Harry Houdini, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and the Crusade Against Spiritualism 

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I'm pretty sure Sherlock Holmes would have joined Houdini's side.

I love Houdini for this story, more than all the other stories about him.

Harry Houdini was an absolute legend.

If Houdini was alive today, he would have ALMOST as many youtube channels as Simon

Harry Houdini is buried in the same cemetery as both sets of my grandparents so we’ve visited him before (in his escape-proof grave!) For a foreigner to command that level of celebrity in that time is nothing short of miraculous, and I had no idea about his legal case- total legend!

He started debunking mysticism after he was nearly sucked into believing it, and he realized that people in grieving were being scammed by grifters. He saw that he could use his experience and fame to be something more than an entertainer. Moral of the story: Dont try to scam one of the worlds greatest magicians with cheap seance tricks.

As a man once said, I believe people can talk to the dead. I just don't believe the dead talk back to them...

Didn't several spiritualists "predict" Houdini's death within the year, several years before he actually died? If they keep repeating someone will die, eventually they'll be right:]

This has to be my favourite video from Simon thus far, I knew about Houdini but I knew nothing about this side of him. Exceptional video

I knew all this already, but Simon's voice made me feel like this was the first time I've heard the story.

Now we need a follow-up about the late James Randi and his similar crusade against modern spiritualism and other similar bullshit.

I would have loved to see a netflix show in the style of the masked magician of Houdini debunking the occult. We need more like him indeed.

After watching Brain Blaze, i find it hilarious and impressive that Simon can keep a straight face during this video.

Spiritualist: "Spiritualism is a real thing and we can talk to ghosts" Houdini: "Can I come watch you work to see you prove it" Spiritualist: "Ummmm... no, that's ok. Just take my word for it"

Don't let his peddling fool you dear reader. Simon didn't lose his hair, his follicles merely migrated to the southern hemisphere of his head.

The 1960s produced a huge resurgence in the interest in all things psychic . Another magician , James Randi , fought a similar battle against that tide .

“Jesus was a Jew and he did not charge 2$ a visit” Okay that such a good comeback, like damn my man, don’t send them to the sprits now

“How simple cold-reading tricks could be used to work out even one’s most personal details or intimate secrets…” I was expecting a tangent about a road trip in Morocco or something right about then.

Your best one yet. I grew up with a stage magician uncle who loved Houdini and a legendary fraudulent medium who was long dead but her influence was still in the family. Luckly my uncle kept me right.

I love Houdini for all this. He was spot on with every word he said.

I wish you had included the tidbit about how houdini had left his wife with a "password" of sorts so that she would know if it was him speaking through a medium. I believe it was something along the lines of the inscription inside her wedding ring. The reason that she gave up on the search was because the information got leaked, so now she had no way of knowing if it was the real deal or not.

After hearing this... I wouldn't be surprised if the claims that he was "murdered" were true. Someone could have paid the student to catch him off guard with a gut punch. Sounds like he pissed off a lot of people. I love the fact that he was a bad ass, and was willing to take on anyone who argued to the contrary.

me: "o nice a video about magich" opens video: "DID YOU KNOW YOU'RE GOING BALD?!!"

"Escape-proof grave..." nice touch. Love your work(s)! Keep it up!

There should be a Today I found Out episode on where the “Witches on broomsticks” trope came from. It’s an interesting thing I learned in college.

"Jesus was a Jew and he didn't charge two dollars a visit." I had to stop the video, I laughed so hard. Scorched so hard it tips the geiger counter.

cold readings are fun if you lie about everything..

Sick Burn! So well done Simon... I feel like these Twitter retweet’s made the video.

I had no idea Houdini was this absolutely based

Thank you

Houdini was like the original precursor to Penn & Teller. Neat!

These days, illusionists like the late James Randi and Penn & Teller continue Houdini's legacy. The fact that it's even necessary is worrying, but it's heartening to see that dry truth can be just as charismatically captivating as sweet lies. Also, Big Think of the day: Communing with the afterlife and the dead would mean the afterlife isn't the afterlife, just 'life' - and communing with the dead would mean the dead would be alive, certainly legally.

I’ve always found it fascinating that Arthur Conan Doyle was such a staunch believer in the supernatural. Do you have a man who created perhaps the greatest detective in history, a man who was the ultimate master of deductive reasoning, and yet his creator was a complete and total believer in the supernatural and even believed harry Houdini achieved his magic tricks through otherworldly means

Conan Doyle Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and Cromlech Temple Initiate

4:38 sounds like my ex at a college party

Harry's quips really hit the mark

Should make a video about the poisoning of the treaty tree in Austin TX in 1989

man, imagine becoming famous for a skill you’ve spent years honing, then your buddy goes “cool, must be ghosts”

When Houdini died, they had to bury him six times because his body kept escaping the grave... :P

Was Houdini also an atheist, or did he see that kind of magic as "different." Just as much harm may have been done by faith healers and prophets as by someone faking a seance....

I CERTAINLY KNOW IT... *oh my heart, Simon* 😂♥️

A Simon with hair would seem odd to me. Your beautiful shaved cap is iconic!

And this video is right up Simon's alley/

One of my Heros, Harry Houdini. This part of his life is what put him up there on that pedestal. They don't have people like him anymore & I never miss an opportunity to tell any stories I have about him to others, especially ones like this. I want to continue his memory properly and not let him fall by the wayside as just a magician. I would boldly say, he wasn't a magician. An escape artist and showman, yes. He did cards and close up magic at the beginning but once he found his niche with the locks it was on from there! The Great Harry Houdini was born in chains and in his death he left all of us in our own personal pair that we couldn't escape. All these years later we are still fascinated by this man

Video idea: Jasper Maskelyne, the magician that made WW2 tanks, bunkers, and even Alexandria harbor disappear.

on the continent of Africa the daily papers contain a lot of adverts promising cures from curses , black magic , and readings from the afterlife , it is big business . I have even more respect and interest in harry houdini after listening to simon , thanks

Wait, how does one prepare oneself before being punched? Why wouldn’t his organs have burst eventually from all of the punching anyway?

I really enjoyed this video. Thanks Simon. Keep them coming

Yes ! ✔️ Sir Arthur Conan Doyle probably sent Whitehead to "rough up" Houdini, after Houdini had exposed Doyle's wife as being a fraudulent medium. Additionally, there was a movement to exhume Houdini's body to check for arsenic, but the remaining family wouldn't allow it. 🌹

I would just like to point out one of the reasons the Houdini sayonara percessed is to slip prove the man right and to remind people to always be scapitacl of the supernatural

While it's often asserted that the punches to the stomach ruptured Houdini's appendix, this would be (if true) the only instance in medical history that a blow caused someone's appendix to rupture. More likely, he already had appendicitis and the punches were simply very very poorly timed, as the pain of the punches prevented Houdini from realizing that he had a serious medical issue.

Why do I keep hearing Migos add libs when he says “wrapping sounds” …?

Skip ahead to 1:08 and bypass the ad.

Plot twist: that medium contacted Houdini after his death just to tell him, "I told you so", so after that he has refused to talk from the far beyond not to give mediums credit.

When are you going to do Papa Doc?

I don’t understand people that will seriously say that all this is supernatural but then will go to church every Sunday….

The scientific American challenge was instrumental in the future debut of the million dollar challenge from the James Randi educational foundation. No one ever came close to claiming that one either

When I got into spiritualism, it was Houdini that I initially studied bc I felt like Doyle. You have to know the lies to know the truth. And as I learned more and watched people to this day (well, that time) to use the same old tricks, I was like WOW! I still think that maybe one day we will be able to communicate with some sort of entities that exist in a realm near to ours. There are all types of science and technology today that wldv been deemed “real magic” only a 50yrs ago so.... who knows? I don’t. And I would never say that not having proof of or a way to do something means that it isn’t real or possible. I do think that if something is proven true, it won’t be anything that we currently think it is like - I’m NOT STATING THIS TO BE FACT OR EVEN A LEGIT THEORY BUT JUST AN IDEA! - like maybe time travel is real BUT we can only go back AND we can’t change anything. But the “ghosts” or whatever that we see today is a shadow or left over of the future person and when they go back, they can’t specify. They just kinda jump willy nilly into pieces of time and also they only see the shadow of what once was.... I don’t think I’m explaining this concept very well as I’m not a good writer but a great at manipulative speak. And although some people think, well if you speak proper then you can write proper and that’s just not true bc without someone asking me questions or making statements then I have a more difficult time detailing whatever weird thought I’m trying to get across bc when verbally communicating I can switch how I use the words to fit the person or persons in the room vs this ramble.... sorry, I’m done

PT Barnum as Petey? Rapping as wrapping? Seance comes out as sales, sails, sciences and saiyance? Doyle as Dole and Doll? Houdini as Zoudini? Clairvoyant as Clair Boynt? We need more subscribers so Mr. Whistler can afford a more advanced captioning program. Otherwise, the content is terrific!

How about a TIFO LC? :D

You can do the same thing with religious people. They are never convinced.

His mother never called him Harry, and these mediums would never call him by his real name.

Good video 👍

He had some he failed to debunk altogether--one very notable failure was Edgar Cayce, the Sleeping Prophet.

I have friends who have just passed visit me then see their obituary later. the first was my grandfather when I was in social studies class in the fifth grade, to the teacher asking me what was up, I told him my grandfather just passed, to arrive home that afternoon to my mom crying I said to her pappy passed huh, which freaked her out when I told her what happened in school

Well researched and well presented. The complex life of a complicated man. Thank you.

You should make a video about Crash At Crush. It happened in my home town over 120 years ago

Not sure where Houdini's mom is from but i find it neat hie My Grandma is also named Cecilia she was born in Budapest Hungary my youngest Sister is named Celia after herb

69th like 😎 hell yeah.

Always interesting and informative . Well done team 👏

I didn't realize why the James Randi book was called Flim-Flam. Thanks.

and then Houdini became a Japanese superhero in Kamen Rider Ghost.

Wow, quite interesting

It's interesting how many magicians are atheists.

He would claim I must kiss my dear wife good bye, and she would pass him the keys in the kiss.

I really hate this new RU-vid update where the number of dislikes is hidden. No, I didn’t give the video a dislike.

What a wonderful title

I lost count on how many books I have read about Harry Houdini. He was a fascinating man. For the time, his celebrity was as world wide as one could get. As this video states, he REALLY hated these FAKERS stating they could speak with the dead. You're loved ones are always in your memories and in your heart. You may speak to them, and I encourage you to do so, just do not expect them to talk back, and DO NOT pay for it.

Seek God in scripture and learn who He is and see how nothing is impossible for Him Everyone who thinks or feels God doesn't care, is indifferent and or mean etc …. Why is the world as it is, evil everywhere… where is God and His faithfulness… God does judge sin which is evil and if people don't stop sinning they will die for that disobedience,that sin. When God said if you take from that tree you will die He was saying if you disobey, you sin, I will punish that sin because God does punish it, sickness, demons and death. And if you keep sinning I will punish you to the point of death, is that punishment. Sickness is a consequence of sin and it is a judgement God makes upon the people for their sin. All sickness takes its toll on the body and will result in death unless you stop sinning and that brings a reward from God for the righteous decision to stop sinning that brought that illness. Throughout scripture God tells us these things. God does love and there is mercy in His punishment too. He chastises those He loves. His wrath doesn't mean He doesn't love, it doesn't mean there is no mercy, it means He puts His law first and He obeys it first. He punished sin and then punishes sin and so forth and if someone doesn't stop sinning or sins more then that judgment is death just as He said, sin is death. Scripture says we are all responsible for working out our salvation with fear and trembling. Seek scripture, learn who He is and what He said to obey and do it. if you obey Him you live in blessings just like Deuteronomy 28 says and it also says disobedience is curses, that's sickness, demons possibly and again to continue in sin results in death. God told all the details, and paid for us to get out of sin and how we should live and when people don't live righteous then the world looks like it did in the days of Noah, violence, drunkenness and such lovers of self, pleasure and all sin and life apart from God, life in disobedience to God. Why should He bless sin? He punishes it then punishes sin more if someone keeps sinning. Is it tough people die from that choice they make, their sin and lack of seeking God to obey what He said, yes it hurts. How do you think God feels, He loved the world so much He gave His only begotten son and Yeshua died in agony for us to be out of that sin, taking God's wrath upon Himself so how do I think He feels, grieved so grieved but I know from scripture He always obeys what His word says, He never changes and that includes every word He said. Now Yeshua took God's wrath upon Himself for our sin Isaiah 53. We get peace with God and can come before Him to be heard and we get to be cleansed from our iniquities, sin. Just like the lamb sacrifices in the old testament Jesus was that for us a peace offering and forgiveness offering. We get freedom from that sinful past, from that sin and we get our healings because His stripes healed us from the consequences of sin. He gave us a way out. A way to start again out of that wrath. How loving is that God gave us His son who took God's wrath for us out of love. How loving just how loving is our God who made a way for us to be out of that wrath? Wrath we deserved by our sin and continued sin. But God so loved the world He gave us Yeshua. Yeshua gave His life to rise to life for us to give us new life. A new creation to begin again a new life, having been born again. Having received forgiveness for sin and a pardon from God's wrath, that very wrath you talk about. But God gave us a way out of His wrath when Yeshua our lamb paid for our sin. Again how loving is that our way out of God's wrath. Our new life. Our second chance to live rightly before our Holy righteous God our being born again to live right because God planned for us to not all receive His wrath yet His son for everyone, one for everyone and a way out, pardoned and free to live life righteous whole healed delivered, how loving oh so very loving that is. All that is in scripture too. Seek and find, learn who He is and obey and see more of it. Mark 4:24 the more you obey God the more He reveals to you, it means that. Matthew 6:33 live it daily and understand who He is and just how loving He always is and honestly how loved you are will be seen felt and KNOWN too. 💕 May you come to understand Him all your days seeking and finding and growing in the knowledge of God in Yeshua's name 💕

Ruling class propaganda, offsetting anger rightly directed toward them. It's damage control, and can still be found in our court system, freeing up the same villainous intent with claims of mental illness.

"...whether Houdini then proceed to drop his mic after delivering such a sick burn".... xD Nice Gilles, nice :D :D

i use houdini 3d software. my parents were spiritualist. neither have come back from the big sleep to tell me to tidy my room.

I feel strangely moved by his self-righteousness and unstoppable loyalty to pursue transparency. Even though I do believe in the spiritual, in some way.

Was the guy who beat Houdini up arrested?

When he got really sick, and knew he was dying, he must have thought about the irony that the fortune teller was correct about his death.

didn't know this about Houdini, what a top geezer.

Steven Wright joke: "I once played poker with tarot cards. I got a full house and four people died."

I thought Jesus' followers gave all their money and possessions to the group, and eventually ended up fighting over who got additional portions of food.

Doyle never meant for Sherlock Holmes to be likable. He himself didn’t like him. The same was true of Agatha Christie and Hercule Poirot.

Never seen a bald man sell hair growth products Good pitch but looks fishy

When you know Simon Whistler, this is one of the most hilarious videos on RU-vid!🤣🤣🤣

Today I learned Harry Houdini wasn't even his real name????

again i loved your videos but the wildly varying volume levels make it almost unwatchable please fix this

"Escape proof" grave. Twice the cost, same great hole in the ground.

Why did I expect so. Ethi g to happen with the brick wall at the end..... 😂😂

You gotta get someone to edit your graphics man.... at least 2 mistakes here that look like they were made by autocorrect.

All I can pay attention to is your huge beard Whats living in there? It's so bushy!

Doing a show of debunking false claims while the first two minutes Simon tries to sell a snake oil for baldness hmmmmm

Had he used Abbs of Steel, he would not have needed to prepare for the blow that ultimately killed him.