harry houdini
TRANSCRIPT
Specialties
-slipping out of ropes, chains, and handcuffs while locked in trunks and milk cans, or submerged under water.
-slipping out of ropes, chains, and handcuffs while locked in trunks and milk cans, or submerged under water.
early life
-He was born on March 24, 1874, in Budapest, Hungary.-His original name was Ehrich Weisz.-he lived in Budapest until he was a toddler and then he and his family met up
with his father in America.
Early Years Continued
• Starting out Ehrich sold newspapers and shined shoes to help support his family.
• Ehrich engaged in athletic activities and practiced acrobatic stunts.
• He first performed as a nine year old hanging from a trapeze
Life on His Own
-Age 12: Hopped on a freight car; He was running away
-He came back a year later to reunite with his family in New York
-this is when he and his brother
became interested in magic
The Start of His Career
-He first performed magic shows for civic groups when he was 17
-sometimes he would even do up to 20 shows per day
-He worked with his brother Theo as the Houdini Brothers
Marriage
• Beatrice Raymond was Houdini’s wife
• She was a singer and dancer and trying to get into show business
• Beatrice became Houdini’s new partner after they were married in 1894
The Welsh Brothers Circus
-they joined the Circus for six months-at first they performed easy acts but as time went on Harry became more interested and began to experiment with new tricks
Trip to England
-Harry and Beatrice sailed to England to try out his new act
-He tried his performance out at the London theater
-the theater extended his booking to eventually 6 months due to a successful show
Return to United States
-he came back to the U.S. as a celebrity
-Houdini performed more tricks for the Americans
-He even came across one failure when he attempted to escape chains while submerged in beer
His Career Sucesses
-Houdini practiced and pushed himself to his limit
-He made sure he was always at the top of the entertainment field
-He was president of the Society of American and he started the Magician’s club
Sharing His Success
• He wrote books and magazines
• He even explained how to do his easier tricks
• His harder tricks were kept a secret because he wanted to remain the best
Spiritualism
-Because of his mother’s death he became involved in talking to the dead
-Houdini gave many lectures on spiritualism
-He would award anyone who could make a psychic effect
Last Years As A Magician
Houdini was known for being able to “withstand any blow to his body” above the waist. A student challenged him but before he could prepare he was hit.
Houdini had peritonitis a fatal disease
-Houdini was giving a show after not sleeping for three days (His wife Bess had been sick with food poisoning)-He broke his foot
Houdini’s Death-Life for Houdini was brought to an end on October 31, 1926
-His funeral was held in New York and many people came to watch
-the Society of American Magicians started a new tradition by breaking a wand
Machpelah Cemetery in Long Island, New York
The end