made some additions which include a couple of glass slides for the film.
Glass slides were used by many theaters to promote coming attractions during slide shows between coming screenings.
You can also vote for The Grim Game to be released on DVD.
There is still a score to settle.
On October 18th, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) airs a different score for its 2nd showing of Houdini’s “The Grim Game” than the one Rick Schmidlin first added to his restoration of Houdini’s finest movie.
Steve Sterner The Grim Game Main Theme – Music Copyright 2015 Steve Sterner All Rights Reserved
That is, the first showing will be the ensemble music as was shown in Hollywood and the second showing will be Steve Sterner playing original piano music written by him at the request of TCM. It will have 4 themes (which include a Main theme, Love theme, Villain theme and Servant theme), along with other minor themes with a lot of ad-libbing and changes of moods and keys to keep it moving.
Steve Sterner The Grim Game Servant Theme – Music Copyright 2015 Steve Sterner All Rights Reserved
Since I did the post titled “The Grim Game Has a Score to Settle” there has been a number of piano scores.
According to a post at Houdini.org who has been keeping score:
Critics and experts most common critique of the restoration as supervised by Rick Schmidlin was that the music was repetitive.
…
Since the restoration, the film has had several showings and for whatever reasons they decided to have their own live piano accompaniment instead of the score Rick Schmidlin provided. A few examples follows;
Sun. July 19, Composer/Pianist Reuel Meditz accompanied the film with his original score at the historic Paramount Theater, Austin, TX.
Sept. 16 Northbrook Public Library in Northbrook, IL, It was screened twice with live piano accompaniment by Dave Drazin.
Oct. 11, 2015 Performed with live piano accompaniment by Neil Brand at Barbican Cinema 1 in London.
Dec. 5 Live musical accompaniment by Donald Sosin at Castro Theater at The San Francisco Silent Film Festival.
Most telling is Turner Classic Movies having silent movie pianist Steve Sterner add a new score to the 2nd of the screenings on Oct. 18. They’re also using the music for trailers and clips of the film.
Click the link below to read the full article at Houdini.org which also includes quotes from reviews of the Hollywood score, how the composer and music was selected for the original restoration music, a list of other options for music and composers, and the consultant’s frustrations with the producer. Also, included is the lead sheet music for the four main new themes of Steve Sterner’s score.
All of this said, I am assuming we have not heard the last word on the score.
Either way, please enjoy the music and TCM airings of Houdini’s finest movie!
Images courtesy of Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz
TCM airings of The Grim Game on October 18th is rapidly approaching.
The first airing at 8:00 PM (ET) will be the Brane Zivkovic score and the second airing at 11:45 PM (ET) will be the new score by Steve Sterner.
Steve’s score is an original piano score that he recorded in August.
TCM has posted 3 videos of restored Grim Game clips with the new piano music:
Click the link below to watch the videos.
Enjoy!
A big thanks to Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz for sharing this news.
Related:
Well, I previously did posts on what happened to Robert Kennedy and Frank Thompson, after “The Grim Game” respectively. So, it is probably only fair that I share some info on Christopher Pickup, who flew the drop plane. The below information is from an Aviation Autograph Collector selling items on eBay:
PICKUP, Christopher Vern. PILOT IN A 1919 HOUDINI MOVIE AND U. S. AIR MAIL SERVICE PILOT. (1896- ). SGT, 4th Cavalry (1913-14); USAS flight instruction (1916); Langley Field VA (1917); 2nd LT and flight instructor (1918-19); Durant Aircraft Co.; pilot for Cecil B. DeMille films (1919-20); flew in the Harry Houdini movie The Grim Game, colliding with David E. Thompson while Robert E. Kennedy hung suspended on a rope below Pickup’s aircraft. The props of both planes were shattered in a collision and both pilots were able to land their damaged planes, Kennedy, miraculously, suffering only bruises and abrasions being dragged along the ground during the landing (1919); U. S. Air Mail Service pilot (1920-21); appointed 8-25-1920 and assigned at Cheyenne WY (1920-21); he was apparently separated for not returning from leave (1921); Mercury Aviation, Los Angeles; Mexican Aerial Transport Corp. (1921-22); his request for reinstatement in the U. S. Air Mail Service was declined at the suggestion of the USAMS chief pilot (1924); FBO at Hoover Field Washington DC (1925-26); flew air mail for Clifford Ball, CAM 11 and Thompson Aeronautical Corp. on CAM 27 (1928); Transport Pilot rating no. 735 (1928); USMCR; air mail pilot for Boeing Air Transport (1927-40); his plane caught fire on an emergency landing at Elm Creek NE while flying CAM 18, Chicago-San Francisco (1929); member of the “Caterpillar Club” after abandoning an aircraft over Pittsburgh PA (1930); United Air Lines captain (1940- ).
Bonus:
COPY of the pilot’s original Post Office Department “AIR MAIL PILOTS APPLICATION”, Form 2707 dated 5/16/1928 for his Contract Air Mail pilot service with CLIFFORD BALL
