Geno Munari Houdini collection lost in fire

The $750,000 Houdini collection that Geno Munari donated to Vanishing Inc.'s ShareMagic in 2023 appears to have been lost in a catastrophic warehouse fire. The collection included personal letters, props, scrapbooks, posters, and one-of-a-kind memorabilia. Many of the items had once been part of the Sidney Radner collection.

Vanishing Inc. co-founder Joshua Jay tells me they have not yet been able to access the section of the warehouse that held the collection, so there's still a chance some items could be recovered. But I have also heard it is a total loss. The fire occurred on June 6, 2024, at their Sacramento warehouse, which had been the company’s retail headquarters for over a decade. Fortunately, no one was hurt.

The company's computers were also casualties of the fire, so it's unclear if even an inventory of the collection survived. However, the good news is Geno professionally photographed and documented every item, so there is a complete record of what went to Vanishing Inc. This means the vital history contained in the collection is retrievable, even if the artifacts themselves are now lost.

ShareMagic, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, had planned to use the collection to create "an unparalleled exhibition that will bring Houdini's legacy to life for generations to come." Instead, this may turn out to be the single largest loss of Houdini history ever.

You can read Vanishing Inc.'s account of the fire on their blog and find additional details at One Ahead.

Related:

• Geno Munari donates Houdini collection to Vanishing Inc.
• Sidney Radner collection to be auctioned in Las Vegas
• Burglar destroys "priceless" Houdini collection in arson fire