Hats off, hugs and kisses to Leonard Hevia, our new hero and, we're proud to say, a faithful reader. He unearthed the YouTube video here, which contains 30 minutes of "lost and found" Houdini footage at the tail end. It came off a YouTube channel called Sleight of Direction, but on the channel there is no reference to Houdini. We're guessing they didn't know what they had here - probably never watched all the way to the end!
Houdini starts about 59 minutes from the top. The footage is poor quality and out of sequence. The headline piece is a genuine home movie of Harry and Bess visiting Harry's sister Gladys at home! Gladys plays the piano and is introduced to Harry's assistants. Harry prepares to leave but first kisses a photo of Bess and his mother, kisses Gladys goodbye (on the lips, as does Bess) then kisses Bess several times outside. It's adorable!
Wait - there's more! Harry Houdini makes Harry Kellar disappear ... he does closeup coin maneuvers ... several strait-jacket escapes and bridge jumps ... scenes from his movies, including the lost opening sequence of his first film, shot in Paris in the early 1900s where he defends drunkards and strikes a blow against police brutality: Des Merveilleux Exploits du Célèbré Houdini a Paris.
There's a lot of great 1970s magic on the first hour of the video, too - knock yourselves out! And all hail to Leo Hevia for the find!
Hugs and kisses to you my friend! I was walloped by the footage when I stumbled onto it on the night of the 31st. It's a treasure that had to be shared with Houdini fans. The Gladys footage is almost surreal.
ReplyDeleteAn amazing find! Did you watch the whole thing first and then just happen upon the ending?
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