On March 24, 1874, a young boy named Erich Weiss was born in Budapest, Hungary, the son of a rabbi. By the time of his death on Halloween 1926, he was the greatest and most celebrated magician of all time. He was the legendary Harry Houdini, whose name conjures up images of unbelievable escapes from straitjackets, handcuffs, jail cells and the Chinese water torture chamber. Here, Stuart Lutz outlines Houdini's life and examines the collectability of Houdini-signed memorabilia. 

Houdini often claimed to be born in Wisconsin, but later research showed that he was, in fact, born in Hungary and had come to America at the age of 4. His father was a struggling rabbi in a small Jewish community, and young Erich worked at a number of jobs to help support his parents. At age 12, while the family was still in Wisconsin, Erich left home to find work and travel the country. The following year, his family moved to New York City and he rejoined them there. In the big city, he was introduced to the world of magic. After learning a few tricks, the boy began performing as Eric the Great. 

A rare Erich  Weiss signature before he changed his name to Houdini

Driven by an insatiable curiosity, the youngster read everything possible about magic, including The Memoirs of Robert-Houdin, an autobiography of one of the great magicians of the past. Totally fascinated by Houdin (1805-1871), the teenaged Erich changed his stage name to Houdini, hoping to emulate the master. He soon added the name "Harry," expanded his repertoire from card tricks to handcuff escapes, and began working with his brother, billing themselves as the Houdini Brothers. 

Houdini was an unabashed promoter of his escape wizardry.

Harry then went solo, and worked in the Welch Brothers Circus, where he tried in vain to elevate himself. After several other small shows and self-promotions, he met a doctor who worked at an insane asylum.

Houdini accompanied the doctor to the asylum, where he was introduced to the straitjacket, a supposedly escape-proof device used to control prisoners.

Houdini spent a week learning how to extricate himself from a straitjacket. After he mastered the trick, he performed it in front of an audience. However, the crowd was indifferent. By simply shedding the device as quickly as possible, Houdini failed to bring a sense of drama to his act. It was a lesson he learned well. Houdini added death-defying escapes from underwater traps to his performance and, as his escapes became more daring, he began to get better billing on the vaudeville circuit. 

 

Houdini’s famous Milk Can Escape added to his notoriety.

In 1900 Houdini came to Europe, where he stunned Scotland Yard officials by quickly escaping from handcuffs, a feat previously deemed impossible. His shows began to sell out, and he nicknamed himself the "King of Handcuffs."

A neatly-penned 1912 signature with Hs that look like 9s.

He returned triumphantly to the United States, where he developed a number of new escapes, including the Paper Bag Escape and the Mail Pouch Escape.

On Jan. 6, 1906 in a masterful publicity stunt that made him the talk of the nation, Houdini challenged Warden J.H. Harris of Washington, D.C. Jail that he could break out of the cell that once housed Garfield assassin Charles Guiteau.

Not only did he escape the elaborately-fortified cell, Houdini also unlocked the cells of eight other prisoners – two of whom were convicted murderers – and moved them to different cells on his way back to Harris’ office. All of this took just 21 minutes. Needless to say, the stunned warden was not amused. 

But Houdini had outdone himself. Now the public expected him to release himself from anything and everything, and his amazing escapes lost their lustre. To separate himself from his imitators, Houdini devised the Milk Can Escape, in which he was manacled inside a milk can filled with water. He quickly escaped, but waited a long time before revealing himself to the anxious audience. In another famous escape, he had himself sealed inside a box that was then lowered into water.

A 1925 signature with only his last name. Note how large it is compared to the rest of his writing.

In the last decade of his life, Houdini spent much of his time exposing fraudulent seances. He also formed the Houdini Picture Corporation, which made such films asThe Man From Beyond, The Master Mystery and Terror Island. Many of his movies centred around impossible escapes from electric chairs and jails.

A scarce 1906 Houdini autograph note to his brother. Courtesy IADA

 On Oct. 22, 1926 a McGill University student visited Houdini backstage and asked if it was true that he could withstand heavy blows to the stomach. Distracted at the time, Houdini was unprepared as the young man punched him three times, bursting his appendix. Unaware of the seriousness of his injury, Houdini performed a couple more shows, then had to be hospitalised. Although he once had escaped after being buried alive, this was one escape the great master never completed. He died on Oct. 31, 1926. 

Houdini’s autograph is relatively common, but in heavy demand, especially among a hardcore group of dedicated collectors. 

 

Houdini signed inscription page for "The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin." Note the variant H in "Harry," the left side of which looks more like a 7.
 
 

Fortunately for collectors, Houdini was a wonderful self-promoter, and often signed for people. He received an estimated 60-70 letters a day, and appears to have done a decent job answering his mail. Many quality dealer and auction catalogues offer Houdini pieces, however pre-1910 material is very difficult to find. Although he was famous before then, Houdini was not yet legendary, so collectors may not be willing to part with it. The plain fact is that very little Houdini material has surfaced in the last decade. 

A 1917 document bearing Houdini’s full signature

Houdini’s signature changed drastically during his lifetime, as evidenced by his later material, abundant from about 1912. Examples from this period show that he spaced the letters of his neatly-penned signature evenly, and his signature was proportional to the rest of his handwriting. The left portion of his capital H often looked like a 9, with the extreme lower left protruding the furthest. The top of his n’s and bottom of his u’s often are sharply pointed, and many letters like this are connected to each other. 

In a 1917 signature, Houdini changed the left side of his capital H to look more like a 7 or T, yet it is still neatly penned and written in full. 

Shortly after that, as his fame grew, he often dropped his first name entirely, signing photographs and books with just his surname, which grew increasingly larger.

A fine Houdini autograph  quotation signed

 Houdini autograph letters signed from any period are scarce. Instead, the magician tended to write hastily-scrawled notes signed just with his initials. Very few ALSs have sold at auction in the 1990s, but an interesting one discussing a lecture tour in California sold for $1,700 at auction.

Membership card to The Society of American Magicians signed by Houdini as president

However, this doesn’t mean that Houdini was incapable of writing fine letters; it’s just that most of them were typewritten. He used a variety of letterheads, including one with a portrait of himself, another with his New York address and still another with a very desirable Society of American Magicians letterhead that lists him as the organisation’s president.
 

An extrememly rare Houdini endorsed check  top bottom

Another fabulous TLS that some unusual self-analysis surfaced many years ago. In it Houdini says, "Henry Hatton … is the most unreliable man in the history of magic … I generally get my information from research in the libraries … Strange … I rarely associate with young men, and am only 43 years (old) … I am the son of an old man … I respect them for their journey through life. …" Other letters of lesser content are readily available, often concerning Magicians Club dinners and meetings. These invitation letters sell in the £500-£1000 range at auction.

An unusual Houdini signed photo proclaiming himself Australia’s  first aviator

Perhaps the finest Houdini autographs are signed photos. Most are staged studio pictures that show Houdini scowling into the camera with an unsmiling, piercing look that could cut through concrete. However, unsigned, relaxed snapshots of the great magician in family portraits showing the corners of his lips actually upturned prove that his studio scowl was posed for effect. Houdini almost always signed photos with just his last name and usually dated them.

Houdini signed photo showing him heavily manacled. Courtesy IADA

Depending on size and condition, these very desirable pieces often command £700 - £1500 range.Other highly-desirable Houdini collectibles are signed Society of American Magicians membership cards. There are at least two varieties, both of which Houdini personally signed as president. These items sell for upwards of £350.

Although he is relatively common in TLSs and signed photos, Houdini is far less available in signed legal documents. Even though he probably signed hundreds of performance contracts, it appears that none have come to auction in this decade. This may be due to collectors and institutions squirreling them away, but it is hard to imagine that a promoter hiring the world-famous Houdini would have tossed out a signed contract. Houdini signed cheques also are quite rare, but checks he endorsed are slightly more obtainable.

Houdini TLS on The Society of American Magicians letterhead. Courtesy IADA.

A Houdini signed cover of Mrs. Maria M. King’s spiritualism book, "Mediumship. A Chapter of Experiences,"

Houdini was an academic man, and wrote several books in his lifetime, many of which he signed. Perhaps the most desirable Houdini signed volume is The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin, a desirable collectable book about his namesake and mentor. Another very desirable signed book is A Magician Among the Spirits. Houdini also authored Miracle Mongers and their Methods, a signed copy of which sold for £720 at a June 1998 auction. 

Houdini also signed books that he did not author. The Houdini family Bible, signed once by Houdini’s father and three times by the legendary magician, fetched almost £4000 at a 1993 auction. A signed copy of Mediumship: A Chapter of Experiences, a work about the fraudulent spiritualism that Houdini tried continuously to expose, carried a presale estimate of £350 - £500. 

Signed and dated 5x7 Houdini photo showing  his fierce gaze

Houdini, always the consummate entertainer, often didn’t just sign his name when asked for an autograph. Instead, he preferred to add a flamboyant inscription. 

Houdini photo signed just months  before his death

One of his favorites was "Secure Knots Secures Not Houdini The Original." Another was "Love Laughs at Locksmiths," after which he often signed "Harry Handcuff Houdini." These wonderful egotistical pieces often command more than regular autographs.

Suffice it to say that collectors should view all Houdini pieces with some degree of suspicion, and recognise that some laboriously-penned spurious signatures are definitely out there. 

Houdini’s legend is as great today as it when he died seven decades ago. That is due in part to the hardcore collectors and museums that keep his memory alive, but also because many of his mind-boggling tricks and escapes have never been duplicated with his showmanship and flair. Fortunately for collectors, Houdini’s autograph, and interest in it, will not magically disappear within the forseeable future.