Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know

Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by saycheese on Sunday January 29, 2017 @02:40PM (#13516136)

Maybe to the general public this is considered a secret, but not to professionals, who even without proof would know that based on his style of performance he had to be inventing "magic" to perform the tricks he did.

One of Houdini's best tricks was the volume of muscle he had, which was intentionally larger than any bone mass that would obstruct the removal of any constraint applied to him. He simply tense up as the constraint was applied, then relax after he was hidden from the public's all seeing eye.

As Houdini said himself, "my brain is the key that sets me free."

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Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by tunesmith on Sunday January 29, 2017 @04:30PM (#13516812)

Not that I know much about horses, but I took a western horseriding class as a kid and they taught me that horses do the same thing when you saddle them - expand their bellies so you can't tighten the saddles too much. The instructor would give them a healthy slap in the ribcage to make them relax and then cinch it up.

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Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by vanderZwan on Monday January 30, 2017 @04:51AM (#13519758)

Wouldn't that make it difficult for them to breathe, reducing their performance?

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Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by OV-104 on Sunday January 29, 2017 @04:14PM (#13516706)

> One of Houdini's best tricks was the volume of muscle he had, which was intentionally larger than any bone mass that would obstruct the removal of any constraint applied to him. He simply tense up as the constraint was applied, then relax after he was hidden from the public's all seeing eye.

Super interesting. Was his muscle volume from working out and special training or more so just genetics?

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Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by saycheese on Sunday January 29, 2017 @04:46PM (#13516895)

It was well known he did this, though I've never seen any specific ways he set out to accomplish this. My guess is it wasn't intentional to start, but something he noticed and refined over the years via practice; Harry himself disclosed very little about how he practiced, but he was known to practice all the time.

Houdini's famed strength indirectly also lead to his death: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Houdini#Death

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Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by OV-104 on Sunday January 29, 2017 @04:51PM (#13516925)

Strength, and hubris.

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Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by tossaway1 on Sunday January 29, 2017 @06:50PM (#13517585)

Hubris? Sounds like he was assaulted.

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Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by LukeShu on Sunday January 29, 2017 @11:17PM (#13518600)

The 3rd-to-last and 2nd-to-last paragraphs of the section do seem to suggest some hubris; not seeking medical attention despite constant pain and fever, ignoring medical advice that he needed immediate surgery and continuing to perform.

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Re:Houdini was an inventor, but didn't want anybody to know by rangibaby on Monday January 30, 2017 @03:46AM (#13519515)

I don't think the quality of medical was quite was it now, even after WWI. For example, remember that antibiotics hadn't been discovered yet.

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