Nonfiction · 1920
Miracle Mongers and Their Methods
A Complete Exposé of the Modus Operandi of Fire Eaters, Heat Resisters, Poison Eaters, Venomous Reptile Defiers, Sword Swallowers, Human Ostriches, Strong Men, Etc.
Houdini spent years tracking down the actual mechanics behind the acts he considered frauds rather than magic — fire-eaters, human ostriches who appeared to swallow anything, people who claimed immunity to poison — and this book explains, in plain technical detail, exactly how each trick works, partly to protect the public and partly, by his own account, out of professional irritation at performers who claimed supernatural powers instead of admitting to skill and misdirection.
Houdini published Miracle Mongers and Their Methods in 1920, drawing on his own decades inside the world of stage performance to expose acts he saw as exploiting audiences.
Bibliomancer publishes the 1920 text exactly as Harry Houdini wrote it.
Contents
- Dedication
- Preface
- Chapter One — Fire Worship.—Fire Eating and Heat Resistance.—In the Middle Ages.—Among the Navajo Indians.—Fire-Walkers of Japan.—The Fiery Ordeal of Fiji
- Chapter Two — Watton’s Ship-Swabber “From the Indies.”—Richardson, 1667—De Heiterkeit, 1713.—Robert Powell, 1718–1780.—Dufour, 1783.—Quackensalber, 1794
- Chapter Three
- Chapter Four — The Master—Chabert, 1792–1859
- Chapter Five
- Chapter Six
- Chapter Seven
- Chapter Eight — Sword-Swallowers: Cliquot, Delno Fritz, Deodata, a Razor-Swallower, an Umbrella-Swallower, William Dempster, John Cumming, Edith Clifford, Victorina
- Chapter Nine
- Chapter Ten
- Chapter Eleven
- Chapter Twelve
New editions
Never lose your place.
This book is free to read in full, and stays that way. Leave an address: one click confirms it and opens a free account, so your progress and bookmarks sync across every device. You'll also hear when the next restored edition enters the archive. Terminate at any time.
About this edition
The text is free of copyright. This edition was prepared from an authoritative digitisation, processed by Bibliomancer under its own review protocol; every automated correction is recorded in its transformation log. Rights assessed for CA, EU, GB, US.
Source mind
About the author
Adjacent records
