Houdini’s Father: Mayer Samuel Weisz

Hope all of the dads out there have a great day!

Yesterday, I finally made the trek to the Whittier Historical Society & Museum in Whittier, California to see the exhibit called Behind Smoke and Mirrors: The History of Magic and Illusions that supposedly features one of the five famous handcuffs that are uniquely Houdini.

I say supposedly for a couple reasons.

First reason:  No one showed up with the key to open the museum so I never got to see the exhibit or the Houdini display that featured one of his five famous handcuffs.

What are the five famous Houdini handcuffs you ask?

Mirror Challenge Handcuff, Séance Handcuff, the Bell Handcuff, the French Handcuff with Letter Lock and the Russian Manacle.

What famous Houdini handcuff is supposedly on display?

Closeup of Russian Manacle on Display

Russian Manacle

Second reason: Is this really the famed Russian Manacle we see Houdini actually wearing in photographs?

Steve Santini has his doubts and John Bushey believes it is THE Russian Manacle.  See the Forum at Handcuffs.Org: S.A.M. collection in Whittier, for their expert opinions.

Either way, it would have been nice to see the exhibit and the Houdini display, which besides the Russian Manacle, included handcuff display boards created by Edward Saint and a dress worn by Bess Houdini.

The exhibit closes July 13^th, so there is still time if someone has the key.

By chance, someone that my spouse knows (while cleaning out their garage) came across a magazine (Presser’s Musical Magazine: THE ETUDE) from November 1916 that contained a letter (The Last Days of Stephen Foster) written by Harry Houdini.  They offered the magazine to my spouse knowing that I was interested in information on Harry Houdini.

Apparently Houdini’s search for data to enlarge his collection of literature pertaining to drama, minstrelsy and stage magic put him in position to shed light on Foster’s last  days.

Below is the Editors Note:

After the publication of the September issue THE ETUDE, which was devoted in part to the life and works of Stephen Foster, we received the following letter from Mr. Harry Houdini.  Mr. Houdini is so well known in the vaudeville world for his singular skill in unfastening the most artfully contrived “locks, bolts and bars” that he needs no special introduction.  This letter reveals him in a new light, however, and our readers will surely appreciate his valuable contributions to the small stock of information available regarding the composer of Old Folks at Home, My Old Kentucky Home and a generous percentage of America’s small stock of native folk songs. In preparing our special Foster issue, we ransacked every known source of information, and published all we received that came from reliable sources.  Certain small discrepancies existed in the varying statements, but this is not to be wondered at. No facts were published at the time of Foster’s death, and in consequence we are dependent on hearsay and the memories of those who were near him at the last – fifty two years ago.

Click here to read the letter from Houdini to the Editor of The Etude regarding The Last Days of Stephen Foster.

Today, Mr. Joe Notaro is the proud Grandparent of a beautiful baby girl, Lauren Ann

The photo above shows the town of Galveston as it looked from our Cruise Ship.  From the front of the photo, you can see the Harbor House Hotel that my wife and I stayed in the night before the cruise; and in the far left back of the photo, you can see the back of the all red brick 1894 Grand Opera House that Harry Houdini made a one night stand in on November 6, 1923.

According to the Galveston Daily News, Houdini performed a straight-jacket escape in less than a minute, did a “spirit writing trick”, and represented a few other tricks of interest. [Houdini’s Texas Tours 1916 & 1923 by Ron Cartlidge].

Below are a couple photos of my brief visit at the The Grand 1894 Opera House:

[Library of Congress: SS IMPERATOR life-preserver ]

Harry Houdini Circumstantial Evidence (HHCE) is running away to Galveston, Texas to catch a cruise. Unlike Harry Houdini, I will be back in a little over a week.

[Library of Congress: Houdini’s scrapbook]

The above post card was written to Harry Houdini’s mother in 1886 when he was twelve years old. He ran away to Galveston, Texas but didn’t make it until 1923, thirty seven years later. Houdini’s one-night stand in Galveston, Texas was November 6, 1923.  [Houdini’s Texas Tours 1916 & 1923 by Ron Cartlidge]

Harry Houdini Circumstantial Evidence (HHCE) will be on hiatus for a week or two for some much needed R&R.

1907 photo of Harry Houdini on wharf in New Orleans

I have a cinema chat series planned for when I return.

Last night I was having dinner with a friend who is a police officer and we were discussing Houdini and his handcuff act.  I casually mentioned that when I was a kid, I
use to get out of handcuffs.  That was my first mistake.  He took out a pair of S&W’s and said, do you think you could get out of these.  I told him that Houdini would always need to verify that the Handcuffs were in good working order, before he would accept a challenge.  He showed me how they worked, including the double lock. I then tried the lock. I told him that it has been a long time and that I probably couldn’t get out if they were double locked.   That was my second mistake; before you know it, the cuffs were on my wrists but at least he didn’t double lock them on me.  I retired to my Houdini Ghost House (aka the bathroom).  To my surprise, I was able to slip one of the cuffs; I tried the second one, but no can do.  With one hand free, I was able to pick the
other cuff via a method I used when I was a kid.  I returned to the dinner table and handed the cuffs to my friend.

You can imagine the look on his face; he then proceeded to slap the cuffs on me again, but this time he put them on tighter and double locked them.  Now I was in trouble, I retired to the Houdini Ghost House again.  I tried to pick them again, and the pick got jammed in the cuffs; I was afraid it was
going to break off and I would be buying him a new set of handcuffs; luckily I was able to use my teeth and get the pick out, but I couldn’t get the cuffs open because they were double locked.   I then switched to a method that always worked for Houdini; See Houdini’s Strange Power over Locks. With the cuffs free from my wrists, I returned them still double locked to my amazed friend.

I am now retiring my handcuff act.

By sure coincidence and chance, my mom and I ended up at The Glen Tavern Inn & Restaurant in Santa Paula.  As we walked up the driveway, we read a plaque that said the building was erected in 1911; I thought to myself, Houdini was alive then.  The 35 room Glen Tavern Inn opened in September 1911.

We walked into the Inn and noticed that the hallway walls were covered in classic Hollywood movie posters and photographs.  I thought to myself, Houdini was in Hollywood movies (e.g., The Grim Game, Terror Island). 

 As we were seated at our table, I noticed a placard that said HOUDINI Happy Hour, so I asked the waitress about it.  The waitress informed me that Houdini had actually stayed at the Inn.  You can imagine our surprise when we heard that.  I asked if they had any brochures that mentioned Houdini; the waitress kindly gave me a 2 page print-out that had a brief history of The Glen Tavern Inn. The waitress did not know what room in which Houdini stayed, but pointed out that John Wayne usually had room 208.

My mom and I proceeded to have a wonderful conversation and brunch.  Afterwards, we went exploring the 3 story inn looking for signs of Harry Houdini.

In the 1920s and ’30s, a host of Hollywood notables, including Charlie Chaplin, Carole Lombard, John Wayne and Harry Houdini, took a train to Santa Paula to stay at the Glen Tavern Inn while filming any number of classic early films.

Story goes that Houdini’s train broke down nearby and he needed to stay at the Inn on an emergency basis.  He used the Tavern’s 3rd floor as storage space for his magic props so he could keep an eye on them and make sure no one would discover his secrets.

The 3rd floor was also once used as a gambling parlor and brothel. One of the more popular stories of the inn is that of a gambler, “Calvin,” that was shot to death in room 307 after he was found to be cheating. Calvin is probably the most well-known spirit that haunts the inn. He is said to be flirtatious with the female guests and sometimes the scent of his sweet pipe tobacco permeates throughout room 307. Calvin, of course, is not the only ghost to haunt the Glen Tavern.

The story goes that an entity of Houdini has been seen standing at the railroad station across the street