Houdini's interest in magic took root in 1885, after he saw Dr. Houdini helped his parents and siblings survive by selling and delivering newspapers and shining shoes. The family moved to Milwaukee in 1882 or 1883 and fell into poverty. In 1882, Houdini's father lost his job at Zion. The Weiss family lived on Appleton Street in the area that is now Houdini Plaza. In 1878, when he was 4, his family moved to Appleton where his father, Mayer Samuel Weisz, served as a rabbi at Zion Congregation. The family changed its name to the German spelling Weiss, and Erik became Ehrich. Houdini was born Erik Weisz in 1874 in Budapest, Hungary, even though he later would claim Appleton as his birthplace. The facts tying Houdini to Milwaukee speak for themselves, Gerard said. "Everything that I've researched, it really doesn't point to that he did anything significant as a magician, escape artist or performer in the city of Appleton," Gerard told USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. "I hate to say it, but it just really doesn't." Glen Gerard, a magician based in the Milwaukee area, is careful not to offend the fine people of Appleton, but thinks Houdini's fame is tied to Milwaukee far more than Appleton. Houdini spent his formative magical years in Milwaukee That’s what one reader asked What the Wisconsin? - where reporters take on questions about our state, our communities and the people in them. So what gives? Does the world's greatest magician and escape artist belong to Milwaukee or Appleton? Houdini Elementary School lies just outside the city in Grand Chute. at the southwest corner of Oneida and Washington streets at the southwest corner of College Avenue and Morrison Street and near the "Metamorphosis" sculpture.Īppleton also is home to a Houdini 10K race, Houdini's Escape Gastropub and Houdini-themed beers. A series of Houdini historical markers, including plaques at Zion Temple, 320 Durkee St.The Houdini-inspired "Metamorphosis" sculpture along the Fox River by Lawe Street.
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