Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin

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Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin

Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin (* 7. December 1805 in Blois , France as Jean Eugène Robert ; † 13. June 1871 ) was a French magician of, machine designer and founder in 1845 in the rue de Valois (N ° 11) in Paris opened and The magic theater Théâtre Robert-Houdin moved to the Boulevard des Italiens (N ° 8) in 1854 .

Life

Robert-Houdin's father was a watchmaker , where he first learned the trade. Due to his training in precision mechanics, he was able to build “magical” devices with which he hit the nerve of the times; shortly before that, machines like Wolfgang von Kempelen's “ Chess Turk ” were on everyone's lips. In 1844, for example, he presented a writing machine at an exhibition in Paris.

Father of modern magic

In the middle of the 19th century he opened his own theater in the old Palais Royal , where he delighted the Parisian audience with elegant tricks, optical illusions and mental magic at his soirées fantastiques . Instead of the garments that jugglers are used to, Robert-Houdin favored stylish, contemporary clothing and created an elegant style that particularly appealed to an intellectual audience. Although Robert-Houdin only worked as a magician for eleven years, he shaped the appearance of magicians for several generations.

Robert-Houdin invented many tricks that became classics, e.g. B. the ethereal boy , a forerunner of the " floating virgin ". Many of his illusions had tricky mechanical secrets and were based on the use of electricity. Robert-Houdin performed magic for the top of society and toured the UK and Germany. His magic theater was later taken over by the animation pioneer Georges Méliès , who showed his first films there.

The American magician Harry Houdini used the surname Houdini as a tribute to his role model Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin.

Machine pioneer

Robert Houdin Museum

Robert-Houdin designed several clocks with ingeniously hidden mechanisms, such as a clock whose hands move due to the shifting of the center of gravity. He also built all kinds of amusement machines such as a mechanical bird, an acrobat swinging on a trapeze and a singing bust. He developed various electrical signal systems for everyday use.

In honor of Robert-Houdin, a museum was set up in Blois opposite the château of the same name . Various of the machines he designed can also be viewed.

Other services

Robert-Houdin is the first author known by name of a book on cheating that was immediately translated into several languages. His autobiography, written with all kinds of poetic freedom, which has also been translated into many languages ​​(into German for the first time in 1969), is part of world literature and inspired, among other things. Harry Houdini , who even borrowed his last name from him, while the first name referred to Harry Kellar . In addition to numerous devices for entertainment purposes and signaling technology, Robert-Houdin also invented several instruments for examining the eyes. For this, the international ophthalmology congress in 1867 honored him with a gold medal.

propagandist

In his memoirs, Robert-Houdin reports on a mission undertaken on behalf of the French government during the Algerian war at the time . In order to prevent a rebellion by local magicians, the marabouts , in 1856, he was supposed to use his tricks to attract sympathy among the population, but also to illustrate the superiority of the French. Robert-Houdin had Algerians try in vain to lift a small box, which a little French girl managed to do with ease - since a hidden electromagnet had meanwhile been switched off. He also demonstrated catching rifle bullets, which he then shot at a wall, which then apparently began to bleed. Robert-Houdin finally convinced “that the magical power of France is ultimately far superior to the magic of the marabouts. The uprising was nipped in the bud ”.

Fonts

  • Confidences d'un prestidigitateur. Une vie d´artiste (1858) - Memoirs
  • Les Tricheries des Grecs dévoilés (1861) - card games
  • Note sur de nouveaux instruments propres à l'observation des divers organes de l'oeil ainsi qu'à la manifestation des images entoptiques (1867) - Devices for eye examination
  • Les secrets de la Prestidigitation et de la Magie (1868) - Magic
  • Les Radiations Lumineuses (1869) - Ophthalmology
  • Exploration de la Rétinue (1869) - Ophthalmology
  • Magie et Physique amusante (1877, posthumous) - magic and physics

Honors

Robert-Houdin has a seat in the Society of American Magicians Hall of Fame today .

The Académie des sciences has awarded him eleven times. In 1896, 25 years after his death, he was elected to the Société des gens de lettres .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Blockchain - a technology that is revolutionizing the way we think , Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Oct. 2, 2017
personal data
SURNAME Robert-Houdin, Jean Eugène
BRIEF DESCRIPTION French magician
DATE OF BIRTH December 7, 1805
PLACE OF BIRTH Blois
DATE OF DEATH June 13, 1871