"The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin" by Harry Houdini. Published by Good Press. Good Press publishes a wide range of titles that encompasses every genre. From well-known classics & literary fiction and non-fiction to forgotten−or yet undiscovered gems−of world literature, we issue the books that need to be read. Each Good Press edition has been meticulously edited and formatted to boost readability for all e-readers and devices. Our goal is to produce eBooks that are user-friendly and accessible to everyone in a high-quality digital format.
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Harry Houdini. The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin
The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
THE UNMASKING OF. ROBERT-HOUDIN
CHAPTER I. SIGNIFICANT EVENTS IN THE LIFE OF ROBERT-HOUDIN
CHAPTER II. THE ORANGE-TREE TRICK
CHAPTER III. THE WRITING AND DRAWING FIGURE
CHAPTER IV. THE PASTRY COOK OF THE PALAIS ROYAL
CHAPTER V. THE OBEDIENT CARDS—THE CABALISTIC CLOCK—THE TRAPEZE AUTOMATON. The Obedient Cards
CHAPTER VI. THE INEXHAUSTIBLE BOTTLE
CHAPTER VII. SECOND SIGHT
CHAPTER VIII. THE SUSPENSION TRICK
CHAPTER IX. THE DISAPPEARING HANDKERCHIEF
CHAPTER X. ROBERT-HOUDIN’S IGNORANCE OF MAGIC AS BETRAYED BY HIS OWN PEN
CHAPTER XI. THE NARROWNESS OF ROBERT-HOUDIN’S “MEMOIRS”
Отрывок из книги
Harry Houdini
Published by Good Press, 2019
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I then sought the police department from which I secured the following information: “Dr.” Wiljalba Frikell was indeed the retired magician whom I was so anxious to meet. He was eighty-seven years old, and in 1884 had celebrated his golden anniversary as a conjurer. Living in the same town was an adopted daughter, but she could not or would not assist me. The venerable magician had suffered from domestic disappointments and had made a vow that he would see no one. In fact he was leading a hermit-like life.
Armed with this information, I employed a photographer, giving him instructions to post himself opposite the house and make a snap shot of the magician, should he appear in the doorway. But I had counted without my host. All morning the photographer lounged across the street and all morning I stood bareheaded before the door of Herr Frikell, pleading with his wife who leaned from the window overhead. With that peculiar fervency which comes only when the heart’s desire is at stake, I begged that the past master of magic would lend a helping hand to one ready to sit at his feet and learn. I urged the debt which he owed to the literature of magic and which he could pay by giving me such direct information as I needed for my book.
