Sunday, May 5, 2013

Is this Nathan Weiss?

This curious cabinet photo was recently listed on eBay as being Houdini's brother, Nathan Weiss. The seller notes that written on the back is: "Nathan Weiss, brother Houdinì 1904."


The photo was listed twice for $89 and did not sell, probably because this doesn't look much like Nathan. Below is a shot of the Weiss brothers probably around 1910. Nathan is the heavyset brother on the end.

Leo, Theo, Harry, Bill and Nathan.

What do we think? Is this Nathan? If not, why the writing on the back?
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7 comments:

  1. melboMay 5, 2013 at 11:27 AM

    Unless they got the year wrong, but still, doesn't look much like him.

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    Replies
    1. John CoxMay 5, 2013 at 12:44 PM

      I could have the year wrong on that pic of Harry and his bros. It's undated, but Harry's hair looks 1906ish. But it could be later.

      Delete
    2. John CoxMay 5, 2013 at 12:46 PM

      There's grey in Houdini's hair so I upped it to approx. 1910.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousMay 5, 2013 at 1:06 PM

    Looking at Leopold up close what's up with his lower lip?

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  3. RickDecember 12, 2014 at 9:04 AM

    Hard to tell on account of the different angle and the mustache, but both men have similar eyebrows. My gut says it's him, with a good couple of years retracted.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousFebruary 23, 2023 at 8:07 PM

    Who is bill? As a fan of Harry Houdini history, I didn't know Harry had a sibling named Bill.

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    Replies
    1. John CoxFebruary 24, 2023 at 8:31 AM

      He did! Bill or William Weiss was born Gottfried Vilmos Weiss in Budapest in 1872. He died in 1925.

      Delete