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- A Punch To The Gut Did Not Kill Houdini The final days of Houdini's life have taken on a mythological air due to the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death. On October 24, 1926, in Detroit, Michigan, Houdini was punched in the abdomen by a college student while he was sitting in his dressing room.
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Was Harry Houdini really killed by a punch to the stomach?
Did Houdini punch Whitehead?
Did Houdini die from a burst appendix?
How did Harry Houdini die?
Mar 22, 2024 · Published March 22, 2024. Legend has it that Harry Houdini died on Halloween in 1926 after an overeager fan punched him in the gut and caused his appendix to rupture — but the two events may not have been linked. Harry Houdini defied the impossible throughout a mystifying career that still makes him a household name today.
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Escape artist Harry Houdini died from a ruptured appendix caused by his being punched in the stomach.
Although some of the basic facts of this narrative are correct, its assumption of the cause and effect that led to Houdinis untimely demise likely is not.
The chain of events leading up to Houdinis final passing began in mid-October 1926, while he was undertaking a series of shows in the northeastern part of North America. Despite having broken his ankle while performing his famous Water-Torture Cell escape in Albany several days earlier, Houdini, ever the trouper, kept his engagement at the Princess...
Despite Prices first-hand account, much dispute remains over exactly what took place in Houdinis dressing room that day. Houdinis wife Bess, a nurse named Sophie Rosenblatt, and Besss niece Julia Sawyer were also present, and the details of their stories differ. Did Joselyn Whitehead really show up after Smilovitch and Price arrived, or had Smilovi...
The doctor finally caught up with Houdini at the theatre, examined him in the dressing room, found him to be running a fever of 104°F, diagnosed acute appendicitis, and proclaimed that Houdini should be taken straight to a hospital by ambulance. Bess allegedly did not hear the doctors diagnosis, and Houdini supposedly told the worried theater owner...
Houdini rushed through his show and clearly was not performing well; before the third act began he finally decided that he could not carry on by himself and had his assistants finish some of his tricks for him. (Houdini did not collapse on stage, as is often reported, nor did he have to be rescued from the Water-Torture cell by an axe-wielding assi...
The physician called a surgeon, who examined Houdini and told him that he must be hospitalized at once. Still, Houdini demurred, calling his personal physician, Dr. William Stone, back in New York sometime after 3:00 A.M. Only after Houdini and the other doctors had talked to Dr. Stone did Houdini finally relent and agree to be taken to Grace Hospi...
The odds of surviving such an infection in the days before antibiotics were small, but Houdini gamely hung on for another four days before undergoing a second operation on Thursday, 28 October. He seemed to be recovering by the next day, but on Saturday his condition worsened, and the renowned magician escape artist passed away the next day at 52.
Fittingly, the date was 31 October 1926: Halloween. The official cause of death was listed as diffuse peritonitis (i.e., an infection of the tissue lining the inner wall of the abdomen, typically resulting from an abdominal rupture), with ruptured appendicitis listed as a contributory factor.
When the details of Houdinis final weeks became known in the aftermath of his passing, the common assumption took hold that the blows to the right-hand side of his abdomen (the side on which the appendix is located) Houdini had received a few weeks before his death and his ruptured appendix were directly connected: It seemed a logical conclusion at...
First of all, given the contradictory accounts provided by the persons who were present when Houdini was punched in his dressing room by Gordon Whitehead, its unclear what injury the magician sustained, and how badly he was hurt (if indeed he was injured at all), by those blows. Second, reported cases in medical literature of appendicitis following...
Sightings: The 1987 film Planes, Trains and Automobiles includes the following quote: Hey you could have killed me by punching me in the stomach like that when I wasnt ready thats how Houdini died, ya know.
The web page examines the legend that Houdini died from a ruptured appendix caused by a college student's punch to his abdomen. It presents the conflicting accounts of the incident and the possible alternative causes of his death.
Oct 31, 2016 · Master escape artist Harry Houdini died on Halloween of 1926 from a ruptured appendix, but many of the circumstances surrounding his demise remain mysterious to this day.
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Oct 18, 2023 · Despite the conspiracy theories and even medical professionals’ beliefs that the punch caused his death, it is most likely that Houdini simply died as a result of his stubbornness. Modern scholars believe that Houdini was likely already suffering from appendicitis when Whitehead punched him, exacerbating the condition.
Mar 11, 2020 · Did Houdini really die after being punched in the stomach by a student? Learn the truth behind the legend and the myths surrounding the master of escape. Explore his life, his career, and his final act in this book by Adam Begley.
Mar 24, 2019 · The “hammer-like” punches caused visible pain and Houdini stopped Whitehead in mid-blow on the third attempt to punch his gut. As Houdini travelled by train more than 15 hours to his next...
Oct 31, 2011 · Jeff Campagna. October 31, 2011. Feedloader (Clickability) Master magician Harry Houdini made a living wowing audiences and escaping from death-defying situations. But this day in 1926 the...
