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Reply to "Tesla"

There is speculation, today, as to whether or not the stomach punches, by the student, actually was directly involved in leading to Houdini's death.   What is thought more likely is that the blows he received, from the student, happened at the time he was having pains from a troubled appendix.   In Houdini's mind the blows he received from the student possibly prevented him from attributing the pains, he was having to something he would have normally have sought medical attention about, to being soreness and pain from the punch itself.  

Houdini did not seek medical help in time to prevent the rupture of the appendix, leading to the infection that actually killed him, because he possibly attributed the abdominal pain he was having to those stomach punches rather than if the punches had never occurred he would have recognized it as something abnormal and potentially seek help in time, before the appendix ruptured.  In other words, the blows from the punches didn't rupture the appendix or cause the problem but rather became a scapegoat symptom Houdini used to deny the real underlying problem until it manifested itself to the point he could no longer deny it to be something that serious.  

I also found it interesting how so many kept returning on the anniversary Halloweens believing that Houdini would and could actually return from the dead or back from the afterlife.  That he, Houdini, had actually, prior to his death, arranged for a special word or phrase, known only to Bess, his wife, to prove it was actually him instead of, say a huckster or fraud like many that he had revealed before he died.  He must have foreknown that there would be people, after his death, who would claim to be in touch with him so he would protect Bess from that fate by establishing that word/phrase, known only to them.  If Houdini had the benefit of modern medicine, that we have today, or the antibiotics we have today then he, most likely,  would have even survived his long delay in getting treatment.  He may have still died from it but most likely he would not have.  It's too bad to lose such a talent of a person so early in his career and life.

 Is there any illusionist or magician or person today that can ever come close to being compared to Houdini?

Last edited by gbrk

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