"Our lovely dad Mick Hanzlik passed away peacefully late last night after a battle with cancer. We'll post funeral service details on this page nearer the time. We love you dad, the loveliest man ever."
Mick was a master locksmith and a great Houdini enthusiast. He was the leading authority on the Mirror Handcuff Challenge and produced beautiful replicas of the cuffs and key. He authored two important primers on the subject -- Houdini’s Mirror Handcuff Challenge, Getting Closer to the Truth and Looking into the Mirror -- and also provided WAH with two excellent guest blogs.
Mick was always a great and generous friend to me. He kept me up-to-date on his latest discoveries and I always knew I could turn to him with any questions. Whenever I came across anything Mirror related, I was always excited to share it with Mick. I only once had the pleasure of meeting him in person at a Cannon Escape convention. He was a true gentlemen and I'm very saddened to hear about his passing.
Say hi to Harry for us, Mick! I'll miss you my friend.
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| Mick and Harry sharing the same space in Paris. |
Here are a links to Mick's WILD ABOUT HARRY contributions:
This is very very sad news. Our eyes have filled with tears.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great guy. Helpful and friendly in every way. When Dorothy did the Mysteries at the Museum show for The Travel Channel about the Mirror cuffs he was infinitely giving as well as other projects.
We have two of his beautiful Mirror Cuff keys. Always a go to guy for all things Houdini
He will be missed.
Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz
The Houdini Museum
The Only Building in the World Dedicated to Houdini
I didn't know the gentleman but was always planning to contact him and visit his locksmith shop.( I knew of him via this site and others.) More so, when my son started his course at Northampton University. Very much regret not making the effort. My sincere condolences to his family and friends.
ReplyDeleteA nice tribute, John. I believe you and I met him at the same convention back in 2009. He seemed like such a great guy, and what a wealth of knowledge he had!
ReplyDeletethis is just stunning. So sad right now. RIP Mick!
ReplyDeleteA shocker indeed. I didn't even know he was ill.
ReplyDeleteHe will be missed. I have one of his replica mirror keys and exchanged emails with him a number of times about the infamous photo of Houdini on stage at the London Hippodrome.
ReplyDeleteI am deeply saddened to have lost this wonderful friend. While on a family trip to England many years ago I visited with him and we became fast friends. He would occasionally call me at my work to talk "Houdini" stuff and my receptionist would page over the whole building for me saying "the guy from England is on the phone for you". I knew of his illness and recently had an email from him saying he was doing fine; like Houdini, he hid his secret. He often shared with me that he loved spending time with his grandkids, seeing them nearly everyday. Goodbye my old friend.
ReplyDeleteA very affable fellow who answered questions about the Mirror Cuffs here on WAH. I'm glad I purchased his book on the Mirror Cuffs a few years ago. God bless him.
ReplyDeleteI was only speaking to Mick a few days before his death about a unique Houdini painting used for the cover of my book with Brian Lead. He was such a helpful and friendly gentleman and always happy to talk about Houdini rather than his own achievements. Condolences to Mick's family and friends and RIP Mick.
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