"What the eyes see and the ears hear, the mind believes," - Harry Houdini
"Inescapable: The Life and Legacy of Harry Houdini" at the The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum unveils the inexhaustible layers of the life of the world's most famous magician and escape artist, Harry Houdini.
Harry Houdini, born Erik Weisz on Tuesday, March 24, 1874, in Budapest, Hungary, to parents Rabbi Mayer Samuel Weisz and Cecelia Steiner, was unequivocally more than the world's greatest and most famous escape artist. He was curious, incredibly intelligent, a proud athlete, a television and cinema actor, as well as a purist, a philanthropist, and a debunker. He was veiled, yet transparent...to say that Harry Houdini was complicated would be an understatement!
Read to the end for some fantastic programming associated with this exhibition!
This exhibition will disappear after Sunday, August 11, so do not delay! If you make it in time, you'll get to see some of the actual handcuffs Houdini used in his performances! There are a limited number of actual artifacts from his life, understandably, but I think you'll love the ones that you get to see!
And there's so much more!
Harry Houdini was also a film star! Using his mastery of escape, he starred in The Master Mystery, also called "The Houdini Serial", a 15-episode murder mystery serial in 1918. He worked on other films and even owned his own movie studio, bearing his name, for a while.
I find it interesting and grandly satisfying that—although not Jewish myself—an industry once trivialized as a fad and not a smart career move, left jobs relegated to those deemed lesser has now become one of the most coveted, most successful of all career paths across the entire globe. None of us would know Hollywood—or the Georgia film industry—were it not for our Jewish friends!
I love exhibitions that tell us of grand celebrities who visited Atlanta. Otherwise we might not have known that they graced our stages, ate in our restaurants, stayed in our hotels, and met our citizens! Houdini visited Atlanta on more than one occasion.
In this exhibition, you'll learn fascinating facts about Houdini that you might not learn otherwise, including:
The path to becoming the world's greatest escape artist included time performing in vaudeville shows, which also helped launch the careers of other greats such as George Burns, the Three Stooges, and Milton Berle!
Look for the "Did You Know?" keys throughout the exhibition...they offer fascinating little known factoids!
When I first ventured through this exhibition, I thought "What a wonderful reading exhibit,", but then I realized that I had only been caught up in the reading of placards and didn't "see" the full experience of the exhibition, which includes photo-ops, activities, and even an audio recording of Houdini himself!
I think that's to say that you should totally make time to read your way through the exhibition—the story is mesmerizing!—but also be aware of the other aspects of the exhibition and have fun with all of it!
For example, the above pictured "Milk Can Imagination" photo-op. Well....I for one could not possibly—especially in public--attempt to crouch into the space of a milk can, but you, your kids, and your more flexible friends could! And what a fun photo to share on social media!
Houdini, because of the inordinate number of copycats, stopped performing handcuff escape tricks in 1908 and created the trick of escaping from a milk can filled with water!
"Inescapable: The Life and Legacy of Harry Houdini" at the The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum unveils the inexhaustible layers of the life of the world's most famous magician and escape artist, Harry Houdini.
 |
| Harry Houdini entry poster | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor |
Harry Houdini, born Erik Weisz on Tuesday, March 24, 1874, in Budapest, Hungary, to parents Rabbi Mayer Samuel Weisz and Cecelia Steiner, was unequivocally more than the world's greatest and most famous escape artist. He was curious, incredibly intelligent, a proud athlete, a television and cinema actor, as well as a purist, a philanthropist, and a debunker. He was veiled, yet transparent...to say that Harry Houdini was complicated would be an understatement!
Read to the end for some fantastic programming associated with this exhibition!
 |
| Houdini in Handcuffs, 1899 | Photo courtesy of the Breman Museum |
This exhibition will disappear after Sunday, August 11, so do not delay! If you make it in time, you'll get to see some of the actual handcuffs Houdini used in his performances! There are a limited number of actual artifacts from his life, understandably, but I think you'll love the ones that you get to see!
And there's so much more!
 |
| Harry Houdini in "The Master Mystery" | Photo courtesy of the Breman Museum |
Harry Houdini was also a film star! Using his mastery of escape, he starred in The Master Mystery, also called "The Houdini Serial", a 15-episode murder mystery serial in 1918. He worked on other films and even owned his own movie studio, bearing his name, for a while.
I find it interesting and grandly satisfying that—although not Jewish myself—an industry once trivialized as a fad and not a smart career move, left jobs relegated to those deemed lesser has now become one of the most coveted, most successful of all career paths across the entire globe. None of us would know Hollywood—or the Georgia film industry—were it not for our Jewish friends!
 |
| Houdini in Atlanta | Photo courtesy of the Breman Museum |
I love exhibitions that tell us of grand celebrities who visited Atlanta. Otherwise we might not have known that they graced our stages, ate in our restaurants, stayed in our hotels, and met our citizens! Houdini visited Atlanta on more than one occasion.
 |
| Houdini in the News | Photo courtesy of the Breman Musuem |
In this exhibition, you'll learn fascinating facts about Houdini that you might not learn otherwise, including:
- he left home (leaving a note for this mother) at 12 years old;
- he was proud to be such an accomplished athlete; and,
- he became one of, if not the, most famous performers in Russia!
Those are but a few and you'll learn about those and others in greater detail at the exhibition.
 |
| Escape Artist Harry Houdini | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor |
The path to becoming the world's greatest escape artist included time performing in vaudeville shows, which also helped launch the careers of other greats such as George Burns, the Three Stooges, and Milton Berle!
 |
| Harry Houdini performs "Water Torture Cell" | Photo courtesy of the Breman Museum |
Look for the "Did You Know?" keys throughout the exhibition...they offer fascinating little known factoids!
 |
| Milk Can Imagination | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor |
When I first ventured through this exhibition, I thought "What a wonderful reading exhibit,", but then I realized that I had only been caught up in the reading of placards and didn't "see" the full experience of the exhibition, which includes photo-ops, activities, and even an audio recording of Houdini himself!
I think that's to say that you should totally make time to read your way through the exhibition—the story is mesmerizing!—but also be aware of the other aspects of the exhibition and have fun with all of it!
For example, the above pictured "Milk Can Imagination" photo-op. Well....I for one could not possibly—especially in public--attempt to crouch into the space of a milk can, but you, your kids, and your more flexible friends could! And what a fun photo to share on social media!
Houdini, because of the inordinate number of copycats, stopped performing handcuff escape tricks in 1908 and created the trick of escaping from a milk can filled with water!
 |
| Harry Houdini with wife Beatrice and mother Cecilia Steiner Weiss | Photo courtesy of the Breman Museum |
"Not even death could stop Harry Houdini. He continued debunking mediums even after he died on October 31st, 1926, through his wife, Bess Houdini. On the 10th anniversary of his death in 1936, a séance was performed, with its aim being to bring Harry back so Bess could speak to him. Equally skeptical, she remarked: 'The message has never been received.' Bess never attended any more séances." - The Librarians
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| Spirit Photo Photo-Op | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor |
Well before Houdini's mother died, he made a concerted effort to debunk not only copycats of his "magic tricks" and "illusions", but also of spiritualists...those who falsely claimed a connection to the spiritual world, to the afterlife.
I tried to make a selfie (multiple attempts, actually) at the above "Spirit Photo" station, but that's a skill I've yet to master. I don't imagine I would get myself out of a Water Torture Cell or a milk can either, so I'll leave selfies and magnificent escapes to the pros and the adventurers who visit the exhibition.
There's lots of fantastic programming associated with this exhibition! Forgive me for not posting earlier for some of the programming, but you still have time to see:
- Atlanta Magic Spectacular (June, 30, 2pm-4pm)
- Luck & Charms: A Curious Afternoon of Magical Mysteries Starring Joe M. Turner (July 7, 2pm-4pm)
- Houdini in Early Cinema (July 14, 2pm-4pm)
- Houdini's Magic Block Party (July 21)
- Harry Houdini: Pulling Back the Veil in Search of Cecelia (July 28, 2pm-4pm)
Also, there's "Magical Mondays".
By the way, I've had the awesome pleasure of seeing magician Joe M. Turner perform before and you would be remiss to not see him for yourself!
I love this exhibition! I highly recommend that you make time to see ""Inescapable: The Life and Legacy of Harry Houdini" at the The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum. You just might find yourself inspired to explore some of the paths that Houdini himself explored...go find out!
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