08/26/2026
On August 26, 1907, Harry Houdini plunged into the cold water from the Washinton Street pier at Aquatic Park in San Francisco, California. He was bound and weighed down by handcuffs, chains, and a 75-pound iron ball, sinking to the bottom of the water beneath the pier with his hands secured behind his back. To the astonishment and immense relief of the crowd, Houdini emerged from the water unscathed and completely free from shackles in just 57 seconds, solidifying his reputation as a master of daredevil escapes.
Houdini was born Erik Weisz in 1874 in Budapest, immigrating to the United States at the age of 4. He became a professional magician in 1891, taking his stage name from the magicians he admired most, Harry Kellar and Jean-Eugéne Robert-Houdin. He became best-known for his death-defying escape stunts, narrowly avoiding drowning and suffocating on more than one occasion.
When he wasn’t busy breaking out of handcuffs, Houdini spent his time exposing fraudulent “spiritualists” who he felt were taking advantage of the bereaved. He used his knowledge as an illusionist to debunk predatory psychics and mediums.
Houdini died in 1926 at the age of 52 following a stunt during which he sustained several strong blows to the abdomen. He was buried in Queens, New York, where his grave is tended by the Society of American Magicians to this day.
