Last month, while attending a Houdini Nuts Preview of the New Houdini Seance at the Magic Castle, Joe Fox (Escape Artist, Collector, Magic Castle Assistant Librarian, and friend) mentioned that there was a lock show near me in February:

So, I met Joe Fox (middle), Mark Lyons (left), and Jay Leslie (right) at their table.

They had some nice handcuffs, locks, and keys on display:

And also had some handcuffs for sale:

Joe, Mark and Jay are extremely knowledgeable about handcuffs and graciously shared some of their wisdom with me, which I truly appreciate.

In addition,

Jay provided me with an Illustrated Catalogue of Police Supplies 1887:

Joe shared a one of kind cuff and provided me with a copy of his article, The Tompkins Handcuff…..America’s Top Security Handcuff…..that you never saw, that appeared in the Antique Lock Collector (Vol. 43, No. 1 Jan-Mar 2021):

And Mark gave me a great deal on a pair of Tower Double Lock (D.L.) Cuffs for my Grim Game room:

HHCE Collection

Later that day, I invited the guys over to my place to check out my Houdini room (aka The Grim Game Room); Unfortunately, Jay couldn’t join us:

I shared some one of kind items that included, The Master Mystery Broadside, Houdini’s Schooldays book, and Grim Game “Message From The Clouds” advertising card, but they seemed most impressed by the fact that I was called “The Great Escapini” and made my own cuffs when I was a kid, lol:

Joe and Mark helped me identify the cuffs (Tower D.L. Handcuffs on wrists, Marlin-Daley cuff connects to ball & chain, plus Darby Leg Iron on arms) used in Houdini’s movie, the Grim Game:

HHCE Collection

It was an honor to learn from Joe, Jay & Mark, and share some of my collection.

What a great day!

Related:

• Inmate 103126 makes surprise appearance at Scot Nerys Booby Trap (Joe Fox Escapes)
• German Berliner Handcuffs used during trial? (Mark Lyons owns Berliner Cuffs)

Today, John Cox at WILD ABOUT HARRY is giving me the honor to share and comment on an excerpt from ‘High Lights in the Strenuous Career of Harry Houdini, Edited and Compiled by Houdini’s Brother Hardeen’. This rare footage comes from the collection of escape artist Rick Maisel.

According to Hardeen, we are looking at Houdini changing planes in mid-air and we are also looking at one of the first to accomplish this feat.

Houdini claimed that it was he that was the first to be photographed in a plane transfer, but he always gave credit to Ormer Locklear as the first to actually make the transfer.

• Ormer Locklear (Locke) connection to Houdini and The Grim Game

Well, most Houdini nuts know that is stunt double Robert Kennedy (in the mid-air shots) attempting to accomplish this feat, not Houdini (seen in the close-up shots filmed at Lookout mountain in Laurel Canyon). But you may not know that It was the first time that Kennedy ever attempted a plane change.

• How did Robert E Kennedy get the plane-changing job?

And it was his last time.

• What happened to Robert E Kennedy after the plane incident?

A playlist of these clips from ‘High Lights in the Strenuous Career of Harry Houdini’ can be found on the WILD ABOUT HARRY YouTube Channel.

Related:

• Aeroplane Crash Tidbit
• Aeroplane Crash Tidbit continued
• Houdini Breaks Wrist

101 years ago today, this extremely rare Grim Game “Message From The Clouds” advertising card (nfs) was dropped from a plane, found by a road workman and later used as a bookmark in his journal.

This well may be the only surviving example of this card and I am fortunate enough to now own it.

The previous owner found the card by chance when it fell out of the road workman’s journal (purchased at market in 2019) that was destined to be put in a plastic tub along with other ephemera and into storage.

So, had it not fallen out on its own steam, it could have been years before it came to light again.

Bonus – Pages from Journal

Name of road workman

Related:

• Australian The Grim Game Premiere Advertising Card Found
• Aerial Delivery: “A Message From The Clouds” Dodger (Leaflet)

Yesterday, the Los Angeles Times, had a nice article on the infamous Cahuenga alley used by Chaplin, Keaton, Lloyd, Houdini and others.

• Silent-film gold was made in this humble Hollywood alley. But how would you know? There’s no sign

You may recall that our friend John Bengtson who runs the excellent blog Silent Locations, discovered Houdini used the Cahuenga alley in The Grim Game and launched a campaign to change the name of the alley to Chaplin-Keaton-Lloyd alley.

Thanks to Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz of the Houdini Museum in Scranton for the Los Angeles Times link.

Potter & Potter have posted their February 27 magic auction which includes a listing for a Houdini Grim Game Press Book.

Lot 62 Description

Houdini, Harry (Ehrich Weisz). Houdini Grim Game Press Book. New York: Famous Players-Lasky, 1919. Oversize booklet filled with stories and data related to the stunt-filled film, and reproducing dozens of photographs and posters used to advertise it. Front wrapper detached, lacking rear wrapper. 15 ½ x 10 ½”.

Any Grim Game Pressbook is an extremely rare item.  This one is almost complete, only missing pages 23 and 24 (rear wrapper).  In fact, I only know of one complete Pressbook with all 24 pages.

Original 24 page pressbook

I happen to have a 24 page reproduction from Stephen A Sparks, who once owned the original.

As well as a 24 page reproduction that Arthur Moses included in the limited Grim Game Souvenir Folder given to Houdini Nuts in celebration of the 2015 TCM screening of the movie:

Besides the reproductions, the original 22 page pressbook being auctioned off on February 27^th and the one 24 page original, I am only aware of two others:

The 20 page original Pressbook I own.

• Grim Game Pressbook sells at auction

And an original  Houdini signed wrapper in the collection of Ken Trombly.

Credit: Ken Trombly Collection

Last week (Oct 11) marked the 100th anniversary of the release of Houdini’s “The Grim Game” in the United Kingdom.  Prior to the release, Trade Shows occurred earlier in the year.

To celebrate, I share a couple Bioscope Ads:

The Bioscope Feb 19, 1920; BTW: Aeroplane accident occured May 31st, 1919 and Houdini broke his wrist  June 28th, 1919.

The Bioscope Feb 26, 1920

Related:

• Selling The Master Mystery in the UK
• 100 Year Anniversary – Aeroplane Crash Tidbit
• 100 Year Anniversary – Houdini Breaks Wrist
• Terror Island Released in the UK 99 years ago
• Review of The Man From Beyond for the UK

Boys Cinema ran every week from Dec 1919 (n1) to May 1940 (n1063). Houdini appeared in 1920, 1921, 1922, and 1923 issues:

1. Jan 17, 1920. v1 n6. “Houdini the Handcuff King”  cover & p26.  (HHCE Collection)
2. Feb 21, 1920. v1 n11. “Houdini”  p12+.  (HHCE Collection)
3. Jan 8, 1921. v3 n57. photo  p5. (HHCE Collection)
4. Feb 5, 1921. v3 n61. photo p26. (HHCE Collection)
5. Feb 19, 1921. v3 n63. photo  p5. (HHCE Collection)
6. May 7, 1921. v3 n74. “The Grim Game”  p14. (HHCE Collection)
7. May 14, 1921. v3 n75. “Terror Island”  cover & p2+.  (HHCE Collection)
8. June 25, 1921. v4 n81. “The Grim Game”  p14+. (HHCE Collection)
9. July 30, 1921. v4 n86.  “The Marvelous Houdini” (photo feature)  p14+.  (HHCE Collection)
10. March 4, 1922. v5 n117. Houdini card on cover.  (HHCE Collection)
11. March 25, 1922. v5 n120. Houdini cover with Famous Heroes Card # 4 insert. (Arthur Moses Collection)
12. Jan 13, 1923. v6 n162. “Houdini In The Man From Beyond”  p14+.  (Arthur Moses Collection)

This week I share Houdini’s appearance on the cover of Boys Cinema March 25, 1922. v5 n120 from the mighty Arthur Moses collection.

The set of 24 Famous Heroes cards came out in the Weekly Boys Cinema Magazine, with the first card (No. 1) being inserted in the Boys Cinema Issue No. 117, Vol. 5 March 4, 1922.

Each week, they issued another card. The Harry Houdini card (No. 4) came out in Boys Cinema issue No. 120, Vol 5 March 25, 1922.

And the card is available on eBay from time to time, but the magazine is extremely hard to find. So it appears more cards have survived than the magazine the card was inserted in.  Thank You Arthur!