Published on
November 28, 2011 in
Blog.
A Future Houdini Collector
It looks-like our man Houdini has returned from beyond. The Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria Queens, New York will be screening “Haldane of the Secret Service”. What is really great about this effort is that this is a newly restored 35mm print from the George Eastman House. Another thing is to see Houdini on the big screen. No wonder why the kid is so excited. An interesting little tidbit is that this movie is 88 minutes, but IMDB has it listed with a runtime of 84 minutes. Here is the link:
http://tinyurl.com/7hrvky9 -
The movie is part of “Magicians on Screen” which runs for 3 weeks, starting December 10th. It may an exhibit that any magician would enjoy. Here is the link to the exhibit.
http://www.movingimage.us/films/2011/12/10/detail/magicians-on-screen/
Published on
November 26, 2011 in
Blog.
Joe Hayman and Houdini's dog, Charlie - Kevin Connolly Collection©
Here’s a photo that may be of interest to the Houdini aficionado. The image has a notation that reads “Joe Hayman and Charlie” by Houdini. The man holding the dog is Joe Hayman, the second of the “Brothers Houdini”. He took his brother Jacob Hayman’s place in the act and then Hardeen replaced Joe.
As for Charlie the dog, this is some image of him. He looks-like a little lion. That, or his tail is connected to an electric outlet. I don’t know who chose the dog , but I’m hoping it was Bess.
Published on
November 25, 2011 in
Blog.
Russians Knock-Off Houdini
Years ago this book appeared. I usually don’t collect Houdini books published in different languages, but since I know the author very well, I bought the book. In case you can’t read Russian, this is “Houdini: The Career of Ehrich Weiss” by Ken Silverman. I called Ken to tell him about this latest acquisition. When I told him about his book being published in Russian, he told me knew nothing about it; in fact it is an unauthorized publication of Silverman’s book. The book is slightly smaller than the American first edition. The Russian book has more pages, but that is because it has a smaller format than the legitimate edition. The photos are also reproduced from Silverman’s book; except there aren’t any photo credits. I guess Ken Silverman was lucky enough that they credited him as the author, and you thought it was just the Chinese who were up to this activity.
Published on
November 21, 2011 in
Blog.
Tony Curtis Inscribed Phot To Joesph Dunninger - Kevin Connolly Collection©
In case you have missed ever seeing “Houdini” with Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, it is on Turner Movie Channel(TMC) tonight at 10PM Eastern time. I would think if you never saw it, you wouldn’t be here in the first place. What I can’t believe is my youngest daughter WANTS to watch it. I think she’s trying to schmooze me. 
Published on
November 18, 2011 in
Blog.
I'm Back.....For Now
It looks-like Hardeen and company has returned. The scrapbook has been re-listed on Feebay. If it is still intact, I don’t know. Here is the auction link:
http://tinyurl.com/6ox79g2
Published on
November 17, 2011 in
Blog.
1913 Handcuff Tricks
Handcuff Tricks and Escapes From Boxes, Bags, Sacks, Straight Jackets, Milk Cans, Packing cases, Etc., Etc. by Hereward Carrington. Published in 1913. It is softbound, with 61 pages and has some nice photographic images. The author even thanks Houdini for giving him tips on the escapes. The book is of interest to the handcuff or Houdini collector and escape artist.
The price for this 98 year old book is $50.00 delivered in the USA for HoudiniHimself visitors. Only one book is available for sale. I accept Paypal, checks or money orders.
Published on
November 17, 2011 in
Blog.
The Mysterious Vanishing Magic Scrapbook
I ran across this slimy deal that was on Feebay and was wondering if anyone here was one of the 6 bidders on this lot. The seller was selling this nice little magic scrapbook using a 7 day listing. The seller also mentioned in their ad that would accept offers. It seems that just what they did. The item had at least 9 bids, but the seller canceled all of the bids and ended the auction early. I can see both sides of this deal. One person trying to avoid Feebays fees and the collector trying to sneak past the other bidders. What do you think?
Published on
November 16, 2011 in
Blog.
Houdini Item For The Discerning Collector
Here we have an item that is currently on Feebay. It is a receipt for some alcohol and is signed “Harry Houdini”. What more could ask for? Maybe a hotel receipt for h
Published on
November 14, 2011 in
Blog.
Houdini Mourning Business Card - Kevin Connolly Collection©
I’m sorry that I have been away for so long, but my family has suffered a great loss. Last week we lost our “Sew-Sew”, Violet Hyatt. She was a great seamstress, hence her nickname. More so, she was a terrific mother, grandmother and mother-in-law. I met many people in my life, but she was the only person who I ever knew who was truly unique. Violet never had a bad thing to say about anyone. Everyone in the room would have a negative opinion about someone, but not Violet. She always found some good characteristic that the rest of us missed. She taught our family many good lessons over the years. It is a shame that people like “Sew-Sew” don’t come by very often. We were lucky enough to have her as a great example on how to live our lives. We shall miss you.
Published on
November 2, 2011 in
Blog.
Kevin Connolly Collection
Well, we finally had power restored here at Houdini Central. We had an early snowstorm here that has never been seen here since records have been kept since the Civil War. The snow was extremely heavy and wet. There wasn’t one tree that was not affected in the region. We were in the dark and cold for four days and there are still a couple of million of people in the area still in the dark going into their fifth day without power. Hopefully it will get better for the rest of the people who are still waiting to have their power restored.
Although we were out of power, the post office, also without power, came through came through with a two Houdini goodies. One was the limited edition book “HOUDINI & THE KU KLUX KLAN” and the other was a very nice Houdini signed SAM card . If you’re looking for a Houdini piece for your collection, these two items are for sale. Just send me an email if you’re interested in either piece.
