However, after holding séances for ten years with no luck, a disheartened Bess Houdini handed the tradition down to Walter B. Together they created a cryptic code of the word “believe” from their favorite song, “Rosabelle,” so she could confirm any after-death communication was authentic. Houdini, skeptical of fraudulent mediums, made sure his wife, Beatrice (Bess) Houdini would never have to worry about false claims of his return. Houdini’s legendary handcuffs glistened in the candlelight as magicians-turned-mediums Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brooks led the group in the 90th annual Houdini séance.Īn annual séance for Houdini has become a Halloween tradition since the magician died. “If anyone could come back and escape from any place, even the great beyond, it would have to be Houdini,” magician Dick Brooks said of the master escapist. Magician Harry Houdini captured the world’s attention as he consistently found his way out of straitjackets, torture chambers, and the strongest of locks and chains.īut even after his death on October 31, 1926, Houdini has continued to attract magic fans hoping to witness his greatest escape yet.

On the ground floor of Harry Houdini’s childhood home on the Upper East Side, magicians and magic fans gathered around a table crowded with the legendary escape artist’s memorabilia.

Houdini greatest escape