The Magic Detective Podcast

Join me as we explore the life of Bess Houdini, the one time stage partner to her husband Harry. And later the woman who helped to keep his legacy alive. Her life is mostly glossed over in the biographies, but today you'll learn a few stories, some sad, some charming, and some courageous about this tiny (she was under 5ft) yet dynamic woman! #besshoudini

For those wishing to check out my Houdini art and related prints,

visit Carnegie-magic.myshopify.com  

ExposingHoudini.com   by Charles Green

Escaping Obscurity book  by John Cox and Dr. Bruce Averbook

A Strenuous Career book  by Dr. Bruce Averbook  and David Haversat

Here we have something special once again. The episode today comes from a manuscript published by Micky Hades of Canada. I took the manuscript and turned it into an old style Radio Broadcast of sorts. Listen to the podcast to learn more about it! The recording takes place Nov 1st, 1926. Enjoy!!!

This is about the very first Houdini Seance that took place at Bess Houdini's home. Arthur Ford was the medium. Did Bess received the real message? Did Arthur Ford cheat or was it legit? Welcome to Season 6 of The Magic Detective Podcast! Remember to visit MagicHistorian.com to get your official Magic Detective T-shirt!

William Marion Fay was a partner in the famous Davenport Brothers act. He traveled with them overseas, performed in their show, and had many adventures along the way. Some even say he is up to his old tricks today, listen to find out.

Did you know Tony Curtis had another life as a magician? I didn't either, but if you judge him by his talk show appearances, it sure looks that way! See what playing HOUDINI in a movie can do to a person!

The world of magic owes a lot to this man. He created the first TV specials devoted to magic. His efforts preserved on video some amazing acts. He was the first author to try and give an accurate accounting of Houdini's life. He...well, Milbourne Christopher was many things: magician, author, performer, producer, historian, investigator and much more. I think you're really going to enjoy learning about this remarkable man.

A look at one of the 'secrets' to Houdini's escapes and then one of his most famous challenges where he uses this device. 

On this episode we take a deep dive into Houdini's famous East Indian Needle Trick, where it came from, where he first saw it, and more. 

The Magic Detective is BACK, this time with an audio biography of Anna Eva Fay, medium and vaudeville clairvoyant. There are many references to other podcasts episodes and I'll list those here for anyone interested.

The Fox Sisters Ep 57
Washington Irving Bishop Ep 15
Samri Baldwin Ep 30
Houdini and Anna Eva Fay Ep 22

For additional information on Anna Eva Fay visit https://www.themagicdetective.com/search/label/Anna%20Eva%20Fay

This is a story from the life of Houdini and Hardeen. I give you a bit of backstory to start with and the actual Thanksgiving part is near the end. A funny story and a short one. Hey, who wants to listen to podcasts on Thanksgiving. This one is short enough to listen to and then get back with the family for dinner! Enjoy.

This week I cover The Houdini Wonder Show, a special show he did in 1922. It involved a cast of characters and I give you a brief bio of each of the various performers.

I also mention my review of David Copperfield's History of Magic Book which is over on my blog at: https://www.themagicdetective.com/2021/10/book-david-copperfields-history-of-magic.html

The final podcast for 2019 and this time I get to share the life of Eugene Laurant. He was friends with Germain, Brush, Maro and others who all performed in the Chautauqua and Lyceum circuits. His magic was INCREDIBLE and I believe modern audiences would agree if Laurant were still alive.

The music for the podcast provided by http://purple-planet.com

Also, to see where we rate among other magic podcasts, check out this site...https://blog.feedspot.com/magician_podcasts/

Charles Morritt was a very prolific inventor of magic illusions. He created some very stunning effects in the late 1800s right into the early 20th Century. He is also credited as the man who helped Houdini make an elephant vanish! 

The music for today's podcast was provided by http://purple-planet.com

I mention several other people in this podcast, so if you'd like to check out more information on them here is a list:

Buatier DeKolta Ep31
Harry Kellar Ep 8,9,10
Robert Heller Ep 14

And I mention Jim Steinmeyer many times during the podcast as I credit him with keeping the Morritt name alive. You can find more about Jim and his books at www.JimSteinmeyer.com

 To see Paul Daniel's recreation of the OH! Illusion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr2zKCsbkdA

Episode 37 has to do with two men who I knew personally, Steve Baker and Norman Bigelow. Both men were escape artists. I give a brief bio of their lives, some highlights of their signature escapes and then I share with you a practically unknown story about a Challenge between the two men. 

Music was provided by https://www.purple-planet.com

The second episode during Houdini Week 2019 centers on Henry Evans-Evanion, a Victorian era magician and avid collector.  You'll learn how he becomes associated with Houdini and more. A shorter podcast but I know you'll enjoy it.

The music for the podcast is provided by http://www.purple-planet.com

Expect another episode tomorrow!!!

This is the first episode of Season 2 OR Episode 32 overall. I'm beginning with a series of episodes on Houdini. This one deals with his big break and how it played out. There has been some controversy about this event recently, so I wanted to address that as well. I give my opinion, backed up by some information I found online. I do think the 'new theory' has merit, so I discuss both. 

Music provided by http://purple-planet.com 

Ep 22 is another 'short' episode. This time I talk about the strange relationship between Houdini and Stage Medium Anna Eva Fay. There will be a full Anna Eva Fay Podcast coming in the future. But for now, you can enjoy this piece on Houdini & Anna Eva Fay. 
This podcast runs approx 15 minutes.

The music for this podcast comes from http://www.purple-planet.com  

On this episode I discuss the life of Professor Harry Cooke, who was a Civil War era magician and had some interesting ties to Abraham Lincoln and Lincoln's death. I also talk about some of the recent deaths in magic of Marshall Brodien, Steve Duscheck, and Johnny Thompson. And, of course, today is Houdini's Birthday, Happy Birthday Harry! So in honor of Houdini I talk a bit about a pet peeve of mine, 'people who say Houdini was a bad magician'. I try and make a case to show in fact he was NOT a bad magician. The music is provided by http://purple-planet.com. 

This episode deals with the three pioneers of Mind Reading from the 19th Century, John Randall Brown, Stuart Cumberland, and Washington Irving Bishop. Stay tuned till the end of the podcast because I have included the FIRST Magic Detective Podcast CONTEST! It's pretty easy. If you don't know the answer, it is contained on one of the podcasts or you can find it in my blog fairly easily as well. http://www.themagicdetective.com Send your answers to [email protected] and remember the 5th person with the right answer wins. If no one wins by the time the NEXT podcast comes out, I'll stop the contest and start a brand new one next week. And if someone wins, I'll still have a new one next week!

Music for the podcast provided by http://purple-planet.com

UPDATE: There were a couple editing glitches I had to go back and fix. I think it all is working smoothly now. My apologies...(first time for everything)

Houdini thought he was great, and he never met the man. Houdini was 4 when Heller died. Robert Heller could have been one of the great piano virtuosos but he chose magic instead. In fact, he sorta chose both. And this is his story. I think Heller is more popular among music historians than magic historians, but I am hoping to change that. This episode is dedicated to my magic pal Joe Pecore who recently passed away. Music is used with permission of http://purple-planet.com  And don't forget to check my blog, TheMagicDetective.com for any additional notes which I may add to this podcast. 

Feb 7th, 2019 is the 19th Anniversary of the passing of magic icon Doug Henning. In this episode, I share some of my own recollections of Doug's specials and memories of having seen him perform live. I only get as far as Special #4, as the podcast would have been 5 hours long had I covered everything. At some later date I will do a biographical profile of Henning for the podcast. I hope you enjoy this episode and remember fondly on the days when Doug Henning's magic was popular! The podcast music is used with permission by http://purple-planet.com

On this episode I explore the life of another forgotten magician from the 19th Century. His name is John Wyman Jr. and James Madison was president of the US when Wyman was born! His life is fascinating and I know you'll enjoy it. OH, and then at the end of the podcast a special 'audio feature' from the life of Wyman. Podcast Music provided by http://purple-planet.com  Special thanks to Richard Wiseman and Cameron Watt for the special feature in today's podcast!

Harry Kellar comes back for the final Episode in this three part series. This time we explore his days in retirement. Many people fade away from public life when they retire. Kellar, though he was not appearing on stages, was still quite busy and quite social. You'll hear more about this so-called Mantle of Magic and what Thurston did with it. And you'll learn about Kellar's friendship with Harry Houdini. This is the last episode for 2018, but we'll be back in 2019 with MORE great stories from the world of magic. Music: https://www.purple-planet.com Please remember to LIKE-SHARE & Subscribe to the Podcast!!! Thanks!!!!!!! You'll find notes on this episode on my blog, TheMagicDetective.com  

Episode 8 features stories from the life of Harry Kellar. This is a two part episode (possibly even three parter), so I get as far as his split up with William Fay. You'll hear about his shipwreck, and how he introduced the Vanishing Birdcage to America. There are a few details on here about upcoming podcasts as well. Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

The old-style radio drama I spoke about was finally done. Fast forward to Ep 72 to listen to that unique show.

Houdini in Washington D.C. This episode is all about Houdini's time testifying before Congress. Much of this information comes from The Congressional Record. Houdini was testifying on behalf of an Anti-Fortune Telling Bill, but was using it as a guise to go after Spirit Mediums. Was he successful? Listen and find out. By the way, though this deals with Congress, this is NOT a political podcast.

Music provided by http://purple-planet.com 

#HoudiniInDC