Miracle Mongers and Their Methods: A Complete ExposTMagicians debunking charlatans and revealing secrets of the trade: it's not something that Penn and Teller or James "The Amazing" Randi invented. The legendary Harry Houdini was doing the same thing a century ago, to popular acclaim. In this 1920 book, the master showman-and surprisingly entertaining writer-uncovers the mysteries behind such extraordinary feats as fire-eating, sword-swallowing, snake-charmers, and strong men. More a simple expose of stage trickery, though, this is a brisk history of such oddities throughout history and around the world, from the Middle Ages to the 20th century, from the culture of the Native Americans to that of Japan. This is a fascinating work of the strange and seemingly inexplicable made plain and understandable. Hungarian-American magician and professional skeptic EHRICH WEISS (1874-1926)-aka Harry Houdini, "Handcuff King and Jail Breaker"-also wrote Magical Rope Ties and Escapes (1920) and A Magician Among the Spirits (1924). |
Contents
| 15 | |
Wattons Shipswabber From The Indies | 23 |
The Nineteenth Century A Wonderful | 30 |
The MasterChabert 17921859 | 37 |
Fireeating Magicians Ching Ling Foo | 47 |
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acid aconite afterwards Albertus Magnus Aldini Annie Abbott anvil appeared asbestos audience Barsabas Bartholomew Fair blade body boiling Brazil water breath brimstone burning cage calomel Chabert chafing-dish challenge CHAPTER charcoal Charles Blagden CHUNG LING SOO circus Cliquot coals degree of heat dime museum Doctor drink Dufour eating Edwin Forrest England entertainment exerted exhibition experiments feats feet fingers Fire King fire-eater fire-eating fire-walking flames gentlemen Georgia Magnet girl give glowing hand hot iron inches Induce vomiting Kellar legs lifted Ling Look London Louis Cyr luke-warm water magicians melted methods minutes mouth ordeal oven performance phosphorus piece poison Powell priests programme quantity red-hot rope rose-water rubbed secret sensation Smith snakes Sothern spectators spoon steak stomach stone stone-eater strength strong swallowed sword sword-swallowing teeth temperature Theater throat tongue took trick walking washed wine wonderful
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Page 17 - Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.