Published on
February 28, 2012 in
Blog.
Remember Me?
I’m sure we all have run across this image with Houdini holding a ball and chain and I don’t mean Bess. If the chain wasn’t in the photo, you would think Houdini was bowling, albeit in a bathing suit.
Kevin Connolly Collection
Now, you may have seen this photograph on Ebay in the past week. It’s a photograph taken by a person who was at the event. I liked the image because it wasn’t a “pro” shot. I mean that the photo wasn’t set-up, staged or taken by a professional photographer. It was just taken by someone attending the event. I don’t ever remember seeing anything as similar to this in any Houdini images. This is just so spontaneous.
Kevin Connolly Collection
I scanned this close-up of the photo directly above this one and you might see what I saw. This image was taken right before the image of Houdini with the ball and chain. You can even see men behind Houdini working on the manacle. I hope you enjoy this small piece to the Houdini puzzle.
Published on
February 26, 2012 in
Blog.
This title rarely surfaces as there were only 52 printed and no other editions were ever published. This is #27 of 52. It is signed and inscribed by the author(2 autographs). There is some light staining on the covers. Seems-like some kind of color transfer. Page also embossed with the previous owners seal.
If you like to add this to you collection, the price is $65.00 delivered in the USA. Please send me an e-mail if you are interested in it or have a question.
Published on
February 26, 2012 in
Blog.
Does anyone know anything about this magic illustration? It is an original drawing for Bob Haskell’s “X-Salted Shaker”. If you have an idea of who the illustrator was( see second image) or for what catalog/s it was used in, could you please send me an e-mail or post about it here? Thanks.
Published on
February 24, 2012 in
Blog.
Kevin Connolly Collection
This Modern Mechanics has a great cover of Houdini in his Chinese Water Torture Cell. It seems the illustrator had as much knowledge of the escape as the author did. It’s a quaint piece and has some nice images of Houdini in the eight page article. All I know is that no one can blame Houdini for the misinformation in this one.
Published on
February 24, 2012 in
Blog.
Kevin Connolly Collection
I ran across some interesting information when I was checking on the whereabouts of Hardeen in 1908. Hardeen was out west during that year and it seemed he was doing well. What was very curious, at least to me, was that a reviewer had seen both Hardeen and Houdini perform at different times. What the reviewer said was that Hardeen was very similar to Houdini. They both used the same tricks and similar presentations. He also noted that the brothers had their assistants dressed in the same outfits. This guy must have had some eye. Finally, the reviewer said the brothers used the same “announcements”. I would think this referred to their advertising they both used. I wouldn’t think it would be the use of the same patter, but you never know.
Published on
February 21, 2012 in
Blog.
1906 Ad For Houdini's Conjurers Magazine
I was flipping through an old copy of “The Sphinx” and ran across this ad. It has a very nice image of a very young Harry Houdini. I thought you might enjoy it. I would guess A.M. Wilson, editor of “The Sphinx”, probably wasn’t too pleased with this effort.
Published on
February 20, 2012 in
Blog.
Part of "The Cologne Papers" - Kevin Connolly collection
Houdini pasted these two apologizes that policeman Werner Graf published in various German newspapers. After losing the libel case, the judge ordered Graf to not only pay court costs, the policeman had publish a public apology in various German newspapers of the day. I haven’t had the above translated yet, but I wanted to post another piece form “The Cologne Papers” so everyone could enjoy seeing it. Hopefully someone here can decipher some of it. Just click on the image to enlarge the articles. Sorry for the poor scans, but scanner is giving me headaches of late. Enjoy!
Published on
February 19, 2012 in
Blog.
What To Do Next? - Kevin Connolly Collection
I was busy around here helping out on a couple of Houdini projects by other Houdini Meisters and I didn’t go near anything I had wanted to do. I wonder how they are making out. I had time to scan the above photo. It’s a very nice silver image of Houdini and the “Mirror Cuffs”. I hope you enjoy it.
Published on
February 18, 2012 in
Blog.
German Text Next To Houdini's English Translation - Kevin Connolly Collection
German Affidavit(?) - Kevin Connolly Collection
You knew I was going to use this title sooner or later. I wanted to quickly post something from The Cologne Papers to pique your interest. I tried multiple times to scan this document with little success. Maybe Houdini was trying to still keep his name secret. In his English translation, it seems his birth name, Ehrich Weiss, has mysteriously been left out. Hopefully you can make out his name in the original German document.
Published on
February 17, 2012 in
Blog.
1974 Franklin Mint Medal
Description Of Token - Front
Description Of Token - Back
I thought I would give you a break from “The Cologne Papers” and try something new. I’m sure you have seen the above Houdini medal before and most likely have one in your collection. When the medal arrived today, I was quite surprised that it included a Houdini biography and information about the medal.
I was aware that this medal was issued in bronze and silver. Over the years I had seen this Houdini medal in various holders. Sold by the Franklin Mint, the medals were issued in octagon holders for single sales and round holders for the complete set of medals. I have also seen one in a blue felt jewelry-type box. All of these examples came without the blue biography description.
The medal above may or may not be another variety. This medal was first issued when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. I believe there was a connection between the Franklin Mint and the Society of American Magicians in regards to this piece. It may have been that the SAM “sponsored” this piece. If you have back issues of MUM from 1973 or 1974, you may find an ad for the medals in the magazine.
The medal was sculpted by Vincent Miller and Charles Ross. In my opinion, it’s probably the best looking medal/token that has ever been produced. As mentioned before, the medals were minted in bronze and silver. I know that silver is a precious metal and worth more than bronze, but the bronze medal may perhaps be rarer than the silver one. Here are the Franklin Mint numbers on their mintage.
Proof Quality ——Proof-Like Quality
Solid Sterling Silver …… 3099……………………170
Solid Franklin Bronze……1375……………………400
So, for all of you tricky token trackers, conjuring coin collectors and magic medal mavens; I hope you have enjoyed this post.
