Houdini and Conan Doyle

Houdini and Conan Doyle PDF Author: Bernard M. L. Ernst
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
ISBN: 1789125189
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 319

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Book Description
THE CURIOUS NARRATIVE DESCRIBING THE FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN THE LEADING EXPONENT OF SPIRITUALISM AND HIS FOREMOST OPPONENT HARRY HOUDINI spent the last years of his life in a crusade against fake spirit mediums. He wanted to believe in spiritualism, but he could not. Conan Doyle devoted to the cause of spiritualism all the money and fame he got out of Sherlock Holmes; he cared more about spiritualism than about anything else in the world. These men had diametrically opposite views on the subject which meant most to them; yet they were friends and mutual admirers, and they kept up for many months the correspondence on which this book is based. They wrote mostly about the subject nearest their hearts. Doyle arranged settings with mediums for Houdini; Houdini took Doyle to banquets of the Society of American Magicians; Doyle thought Houdini did his tricks by supernatural power; the magicians were puzzled by the movies of prehistoric monsters in Doyle’s Lost World. Finally, Lady Doyle, Sir Arthur’s wife, got a “message” in “automatic writing” from Houdini’s mother. It was only when Houdini found himself unable to the believe in the reality of this message (though he had no doubt of Lady Doyle’s sincerity) that a break did come. Shortly after, Houdini died; Doyle followed soon. Perhaps they have become intimate again; who knows? This story of their friendship is told by Bernard M. L. Ernst, Houdini’s attorney and close friend, past president of the Society of American Magicians, and Hereward Carrington, well-known as a leading psychic investigator, author of The Story of Psychic Science, and friend of both Doyle and Houdini.

Houdini and Conan Doyle

Houdini and Conan Doyle PDF Author: Bernard M. L. Ernst
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
ISBN: 1789125189
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 319

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Book Description
THE CURIOUS NARRATIVE DESCRIBING THE FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN THE LEADING EXPONENT OF SPIRITUALISM AND HIS FOREMOST OPPONENT HARRY HOUDINI spent the last years of his life in a crusade against fake spirit mediums. He wanted to believe in spiritualism, but he could not. Conan Doyle devoted to the cause of spiritualism all the money and fame he got out of Sherlock Holmes; he cared more about spiritualism than about anything else in the world. These men had diametrically opposite views on the subject which meant most to them; yet they were friends and mutual admirers, and they kept up for many months the correspondence on which this book is based. They wrote mostly about the subject nearest their hearts. Doyle arranged settings with mediums for Houdini; Houdini took Doyle to banquets of the Society of American Magicians; Doyle thought Houdini did his tricks by supernatural power; the magicians were puzzled by the movies of prehistoric monsters in Doyle’s Lost World. Finally, Lady Doyle, Sir Arthur’s wife, got a “message” in “automatic writing” from Houdini’s mother. It was only when Houdini found himself unable to the believe in the reality of this message (though he had no doubt of Lady Doyle’s sincerity) that a break did come. Shortly after, Houdini died; Doyle followed soon. Perhaps they have become intimate again; who knows? This story of their friendship is told by Bernard M. L. Ernst, Houdini’s attorney and close friend, past president of the Society of American Magicians, and Hereward Carrington, well-known as a leading psychic investigator, author of The Story of Psychic Science, and friend of both Doyle and Houdini.

Masters of Mystery: The Strange Friendship of Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini

Masters of Mystery: The Strange Friendship of Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini PDF Author: Christopher Sandford
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 0230342035
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 304

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Book Description
Renowned mystery author Arthur Conan Doyle and famous illusionist Harry Houdini first met in 1920, during the magician's tour of England. At the time, Conan Doyle had given up his lucrative writing career, killing off Sherlock Holmes in the process, in order to concentrate on his increasingly manic interest in Spiritualism. Houdini, who regularly conducted séances in an attempt to reach his late mother, was also infatuated with the idea of what he called a "living afterlife," though his enthusiasm came to be tempered by his ability to expose fraudulent mediums, many of whom employed crude variations of his own well-known illusions. Using previously unpublished material on the murky relationship between Houdini and Conan Doyle, this sometimes macabre, sometimes comic tale tells the fascinating story of the relationship between two of the most loved figures of the twentieth century and their pursuit of magic and lost loved ones.

The Edge of the Unknown

The Edge of the Unknown PDF Author: Arthur Conan Doyle
Publisher: FV Éditions
ISBN:
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
In 1916 Arthur Conan Doyle stated his belief in Spiritualism. "The Edge of the Unknown", first published in 1930, is a collection of articles covering various aspects of this subject.

The Witch of Lime Street

The Witch of Lime Street PDF Author: David Jaher
Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 0307451089
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 450

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Book Description
History comes alive in this textured account of the rivalry between Harry Houdini and the so-called Witch of Lime Street, whose iconic lives intersected at a time when science was on the verge of embracing the paranormal. The 1920s are famous as the golden age of jazz and glamour, but it was also an era of fevered yearning for communion with the spirit world, after the loss of tens of millions in the First World War and the Spanish-flu epidemic. A desperate search for reunion with dead loved ones precipitated a tidal wave of self-proclaimed psychics—and, as reputable media sought stories on occult phenomena, mediums became celebrities. Against this backdrop, in 1924, the pretty wife of a distinguished Boston surgeon came to embody the raging national debate over Spiritualism, a movement devoted to communication with the dead. Reporters dubbed her the blonde Witch of Lime Street, but she was known to her followers simply as Margery. Her most vocal advocate was none other than Sherlock Holmes' creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who believed so thoroughly in Margery's powers that he urged her to enter a controversial contest, sponsored by Scientific American and offering a large cash prize to the first medium declared authentic by its impressive five-man investigative committee. Admired for both her exceptional charm and her dazzling effects, Margery was the best hope for the psychic practice to be empirically verified. Her supernatural gifts beguiled four of the judges. There was only one left to convince...the acclaimed escape artist, Harry Houdini. David Jaher's extraordinary debut culminates in the showdown between Houdini, a relentless unmasker of charlatans, and Margery, the nation's most credible spirit medium. The Witch of Lime Street, the first book to capture their electric public rivalry and the competition that brought them into each other’s orbit, returns us to an oft-mythologized era to deepen our understanding of its history, all while igniting our imagination and engaging with the timeless question: Is there life after death?

A Magician Among the Spirits

A Magician Among the Spirits PDF Author: Harry Houdini
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Spiritualism
Languages : en
Pages : 362

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Book Description


Sherlock Holmes and the Houdini Birthright

Sherlock Holmes and the Houdini Birthright PDF Author: Val Andrews
Publisher: Ulverscroft
ISBN: 9780708952924
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
Here, two areas of mystery are linked: the exploits of Sherlock Holmes and the secrets of master escapologist, Harry Houdini. Doctor Watson's collaborator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, finds himself drawn into the world of the fake psychics and Houdini is anxious for Holmes to unmask the perpetrators who prey on the innocent believers. Holmes's investigations lead him to some surprising locations, including a Ruritanian castle.

Teller of Tales

Teller of Tales PDF Author: Daniel Stashower
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company
ISBN: 1466863153
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 588

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Book Description
Winner of the 1999 Edgar Award for Best Biographical Work, this is "an excellent biography of the man who created Sherlock Holmes" (David Walton, The New York Times Book Review) This fresh, compelling biography examines the extraordinary life and strange contrasts of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the struggling provincial doctor who became the most popular storyteller of his age. From his youthful exploits aboard a whaling ship to his often stormy friendships with such figures as Harry Houdini and George Bernard Shaw, Conan Doyle lived a life as gripping as one of his adventures. Exhaustively researched and elegantly written, Daniel Stashower's Teller of Tales sets aside many myths and misconceptions to present a vivid portrait of the man behind the legend of Baker Street, with a particular emphasis on the Psychic Crusade that dominated his final years--the work that Conan Doyle himself felt to be "the most important thing in the world."

Final Séance

Final Séance PDF Author: Massimo Polidoro
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
Details the five-year friendship during which "Houdini and Conan Doyle exchanged views about Spiritualism; conducted investigations of notable mediums of their day, such as Mina 'Margery' Crandon; and even enjoyed vacationing together at Atlantic City."--Jacket.

Final Seance

Final Seance PDF Author: Massimo Polidoro
Publisher: Prometheus Books
ISBN: 1615924248
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
. . . Polidoro has written--and written well--a saga of two Titans that is also a remarkable exploration of both superstition and obsession, at the lush twilight of the Edwardian era.--Baltimore SunThis is the story of an unusual friendship between two of the most intriguing characters of the early 20th century-renowned escape artist Harry Houdini and celebrated mystery writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (creator of Sherlock Holmes). Both men were fascinated by the occult practice of spiritualism, Houdini as an ardent skeptic who often publicly exposed fraudulent mediums and Conan Doyle as a true believer who became convinced that the dead could and did communicate with the living. Despite their differing perspectives the two men not only respected each other but became friends. The correspondence between them on the subject provides a fascinating glimpse not only into the personalities of two talented and interesting celebrities but also into a psychic phenomenon that is the ancestor of today's channeling craze.Based on original correspondence, photographs, and his own extensive research, Massimo Polidoro reconstructs this unusual friendship between a believer and a skeptic, which weathered mediums, seances, an apparition of Houdini's departed mother, automatic writing by Conan Doyle's wife, public debunkings, and hurt feelings. He also discusses the final rift that ended the friendship of the two strong-willed men. Fans of Conan Doyle, Houdini, magic, and the historical roots of the New Age will be delighted by this amazing story.Massimo Polidoro is executive director of the Italian Committee for the Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, editor of Scienza & Paranormale (Science and the Paranormal), and author of twelve books on the paranormal.

The Secret Life of Houdini

The Secret Life of Houdini PDF Author: William Kalush
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1847396194
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 998

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Book Description
Using exclusive access to newly uncovered archives, Kalush and Sloman reveal the clandestine agreements in which the British and Americans recruited Houdini to be an active secret agent. In exchange for his cooperation, the governments of these two countries facilitated his rise to the top of the world stage. The authors give thrilling accounts of his assignments, such as his participation in early aerial surveillance and his use of his own magic magazine to communicate espionage-related information. After the war, Houdini embarked upon what became his most dangerous mission when he took on the Spiritualist movement. Convinced that Spiritualist mediums were frauds, he became obsessed with exposing them. But the Spiritualists were a powerful adversary. An organized network of fanatics, led by Sherlock Holmes creator Arthur Conan Doyle, worked relentlessly to orchestrate a campaign that would silence Houdini forever. Grounded in solid research, but as exciting and dramatic as a good thriller, THE SECRET LIFE OF HOUDINI traces the magician's long and circuitous route from struggling vaudevillian to worldwide legend.