"The Kids Are the Show!"-- Brodini’s Magic Is Wonder-Filled

"Children are the research & development division of the human species" --Patt Olivieri

When I heard from our local library that Brodini was going to perform, I made it a point to be there. And I was.

Brodini does comedy magic shows for kids. What I saw, though, wasn't just kids lovin' it. Every adult in the room enjoyed seeing their children get bug-eyed and bedazzled. And many, like myself, were probably recalling their first experiences of being mesmerized by a live magic show. Or at least in my case, that is what I was thinking about.

His name is Graylyn Morris, but his stage name is Brodini.

Brodini's name is taken from his two early sources of inspiration. Marshall Brodien played Wizzo the Wizard on the Bozo Circus show when Graylyn was a kid. The second part of his stage name came from a source that has spawned hundreds, if not thousands, of magicians. Morris read a book about Houdini (like many of us did) and watched the famous Houdini movie starring Tony Curtis as the master magician and escape artist. With such admiration for Houdini, it was easy to later name himself Brodini in honor of the man.

 

Brodini has performed in Brussels, Paris, Amsterdam and for a month each of the past 12 years in Mexico. Here's how he describes what he is doing:
 

"My show is all audience participation. What I like most about kid shows? The kids are the show! I explain in every show, if I can do magic you can too…"

Brodini says he learned from books, which is what I did, too. I borrowed books from the library and my parents even make some of the tricks for me. For example, Brodini opens his routine with an egg bag, a standard in which the magician makes an egg appear from an empty bag. My mom made one for me. And my father built a miniature "set" for levitation. Instead of levitating a woman, I levitated one of my mom's Barbie dolls. It was a pretty cool illusion.

For Brodini, "it's all about the kids!" You can see it in his eyes how it flows from his heart.

My biggest takeaway from Brodini's show was not how "amazing" or talented he was. (Yes, he's very natural at sleight of hand, and the rest of his tricks are mind-baffling for those who have never performed magic.) Rather, what I came away with was how ordinary people like you and I can use the gifts we have and make a difference in other people's lives. That was the real magic that I saw. Graylin isn't trying to be David Copperfield or Penn & Teller. He's just a human touching young hearts and firing up their imaginations. 

Related Links

Brodini's Website

Escape Artist, Magician, Inventor, Honest Cheat: How Following His Passion Unlocked Terry Roses' Career

The Handcuff Kings

Wild About Harry

Flashback Friday: An Introduction to Gaming Cheats from the Wild West to the 21st Century: Magician Terry Roses

Writers need to be careful not to overuse words like astonishing and amazing and awesome. The reason being that one day you will encounter something that really is astonishing, amazing and awesome. This is what I experienced Saturday in the presence of Terry Roses.

Saturday I had the privilege of viewing a portion of Terry Roses' "laboratory of magic" and his various collections of rare books, cool geological items and remarkable (rare) gambling cheats. In addition I became a one-man audience to what are probably a few of his favorite, mind-blowing card tricks. Space and time will not permit me a full discourse on this visit, so I will save a portion for later this week.

Besides being a first-class professional magician, Roses is a collector and an inventor; his inventions are the result of an inquiring mind that never ceases from asking questions and delving deeper into the mysteries of perception.

But let's start with the cheating devices. As everyone knows, magic is all about deception. Magicians fool your eyes and your minds, and audiences love it. They know they are being deceived, but they don't really care.

On the other hand, no one wants to be deceived and cheated, whether playing poker with friends or gambling at a casino. Modern casinos make their fortunes by being above board, by creating honest gaming. True, the odds are always in their favor, but they tell you up front what the odds are and you play at your own risk. Nevertheless not everyone is so transparent, and it's not surprising to discover how many and varied are the ways people have cheated to win. A portion of Roses' collection is devoted to a variety of such items. In fact, Roses has a whole display case of such items.

For example, here is a roulette wheel that at one time was in operation at a private establishment. And here are a variety of dice cheats, including cheats for some of the popular Chinese games. In addition to his array of rigged dice, Roses owns some of the equipment for rigging dice.

There were contraptions from the Old West that show you how wild the Wild West really was. Check out this device for delivering a card you need from under your sleeve. It's one of the "holy grails" of cheating devices, produced by the Will & Finck Co.

Many of the cheats Roses discussed pertain to card games. Here, for example, is a pipe into which a mirror has been affixed to what appears to be a plug of tobacco. When the card sharp deals, the mirror enables him to see the cards everyone is receiving. This is but one of many clever devices designed to discover what your opponents have in their hands before you put money on the table.

Of course the most efficient way to know what your opponents have in their hands is to have marked cards that enable you to "read" what you're not supposed to see. This is one of Roses' specialties. 

Methods for marking cards fall into various categories and I get the impression this master has seen them all. I myself own a couple decks with markings coded into the artwork designs on the back, but Roses has seen batches of other systems. Some involve invisible printing that you can only see with special lenses or under UV light or polarized glasses. According to Rosen there's been a huge influx of marked cards like these from China over the past six years. I was shown examples in Roses' Invention Lab.

Various tools of the trade. Even the pretzel is a fake.

In addition to cards marked on their backs, I also saw cards marked on their edges with invisible infra red ink. Intriguing. And then I was shown a deck of cards with RFID sensors inside the individual cards. When dealt, an analyzing device voice would dictate into a miniature hearing device in the dealer's ear the value of each card being dealt. An insurmountable advantage for the cheater. 

No kidding. New technologies have raised the bar on what cheaters are capable of. When high stakes power games take place, and real money is on the line, you can bet that somebody is going to try to find a new way to shift the odds in their favor. 

Throughout the afternoon Roses kept asking, "Are you ready for the good stuff?" From the start it was all good stuff.

I never knew there were so many ways to rig dice. 

His stage name at one time had been The Honest Cheat, and he was good. He demonstrated numerous tricks that showed his abilities to be nearly supernatural. For example, he said pick a number. I said 12. He then cut the cards and handed me the smaller portion of the deck. I counted out the cards one at a time. There were twelve. He then said to pick a number between 1 and 52. I said 21. He cut the deck, handed a group of cards to me and I dealt them out, counting 1-2-3-4 etc. There were 21.

He showed me various ways to force the four aces to the top or bottom of the deck, and other ways to cause an audience to marvel. One trick went like this. He had me look at the deck and mentally select a card, which neither of us touched. He then spread the cards on the table and had me point while he was holding my wrist. He said that the muscles on my wrist would telegraph to him what card it was and, sure enough, when he stopped my hand my finger was pointing at my card. It had the feeling of something akin to a ouija board.

Terry Roses challenged the leading card sharks around the world to defeat him in a duel at the gaming table. You can see that his mind is perpetually inquisitive and his skills fine-tuned, so it's not surprising to learn that. One thing that he has going for him that is especially valuable. He has a conscience. Cheating is not his game. Rather, as a public speaker and consultant, he's the guy helping the good buys bust the cheats.

It's fun to be entertained by magic and and fun to guess how the tricks are done. But it's also fun to see how the cheating is done, too, and in this area Terry Roses clearly enjoys sharing his knowledge.

Related Link

Terry Roses' Wonder-Filled Box of Wonders

Terry Roses' Wonder-Filled Box of Wonders

Terry offers a peek inside the box.

This weekend the much anticipated opening of the Alhambra Theater in West Duluth finally arrived with a vibrant and lively debut featuring magician Terry Roses and his "Box of Wonders." Preceding the Friday evening show, an effusive Bob Boone hosted a special celebration for supporters and contributors, without whom this project would likely never have happened. 

During these weeks before the opening the flurry of activity reminded me of runners making a final kick in a marathon, or race horses galloping down the stretch, hooves pounding and eyes blazing. 

Then suddenly it was here. 

Many of those present at the opening had been here numerous times over the past several years, observing the progress or lending a hand in myriad creative ways. Finally, it was time to take a seat and enjoy this first show of a new era.

THE BOX OF WONDERS

The story, like many tales, begins with a dream. Terry's dream is about a rainbow. We've all heard about the pot of gold that can be found at the rainbow's end, but Terry wondered what might lie at the other end of the rainbow. As it turns out, this is where he discovered the Box of Wonders.

To his great surprise, when he woke from the dream, the Box was sitting there next to his bed. Once he found the Key, he was able to open the box and thereby share the magic he found in the dream.  

Props. The Alhambra, a renovated Vaudeville-era theater, 
added a measure of magical wonderment to the experience.

Ah, how beautiful rainbows can be.

Roses is a master of card wizardly.

One of the tricks performed involved this talking bird (above) 
which predicted what an audience member would roll with a pair of dice.
The bird told us that on the fourth roll Misisipi Mike would role a 12. 

Sure enough, on the Fourth Time Around, he rolled a 12.

Magicians enjoy bringing people up from the audience. This young lady

was asked to select a card without revealing it. Roses spread the cards

on a table, held her wrist and used her own hand to lead him to the card.

Another trick involved a marked coin that would disappear and then 

re-appear inside of what looked like a large ball of string.

Roses showed us "the fastest trick in the world" which involved two 

volunteers selecting cards from a pair of decks which he cocked to

emulate six-shooters. The two chosen cards flew out like bullets. 

Naturally they were the cards we selected.

One of my favorite tricks was a mind-boggler in which two volunteers--

Mary and Frank--were each dealt ten playing cards. They were then 

instructed to re-count and affirm that they each had ten cards.

Terry Roses then said he would remove three cads from Mary's pile 

and transfer them to Frank's. He never touched any of the cards, but

made a "pfffft" type of noise to indicate the sound of cards flitting 

into Frank's pile. When they counted their cards, Mary only had seven 

and Frank had thirteen. This occurred three feet from my eyes. 

Impossible, but it happened. So simple yet so amazing.

Terry showed Misisipi Mike some of the tricks poker cheats use.

Roses used storytelling to knit his disparate parts of his show together.
Part two included scenes about The Quest, Never Enough Time,
the Sands of Time and the Oracle of the Rose. In the end I would say
that everyone present witnessed things they'd never seen before.

Afterwords, much of the audience was welcomed to the stage
for photographs and more.

 

For more:

An Interview with Terry Roses and His Box of Wonders

Northland Dylan Tributes: Gregg Inhofer, Billy Peterson, Paul Metsa and Duluth Dylan Fest 2025

This coming Friday and Saturday, Gregg Inhofer and Billy Peterson will be joining Glenn Swanson for a very special weekend of Cookin' at the O. Though Peterson has been a staple at the Oldenburg House for years now, this is the first time Inhofer has joined him in an event that will serve as prologue for the upcoming week of Dylan Fest.

An American singer-songwriter, pianist, and vocalist, Gregg Inhofer's music combines a wide variety of influences, including rock, R'n'B, and jazz. He's played a significant role in the Minneapolis music scene throughout his career and is a member of the Minnesota Rock and Country Music Hall of Fame. 

Gregg Inhofer w/ Billy Peterson
on set of Metsa's Wall of Power (2019)

What's special about this weekend's shows is that Gregg Inhofer and Billy Peterson, who have been performing together since the early Seventies, recorded with Dylan on half the songs on "Blood on the Tracks". (For more about that story, follow the links below.)  FWIW, Dylan’s album “Blood on the Tracks”, ranks number 16 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. 

Another special feature about the weekend: Glenn and Gregg worked together decades ago in the band "This Oneness" and for the two of them, this is a long awaited reunion.

I first met Gregg at a special event in the studio of Paul Metsa's Wall of Power. The six Minnesota musicians who contributed to Bob Dylan's 1975 double Platinum Blood on the Tracks were gathered together to celebrate the release of Bootleg 14: More Blood, More Tracks. (Two were present via media connections.) It was an exceedingly moving event, because their contributions to the original album had not yet been publicly recognized. Thus, this was a vindication of sorts, in addition to being a reunion.

IF YOU'VE NEVER BEEN to the Oldenburg House for their A++ jazz events, you really owe it to yourself to learn more about this historic Carlton hideaway. The shows include first class cuisine by Chef Paul Sapyta of Room at the Table.

In addition to the 8-day week of events assembled for Duluth Dylan Fest 2025, I have to quickly mention that the Alhambra Theater, adjacent to the West Theatre, is having it Grand Opening this weekend. There will be magicians, musicians and more. (For the record, Dylan was a big fan of Harry Houdini. On one occasion he was asked what event he would like to see if he could go back in time. He purportedly said that he would like to have been there when Harry Houdini was chained, trussed and locked in a box that was thrust into the East River.)

So, on Tuesday May 20 at 8:00 pm at the Alhambra, Paul Metsa and friends are inviting you to share a Salute to Bob Dylan Concert and Conversation. This intimate setting will include special guest Gregg Inhofer and Metsa's superbly talented harmonicat sidekick, Sonny Earl. Doors open at 6:30, concert kicks off at 8:30. Tickets are $18 and $23 based on seating:  https://readertix.com/events/paul-metsa-friends-do-dylan

About the Alhambra

The Vision for the Alhambra

New chapter for Historic Duluth Theater

About Paul Metsa's 2019 BOTT Reunion Celebration
Inside the Studio: Still More Blood and Tracks as Paul Metsa's Wall of Power Features MN Music Luminaries

Paul Metsa's Wall of Power Featuring Dylan's BOTT Studio Musicians from Sound 80 (Part 2)
Lives Touched and Energized: Dylan, Blood, Tracks, Metsa--Part 3

Cookin' at the O 2025
Upcoming Performances

Tickets for May 16 Dylan Tribute

Tickets for May 17

10 Things You May Not Know About the Oldenburg House in Carlton

When I first met Gregg in 2019 he shared these personal observations from his experience in 1974 recording with Dylan. “I was working for Kevin (Odegard), Billy Peterson and Bill Berg (drummer). They needed a studio keyboard player. First impression: 'Cool' He (Dylan) had my respect. I wasn’t a fan like the other guys. I was studying jazz/rock fusion. Dylan’s tunes were technically simple."

When I asked about not being mentioned on liner notes he replied, “I take my own 50% responsibility. I should’ve called David (Zimmerman). I was naïve about business and didn’t follow up.”

The week ahead will be loaded with memorable moments. If able, you may want to be part of them. 

SPECIAL SHOUT OUTS

Big shout out to Glenn Swanson and Emily Fuerste for the richness and life they've brought to their community. Shine on!

Another big shout out to Bob Boone and all the volunteers and financial contributors who sacrificed so much to bring the Alhambra back to life for a new generation.

Why Do We See Faces In Abstract Designs?

From a very early age I've been fascinated by faces. When I look at clouds, or the swirls on a ceramic tile floor, it is not uncommon for faces to emerge. With the advent of the internet, and now AI, one can easily research this phenomenon that many of us have experience throughout our lives. Here's some of what I found.

Many people see faces in abstract images due to a psychological phenomenon known as pareidolia. This is the tendency of the human brain to perceive familiar patterns, especially faces, in random or ambiguous stimuli. Here’s some of why this happens:

Pattern Recognition

The human brain is a pattern-seeking organ, constantly trying to make sense of the world around us. When confronted with abstract shapes or random images, the brain automatically tries to organize the visual information into something recognizable. Faces are among the most familiar and easily recognized patterns, so we often "fill in the blanks" and perceive a face, even in the absence of one.

Facial Feature Sensitivity

Our brains are especially sensitive to certain key features that suggest a face, such as two eyes, a nose, and a mouth, positioned in a roughly triangular formation. Even if these features are represented vaguely or in abstract forms, the brain may interpret them as a face.

Emotional Connection to Faces

Faces also carry emotional significance, as they are tied to social interaction, communication, and empathy. Seeing a face in an abstract image can trigger an emotional response, which makes the image more engaging and meaningful. This emotional connection increases the likelihood that we’ll "see" faces even when none are intended.

Art and Imagination

In abstract art, there’s often no specific subject, leaving interpretation open to the viewer’s imagination. This freedom encourages the brain to impose familiar patterns, like faces, onto the image. Abstract art invites viewers to project their thoughts and perceptions onto the piece, and pareidolia is one way the brain makes sense of the ambiguity.

Not everyone enjoys abstract art, preferring clearly defined imagery that they understand. I myself enjoy the multitude of ways in which faces emerge when laying paint on a surface. It's often like being an audience to one's own performance in which you really don't know what will happen next. Sometimes it's trash and sometimes it's magic. And who doesn't enjoy watching a good magic show?

A Brief Review of Christopher Priest's The Prestige

For fans of the magic arts, 2006 was a good year. That was the year Hollywood released two exceptionally fine films about magicians: The Prestige, and The Illusionist. After watching both, I enjoyed The Illusionist more because The Prestige felt too dark, though I couldn't help but appreciate many of its features. Each of these has satisfying magical "Aha!" moments.

Until three weeks ago, I was unaware that The Prestige was actually based on a novel published nine years earlier by Christopher Priest. How very interesting.

The story is told in a most unusual way that is quite different from the film, in diary form. Each of the characters records their observations from their individual points of view. The primary diaries are those of the two primary characters, late 19th century magicians Alfred Borden and Robert Angier. The novel, however, begins in the present, a century later.

The central conflict has to do with a trick which Borden bills as The Transported Man. Robert Angier's version of the trick is called In A Flash. The primary motivation of each magician shifts from seeking fame to seeking revenge. Each becomes obsessed not with out-doing the other but rather undoing his rival. When their actions cause excess harm, their diaries reveal their guilt and regret. In short, they are very human as they wrestle with the conflict between their consciences and desires. 

If you've already seen the film, the direction the novel takes near the climax will come as a surprise to you. It's not in the movie, in part because what happens would be a major challenge to reproduce on screen. 

The Prestige has a stellar cast, with Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman starring as the magicians Alfred Borden (Bale) and Robert Angier (Jackman). Michael Caine is Cutter, Angier's manager/handler, and David Bowie is the distinguished Nikola Tesla. The women featured include Scarlett Johansson, Piper Perabo, Rebecca Hall and Samantha Mahurin. 

The nature of the storyline revolves around secrets. This is what the world of magic is all about. Surprise! How can audiences get a thrill if they already know how the tricks are performed? Hence, the Magician's Code: Never reveal how a trick is done. Audiences like being fooled. If they know how you do it, they won't be.

The book does a superb job of  showing what a career in the magic arts looks like. There are also some life lessons, though ultimately it is a compelling read, which makes for a nice escape for people who enjoy good books.

Related Links

Escape Artist, Magician, Inventor: Terry Roses

A Visit with John Cox: Avid Fan and Expert of All Things Houdini

Misdirection in the Magic Arts

Is The Prestige the Great Movie About Magic and Magicians?

Jack & the Beanstalk, Revisited

When I was young I used to enjoy watching Fractured Fairy Tales on the Rocky & Bullwinkle Show. For some reason when I woke in the wee hours of the morning last night my mind began composing a re-telling of the classic tale of Jack and the Beanstalk. Not being able to get back to sleep, I wrote a first draft just to get it out of my head. Upon waking, I polished it a bit and am releasing it here for your enjoyment.

For the record, this is my revision of Flora Anna Steele's version that appeared in her 1918 edition of English Fairy Tales. The original, published in 1734 was titled Jack Spriggins and the Enchanted Bean.

Jack and the Beanstalk, Revisited

Our boy Jack.

Once upon a time there lived a poor widow and her son Jack. One day, Jack’s mother told him, "You need to get a job. We need money and you just sit there on Facebook all day."

"No I don't. Sometimes I'm on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube or Tik Tok," he replied. 

"Well, listen up. If we don't find an income stream we'll have to hawk your Mac. I'd like you to take our cow into town and see what you can get for it."

Jack headed to the market, and on the way he met a man who offered to buy his cow. Jack said, “Great! What will you give me in return for my cow?” 

The man raised his hand, spread his fingers and said, “I will give you five magic beans!” 

This sounded like a bargain to Jack, who took the magic beans in exchange for the cow. As they went their own ways after the transaction, both were chuckling to themselves . "What a steal," each was thinking.

When Jack got home and told what happened, his mother exploded. “You bonehead!" she said as she threw the beans out the window. 

Jack was confused. He went online and found a chat room where he could get his head straight on whether he or his mother was right. His friends comforted him and suggested that in the morning he should find the beans and place them in moist soil under grow lamps. "Maybe they really are magic," one of his friends said.

The next day, when Jack awoke and looked out the window, his eyes popped out of his head. A huge beanstalk had grown from one of his beans. It climbed up to the stratosphere. He was grateful to have haggled for five instead of three, since only one of the five was really any good. "What if I'd gotten only rummy ones," he said to himself.

He, being still young and able, decided to climb the beanstalk to see where it went. To his surprise, there was a giant's kingdom up there, and a giant castle with giant doors. One of the doors was ajar and because he was curious, he went inside.

As it turns out, the giant had a wife who appeared to be busy in the kitchen. Jack went there and said, “Could you please give me something to eat? I'm so hungry I could eat a cow.” The kind wife gave him a slice of seven-grain bread and a delicious bowl of stew.

While he was eating, the giant came home. This giant was not only huge, but looked terrifying. He'd been a fighter when he was young so his face was marred and his deepset eyes yellow and cloudy. Jack trembled and his knees knocked as he scurried to find a place to hide. 

The giant bellowed, “Fee-fi-fo-fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman. Be he alive, or be he dead, I’ll grind his bones to make my bread!” 

The wife said, “Relax. There's nobody here!” 

So, the giant ate his food, then lumbered off to his room to pursue his favorite pasttime, counting his money. First, he started with his bags of gold coins. Then he turned on his computer and reviewed his investments. Finally, he fell asleep.

That's when Jack crept out of his hiding place, snuck in and took a small bag of gold coins and climbed down the beanstalk. (The larger bags were to heavy to lift.) Once home, he gave the coins to his mother. 

"You're such a clever boy," his mother said. "Thank you, Jack."

A week or so went by, whereupon Jack decided to visit the giant's castle again and see the giant's wife. Once again she brought him food, but while he was eating the giant returned and Jack ran through a door into the bedroom where he hid under the bed.

"Fee-fi-fo-fum," the giant bellowed once more. "I smell the--" 

"Oh knock it off," his wife said. "You're just imagining things."

After the giant ate, he went outside, fetched a goose and brought it to the bedroom. "Lay!" he commanded, and the goose laid a golden egg. It was immense, the size of three chicken eggs, but solid gold. When the giant fell asleep Jack crawled out from under the bed. 

When he started to pick up the egg he was surprised at how heavy it was. After a moment's hesitation, he went for the goose instead, chasing it down the hallway and cornering it in the living room.

It was a challenge climbing down the beanstalk carrying a goose, but it would have been impossible to carry both the egg and the goose. When he reached the ground he was glad he made it down at all. 

"What's this?" his mother said.

Jack told the whole story about the kindness of the giant's wife, about hiding under the bed, and watching the goose lay a golden egg. Jack then proceeded to build a small pen next to the house. After spreading a little hay for the goose to build a nest, he began looking forward to the morrow.

Meanwhile, his mother had other plans. 

When Jack awoke the next morning, the aroma in the house was unfamiliar to him. As he entered the kitchen he noticed goose feathers on the counter and knives with blood smeared on them.  

"Mother! How could you?"

"I knew those gold coins didn't come from a goose, and whoever heard of geese laying golden eggs?"

His mother had always been a wonderful cook, but for some reason the goose breasts and goose confit tasted flat that day. Jack finished his milk, left the table and went outside. 

To be continued?

A Visit with John Cox, Both Avid Fan and Expert in All Things Houdini

I discovered John Cox in 2014 after writing about the late John Bushey's Houdini memorabilia and handcuff collections. It was an informative interview that brought back a lifetime of memories regarding my own personal fascination with magic and magicians.

While looking for information on Orson Welles for a potential blog post this week I rediscovered John Cox's Wild About Harry blog. (Harry Houdini, of course) 

It was John Bushey who shared with me the notion that Dylan himself was fascinated with Harry Houdini. This is the story John told me:

Bob Dylan was asked once, “If you could go back in history to see any one moment in
time, what would it be?”

He replied, “I would like to go back and see when Harry Houdini was cuffed and chained and chained inside a crate and dropped into the East River.” (New York.)

* * *

Seven years have past and the Wild About Harry blog is still going strong. I caught up with John Cox today and we continued from where we left off. 

EN: You have been a lifelong Houdini fan. As a teen you even did some magic shows and performances of your own. What did you do for a career when you finished school?

Collector and Houdini authority, John Cox
Photo by Athena Stamos

John Cox: I always wanted to work in the movie business, so after I graduated from USC Film School, I landed a job with Michael Jackson’s film production company. This was in 1990 and this was part of his overall deal with Sony Entertainment. That was a real education in the movie business! But the company didn’t last and in 1995 I got a job doing quality control with Lucasfilm THX . Essentially, I was part of a team of people who got paid to watch movies over and over. It was a dream job for a movie lover! But I had creative ambitions, and in 1996 I sold my first screenplay. So for the next 15 years or so I was a moderately successful and a very busy Hollywood screenwriter. That work began to dry up right around the time I started Wild About Harry, so I went back to doing quality control, now in the digital era. I’m currently the Director of the company (SGI QC), and I’ve struck a nice balance between having a job that pays the bills and working on my Houdini projects, which are my true passions in life.

EN: Have you always been a Houdini collector of sorts?

Shackled, to be dropped into the East River

John Cox: Yes, I’ve always been a collector. I have that gene! And not just Houdini. I’ve also put together a collection of James Bond first editions. I’m lucky to have acquired many of my Houdini items back in the late 70s and 80s when things were still affordable. Nowadays its all so outrageously expensive. But I still allow myself to buy one very nice Houdini item a year, so I have continued to build a small but very select collection that I really enjoy. I also have every book that has ever been written about Houdini, but I treat that as more of a working reference library than a collection.

EN: You started your Wild About Houdini blog in 2010. How often do you post and where do you find all the content that you share?

John Cox: I post almost every day, which is crazy. Believe it or not, I try not to post so much. I would be happy with three posts a week. But there's just always so much Houdini activity to cover that I have to post every day to keep up! My content comes from everywhere really. Things I see in the news, things people send me, and my own discoveries while doing research on future books. It’s Houdini! His continued fame and popularity provides me with all the content I can handle.

EN: I love your Wild About Houdini YouTube channel. When did you start that and how do you gather all this rare footage?

Film that lit the spark for young John Cox.

John Cox: Thanks. I really haven’t developed my YouTube channel. It’s basically just a place where I collect footage so I can embed clips on the blog. I would like to begin to make some specific videos exploring Houdini history. However, that’s a whole new skill set that I haven’t developed. The current footage comes from various sources. The best stuff comes from private collectors who allow me share. There’s a lot of Houdini footage out there, but many collectors don’t really know what they have as far as what footage might be new to people. So I’m always excited to help them discover that and showcase it. There’s some great hidden Houdini history in these old clips.

EN: Houdini’s career is one of legends. How would he hold up today? Would he be a Las Vegas act or something else?

John Cox: It’s so hard to say what he’d be doing as he was such an original of his day. The escape act was really a new form of entertainment. So he would be doing something just as original and unique today. He might not even be a magician! He would follow his passion and instincts and give us something amazing. I think the only thing we can know for sure is he would be a Superstar!

EN: Who are your favorite magicians today?

John Cox: David Copperfield, Penn & Teller, and David Blaine are my “favorites", although I enjoy ALL magicians really. But I gravitate towards these giants of our time because their lives are writing the history of magic in this age, and I love magic history first and foremost. I also think they are all components of Houdini. Take these three men, add in James Randi and Lady Gaga, and you have Houdini!

* * *

Related Links

Wild About Harry 

Houdini and the Water Torture Cell

Houdini's Famous 1912 Escape from Certain Death in the East River

My 2014 interview with Mr. Cox:

Five Minutes with John Cox, Because He's Wild About Harry (Houdini, That Is)

Photos courtesy John Cox