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On this day…in 1926 and 1993

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In 1926, Harry Houdini, renowned as the greatest magician and escape artist of the 20th century, succumbed to peritonitis at a Detroit hospital.

Prior to his death, Houdini had engaged with a group of students in Montreal, discussing the power of his abdominal muscles to endure hard hits. Unexpectedly, one of the students struck him twice in the stomach. The magician, unprepared for the assault, suffered a ruptured appendix from the blows. While traveling on a train to Detroit, he fell ill, and after performing once more, was admitted to a hospital. Although doctors performed surgery, it proved futile. The poison from the burst appendix ultimately led to his passing on October 31.

Erik Weisz, born in Budapest in 1874 to a rabbi, became Houdini. His family immigrated to Appleton, Wisconsin, during his childhood, where he showcased remarkable acrobatic talent and lock-picking skills. At nine years old, he joined a traveling circus, touring the country as a trapeze artist and contortionist before focusing on escape acts, earning fame for his reputed ability to break free from any restraint. He embarked on his first international tour in 1900, performing across Europe to great acclaim. Houdini executed his escapes relying on strength, dexterity, and concentration instead of trickery, showcasing his prowess as a showman.

By 1908, Houdini began to engage in more perilous and theatrical escapes. A popular act involved him being bound and locked inside an iron chest, which was then submerged in a tank of water or thrown from a boat. In another daring act, he was heavily restrained and suspended upside down within a glass-sided water tank. Other performances saw him hanging from skyscrapers in straitjackets or being buried alive—without any coffin—beneath six feet of earth.

In his later years, Houdini actively opposed mediums, mind readers, and frauds claiming supernatural abilities through deception. Concurrently, he became fascinated with spiritualism and made an agreement with his wife and friends that whoever died first would attempt to communicate from the afterlife. Several friends passed away, but Houdini never received any sign from them. On Halloween in 1926, Houdini himself departed at the age of 52. His wife awaited a message from the spirit realm, but none arrived; she ultimately deemed the experiment a failure shortly before her death in 1943.

On this day in 1993, River Phoenix, the 23-year-old actor known for performances in films such as Stand by Me and My Own Private Idaho, tragically passed away from a drug overdose outside a Hollywood nightclub.

At the time of his passing, Phoenix was viewed as one of the most promising actors of his generation, having earned a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his role in the 1988 film Running on Empty.

Born River Jude Bottom on August 23, 1970, Phoenix experienced an unconventional upbringing. His parents were members of a religious cult and served as missionaries in South America. As a teenager, he began acting professionally, making his big-screen debut alongside Ethan Hawke in the 1985 film Explorers. He gained widespread recognition in 1986’s Stand by Me, a film adapted from a Stephen King novel, directed by Rob Reiner and featuring co-stars Jerry O’Connell, Corey Feldman, and Wil Wheaton. Phoenix continued his career with roles in several movies, including The Mosquito Coast (1986), which starred Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren; and A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon (1988), where he portrayed the titular character; and
“`In 1988, with Sidney Poitier, Little Nikita was released. Also in that year, Phoenix featured in Running on Empty, which tells the story of a family evading the FBI due to their parents’ past involvement in an anti-war bombing. Directed by Sidney Lumet, the film included Judd Hirsch and Christine Lahti in its cast. Phoenix portrayed the teenage son of the couple, competing for the Best Supporting Actor Academy Award but ultimately losing to Kevin Kline for his role in A Fish Called Wanda.

The young Indy was played by Phoenix in the 1989 film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. He later gained recognition in the noteworthy independent films My Own Private Idaho (1990), directed by Gus Van Sant and featuring Keanu Reeves, as well as Dogfight (1991), alongside Lili Taylor. Additionally, he acted in the 1992 thriller Sneakers, with Robert Redford and Sidney Poitier. Tragically, on October 31, 1993, Phoenix suffered a drug overdose outside the Viper Room, a nightclub partially owned by actor Johnny Depp, situated on the Sunset Strip.

Joaquin, Phoenix’s younger brother, is also an actor nominated for an Academy Award; his filmography includes Gladiator (2000), Walk the Line (2005), and We Own the Night (2007).

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