Note: In honor of the centennial of Harry Houdini’s death, we are reposting this interview from 1925.
We have been collecting issues of Haldeman-Julius Monthly for several years, but one issue was particularly elusive: The October 1925 number featuring an interview with Harry Houdini, written by Marcet Haldeman-Julius, which was published a year before his death and is apparently keenly desired by collectors.
A copy of this issue was recently added to the archives and we are pleased to present the interview, which appears nowhere else online, refuting the argument that “everything is on the Internet.”
The paper is old and brittle and would not stand up to a scanner, so I photographed the article (Pages 387-397) instead. The images are watermarked because of prevalent practice of swiping pictures on the Internet without attribution or acknowledgement of a source. Pinterest and Skyscraperpage.com, this means you.
Haldeman-Julius Monthly was published by Emanuel Haldeman-Julius with the motto “Make the World Unsafe for Hypocrisy.” It changed names to “The Debunker” in 1928 and apparently ceased publication about 1931.
Emanuel Haldeman-Julius loved to debunk charismatic religious figures of the day and Louis Adamic wrote a series of articles for the magazine about Los Angeles evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson’s mysterious disappearance and miraculous return in 1926. In this vein, the bulk of the Houdini interview is devoted to the charlatans of the day posing as mediums who could communicate with the dead and frequently duped grieving and gullible survivors. There is also a detailed of description Houdini’s New York brownstone, which was crammed with books and memorabilia, and a cameo appearance by Mrs. Houdini.
Previously in the L.A. Daily Mirror
Aimee Semple McPherson’s Fight With Satan
C.B. DeMille: Movie Evangelist
Enjoy.
Photograph by Larry Harnisch / Los Angeles Times
They had planned the murder for months as the vague wish turned into a solid, horrible truth. They played out each variation in the script again and again until every detail was polished and perfect. They thought of everything. One was the brains behind the killing and the other was the willing, gullible stooge. Neither could have done it
Above, Police Chief James Davis turns over a list of more than 7,800 people who have received honorary badges from the Los Angeles Police Department. Recipients include Shirley Temple, Clark Gable, Louis B. Mayer, Joe E. Brown, King Vidor, Bela Lugosi and Leo Carrillo.
A man driving here from Chicago became confused the other day as he neared Los Angeles. His car is equipped with two-way radio so he called the local dispatcher, who is on the same wave length. He identified himself as Chicago 287 and explained his problem. He was coming in on the Santa Ana Freeway and wanted to get to an address near Olympic and La Cienega Blvds. What should he do?
Brace Yourself
The Mirror follows the Lillian Lenorak story. Below, Paul Weeks profiles suspect Tord Ove Zeppen-Field. 
Above, Eugene Vale discusses his novel “The Thirteenth Apostle,” which received good notices at the time and is completely forgotten today. Out of curiosity, I picked up a copy on EBay. I may give it a little writeup if it’s worthwhile. — lrh
Here’s another panel you’ll never see in the sitcom legacy version of “Peanuts.” A cynical Snoopy?
