The Unmasking of Robert-Houdini

by Harry Houdini

THIS book is the natural result of the moulding, dominating influence which the spirit and writings of Robert-Houdin have exerted over my professional career. My interest in conjuring and magic and my enthusiasm for Robert-Houdin came into existence simultaneously. From the moment that I began to study the art, he became my guide and hero. I accepted his writings as my text-book and my gospel. What Blackstone is to the struggling lawyer, Hardee’s “Tactics” to the would-be officer, or Bismarck’s life and writings to the coming statesman, Robert-Houdin’s books were to me. To my unsophisticated mind, his “Memoirs” gave to the profession a dignity worth attaining at the cost of earnest, life-long effort. When it became necessary for me to take a stage-name, and a fellow-player, possessing a veneer of culture, told me that if I would add the letter “i” to Houdin’s name, it would mean, in the French language, “like Houdin,” I adopted the suggestion with enthusiasm. I asked nothing more of life than to become in my profession “like Robert-Houdin.” By this time I had re-read his works until I could recite passage after passage from memory. Then, when Fate turned kind and the golden pathway of success led me into broader avenues of work, I determined that my first tour abroad should be dedicated to adding new laurels to the fame of Robert-Houdin. By research and study I would unearth history yet unwritten, and record unsung triumphs of this great inventor and artiste. The pen of his most devoted student and follower would awaken new interest in his history.

Genres: Magic

269 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 1908

About the author

Harry Houdini, whose birth name in Hungary was Erik Weisz (which was changed to Ehrich Weiss when he immigrated to the United States), was a Jewish Hungarian American magician, escapologist (widely regarded as one of the greatest ever) and stunt performer, as well as a skeptic and investigator of spiritualists, film producer and actor. Harry Houdini forever changed the world of magic and escapes.

Reviews

[Debbie Zapata · Rating 2 out of 5]

First, I will let Houdini speak from Beyond ~~

"This book is the natural result of the moulding, dominating influence which the spirit and writings of Robert-Houdin have exerted over my professional career. My interest in conjuring and magic and my enthusiasm for Robert-Houdin came into existence simultaneously. From the moment that I began to study the art, he became my guide and hero. I accepted his writings as my text-book and my gospel. What Blackstone is to the struggling lawyer, Hardee’s “Tactics” to the would-be officer, or Bismarck’s life and writings to the coming statesman, Robert-Houdin’s books were to me.

To my unsophisticated mind, his “Memoirs” gave to the profession a dignity worth attaining at the cost of earnest, life-long effort. When it became necessary for me to take a stage-name, and a fellow-player, possessing a veneer of culture, told me that if I would add the letter “i” to Houdin’s name, it would mean, in the French language, “like Houdin,” I adopted the suggestion with enthusiasm. I asked nothing more of life than to become in my profession “like Robert-Houdin.”

By this time I had re-read his works until I could recite passage after passage from memory. Then, when Fate turned kind and the golden pathway of success led me into broader avenues of work, I determined that my first tour abroad should be dedicated to adding new laurels to the fame of Robert-Houdin. By research and study I would unearth history yet unwritten, and record unsung triumphs of this great inventor and artiste. The pen of his most devoted student and follower would awaken new interest in his history.

Alas for my golden dreams! My investigations brought forth only bitterest disappointment and saddest of disillusionment. Stripped of his self-woven veil of romance, Robert-Houdin stood forth, in the uncompromising light of cold historical facts, a mere pretender, a man who waxed great on the brainwork of others, a mechanician who had boldly filched the inventions of the master craftsmen among his predecessors."

Wow.Imagine how you would feel when you looked behind the curtain and learned that the wizard was a fraud. Houdini had to have become horribly disappointed during the twenty years he spent researching his personal wizard. He did get to meet other old-time conjurers, so hopefully he found a few new heroes, but his bitterness towards Robert-Houdin comes out stronger in every new chapter.

The book is okay, but much more compelling for a student of stage magic than for someone like me who can take it or leave it. There is a chapter sketching the life of Robert-Houdin, then Houdini traces the history of each trick claimed to have been created by his one-time hero.

I skimmed a lot of the book after the first chapter, because Houdini reveals the secrets to the illusions he talks about. I realize there are tricks to doing magic tricks, but I prefer not to know them. If I plan to watch a magician, I want to let myself believe in him for as long as the show lasts, or at least to see if I can spot the trick of the trick myself.

But anyone really interested in the origins of some classic tricks would be fascinated by this book. Houdini shares images of dozens of old pamphlets, advertisements, programs and pictures. He spent tons of money and built up a huge collection of such objects during the years he was debunking Robert-Houdin. I hope everything was preserved when Houdini died, it would certainly help create a magical museum.

I read this book as part of my Stag Reading List. Houdini contributed two recipes to the Stag Cookbook: Scalloped Mushrooms and Deviled Eggs. Hopefully not intended to be eaten together. That is a not a trick I would care to see.

[Amy Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

So... my edition of this lacked any and all of the illustrations. It had all the undertext for them, which made it all the more disconcerting. Just now I found that the gutenberg version does have them, so if you have a similar issue, search that out.

Otherwise, it was a surprisingly enjoyable read. I picked it up on a whim after listening to a podcast about Houdini's work debunking mediums. I honestly had no idea what it was about when I started reading. It turned out to be about analyzing Houdin's claims of inventing various magic tricks, and finding evidence that they were false (largely in pamphlets for shows that had those tricks before Houdin did). I have no particular interest in this topic, but the writing was entertaining, and I was just quite enjoying Houdini's snark throughout.

Recommended if you enjoy debunking and snark, or if you want insights into some of the more common magic tricks from 100+ years ago.

[Rick · Rating 1 out of 5]

I ordered this book from Amazon. When it arrived, it was poorly-printed and formatted. No pictures were present in the book, though numerous paragraphs on almost every page I looked at referenced images — images that, again, were not there.

I contacted Amazon, who refunded my money.

Now I'm wondering if there is anywhere to find a copy of the book that actually has the images.

[Jonathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is good, but the print that I ordered, which has a blue wave pattern printed on the cover, is not printed well. All images are pixelated and cannot be read, and the table of contents is missing. It's an interesting book but disappointed in the printing.