Harry Houdini

Also known as Erik Weisz, Ehrich Weiss, Harry Weiss, Erich Weiss, Erich Weisz, Houdini

Hungarian-born American illusionist, escapologist, and stunt performer (1874–1926)

AI overview

Harry Houdini was a Hungarian-born American performer famous for his incredible magic tricks, elaborate escapes from chains and locked containers, and daring stunts that amazed audiences in the late 1800s and early 1900s. He matters as one of the most celebrated entertainers of his era, pioneering the modern art of escapology and leaving a lasting impact on magic and performance history.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Person · Open Library

Born: 1874
Died: 1926
Works: 59

Top works

The Miracle Mongers, an Exposé
Book of magic and party pastimes
Book of magic ...
On deception
Houdini's paper magic

via Open Library + Wikidata

Film & TV

Budapest, Hungary (Austria-Hungary)

Harry Houdini (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926) was a Hungarian-American escape artist, magic man, and stunt performer, noted for his escape acts.[3] His pseudonym is a reference to his spiritual master, French magician Robert-Houdin (1805–1871).

Known for

Escape Artist — Self2026
The Magic Behind 'd'ILLUSION: The Houdini Musical - The Audio Theater Experience' — Self (archive footage)2020
The UnXplained — Self (archive footage)2019
Lore — Self (archive footage)2017
Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World — Self - Escape Artist (archive footage)2016
Buzzfeed Unsolved: True Crime — Self (archive footage)2016
An Honest Liar — Self (archive footage)2014
Houdini — Self (archive footage)1996
Magic with the Stars — Self (archive footage) (uncredited)1982
The Truth About Houdini1971

via TMDB

Described at

Harry Houdini Dies After Operations

archive.nytimes.com →

Link to a page describing this subject · 21,070 chars · not written by Vinony

Wikidata facts

Instance of: human
Given name: Erik
Family name: Weiss
Gender: male
Citizenship: United States
Place of birth: Budapest
Place of death: Detroit
Spouse: Bess Houdini
Occupation: screenwriter
Languages spoken: English language
Native language: English language
Religion: Judaism
Award: star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Field of work: escapology
Image: HarryHoudini1899.jpg

Show 17 more facts

Commons category: Harry Houdini
date of birth: 1874-03-24
date of death: 1926-10-31
birth name: Erik Weisz
Commons gallery: Harry Houdini
topic's main category: Category:Harry Houdini
manner of death: natural causes
ethnic group: Jewish people
cause of death: peritonitis
name in native language: Harry Houdini
described at URL: archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0324.html
writing language: English language
start of work period: 1896-00-00
end of work period: 1926-00-00
archives at: Harry Ransom Center
on focus list of Wikimedia project: Wikipedia:Vital articles/Level/4
present in work: Houdini

Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

~40 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Erik Weisz (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926), known professionally as Harry Houdini (/huːˈdiːni/ hoo-DEE-nee), was a Hungarian-American escapologist, illusionist, and stunt performer noted for his escape acts.

Houdini first attracted notice in vaudeville in the United States and then as Harry "Handcuff" Houdini on a tour of Europe, where he challenged police forces to keep him locked up. Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers, straitjackets under water, and having to escape from and hold his breath inside a sealed milk can with water in it.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Harry Houdini” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.