July 7: Religious Racketeers
Religious Racketeers (later retitled The Mystic Circle Murders), a film featuring Beatrice Houdini in a supporting role, premiered on this day in 1938.
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Historic milestones, notable events, and magical anniversaries from this day.
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June 22: Houdini Supersedes
On this day in 1922, Harry and Bess Houdini celebrated their anniversary by hosting Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his wife, Lady Doyle, at a Broadway performance.
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June 21: Willard II
Robert Maroney Willard, who performed as the second Willard the Wizard, died by suicide in 1914.
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June 18: Blooming Rose
On this day in 1946, John Petrie of the Petrie-Lewis Company filed a patent for his mechanical blooming rose bush.
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June 11: "Day" Vernon
David Frederick Wingfield Verner was born in 1894 in Ottawa, Ontario. We all knew him as Dai Vernon, the insightful, innovative, and influential magician.
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June 2: Mentalism and the Third Reich
German mentalist Erik Jan Hanussen was born in 1889. He died pursuing a dangerous game, exploiting superstition within the Nazi regime.
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May 29: Brooks' Cards
Herbert Brooks opened at Hammerstein’s Theater in New York City on this date in 1905. He was a sensation in vaudeville with his card tricks and his trunk escape.
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May 19: Blackstone!
Forty-five years ago, in 1980, Harry Blackstone, Jr. opened Blackstone!, his illusion show on Broadway at the Majestic Theater, the start of a 104-performance run
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May 13: Mysterious Edna
On this day in 1889, magician and ventriloquist Will B. Wood filed a patent for an ingenious levitation harness.
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May 10: Chandlee's Lumen-X
Chandlee discovered a new principle in optical effects; he elaborately christened it Lumen-X, and claimed to have almost sold it to Houdini and Thurston.
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May 4: LeRoy
Jean Henri Servais LeRoy born in 1865. The Belgian wizard is remembered today for his many important inventions and brilliant magic.
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April 24: The Zig Zag Lady
In 1966, Robert Harbin performed his new illusion, The Zig Zag Lady, on the live variety show Sunday Night at the London Palladium.