2543-8932) HOUDINI's SPIRIT EXPOSÉ's and DUNNINGER's PSYCHICAL INVESTIGATIONS.

Published in 1928 by Experimenter Publishing Co., Inc. New York.

Paperbound and measures approx. 8 1/2"x11 3/4" with 112pages.

Tons of information from "Houdini’s own notes" on: Eva C., Eusapia Palladino, Lily Dale, Katie King, Table Rapping, Spirit Photography, etc. etc.

Covers have some soiling, stains and tears. 90+% of the pages inside are just tine.

In Mint Condition, I've seen these sell up to $100.00. Most, in average condition, sell for around $50.00.

We will price this one for the Very Low price of: $40.00

This letter is on Hardeen's personal stationery and addressed to Stanley Burns.

 Dated March 13th, 1945. - $500.00

The editor, T. Francis Fritz, has written a Wonderful column on the Houdini's. (complete with Houdini family photo). During the run of  the Mahatma Magazine, there was a ton of material by or about Houdini. The item, offered here, was the Only Time Houdini was featured on the cover, making this Very Scarce indeed.

The piece reads:

THE HAPPY HOUDINI FAMILY.

This month we present a portrait that was never intended for publication and will, therefore, prove doubly interesting to MAHATMA readers.

Of course you will recognize the members of this happy little gathering. I knew very well that you would not have to guess the gentleman's name. Yes, it is really Harry Houdini, with his mother and Mrs. Houdini having a sociable cup of coffee together - so let us not disturb them.

This photograph was taken at Essen Ruhr, Germany, in May 1901, during the visit of Houdini's mother - who came all the way from America to share the triumphs of her son.  On closer observation we see how busily Harry is telling his mother all about his successes; and if he should happen to tell her a few "stories," why we will excuse him this time, as he is endeavoring to please her. Sitting opposite to him is pretty Mrs. Houdini. We note that she is looking at us with a roguish smile, as much as to say : "Houdini is certainly throwing bouquets at himself."

Houdini is without a single doubt the greatest success that has ever been sent forth from America; although he was not sent forth, he went on, backed by his own resources and ability. Arriving at the Alhambra, London, the manager of this theatre compelled him to give five trial performances before he received an engagement, and then the contract read "for one week.": The fact that he remained there six months certainly speaks well of his drawing powers as an entertainer.

From his present bookings and the nearly fabulous salaries he is getting it looks as if he will not return to American for some time; it has even been rumored that he will retire after he has filled his European engagements. Being personally, and I may add intimately, acquainted with him I think he is to nervous temperament and disposition to retire from the very ever active life of the true showman. We may look forth for a sensation or two before he leaves Europe - time will only tell. 

Lately he has solved the problems for effecting an escape from an ordinary wooden packing case after it has been roped and every board securely nailed down. His offer of 5,000 Mks. to anyone proving that the case or box is prepared one has, so far, not been carried way by anyone. Houdini claims that the same thing cam be accomplished with an ordinary trunk or traveling basket. The principle is new and a very deceptive one, even to a magician.

When we look back but a few years we find Harry Houdini at the lowest rung of the ladder of fame, while to-day he is at the very top an can climb no higher. Fate has her favorites but let us hope that he will remain where he is to-day, for we can never find a star performer who could have as many well wishers and faithful followers as Houdini has. His success has not changed him one bit, and as he recently advertised "nothing swelled but my pocket book" - such is the case. He is unassuming and modest but on the stage he is very impressive.

Speaking about salaries, I may state he received the highest salary every paid a foreign performer; his Russian contracts call for a four figure salary, equal to $1,100.00 in U.S. Currency. The stipulation in these contracts sets forth that he must escape out of the important prisons. It seems next to impossible that five years ago he was earning only $30.00 per week, with his wife, and actually doing the same act. And when I make this statement I know just what I am speaking about.

It would be an injustice not to say a few words about Mrs. Beatrice Houdini who has shared the trials of adversity as well as success with her loving husband. She possesses a most engaging personality and is always prepared with a cheerful and welcome greeting for everyone. Her generosity toward the poor and needy is well heralded, for she once remarked: "I know what it means to be without friends or money." Let us wish them a long an prosperous future and that the day may be near at hand on which we can once again welcome their return to America.

A wonderful piece of Early Houdiniana on the 28 Year Old (Young) Houdini. - $125.00

Photo of Houdini piece matted with shrink wrap -and- piece scanned before hand.

2390-2287) THE RIGHT WAY TO DO WRONG, an Expose' of Successful Criminals by Harry Houdini.

2353-1876) THE LITERARY DIGEST MAGAZINE June 16, 1928 - Volume 97, #11

Inside the article: Jail Breaking With Houdini, "THE ESCAPE KING"

Spread out over just under 4 of these large pages, a great bio story on Houdini.

Photos of Houdini as a young man; his wrists chained; last photo of he and Bess taken together; and one of Houdini with Sarah Bernhardt, who begged Houdini to please use his magic to replace her leg.

Very good reading and quite above average on the Houdini articles you'd see in magazines of this nature.

PostCard has not been used. -  $750.00

2138-3213) HOUDINI ADVERTISEMENT FOR OCTOBER 1899.

The piece states:

The Weird, Mystifying and Inexplicable

HARRY

 HOUDINI

THE FAMOUS HANDCUFF KING!

POSITIVELY THE ONLY CONJURER IN THE WORLD WHO STRIPS STARK NAKED.

Has mouth sealed up, is then searched to prove he has no keys, springs, wires, etc., concealed, and escapes from all Handcuffs, Leg Irons, Insane Belts and Straight Jackets.

BOOKED ONE WEEK IN ST. LOUIS, MO., AND STAYED THREE, AND FEATURED EACH WEEK ON TOP OF BILL.

Under management of

Mr. Martin Beck, 609 Ashland Building, Chicago, Ill.

Office of Chief of Police, St. Louis, Mo., August 28, 1899

We, the undersigned, certify that we stripped Harry Houdini stark naked, searched him and sealed up his mouth with plaster, handcuffed and leg shackled him, with 8 sets of Irons, chaining his hands to his feet, and he successfully released himself from our irons, this was done in Chief of Detective's office, with absolutely no chance of confederacy.   

Signed:

M. N. Pickle, assistant and acting Chief of Police; W. Desmond, Chief of Detectives; Thos. J. Ward, Sec'y of Police Board; Peter Reynolds, Captain of Police; Jas. H. Smith, Ass't Chief of Detectives; O. H. Jones, Secretary to Chief of Police; Roscoe V. Shaw, Ass't Secretary to Chief of Police; W. C. McCarty, Reporter St. Louis Post Dispatch; K. G. Bellairs, Reporter St. Louis Chronicle; Archie T. Aumonster, Reporter St. Louis Star

What would give to have been present to see this?!!

Quite a Rare Piece of Early Houdini Advertising, appearing in the October 1899 issue of Mahatma Magazine, when Houdini was Only 25 Years Old!!

Darker area,  at middle lower section, is my shadow. Maybe you can see this, maybe you can't. Plus, the washed out look is due to the shrink wrapping. The photo on right is Houdini item, scanned, before matting.

Measures 7 3/4"x5 1/4". Comes double matted with form core backing, ready for framing. Overall measurement is 11"x14". This piece is in virtually Mint Condition. - $250.00

Photo of Houdini piece matted with shrink wrap -and- piece scanned before hand.

LayAway is available - if this is for you, just email for details.

1984-7855) HOUDINI FINAL TOUR POSTER.

Looks like a candy wrapper, but I assure you, this is a 4'x9' EXTREMELY RARE Houdini Poster from his Final Touring Season of 1926-1927. Divided into three sections, it advertises Houdini’s “Three Shows In One”. Could this be why the Poster is in three sections?

The First Section shows a drawing of Harry Houdini from mid-chest and up. “The Greatest Entertainer of All Time” boldly declared underneath. Section Two has: “The World Famous HOUDINI Master Mystifier”, across the whole 2nd section...with “3 Shows In One” just above this. This 2nd section (or middle) is four times the size of the two outside sections. The 3rd section boast: “Magic Illusions Escapes” -and- “Fraud Medium Expose”.

This was Houdini’s full evening performance. Magic and Illusions - followed by various Escapes and Challenges - ending with Houdini’s lecture (with glass slides) concerning his campaign against Fraudulent Mediums. Don’t you wish this had been preserved on film?!!

The poster came folded, which I’m guessing they ALL Did, due to their size. The folds can still be seen, due to the thickness in the paper. I would guess no amount of linen backing restoration could get these folds out. It is the thickness of a Movie Lobby Card or Window Card -and- I’ve had it mounted on linen by Garo’s of West Virginia, so you don’t have to worry about going to all this trouble.  - $15,000.00

(Click on any of the ThumbNail photos to bring up larger pictures for more detail.)

1939-8526) FRENCH POSTCARD WITH HOUDINIs INSCRIPTION AND SIGNATURE.

Postcard showing line drawing of jail cell with door open.

On other side is written in pencil: Suspended in crouching position

Then it’s signed: Harry Houdini

The French text under the jail cell reads:

100 LOCHES. - Le Donjon. - LL.
Cage du Cardinal de la Balue, Ministre de Louis XI, qui en avait sait
son confident. Il vendit les secrets de son maitre au Duc de Bourgogne. La
vengeance du Roi fut terrible. La Balue fut enferme dans une cage de fer
depuis Avril 1469 jusqu'en Decembre 1480.

The English translation is:

100 LOACHES. (medieval city in Tours) - The Dungeon. - LL. (part of Loire river)
Cage of the Cardinal of Balue, Minister of Louis XI, whom the king had made
his confidant. He sold the secrets of his master to the Duke of Burgundy.
The vengeance of the King was terrible. Balue was locked up in an iron cage
from April 1469 until December 1480.

Just exactly what this postcard has to do with Houdini, I don’t know. The only thing I can think of is: Houdini must have visited this cell, was ‘suspended in a crouching position’ and escaped.

The postcard isn’t dated, but it DOES have Houdini’s handwritten inscription and Signature. - $1,500.00

1895-5456) HOUDINI PROGRAM. March 12, 1906 - Keith's Theatre Program (Boston).

Program measures 3 3/4"x9 1/4". Not counting the front and back covers, there are a total of 18 pages to this program. 

Houdini appears "L" on the bill performing his Challenge Handcuff Act.

Houdini’s part of the program reads:

"HOUDINI. "The Handcuff King" The Wonder of All the Police Departments of the World. Has Escaped from 63 Prisons in Europe, and the Only Man Alive Who has Managed to Get Out of a Siberian Transport Cell at Moscow. Police and Other Penal Officials Are Invited to Bring Regulation Handcuffs and Manacles to Test His Power."

A Great EARLY program just 12 days before Houdini’s 32^nd Birthday. - $250.00

2247-4239) TWO ORIGINAL HOUDINI PHOTOs

Both from Houdini's 1919 movie: THE MASTER MYSTERY.

Both stills are stamped “BEST WISHES Theo Hardeen”

These came from the collection of a man who knew Hardeen.

Both have pieces missing and creases. I think one of the photos could be restored back into fairly good condition, while the other could be creatively matted.

THESE ARE ORIGINALs and ANY HOUDINI movie items are RARE, no matter what condition they're in.

Those of you who collect this material know Exactly What I Mean!! - $350.00/(Each)  

(Were these photos complete, the price would be Much More!! And to prove this, at the recent SWANN Magic auction, on October 25th in New York City, two Houdini movie photos sold for $550 and $750. Add in the 20% buyer's premium and the buyer paid $1560.00 for the pair. The one on the left is the same image as the one I have above, and the one of the right is from "Terror Island".)

Sold for $550+$110)  Sold for $750+$150)

REMEMBER, all photos are Thumbnails - click on the photo to bring up the LARGER photo.

2251-3218) 8x10 PHOTOGRAPH OF BESS HOUDINI  and EDWARD SAINT at a banquet table. Photo #1.

"Bailey - Mrs. Houdini - Saint" written in pencil on the backside.

Rubber stamped on backside:

Advertising Photography
By The Loomis Studio
707 East Broadway
Glendale Hotel Bldg.
Cltrus 27456 CHapman 52058

I couldn't identify any of the other attendee's of this banquet - maybe you can?!! - $200.00

2252-98992) 8x10 PHOTOGRAPH OF BESS HOUDINI  and EDWARD SAINT at a banquet table. Photo #2.

"Ed Saint" written in pencil on the backside.

Rubber stamped on backside:

Advertising Photography
By The Loomis Studio
707 East Broadway
Glendale Hotel Bldg.
Cltrus 27456 CHapman 52058

I couldn't identify any of the other attendee's of this banquet - maybe you can?!! - $200.00

2253-9769) THE MASTER MYSTERY by Arthur B. Reeve and John W. Grey.

Copyright 1919 by Harper & Brothers. Published in New York by Grosset & Dunlap. 304 pages.

Houdini's First attempt in making Silent Motion Pictures was in the form of a 15 Part Serial titled:

"The Master Mystery"

The book offered here is what's called a Photoplay Edition. From time to time, these were published along with a movie's release. The book IS Original, of course for that matter, I don't think there is a reproduction.

Scattered through out the book are  full page photo's from the movie.

Thrown in with this offering is a reproduction Dustjacket. The Original DJs are quite Scarce and add a couple thousand dollars to the value. - $200.00

2254-3914) Life and History of HARDEEN. A 32 page, Very Interesting, Biographical pamphlet sold in the theatre’s of which Hardeen was playing at the time. No date is given, but I believe it’s from the mid-1920s. On a scale of 1-10, I would call this a 7, it’s really in pretty good condition for its 80+ years.

Some of the contents include: THEO. WEISS HARDEEN, Brother of the Famous Houdini, is the opening piece. This includes a nice photo of Hardeen and Houdini from 1893, when they were both teenagers and calling themselves The Brothers Houdini.

Other articles include: Chief of Police Stirling Baffled - The Murderous Insane Strait-Jacket Challenge - Hardeen Converts the Skeptics - King Oscar of Sweden sees Hardeen - Klaw and Erlanger Engage Hardeen - Lives of Thousands of People Jeopardized - Hardeen Escapes from a Prison Cell in Auburn, New York - Hardeen gave Police Private Exhibition of Jail Breaking - Hardeen’s act was the First to be Honored with a Return Engagement on the Klaw and Erlanger Vaudeville tour - Hundreds Buy Standing Room on the Stage - Engaged and Re-engaged for the Pacific Coast Theatres - Iron Bars Could Not Hold Him - Some of the Principal Handcuffs used by the Police Departments Throughout the World - Some Handcuff Secrets Exposed.

Over Two Dozen photo’s through out the book - plus - (for the novice to enjoy and learn) there are a few easy magic effects at the end.

If you’ve been Collecting for a while, then you know Bess Houdini and Hardeen material are as much sought after as Houdini’s. If you don’t have anything on HARDEEN in your collection...Why Not?!!

This is an extremely Scarce HARDEEN PITCHBOOK.- $250.00

2215-7459) HOUDINI PROGRAM - December 11, 1916

From the B.F. Keith's Theatre in Dayton, Ohio.

Measures approx. 5"x7 3/4" with 32pages.

Houdini is "F" on the bill performing:

The Chinese Water Torture Cell
-and-
The East Indian Needle Trick

This information, spread out over four pages of the program.

The first page, which shows the various Keith's Theatre locations, has some paper loss. Probably due to tape being removed. The back cover is missing a portion at the top. There's a couple of small paper remnants, on the back cover, suggesting this program might have been in a scrapbook, at one time or another. All this has been taken into account in the pricing.

I don't think I've seen one of these programs before, which would indicate they hardly become available. - $200.00

2216-7478) WINDOW CARD POSTER FROM HOUDINIs FINAL TOUR

Providence, Rhode Island, Opera House.

September 20th, 1926 - just a little over a month before Houdini would die.

Measures 14x21 3/4.

Piece missing from upper left corner.

Greatest Magician of the Age

HOUDINI

Master Mystifier

3 SHOWS in ONE
A full Evening's Entertainment
Magic - Illusions - Escapes
And Fraud Medium Exposes

All this has been professionally matted and framed. Overall measurements are 22 3/4x31. - $15,000.00

REMEMBER, all photos are Thumbnails - click on the photo to bring up the LARGER photo.

2119-4544) GLASS SLIDEs SHOWING HOUDINIs HARVARD BRIDGE JUMP

Five Original lantern glass slides showing Houdini's Harvard bridge jump on April 30, 1908, Boston, Massachusetts.

These photo's have appeared in many books, magazine articles, etc. having to do with Houdini and this exhibition.

I've seen these photo attributed to Lew Haskell of the Boston Globe.

One slide is cracked. The other four are just fine.

Comes with a contact print showing each slide. This was provided by the person whom I obtained these from.

First photo, below, shows the contact print.

Second and third show the five slides sitting on a plane sheet of white paper.

The next set of five photos shows each slide. The photos of the left were taken on top of a light box. The photos on the right were placed in window sill with clear sky behind.

"Harvard Bridge Jump - April 30, 1908" does not appear in any of the slides. It's been superimposed here, only for this listing. Nor do the 'red dots', these are from my digital camera.

I've never seen a another set of these offered. - $5,000.00

(After viewing this Houdini Section - Part One page, please click on any of the buttons above to move to any of the other Pages)

We, at SASC, are pleased to offer a LayAway plan for those of you who would like this service. Just email for more information.

All photo's are the Copyright of Stephen A. Sparks Collectibles and may not be reproduced in any form or manner without permission of Stephen A. Sparks.