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The Life & Times Of The Great Lafayette
A fascinating account of Houdini's friend and contemporary during the "Ragtime" era! More than a biography ... you'll be transported back to the early years of the past century and meet all the major players of what was known as "The Golden Age of Variety" and the heyday of magic. Little-known details about many famed magicians of the period, along with accounts of performances, news stories and personal comments by Houdini, Horace Goldin, Carter, P.T.Selbit, Chung Ling Soo, Jasper Maskelyne and others.
112 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1991
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 16, 2023
My interest in the Great Lafayette was piqued in 2011, the 100th anniversary of his death garnering local press coverage, because he’d died in Edinburgh.
Little known now, he was a contemporary, and friend, of Houdini. And just as famous. Possibly more so. A consummate performer on stage, but just as OTT off it, travelling by private train when in the US, and having a residence in Tavistock Square in London.
His dog, Beauty (a gift to him from Houdini) was lavished with all sorts of luxuries, and also lead to TGL (he legally changed his name to The Great Lafayette, so it wasn’t just a stage name!) almost getting into a fight with a champion boxer… Beauty died when TGL was performing at a theatre in Edinburgh (where the Festival Theatre now stands), and managed to convince Piershill Cemetery that the dog could be buried there, but on the condition that TGL had to be buried there as well. Little did they know that TGL would die just 5 days later in a fire during a performance.
It was, obviously, his death that caught the local attention, but frankly much of his life was just as crazy.
The telling here is a little staccato, with a few blind alleys where interesting comments are made, but then not elaborated on. You do occasionally get a sense of wonder peeping through, but not quite enough (in my opinion) given the subject matter.
That said, this is basically the only book on the subject, so it’s the definitive work!
Little known now, he was a contemporary, and friend, of Houdini. And just as famous. Possibly more so. A consummate performer on stage, but just as OTT off it, travelling by private train when in the US, and having a residence in Tavistock Square in London.
His dog, Beauty (a gift to him from Houdini) was lavished with all sorts of luxuries, and also lead to TGL (he legally changed his name to The Great Lafayette, so it wasn’t just a stage name!) almost getting into a fight with a champion boxer… Beauty died when TGL was performing at a theatre in Edinburgh (where the Festival Theatre now stands), and managed to convince Piershill Cemetery that the dog could be buried there, but on the condition that TGL had to be buried there as well. Little did they know that TGL would die just 5 days later in a fire during a performance.
It was, obviously, his death that caught the local attention, but frankly much of his life was just as crazy.
The telling here is a little staccato, with a few blind alleys where interesting comments are made, but then not elaborated on. You do occasionally get a sense of wonder peeping through, but not quite enough (in my opinion) given the subject matter.
That said, this is basically the only book on the subject, so it’s the definitive work!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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September 15, 2026Being a retired magician, I spend a lot of my time reading Magic history.
This was a tragic story of a great performer who took the love of his dog to almost obsessive heights, and how, only five days after his beloved pet died, he also perished in a terrible theater fire.
This was a tragic story of a great performer who took the love of his dog to almost obsessive heights, and how, only five days after his beloved pet died, he also perished in a terrible theater fire.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews