Description

Houdini Laid Bare / The Secret Life of Houdini
by Bill Kalush and Larry Sloman

We are selling a TWO book set, in a box, both signed by the authors.

The Secret Life of Houdini is the most controversial book written about Harry Houdini – Handcuff King. Escape Artist. International Superstar. Since his death eighty years ago, Harry Houdini’s life has been chronicled in books, in film and on television. Now, in this groundbreaking biography, renowned, Magic expert William Kalush and best-selling writer Larry Sloman team up to find the man behind the myth. Drawing from millions of pages of research, they describe in vivid details the passions that drove Houdini to perform ever-more-dangerous feats, his secret life as a spy, and a pernicious plot to subvert his legacy.

After years of struggling on the dime museum circuit, Harry Houdini got a break that put him on the front page of a Chicago newspaper. He never looked back. Soon Houdini was performing for royalty, commanding vast sums, and exploring the new power of Hollywood to expand on his legend.

At a time when spy agencies frequently co-opted amateurs, Houdini went to London and developed a relationship with a man who would run MI-5. For the next several years the world’s most famous magician traveled to Germany and Russia and routinely reported his findings. After World War I was successfully concluded, Houdini embarked on a battle of his own. He created a group of disguised field operatives to infiltrate the seamy world of fake spirit mediums.

Today, a full year after its release, experts are still debating the claims put forth in this ground-breaking biography. Did Houdini really work for the Secret Service? Did he sometimes rely on confederates to accomplish his escapes? Were ardent spiritualists in some way involved in his untimely death?

In the second book…The Secret Life of Houdini Laid Bare, the authors have now compiled all of their notes and sources into a beautiful companion volume. The Secret Life of Houdini Laid Bare provides a fascinating peek into the voluminous files that were collected from all parts of the world. Plus, all of the material that was edited out of the biography appears in Houdini Laid Bare for the first time. And scattered throughout the book are more than seventy rare photographs relating to the career of the Great Houdini.

Fans of magic history will find that reading both books together will bring each one to life. The books will be sold only as a set. Packaged in a beautiful slipcase you will receive a first edition of The Secret Life of Houdini with a colored frontis piece signed by both authors. The Secret Life of Houdini Laid Bare with 333 pages and a beautiful dust jacket, has a different colored frontis piece also signed by the authors. Each book is numbered and only 1,000 sets have been produced.

The Secret Life of Houdini: Hardbound (with dustjacket) – 592 pages

Houdini Laid Bare: Hardbound (with dustjacket) – 333 pages

Both signed and numbered by the authors, sold as a SET only.

(Note: Due to increased postal rates and the weight of this book, international shipping and handling will be charged according to US Post Office rates. See: www.usps.com for details on international rates.)