A Magician Among the SpiritsThe whole country got excited by Houdini's campaign against faking spiritualists. He careened through the country, offering money for spirit contacts he couldn't duplicate by admitted magical chicanery. It was a heyday not only for Houdini but for the spirit-callers and there was an equally famous protagonist who thought the spirits could indeed be contacted, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A photo at the front records a meeting between Houdini and Doyle and Houdini gives Doyle his own chapter. There's an earlier chapter on Daniel Dunglas Home, the English engineer of spectacular paranormal effects. Houdini raises hell with spiritualists who were giving their (usually paying) clients a vision of heavens to come, and shares the methods used to practice "fake" and sensational spiritualism. Houdini was nothing if not unrelenting. As a taste of things to come, he ends his introduction with the words: "Up to the present time everything that I have investigated has been the result of deluded brains." |
Contents
THE FOUNDERS OF MODERN SPIRITUALISM | 1 |
THE DAVENPORT BROTHERS | 17 |
DANIEL DUNGLAS HOME | 38 |
Copyright | |
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American Arthur Conan Doyle asked attention believe Bisson cabinet chair claimed committee confession convinced court Daniel Dunglas Home dark Davenport Brothers death dematerialized demonstration detect Eusapia EUSAPIA PALLADINO evidence exposed exposure fact feats Feilding foot Fox Sisters fraud gave genuine hand Harry Kellar held Henry Slade Home Houdini Hydesville investigation Ira Davenport Katie Kellar known Lady Doyle letter levitation London magician manifestations Marsh medium mediumistic mediumship methods mind mother mystery mystifier never occult Palladino pencil performance person phenomena photographs placed plates present produced Professor Psychical Research raps result Robert Houdin rope scientific scientists seance Seybert Commission Sir Arthur Conan Sir Oliver Lodge sitter sitting Slade slate writing Society Spirit extras Spirit photography Spiritualistic statement table leg tell things tion told took trickery tricks wife witness woman written wrote York Zancig