May 29, 2020 • 16 mins
Famed illusionist Harry Houdini might have been one of the only people to succeed in leaving Theodore Roosevelt truly dumbfounded.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
History Versus is a production of I Heart Radio and
Mental Flaws. It's June and illusionist Harry Houdini is hurrying
through the crowded, smoggy streets of London, bound for the
offices of the Hamburg America Line. He's on his way
(00:20):
to pick up two certificates of passage on a luxurious
German steamship called the S s Imperator, which will ferry
him and his wife Bess home to New York later
in the month. After a series of performances around Britain,
Houdini will finally get a glorious break to rest and
relax on the high seas before summer residence at Hammerstein's
Victoria Theater in Manhattan. For five whole days, he won't
(00:42):
have to hurry at all. Houdini skids to a stop
in front of the Hamburg America building, strolls in, and
gives his name to the man at the front desk.
Before the man hands over the tickets, he beckons Houdini
closer with a conspiratorial air of secrecy. Teddy Roosevelt is
the boat. The man whispers in Houdini's ear, but don't
(01:03):
tell anyone. Houdini accepts the tickets with a smile and
slowly returns to the dull, cloudy daylight. He has no
intention of sharing the secret, but not because loose lips
sink ships. Instead, he's already hatching a plan, a plan
to trick everyone's favorite, tough talking, rough riding former president
(01:27):
from mental Flaws and I heart radio. This History Versus
a podcast about how your favorite historical figures faced off
against their greatest foes. I'm your host, Aaron McCarthy, And
in this bonus episode, we're talking about Trs rather unlikely
maritime friendship with Harry Houdini, who might have been one
of the only people to succeed in leaving TR truly dumbfounded.
This episode is t R versus Houdini. Spring of nine
(01:55):
fourteen was an especially busy time for both tr and Houdini,
though neither was ever really not busy. Still reeling from
the death of his mother in July, Houdini had embarked
on a rigorous tour of England and Scotland, where he
captivated crowds by escaping from water tanks, swallowing needles, and
making various objects people included disappear and reappear Meanwhile, Theodore
(02:21):
Roosevelt was on a rigorous tour of his own. Fever
and infection had almost killed him during his South American
expedition along the River of Doubt that year, but even
that wasn't enough to keep him home for long. He
returned to New York on May nine and set sail
for Europe just eleven days later. Once there, he spent
the first half of June on a whirlwind continental jaunt
(02:42):
that included visits to Paris, London, and Madrid, where he
attended his son Kermit's wedding to Bell Willard. Roosevelt's daughter Alice,
who accompanied him, described the trip as a movie run
at several times life speed. On June eighteenth, tr left
Alice and the newlyweds behind board in the SSM Perator
in Southampton, England, with his cousin Philip Harry and Bess
(03:04):
Houdini boarded the ship too. It's not clear if Tier
and Houdini had ever actually met each other before the voyage,
but they definitely attended the same event on land at
least once, the Chicago World's Fair in officially called the
World's Columbian Exposition. The event was meant to celebrate the
four hundred anniversary of Christopher Columbus, so called Discovery of
(03:25):
the New World. In four Roosevelt had funded a full
scale architectural reproduction of a Hunter's cabin to commemorate Daniel
Boone and Davy Crockett, and he attended the fair with
his older sister Bamy, who had served on the organization's
board of Lady Managers of New York. A nineteen year old,
not yet famous Harry Houdini was also there, performing with
(03:46):
his brother Theo in a magic act called The Brothers Houdini.
Maybe tr caught the show, or maybe he became familiar
with Houdini's incredible feats later in his career. Either way,
the two men found each other on the s s
and Periator and soon became fast friends. They started exercising
together in the morning, at least when both of them
(04:06):
were feeling up to it. Houdini was prone to seasickness
and Roosevelt was still suffering abouts of fever from his
Brazilian expedition. One morning, while they were taking a walk,
a ship's officer stopped them and asked if Hudini might
be willing to perform at a charity concert the following
night to benefit the German Sailors Home and the Magician's
Club of London. Go ahead, Houdini, Roosevelt goated, give us
(04:29):
a little science. Judini agreed to what seemed like a
completely spontaneous science, but in reality, it was all part
of the cunning scheme that Houdini had been concocting ever
since he found out tr would be on board. The
story was recounted in full in a newspaper article by
Harold Kelleck, which allegedly used Hudini's own words from unreleased
(04:51):
autobiographical excerpts. Let's back up to when the ticket teller
had divulged that Hudini would be sailing the high seas
with Roosevelt. The magician remembered that the Telegraph had plans
to publish the harrowing tale of Roosevelt's recent Amazonian expedition.
After promising not to tell a soul that Roosevelt would
be on board the Imperator, he wrote that he jumped
(05:12):
into a taxi and went to the Telegraph office to
see what he could pick up. His editorial friends readily
obliged his request for information. They even handed over a
map that charted Roosevelt's exact path along the river. That's
when Udini decided to hold the science where he'd act
like spirits were revealing the details of Roosevelt's trip, as
(05:32):
yet undisclosed to the public. Houdini scheme didn't stop there.
A less committed magician might have thought that any old
spirits would do, but Houdini wasn't the best in the
business for nothing. In his opinion, the ruse would be
more convincing if the secrets were conveyed by one spirit,
in particular W. T. Stead, a British editor and known
(05:52):
spiritualist who had died on the Titanic in Udini had
acquired some of his letters while in London. He planned
for the seance to center around a certain slate trick
common among mediums at the time. In it, a participant
jots down a question on a piece of paper and
slips it between two supposedly blank slates. Then a spirit
(06:13):
writes heavy air quotes around that word by the way
a response, and the performer reveals it to the audience.
On the slates, Houdini had drawn the map of Roosevelt's
trail and written the words near the andes He then
forged stead signature on it to suggest that the message
was sent straight from the afterlife. There was definitely still
(06:34):
a lot up in the air when he left the
Southampton Harbor, but Houdini had a plan for just about
every detail. The fact that he wasn't scheduled to perform
on the S S and Perator was sort of a
non issue. According to him. He always staged in promptu
shows during voyages, so it was probably no surprise when
the crew member asked him to do one. And was
(06:54):
it luck that tr happened to be standing there when
the crew member asked, or had Houdini orchestrated the whole encounter.
As for tr suggestion that Houdini conducted science, well, that
wasn't exactly a coincidence. I found it easy to work
the colonel into a state of mind so that the
suggestion for the science would come from him, Houdini wrote,
(07:14):
Though he didn't elaborate on what exactly he said about
spiritualism during their conversation, he apparently convinced Roosevelt that a
science was a spectacle worth seeing. Interestingly enough, Judini would
make a name for himself as an anti spiritualist later
in his career by debunking popular mediums, demonstrating that they
were frauds by mimicking their techniques and revealing their trickery.
(07:36):
Judini's next and most daunting hurdle was not only to
guarantee that the question Roosevelt wrote on his slip of
paper during the science was where was I Last Christmas?
But also to ensure that it was Roosevelt's slip of
paper that he chose. So the master manipulator prepared to
stuff the ballot, so to speak, Judini copied where was
I Last Christmas? Onto several sheets of paper, seal them
(07:57):
in envelopes, and plan to make sure that only those
envelopes ended up in the hat that he choose a
question from. He was, after all, an absolute expert when
it came to slight of hand tricks. But this is
where Hohodini's plan gets a little questionable. If Roosevelt didn't
write where was I Last Christmas? Yet that's the question
Hudini spirit answered, it seems like there would be a
(08:19):
pretty strong possibility that Roosevelt would say something like, wait,
that wasn't my question. Maybe Hudini realized his strategy wasn't
quite full proof, because he devised yet another backup plan.
On the morning of the performance, Whodini noticed two books
lying on a table in the salon where the performance
would take place. After smuggling them back to his room,
(08:40):
he sliced open their bindings with a razor blade and
slipped a sheet of carbon paper and white paper beneath
the cover. Then he carefully resealed the books and returned
them to the salon. As long as Roosevelt used one
of those books as a flat surface to write on,
the carbon paper would transfer his question to the white
sheet below it. That way, who Dennie could sneak a
(09:00):
glance at the question even after the envelope was sealed
and alter his performance accordingly. Would everything work out according
to Hudini's plan, we'll find out after this quick break.
(09:22):
The evening of the seance, the ship's occupants gathered in
the Grand Salon and enjoyed the musical talents of the
Ritz Carlton Orchestra and opera singer Madame a Cortasio. Then
Hudini took the stage. He conjured silk handkerchiefs, he turned
water into wine. He even let tr choose the cards
during a series of card tricks. I was amazed at
(09:45):
the way he watched every one of the misdirection moves
as I manipulated the cards. Hudini recounted, it was difficult
to baffle him under the watchful gaze of a very
astute bull Moose. Houdini turned to the audience, ladies and gentlemen.
He proclaimed, I am sure that many among you have
had experiences with mediums who have been able to facilitate
(10:09):
the answering of your personal questions by departed spirits, these
answers being mysteriously produced on slates. As we all know,
mediums do their work in the darkened science room. But tonight,
for the first time anywhere, I propose to conduct a
spiritualistic slate test in the full glare of the light.
(10:29):
He distributed the slips of paper and instructed the audience
to jot down their questions. Seeing that Roosevelt was about
to use his hand as a writing service, Judini generously
passed him a book. Tire wasn't the only quick witted
gentleman in the audience that night. Broadway composer Victor Herbert
surveyed the scene and offered a few shrewd words of
caution to his companion, turn around. Don't let him see it,
(10:51):
Hudinie heard Herbert Warren Roosevelt. He will read the question
by the movements of the top of the pencil. Tr
took his advice, turning his back to Hudini, so he
couldn't be tricked, Or so he thought. That made no
difference to me, Judini wrote, because, of course, the book
he had passed to tr was one of the books
he'd prepared with carbon paper hidden under the cover. After
(11:14):
Roosevelt finished writing, Hudini took the book and slightly extracted
the paper from the inside cover while returning it to
the table. In an almost unbelievable stroke of luck, Roosevelt
had written the very question Hudini had hoped for, so
Hudini wouldn't need to slip one of his own envelopes
between the slates after all. In fact, he didn't even
pick a question from the hat. I am sure that
(11:36):
there will be no objection if we use the Colonel's question,
he said to general assent from the audience. They all
watched as Houdini flash would appeared to be four blank
sides of the slates. This was another little trick Judini
had really only shown them three sides, obscuring the fourth
so they wouldn't see the map. Then Houdini asked tr
(11:56):
to place his envelope between the slates and tell his
question to the audience. Where was I last Christmas? Tr said.
Houdini revealed the map to an utterly astonished audience by George,
that proves it, tr roared over thunderous applause. The next morning,
tr interrupted their customary walk along the upper deck with
(12:18):
a question he had probably been pondering since the stunt.
How did you do it last night? He asked Tudini.
Was that really spiritualism? Houdini later recounted that he grinned
and responded, no, Colonel, it is all hocus pocus. According
to article from the New York Times, however, Judini claimed
that he maintained the charade and told Tire that it
(12:41):
really was spirit writing. Regardless, it doesn't seem like tr
ever got the full explanation. He died in nineteen years
before newspapers shared these behind the scenes secrets with the public.
Houdini's hijinks aboard the s sm Periator did make an
immediate splash in the papers. The ship's radio operator recounted
the story to operators in Newfoundland, who then related to
(13:02):
journalists in New York. Oddly, though, those early news reports
give a slightly different question that Houdini actually did choose
from a hat, which was can you draw a map
tracing the recent journey made by our most famous passenger?
So are those reports wrong or was Houdini playing one
last trick on everyone? The world may never know the truth, regardless,
(13:26):
news of the renowned magician's latest trick hit stands before
the ship even reached the harbor. The rest of the
voyage passed without any more magic, unless you count the
magic of being in love. On June twenty two, the
night after the performance, the Houdini celebrated their twentieth anniversary
by hosting a delicious dinner of caviare and several fine
(13:46):
French dishes. Considering his close companionship with Houdini, tr might
have attended the event, but it's also possible he was
busy with other things. I have been working hard, finishing
my book on Africa and eating my Pittsburgh speech, he
told The New York Times on June, shortly before the
ship arrived in New York, He had also made time
(14:07):
on June twenty two for what he called a thorough
inspection of the Imperator with its commander. The Bosom buddies
parted ways when they reached New York, and it doesn't
seem like they ever got a chance to hang out again.
But Houdini, for one, always made it clear that he
was proud of his friendship with tr During the voyage,
he had arranged to have their photograph taken together by
(14:28):
his assistant. Five other men ended up in the photo,
including Tiar's cousin Philip, and Hudini later produced several copies
of the photo without the other men. He also called
tr Our beloved Colonel in one letter, and referred to
himself as a close personal friend of the colonels for
years in another. Houdini would eventually go on to perform
for Tier's grandchildren at a party in February, six years
(14:52):
after tr died. Ted jrs Son, who was also named
Theodore Roosevelt and had been born just days before the
legendary say ounce in, proved just as difficult to baffle
as his namesake. Judini said in a newspaper article he
was not satisfied with seeing the tricks, he had to
know how they were done. We'll be back soon with
(15:15):
another episode of History Versus History Versus is hosted by
me Aeron McCarthy. This episode was written by Ellen Gatusky,
with fact checking by Austin Thompson. The executive producers are
Aaron McCarthy, Julie Douglas, and Tyler Clang. The supervising producer
is Dylan Fagan. The show was edited by Dylan Fagan
(15:36):
and Little Berlante. To learn more about this episode and
Theodore Roosevelt, check out our website and Mental floss dot com.
Slash History Versus History Versus is a production of I
Heart Radio and Mental Floss. For more podcasts from my
(16:00):
heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcast,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
History Versus is a production of I Heart Radio and
Mental Flaws. It's June and illusionist Harry Houdini is hurrying
through the crowded, smoggy streets of London, bound for the
offices of the Hamburg America Line. He's on his way
(00:20):
to pick up two certificates of passage on a luxurious
German steamship called the S s Imperator, which will ferry
him and his wife Bess home to New York later
in the month. After a series of performances around Britain,
Houdini will finally get a glorious break to rest and
relax on the high seas before summer residence at Hammerstein's
Victoria Theater in Manhattan. For five whole days, he won't
(00:42):
have to hurry at all. Houdini skids to a stop
in front of the Hamburg America building, strolls in, and
gives his name to the man at the front desk.
Before the man hands over the tickets, he beckons Houdini
closer with a conspiratorial air of secrecy. Teddy Roosevelt is
the boat. The man whispers in Houdini's ear, but don't
(01:03):
tell anyone. Houdini accepts the tickets with a smile and
slowly returns to the dull, cloudy daylight. He has no
intention of sharing the secret, but not because loose lips
sink ships. Instead, he's already hatching a plan, a plan
to trick everyone's favorite, tough talking, rough riding former president
(01:27):
from mental Flaws and I heart radio. This History Versus
a podcast about how your favorite historical figures faced off
against their greatest foes. I'm your host, Aaron McCarthy, And
in this bonus episode, we're talking about Trs rather unlikely
maritime friendship with Harry Houdini, who might have been one
of the only people to succeed in leaving TR truly dumbfounded.
This episode is t R versus Houdini. Spring of nine
(01:55):
fourteen was an especially busy time for both tr and Houdini,
though neither was ever really not busy. Still reeling from
the death of his mother in July, Houdini had embarked
on a rigorous tour of England and Scotland, where he
captivated crowds by escaping from water tanks, swallowing needles, and
making various objects people included disappear and reappear Meanwhile, Theodore
(02:21):
Roosevelt was on a rigorous tour of his own. Fever
and infection had almost killed him during his South American
expedition along the River of Doubt that year, but even
that wasn't enough to keep him home for long. He
returned to New York on May nine and set sail
for Europe just eleven days later. Once there, he spent
the first half of June on a whirlwind continental jaunt
(02:42):
that included visits to Paris, London, and Madrid, where he
attended his son Kermit's wedding to Bell Willard. Roosevelt's daughter Alice,
who accompanied him, described the trip as a movie run
at several times life speed. On June eighteenth, tr left
Alice and the newlyweds behind board in the SSM Perator
in Southampton, England, with his cousin Philip Harry and Bess
(03:04):
Houdini boarded the ship too. It's not clear if Tier
and Houdini had ever actually met each other before the voyage,
but they definitely attended the same event on land at
least once, the Chicago World's Fair in officially called the
World's Columbian Exposition. The event was meant to celebrate the
four hundred anniversary of Christopher Columbus, so called Discovery of
(03:25):
the New World. In four Roosevelt had funded a full
scale architectural reproduction of a Hunter's cabin to commemorate Daniel
Boone and Davy Crockett, and he attended the fair with
his older sister Bamy, who had served on the organization's
board of Lady Managers of New York. A nineteen year old,
not yet famous Harry Houdini was also there, performing with
(03:46):
his brother Theo in a magic act called The Brothers Houdini.
Maybe tr caught the show, or maybe he became familiar
with Houdini's incredible feats later in his career. Either way,
the two men found each other on the s s
and Periator and soon became fast friends. They started exercising
together in the morning, at least when both of them
(04:06):
were feeling up to it. Houdini was prone to seasickness
and Roosevelt was still suffering abouts of fever from his
Brazilian expedition. One morning, while they were taking a walk,
a ship's officer stopped them and asked if Hudini might
be willing to perform at a charity concert the following
night to benefit the German Sailors Home and the Magician's
Club of London. Go ahead, Houdini, Roosevelt goated, give us
(04:29):
a little science. Judini agreed to what seemed like a
completely spontaneous science, but in reality, it was all part
of the cunning scheme that Houdini had been concocting ever
since he found out tr would be on board. The
story was recounted in full in a newspaper article by
Harold Kelleck, which allegedly used Hudini's own words from unreleased
(04:51):
autobiographical excerpts. Let's back up to when the ticket teller
had divulged that Hudini would be sailing the high seas
with Roosevelt. The magician remembered that the Telegraph had plans
to publish the harrowing tale of Roosevelt's recent Amazonian expedition.
After promising not to tell a soul that Roosevelt would
be on board the Imperator, he wrote that he jumped
(05:12):
into a taxi and went to the Telegraph office to
see what he could pick up. His editorial friends readily
obliged his request for information. They even handed over a
map that charted Roosevelt's exact path along the river. That's
when Udini decided to hold the science where he'd act
like spirits were revealing the details of Roosevelt's trip, as
(05:32):
yet undisclosed to the public. Houdini scheme didn't stop there.
A less committed magician might have thought that any old
spirits would do, but Houdini wasn't the best in the
business for nothing. In his opinion, the ruse would be
more convincing if the secrets were conveyed by one spirit,
in particular W. T. Stead, a British editor and known
(05:52):
spiritualist who had died on the Titanic in Udini had
acquired some of his letters while in London. He planned
for the seance to center around a certain slate trick
common among mediums at the time. In it, a participant
jots down a question on a piece of paper and
slips it between two supposedly blank slates. Then a spirit
(06:13):
writes heavy air quotes around that word by the way
a response, and the performer reveals it to the audience.
On the slates, Houdini had drawn the map of Roosevelt's
trail and written the words near the andes He then
forged stead signature on it to suggest that the message
was sent straight from the afterlife. There was definitely still
(06:34):
a lot up in the air when he left the
Southampton Harbor, but Houdini had a plan for just about
every detail. The fact that he wasn't scheduled to perform
on the S S and Perator was sort of a
non issue. According to him. He always staged in promptu
shows during voyages, so it was probably no surprise when
the crew member asked him to do one. And was
(06:54):
it luck that tr happened to be standing there when
the crew member asked, or had Houdini orchestrated the whole encounter.
As for tr suggestion that Houdini conducted science, well, that
wasn't exactly a coincidence. I found it easy to work
the colonel into a state of mind so that the
suggestion for the science would come from him, Houdini wrote,
(07:14):
Though he didn't elaborate on what exactly he said about
spiritualism during their conversation, he apparently convinced Roosevelt that a
science was a spectacle worth seeing. Interestingly enough, Judini would
make a name for himself as an anti spiritualist later
in his career by debunking popular mediums, demonstrating that they
were frauds by mimicking their techniques and revealing their trickery.
(07:36):
Judini's next and most daunting hurdle was not only to
guarantee that the question Roosevelt wrote on his slip of
paper during the science was where was I Last Christmas?
But also to ensure that it was Roosevelt's slip of
paper that he chose. So the master manipulator prepared to
stuff the ballot, so to speak, Judini copied where was
I Last Christmas? Onto several sheets of paper, seal them
(07:57):
in envelopes, and plan to make sure that only those
envelopes ended up in the hat that he choose a
question from. He was, after all, an absolute expert when
it came to slight of hand tricks. But this is
where Hohodini's plan gets a little questionable. If Roosevelt didn't
write where was I Last Christmas? Yet that's the question
Hudini spirit answered, it seems like there would be a
(08:19):
pretty strong possibility that Roosevelt would say something like, wait,
that wasn't my question. Maybe Hudini realized his strategy wasn't
quite full proof, because he devised yet another backup plan.
On the morning of the performance, Whodini noticed two books
lying on a table in the salon where the performance
would take place. After smuggling them back to his room,
(08:40):
he sliced open their bindings with a razor blade and
slipped a sheet of carbon paper and white paper beneath
the cover. Then he carefully resealed the books and returned
them to the salon. As long as Roosevelt used one
of those books as a flat surface to write on,
the carbon paper would transfer his question to the white
sheet below it. That way, who Dennie could sneak a
(09:00):
glance at the question even after the envelope was sealed
and alter his performance accordingly. Would everything work out according
to Hudini's plan, we'll find out after this quick break.
(09:22):
The evening of the seance, the ship's occupants gathered in
the Grand Salon and enjoyed the musical talents of the
Ritz Carlton Orchestra and opera singer Madame a Cortasio. Then
Hudini took the stage. He conjured silk handkerchiefs, he turned
water into wine. He even let tr choose the cards
during a series of card tricks. I was amazed at
(09:45):
the way he watched every one of the misdirection moves
as I manipulated the cards. Hudini recounted, it was difficult
to baffle him under the watchful gaze of a very
astute bull Moose. Houdini turned to the audience, ladies and gentlemen.
He proclaimed, I am sure that many among you have
had experiences with mediums who have been able to facilitate
(10:09):
the answering of your personal questions by departed spirits, these
answers being mysteriously produced on slates. As we all know,
mediums do their work in the darkened science room. But tonight,
for the first time anywhere, I propose to conduct a
spiritualistic slate test in the full glare of the light.
(10:29):
He distributed the slips of paper and instructed the audience
to jot down their questions. Seeing that Roosevelt was about
to use his hand as a writing service, Judini generously
passed him a book. Tire wasn't the only quick witted
gentleman in the audience that night. Broadway composer Victor Herbert
surveyed the scene and offered a few shrewd words of
caution to his companion, turn around. Don't let him see it,
(10:51):
Hudinie heard Herbert Warren Roosevelt. He will read the question
by the movements of the top of the pencil. Tr
took his advice, turning his back to Hudini, so he
couldn't be tricked, Or so he thought. That made no
difference to me, Judini wrote, because, of course, the book
he had passed to tr was one of the books
he'd prepared with carbon paper hidden under the cover. After
(11:14):
Roosevelt finished writing, Hudini took the book and slightly extracted
the paper from the inside cover while returning it to
the table. In an almost unbelievable stroke of luck, Roosevelt
had written the very question Hudini had hoped for, so
Hudini wouldn't need to slip one of his own envelopes
between the slates after all. In fact, he didn't even
pick a question from the hat. I am sure that
(11:36):
there will be no objection if we use the Colonel's question,
he said to general assent from the audience. They all
watched as Houdini flash would appeared to be four blank
sides of the slates. This was another little trick Judini
had really only shown them three sides, obscuring the fourth
so they wouldn't see the map. Then Houdini asked tr
(11:56):
to place his envelope between the slates and tell his
question to the audience. Where was I last Christmas? Tr said.
Houdini revealed the map to an utterly astonished audience by George,
that proves it, tr roared over thunderous applause. The next morning,
tr interrupted their customary walk along the upper deck with
(12:18):
a question he had probably been pondering since the stunt.
How did you do it last night? He asked Tudini.
Was that really spiritualism? Houdini later recounted that he grinned
and responded, no, Colonel, it is all hocus pocus. According
to article from the New York Times, however, Judini claimed
that he maintained the charade and told Tire that it
(12:41):
really was spirit writing. Regardless, it doesn't seem like tr
ever got the full explanation. He died in nineteen years
before newspapers shared these behind the scenes secrets with the public.
Houdini's hijinks aboard the s sm Periator did make an
immediate splash in the papers. The ship's radio operator recounted
the story to operators in Newfoundland, who then related to
(13:02):
journalists in New York. Oddly, though, those early news reports
give a slightly different question that Houdini actually did choose
from a hat, which was can you draw a map
tracing the recent journey made by our most famous passenger?
So are those reports wrong or was Houdini playing one
last trick on everyone? The world may never know the truth, regardless,
(13:26):
news of the renowned magician's latest trick hit stands before
the ship even reached the harbor. The rest of the
voyage passed without any more magic, unless you count the
magic of being in love. On June twenty two, the
night after the performance, the Houdini celebrated their twentieth anniversary
by hosting a delicious dinner of caviare and several fine
(13:46):
French dishes. Considering his close companionship with Houdini, tr might
have attended the event, but it's also possible he was
busy with other things. I have been working hard, finishing
my book on Africa and eating my Pittsburgh speech, he
told The New York Times on June, shortly before the
ship arrived in New York, He had also made time
(14:07):
on June twenty two for what he called a thorough
inspection of the Imperator with its commander. The Bosom buddies
parted ways when they reached New York, and it doesn't
seem like they ever got a chance to hang out again.
But Houdini, for one, always made it clear that he
was proud of his friendship with tr During the voyage,
he had arranged to have their photograph taken together by
(14:28):
his assistant. Five other men ended up in the photo,
including Tiar's cousin Philip, and Hudini later produced several copies
of the photo without the other men. He also called
tr Our beloved Colonel in one letter, and referred to
himself as a close personal friend of the colonels for
years in another. Houdini would eventually go on to perform
for Tier's grandchildren at a party in February, six years
(14:52):
after tr died. Ted jrs Son, who was also named
Theodore Roosevelt and had been born just days before the
legendary say ounce in, proved just as difficult to baffle
as his namesake. Judini said in a newspaper article he
was not satisfied with seeing the tricks, he had to
know how they were done. We'll be back soon with
(15:15):
another episode of History Versus History Versus is hosted by
me Aeron McCarthy. This episode was written by Ellen Gatusky,
with fact checking by Austin Thompson. The executive producers are
Aaron McCarthy, Julie Douglas, and Tyler Clang. The supervising producer
is Dylan Fagan. The show was edited by Dylan Fagan
(15:36):
and Little Berlante. To learn more about this episode and
Theodore Roosevelt, check out our website and Mental floss dot com.
Slash History Versus History Versus is a production of I
Heart Radio and Mental Floss. For more podcasts from my
(16:00):
heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcast,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
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