Cover Story: Rich Bloch

Discovering Hollywood's First Houdini Film
By John Cox

The great magician and escape artist Harry Houdini getting lost under the ice of a frozen river is one of the most memorable scenes in the 1953 Paramount movie Houdini, starring Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh. But did you know that scene was first due to appear in a Houdini film 21 years earlier? That was just one of the surprise discoveries John Cox made while examining the long-forgotten file on RKO 589 — Hollywood’s first attempt to make a movie based on the life of Harry Houdini.

Tributes to Ron Wilson, Terry Seabrooke, and Gloria Crawford

Talk about Tricks
This month begins with two rubber band effects that are both practical and different from any you have seen before. Donny Orbit does double duty, contributing a smart improvement to an effect you probably already do, and then a cool effect you definitely don’t do (but you will want to after reading). Stephen Hobbs and Robert Gardner round out the issue with two card offerings.