Houdini Unlocked

Houdini was quick to grasp the concept of 'entertainer as brand', where fame was an aim in itself. When others stole his act, he published a book of his 'handcuff secrets' and quickly moved on to more extravagant escapes. He arranged many escapes with local merchants in the towns he visited on tour, one of the first examples of mass tie-in marketing, and set up challenges with newspapers.

He created his own magazine; became the president of Martinka & Co., America's oldest magic tricks company; served nine successive terms as president of the Society of American Magicians; created his own unique escapes including the Chinese Water Torture and the Milk Can Escape; launched his own film career in serials and features; and even became the first man to fly in an airplane in Australia! His widespread debunking of fraudulent spiritualist gave him yet another outlet to promote his own fame while pursuing a righteous crusade.

Houdini pioneered almost every marketing concept of the 20th century, but didn't live beyond the 20th century's first quarter, dying on 31 October 1926 in controversial circumstances. This new study by Brian J Robb, timed for the centenary of his death, explores his unique life and position as both escapologist and marketing extraordinaire.



Brian J. Robb has written biographies of Leonardo DiCaprio, Johnny Depp and Brad Pitt as well as books on silent cinema, the films of Philip K. Dick, Wes Craven, Laurel and Hardy, the Star Wars movies, Superheroes, Gangsters, and Walt Disney, and science fiction television series Doctor Who and Star Trek. His illustrated books include an Illustrated History of Steampunk, and Middle-earth Envisioned, a guide to Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings (Winner, Best Book, Tolkien Society Awards). He is a Founding Editor of the Sci-Fi Bulletin website and lives near Edinburgh.