Episode #204 |10.14.25
Harry Houdini: A Ghost Story
Listen for free:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | iHeart | Audacy | Pandora | Amazon Music | TuneIn | Castbox
In this episode
Harry Houdini was the world's greatest escape artist and at the height of his powers was one of the world's most famous people. His unearthly ability to escape any prison and to break free of any bondage was matched only by his aggressive self-promotion. Anyone who tried to get in his way, rewrite his story, steal his thunder or question his abilities would find themselves in his crosshairs. When the burgeoning Spiritualist movement tried to make a fool of Houdini, he began a crusade that would last the rest of his life. And when his life was over, the question Houdini left the world was: could he make the greatest escape in history?
Sources
The Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini, by Joe Posnanski
Houdini: Art and Magic, by Brooke Kamin Rapaport
Hollywood, Houdini and the Halloween Seance of 1936 (Library of Congress)
How Harry Houdini Might Have Pulled Off His Most Daring Trick (Mental Floss)
Houdini Legend Persists at Aging Estate but Facts Are Elusive (LA Times)
WILD ABOUT HARRY: The true story of the Laurel Canyon Houdini Estate (Wild About Houdini)
Houdini Live Here (Well, Maybe) (LA Times)
Harry Houdini | The Blog of Villa Finale: Museum & Gardens
Rick Rubin’s Laurel Canyon mansion is haunted (The FADER)
MTV News report on Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991)
Red Hot Chili Peppers August 1991 interview (Interview Magazine)
Red Hot Chili Peppers Talk Supernatural Myths of Recording 'Blood Sugar Sex Magik' (Variety)
Credits
Hosted by Jake Brennan.
Written by Zeth Lundy.
Mixed by Matt Beaudoin.
DISGRACELAND theme song, “Crenshaw Space Boogie,” written and produced by Jake Brennan. Performed by Jake Brennan, Bryce Kanzer, Jay Cannava, and Evan Kenney. Mixed and engineered by Adam Taylor.
*illustrations by Avi Spivak @avispivak