Best of 2024: The Death of Harry Houdini [VIDEO]
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What happened to Harry Houdini in 1926?
Lights, camera, Carter. Hey, Conspiracy Theories listeners and viewers. We've introduced a lot of new things to the show this year, including video. In my second best of 2024 pick, we'll revisit our video episode covering the mysterious death of famed magician Harry Houdini. You can hear the audio everywhere, but you'll only be able to watch it on Spotify. We'll be back with new episodes of Conspiracy Theories next week. Due to the nature of this episode, listener discretion is advised. This episode includes discussions of violence and death. Consider this when deciding how and when you'll listen. If you're listening on the Spotify app, you can watch a video version of this episode right in the app and be sure to swipe up after the story and let us know what you thought. In the summer of 1924, expert magician and escape artist Harry Houdini sat in an office in Boston, holding the hand of a woman he barely knew. He strained his eyes to watch her, but couldn't see a thing.
They were sitting in complete darkness. The woman was Marjorie, a self-proclaimed medium who maintained she could commune with the spirits of the dead. But like so many others in her profession, she did her best work in a pitch black room. It was more than a little suspicious. Now, it was up to Houdini to prove that she was a fake, a flim flammer like the rest of them. The only problem was, she was very good. I mean, she couldn't really be speaking with the dead, could she? Then a male voice, totally unlike Marjorie's, boomed. You won't live forever, Houdini. You've got to die. I put a curse on you now that will follow you every day until you die. And then you'll know better. Houdini had made enemies before, but he did take note of this particular warning.
After all, it's not often that a curse is placed upon you by a ghost. Welcome to Conspiracy Theories, a Spotify podcast. I'm Carter Roy. You can find us here every Wednesday and be sure to check us out on Instagram at The Conspiracy Pod. And we would love to hear from you. So if you're listening on the Spotify app, just swipe up and give us your thoughts. You may know Harry Houdini as one of the greatest magicians in history. He was a huge celebrity in his time. Then he died under strange circumstances on Halloween 1926, leaving many to wonder, was his death just an accident or was it planned at the hands of someone who had it out for him? Before we get into this story, amongst the many sources we used, we found David J. Herr's The Witch of Lime Street and The Secret Life of Houdini by William Kalush and Larry Sloman extremely helpful to our research. The audiobook editions of both works are available for Spotify Premium subscribers in Spotify's audiobook catalog, where you can check them out after listening to this episode.
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At one time, Harry Houdini seemed immortal, like he couldn't die, in part due to his most famous trick, the water torture cell, which he first performed in 1912. First, his ankles were secured in a stock. Chains hoisted him into the air upside down, then lowered him head first into a tank of water. A lock clicked into place. Curtains were drawn so nobody could see him thrash around inside. A man with an ax stood at the ready in case anything went wrong. As seconds turned to minutes, audience members begged him to break the glass and save Houdini from drowning. But the magician always emerged, breathless and dripping wet, but alive. Now, if you thought I was going to say Houdini died in his famous water torture cell, you wouldn't be alone. That's a popular myth.
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