Despite the magician’s earnest effort to show that the psychics were frauds, the resolution failed to pass. While some of the spiritualists’ predictions could be unquestionably debunked, their act of predicting the future was seen as a religious practice. That darned First Amendment protected their right to do it, even if it meant having the potential to shape American policy. Still, Houdini had secured a victory of sorts by exposing those in the government with ties to psychics. This would be nothing compared to his grand finale, though.
Harry Houdini died on Halloween in 1926, the same year as the battle for House Resolution 8989. As one last act of debunking the spiritualists, Houdini wanted to prove that seances were fake, that mediums could not contact the dead. He told his wife, Bess, that if somehow he could communicate with her after he died, he would. Bess Houdini held seances for 10 years after his death. Each seance produced the same result: nothing.
While Bess Houdini stopped the practice and later died in 1943, others have picked up the torch of attempting to contact the late escape artist. The annual Official Houdini Seance takes place appropriately on the anniversary of Houdini’s death, the spookiest day of the year. None of these seances have produced definitive proof of Houdini’s ghostly communication. Though, those involved do claim to have seen a few bizarre happenings.
Perhaps Houdini is just waiting for the right opportunity, one last remarkable escape. Or maybe, he really did debunk the act of the seance. Whatever the answer, the famed illusionist continues to solidify his legacy each Halloween as he continues one of the longest-running acts of trolling in history.
Top Image: University of Washington
Related: That Time The ‘Sherlock Holmes’ And ‘Christmas Carol’ Writers Became Ghost Hunters
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How Harry Houdini Trolled ‘Psychics’ From The Grave
Source: Pinoy Daily News
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