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Escapology
Escapology is the practice of escaping from restraints or other traps. Escapologists (also classified as escape artists) escape from handcuffs, straitjackets, cages, coffins, steel boxes, barrels, bags, burning buildings, fish-tanks, and other perils, often in combination. History The art of escaping from restraints and confined spaces has been a skill employed by performers for a very long time. It was not originally displayed as an overt act in itself but was instead used secretly to create illusions such as a disappearance or transmutation. In the 1860s, the Davenport Brothers, who were skilled at releasing themselves from rope ties, used the art to convey the impression they were restrained while they created spirit phenomena. Other illusionists, including John Nevil Maskelyne, worked out how the Davenports did their act and re-created the tricks to debunk the brothers' claims of psychic power. However, the re-creations did not involve overt escape, merely a replica ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dorothy Dietrich
Dorothy Dietrich (born April 1, 1948) is an American stage magician and escapologist, best known for performing the bullet catch in her mouth (although Adelaide Herrmann reputedly did this earlier) and the first woman to perform a straitjacket escape while suspended hundreds of feet in the air from a burning rope. She was the first woman to gain prominence as an escape artist since the days of Houdini, breaking the glass ceiling for women in the field of escapes and magic. The 2006 ''Columbia Encyclopedia'' included Dietrich among their "eight most noted magicians of the late 20th century", and entertainment writer Samantha Hart in ''Hollywood Walk of Fame: 2000 Sensational Stars, Star Makers and Legends'', called her a "world-class magician" and "one of the world's leading female magicians". Early on, as a teenager, she already was referred to as "The First Lady of Magic", a reference later copied by others. Dietrich, often called the female Houdini, has duplicated many of Houdi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Clempert
John Clempert (Siberia, April 19, 1878 – May 1940) was a Russian escape artist who became famous for his hanging tricks and for a legal dispute with Harry Houdini. Early career Clempert was born in Siberia on April 19, 1878, in a city Edwin A. Dawes indicated as “Poletavarr.” He started working in Farroni's Circus as a wrestler, but became famous as “The Man They Cannot Hang” for the acts of escapology he managed to perform after an assistant had hung him. In 1903, however, one of his hanging performances failed in Rochester, New York, and the accident nearly costed Clempert his life. He abandoned the hanging tricks and joined the Warren American Circus, touring India and the Middle East. Legal dispute with Houdini The new acts Clempert performed were inspired by Houdini. He proposed new escapology acts evading handcuffs and chains, and advertised himself as “The Handcuff and Siberian Gaol Breaker.” He also believed he had identified how Houdini performed his “Mil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Grim Game
''The Grim Game'' is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by Irvin Willat and starring Harry Houdini and Ann Forrest.Farmer 1984, p. 312. The basic plotline serves as a showcase for Houdini's talent as an escapologist, stunt performer and aviator. As the story unfolds, a series of Houdini's trademark set-piece stunts and escapes are performed. When his tormentors chain him up and imprison him on numerous occasions, Houdini escapes. The film concludes with a climactic mid-air collision following an aircraft pursuit. Following the collision, Houdini is reunited with his fiancée. Plot Young newspaper reporter Harvey Hanford (Harry Houdini) is in love with Mary Wentworth ( Ann Forrest), the ward of rich, eccentric Dudley Cameron (Thomas Jefferson), who opposes the match. Harvey becomes involved in a newspaper scheme to plant evidence for a fake murder of his uncle. Dudley Cameron is actually killed, however, and Harvey is framed and arrested for the murder. Jailed unjustly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harry Houdini
Erik Weisz (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926), known professionally as Harry Houdini ( ), was a Hungarian-American escapologist, illusionist, and stunt performer noted for his escape acts. Houdini first attracted notice in vaudeville in the United States and then as Harry "Handcuff" Houdini on a tour of Europe, where he challenged police forces to keep him locked up. Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers, straitjackets under water, and having to escape from and hold his breath inside a sealed milk can with water in it. In 1904, thousands watched as Houdini tried to escape from special handcuffs commissioned by London's ''Daily Mirror'', keeping them in suspense for an hour. Another stunt saw him buried alive and only just able to claw himself to the surface, emerging in a state of near-breakdown. While many suspected that these escapes were faked, Houdini presented himself as the scourge of fake spiritualists, pursuing a persona ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norman Bigelow
Norman Bigelow (August 12, 1944 – August 16, 2015) was an American illusionist. He has been described by the Society of American Magicians as "one of America’s leading escape artists". Biography Trained as a locksmith and a wood-worker, as a young man Bigelow became the apprentice of Frank Renaud (1890-1965), who performed as an acrobat and escape artist under the stage name of The Great Reno. From 1972, Bigelow started performing solo shows of escapology. He became well-known in that field, and wrote several books and articles. He agreed to let David Copperfield perform one of his tricks in television. He died of leukemia in 2015 after a long illness. Bigelow devoted considerable time to study the techniques of Harry Houdini Erik Weisz (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926), known professionally as Harry Houdini ( ), was a Hungarian-American escapologist, illusionist, and stunt performer noted for his escape acts. Houdini first attracted notice in vaudeville in ... ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Straitjacket
A straitjacket is a garment shaped like a jacket with long sleeves that surpass the tips of the wearer's fingers. Its most typical use is restraining people who may cause harm to themselves or others. Once the wearer's arms are in the sleeves, the person restraining the wearer crosses the sleeves against the chest and ties the ends of the sleeves to the back of the jacket, ensuring the arms are close to the chest with as little movement as possible. Although ''straitjacket'' is the most common spelling, ''strait-jacket'' or ''straightjacket'' are also used. Straitjackets are also called camisoles or strait-waistcoats. The effect of a straitjacket as a restraint makes it of special interest in escapology. The straitjacket is also a staple theatrical property, prop in magic (illusion), stage magic. The straitjacket comes from the Georgian era of medicine. Physical restraint was used both as treatment for mental illness and to pacify patients in understaffed psychiatric hospital, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Handcuffs
Handcuffs are Physical restraint, restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists in proximity to each other. They comprise two parts, linked together by a Link chain, chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each cuff has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet (device), ratchet that prevents it from being opened once closed around a person's wrist. Without a key, handcuffs cannot be removed without specialist knowledge, and a handcuffed person cannot move their wrists more than a few centimetres or inches apart, making many tasks difficult or impossible. Handcuffs are frequently used by law enforcement agencies worldwide to prevent Suspect, suspected criminals from escaping from Arrest, police custody. Styles Metal handcuffs There are three main types of contemporary metal handcuffs: chain (cuffs are held together by a short chain), hinged (since hinged handcuffs permit less movement than a chain cuff, they are generally considered to be more secure), and rigid soli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antony Britton
Antony Britton is a British escapologist and stunt performer. He has performed a series of large scale spectacular stunts done for television and charity. Britton first attracted notice in Wakefield, England in a 2012 stunt. He went on to perform a series of stunts for charity, and in 2014 thousands turned out in Bradford city centre to watch him attempt the inverted straitjacket escape. In 2015 he attempted the Buried Alive escape challenge, making him the third person to have attempted the routine in 100 years. He was unsuccessful and had to be rescued. Early life Britton was born in Saltaire, Bradford, England, and has one brother and an older sister. He went to Wycliffe Middle School in Saltaire and Beckfoot School in Bingley. At a young age he was diagnosed with dyslexia. Britton trained as a welder whilst performing escapes, he would be seen by the public been chained, padlocked and handcuffed before jumping in the canals of Saltaire and Bingley. Britton performed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Physical Restraint
Physical restraint refers to means of limiting or obstructing the freedom of a person's or an animal's bodily movement. Basic methods Usually, binding objects such as handcuffs, legcuffs, ropes, chains, straps or straitjackets are used for this purpose. Alternatively different kinds of arm locks deriving from unarmed combat methods or martial arts are used to restrain a person, which are predominantly used by trained police or correctional officers. This less commonly also extends to joint locks and pinning techniques. Purpose in humans Physical restraints are used: * primarily by police and prison authorities to obstruct delinquents and prisoners from escaping or resisting British Police officers are authorised to use leg and arm restraints, if they have been instructed in their use. Guidelines set out by the Association of Chief Police Officers dictate that restraints are only to be used on subjects who are violent while being transported, restraining the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alan Alan
Alan Alan (born Alan Rabinowitz, 30 November 1926 – 4 July 2014) was a British escapologist and magician. He originated tricks that have subsequently become familiar features of the repertoire of other performers and he was honoured by The Magic Circle. Alan achieved fame through a series of stunts staged for the media. He made headline news in 1949 when a "buried alive" stunt, performed for Pathe News, nearly went wrong. He is credited with devising the burning-rope straitjacket escape, in which he is suspended upside-down from a crane with a length of thick rope doused with petrol; once ignited there is a short time to escape before the rope burns through. He appeared in a number of television magic shows, including ''The Magic of David Copperfield''. He also "taught" the inmates of Wormwood Scrubs prison how to escape from handcuffs in his performance with a number of other magicians. In more recent years he was seen on the Channel 4 TV show ''The Secret Cabaret'' wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
