The Columbia was wild about Harry!

I've seen effusive Houdini advertising before, but this ad for the independently run Columbia Theatre in Cincinnati, Ohio, takes the cake. This was for Houdini's two-week run in January 1908. I love how it adds "And Houdini" after every other name on the bill.

Cincinnati Post, Jan. 6, 1908

I would love to know what exactly was displayed in Max Joseph's cigar store window. 

This was Houdini's third appearance at the Columbia. During his first week, he escaped from a cell at Cincinnati’s Central Station in 31 minutes. The cell had once held the infamous Scott Jackson (right), a murderer whom some believed had hypnotic power and was able to impose his will on victims using his steel blue eyes.

During his second week, Houdini featured a string of challenges: packing case (Monday), leather bag (Tuesday), iron-bound willow hamper (Wednesday), paper bag (Thursday), and a packing case built on the stage (Friday). He finished his run on Saturday with a straitjacket escape in eight minutes on a $100 wager.

Another nice detail about this engagement is that Houdini's mother joined him. Houdini recorded in his diary that, upon her arrival in Cincinnati, “Charlie the dog went wild for thirty minutes with joy.”

The Columbia Theater stood at 525 Walnut Street. It became part of the Keith circuit in 1910 and was renamed the B.F. Keith Theater in 1912. Houdini played the theater seven times. It closed in September 1965 and was demolished in July 1966. Today, it is the site of Fountain Square.

Want more? You can download research related to Houdini's 1908 engagement in Cincinnati as a Scholar member of my Patreon below.

Related:

• Off-script in Cincinnati
• LINK: Houdini, Martin Beck, and Herrmann in Cincinnati
• Houdini living on the air in Cincinnati