Chuck Romano at My Magic Unclehas uncovered an interesting account of Houdini's 1922 performance at the Times Square Theater in New York. Houdini appeared in conjunction with his movie
The Man From Beyond, and for the occasion he revived his vanishing elephant illusion. It's been said Houdini used a smaller elephant for this venue, but according to this clipping, Houdini actually used two!
Of his two elephants, only Lucy came on for her act. Fanny was captivated by the bright lights of Broadway and refused to enter the Times Square Theatre. Meanwhile, Lucy suffered from an attack of temperament and liberal rations of gum drops were necessary before she could be induced to do her act."
I love that we get the names here, Fanny and Lucy. Also, Fanny refusing to enter the theater recalls this post from last year: "A story that never has been told."
Check out the full article at My Magic Unclewhere Chuck also has several other interesting Houdini related posts.
UPDATE: In
The Sphinx[Vol 21 No. 3 May 15 1922] Clinton Burgess reported:
"…This is the same illusion Houdini presented with such success at the New York Hippodrome and is startler of the first water. While the cabinet of enclosure used to house or temporarily imprison the elephant prior to its mysterious disappearance is roomy enough inside to accommodate a large elephant, is was only rarely that the large one in readiness for the effect would enter the theatre owing to its extreme timidity over the glare of the footlights. On this occasion it was necessary to use another but somewhat smaller elephant, loaned to Houdini through the courtesy of John Ringling. This elephant is named ‘Baby’, while the larger one is called ‘Fannie Ringling.’ "
Thanks to Joe Notaro.Related: