Immigrants to the United States have always faced the challenge of being accepted by their fellow Americans. Ehrich Weiss (Harry Houdini) was born in Budapest, Hungary, the fourth son of a Jewish rabbi, and faced that challenge by simply re-inventing his own life story. He created the fiction that he was actually born in Appleton, Wisconsin, and that he was just another American kid from the great Midwest. It would not be until decades after his untimely death that his biographers discovered the true nature of his roots.

In fact, he came to America 1878 when he was only four-years-old. His father took a job in Appleton as rabbi to a small congregation, but his limited English and old-fashioned, old-world style cost him that position. Struggling to support his family of five, Rabbi Weiss then relocated them all to New York in search of better opportunities, but found none. Instead, one day he called his now adolescent boy to his sickbed and pledged him to care for his soon-to-be widowed mother. Harry accepted that challenge as well, and when he eventually achieved his great success he literally showered his mother in gold coins!

During Houdini’s early childhood in Appleton, he became fascinated with circus performers. He set up a trapeze from which he swung and mastered the trick of picking up pins upside down with his eyelids. (Do NOT try this at home, no matter how fun it may sound!) He then went on to master magic becoming “Houdini, the King of Kards.” With his brother Theo and later with his young wife, Bess, he toured America in sideshows, circuses, and small theaters eking out a modest living. And finally his hard work and determination paid off with his invitation to tour in a larger theater circuit.

The market for a young magician and his smiling wife-assistant was as limited at the end of the 19th century as it is today in the 21st century. But Houdini was encouraged to focus on the kind of trick that was the centerpiece of his act – the trunk escape. He expanded his escape act to include handcuff, rope, and chain escapes. He challenged his audiences to bring their own cuffs, ropes, and locks, and he offered a prize to anyone who could restrain him in a way that prevented his escape. No one ever succeeded in holding “The Great Houdini” the “King of Handcuffs.”

Numerous tours of Europe made Houdini an international celebrity. He escaped from a prison cell at Scotland Yard after being stripped naked and medically examined. He proved he was not guilty of false advertising of his amazing skills in a German court by escaping from within the judge’s own locked safe. He became the world’s most celebrated magical entertainer.

While touring France in 1909, Houdini saw the flight of a pioneering aircraft. Fascinated, he became a trained pilot and even bought a custom made aircraft of his own- a French Voison for $5000 ($150,000 in today’s money). He emblazoned the wings with his name. As Houdini completed his world tour, he also became the first successful pilot to fly the skies of the continent of Australia, a feat which he made sure to document on film.