BATTLE OF THE MAGICIANS: ROUND ONE

There can be no question that Harry Houdini saw this unique illusion exactly as we're seeing it here. The performer is his friend George Méliès. The venue is the Theatre Robert-Houdin in Paris.

When he first met Méliès, Harry still had stars in his eyes where Robert-Houdin was concerned. These turned into daggers after he was snubbed by the magician's daughter-in-law. She refused to see him when he made a pilgrimage to Blois in 1902, hoping to put a marker on his namesake's grave. That marks the turning point in Harry's worship of Robert-Houdin.

Houdini took this photo of Robert-Houdin's grave.

Little by little Harry built a case against his erstwhile idol. It appears to have reached critical mass in 1903 in Moscow, where he met T. Bolin, a friend of Méliès'. Harry praised Bolin as the finest inventor of mechanical tricks in the world, notably as the inventor of the 'moving pip card.'

T. Bolin, our research indicates, is related to the Bolin family of artists and craftsmen, who had flourished in Russia since 1791 as artisans to the Russian Imperial court. The entire family was known for its artistic work in mechanical devices, painting and particularly fine jewelry. (The business continues today under the name W.A. Bolin, based in Stockholm, making it one of the oldest continuously operated businesses in the world.)

Bolin crest & amazonite box. Moscow c. 1903

It was Bolin who finally convinced Harry that Robert-Houdin was a plagiarist and an egomaniac.

According to Harry, Bolin had frequently seen Robert-Houdin perform in his own theater in Paris and had carefully studied his act. After the French conjurer died, Bolin himself bought all of his apparatus and taught all his illusions.

Bolin's nobleman's status in Russia gave him an insight into Robert-Houdin that others lacked: he had done original research into the famous Pinetti, court conjuror to the Tsar. As we've written previously, Robert-Houdin's book fixates on Pinetti as a weasel and a charlatan. But according to Bolin and other reliable sources, Robert-Houdin was on the wrong side of that dispute. Pinetti, the "Roman Professor of Mathematics," lived and died as a superstar in Russia and had stood godfather to the Tsar's children. 

Library of Congress

One of the prizes of Harry's time in Russia is this book on the life and work of Pinetti, in Russian, a gift from Bolin. We believe it was this book that opened Harry's eyes.

Library of Congress

As Houdini tells it, one of his last acts in Russia was to search for Pinetti's grave in Berdichev, south of Moscow. There are conflicting versions as to whether he found it. But we do believe he performed a broken wand ceremony there for Pinetti, the enemy of his enemy, Robert-Houdin.






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RELATED:

BATTLE OF THE MAGICIANS: PRELUDE

HOUDINI, PINETTI & ROBERT-HOUDIN

HOUDINI'S ADVENTURES IN PARIS