The "Final" Houdini Seance, part three

Dr. Edward Saint: Tonight we are in the very heart of glamorous Hollywood that Houdini loved so well. He lived here. He worked here. Houdini loved Hollywood. And Harry and Bessie Houdini celebrated their twenty-fifth, their silver wedding anniversary here, and all the greats of Hollywood were present. And Houdini made a speech and said, “You are all invited now to be at our fiftieth, our Golden Wedding ceremony.” And Will Rogers got up and gave an impersonation and said, “Houdini, I’ll be here, but this is the way I’ll be coming in,” and he walked like an aged old man with a cane.

Will Rogers is gone. Houdini is gone. Nearly two-thirds of that famous gathering is gone. But this is the kind of a night they all would have loved. Nothing could have kept them away. It’s a Houdini night, with the spotlight of the public on Houdini, with the whole world paused to see or hear Houdini step on this side of the curtain. Now, let us bow our heads in meditation and prayer.

O, thou Mastermind of the Universe, please let the spirit of understanding descend upon us that are gathered here in the Inner Circle tonight. We are each in his own way seekers after truth, please let thy spirit of understanding guide us and bring the light of truth to the many friends that have earnestly formed psychic circles and gatherings throughout the entire world. Aid us, guide us on this most important question of mankind: spirit communication from across the grave. We ask this universal understanding in all humbleness, and we offer our grateful thanks to thee. Guide us please, Amen.

O, thou disembodied spirits, those of you that have grown old in the mysterious laws of spirit land, we greet thee. We have gathered here at the appointed time; we have complied with all of the requirements to enable all of you to make your presence known. Members of the spirit world have long known of the intention of this important gathering tonight. All is in readiness. Please now, the time is at hand. Make yourself known to us, any of you please. Manifest yourself in any way possible. Please let your united strength and knowledge aid Houdini in coming through. It is the spirit of Houdini we wish to contact.

Houdini, are you here? Are you here, Houdini? Please manifest yourself in any way possible! Take from this earnest gathering any strength that may be necessary for you to use. Take any vital thing from us as you may need to enable you to carry out your promise of years ago. We have waited, Houdini, oh so long. Never have you been able to present the evidence you promised. And now, this is a night of nights. The world is listening. Harry, your world, your audience. And Bessie is here, your Bessie, who was part of you for thirty-three years -- she is here, Harry, pleading in her heart for a prearranged sign from you. It means so much to her, to all of us, to the world. Harry, we are all seekers after truth. Please manifest yourself by speaking through the trumpet. Lift it, lift it! Speak through it, speak! Speak, Harry! We are watching and waiting, Harry. Levitate the table. Move it. Lift the table, move it, rap on it! Spell out a code, Harry, please! Ring the bell. Let its tinkle be heard around the world. Do it, Harry! Please! Please, Houdini, we are waiting, Bessie is waiting!

O, thou spirit, your religion is based on love, and by that very token, a love of 33 years that has even entered into eternity, by that love I ask that you come through with the evidence. By the love of the little silver-haired widow, by the love and esteem of the countless friends -- the evidence, Harry! And Houdini, Houdini, Dash -- Dash is listening in; Dash, Hardeen, your brother. Your brother has joined us with a circle he has formed in New York City, three thousand miles away. He had joined with us to seek the truth. And a circle in Baltimore. Philadelphia is listening in; in Providence; in Chicago, Leonard, who was once a protege of yours; a circle in Portland, Maine. And in the faithful city of Detroit; in Victoria, Canada; Takoma; Rockford; Oakland and San Francisco -- all over the world, all joining in, come through Harry! And Houdini, Colonel Harry Day, member of the British Parliament, has formed a circle in London, England. Colonel Day was your closest boyhood friend. Houdini, you must come through. And at the bottom of the world, Australia, the country where you made history has joined in. We are crying to high heaven, to the powers that be, we are crying in one mighty magnetic voice from every corner of the Earth, and the hearts and minds of them who choose are centered here tonight. We want the evidence, the truth! In the name of humanity and love, if there is communication from the great beyond, come through with the evidence!

Narrator: Then followed calm and silent meditation. And again, a tense and dramatic soul pleading, in which Mrs. Houdini joined Dr. Saint. But no sign from Houdini. At last Dr. Saint, in a voice that broke, and filled with emotion, asked:

Dr. Edward Saint: Mrs. Houdini, the zero hour has passed. The ten years are up. Have you reached a decision?

Mrs. Houdini: Yes. Houdini did not come through. My last hope is gone. I do not believe that Houdini can come back to me, or to anyone. After faithfully following through the ten-year Houdini compact, using every type medium and seance, it is now my personal and positive belief, that spirit communication in any form is impossible. I do not believe that ghosts or spirits exist. The Houdini shrine has burned for ten years. I now, reverently, turn out the light. It is finished. Good night, Harry.

Narrator: Beatrice Houdini turned, and with Dr. Saint left the roof, and stepped inside, while the others waited respectfully at a distance. And suddenly, a long low distant rumble of thunder was heard. It began to rain. Now remember, those skies had been clear but a few moments before. It rained just long enough to wet everyone on the roof of the Hollywood Knickerbocker Hotel. And then it stopped, and didn’t rain again all evening. To people who do not live in California, this may not seem strange. But California does not have showers as do the East and Midwest. The country out here is rainless for months. And when rain comes it rains for days. A brief heavy rain is an unheard-of phenomenon. Was that a sign? I recall a very dear friend of mine, a magician who was with me on the roof at the time of that seance, stating as he left the roof: “Houdini wasn’t that sort of man; Houdini was too big of a man, to come back and shake insignificant little bells, to write his name on a piece of slate, or to toot horns. Harry Houdini was a dynamic personality. Harry Houdini was a man of great ego. Harry Houdini was a man of great force. Harry Houdini, if he could return, would not have returned as a horn-tooter, but perhaps as something dynamic, as something great, as something forceful. Perhaps...as a drop of Heaven’s rain."
[The recording concludes with the sound of thunder.]

If you'd like to hear the recording for yourself, you can find it at The Internet Archive.

Hope you enjoyed this. Happy Halloween!