Houdini's Last Performance: The Final Curtain
Harry Houdini took the stage at Detroit's Garrick Theater on October 24, 1926, for what would be his final performance. He had been suffering from a ruptured appendix for days, likely aggravated by the punches J. Gordon Whitehead delivered to his abdomen two days earlier in Montreal. His temperature was 104 degrees. A doctor examined him backstage before the show and recommended immediate hospitalization. Houdini refused and went on. He collapsed partway through the performance but finished the show. He was taken to Grace Hospital after the curtain fell. Surgeons found a gangrenous appendix, but peritonitis had already set in. Houdini died a week later on October 31, Halloween, a date he had made his own through years of debunking spiritualists and staging death-defying escapes.
October 24, 1926
100 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on October 24
Vespasian’s legions crushed the forces of Emperor Vitellius at the Second Battle of Bedriacum, ending the chaotic Year of the Four Emperors. This decisive victo…
Vitellius had held Rome for eight months. His soldiers were drunk and undisciplined. Antonius Primus commanded legions from the Danube—hardened troops who'd bee…
Afonso Henriques took Lisbon back from the Moors with help from 13,000 Crusaders who'd stopped on their way to the Holy Land. The siege lasted four months. The …
The cathedral had burned in 1194. Only the crypt and west facade survived. Rebuilding took 66 years. King Louis IX attended the dedication with his entire court…
Qutuz had stopped the Mongols at Ain Jalut two months earlier, the first time anyone had defeated them in open battle. He was returning to Cairo in triumph. Bai…
Baybars seizes the Egyptian throne after his forces crush the Mongols at Ain Jalut and he assassinates his predecessor, Sultan Qutuz. This victory halts the Mon…
Talk to History
Have a conversation with historical figures who witnessed this era. Ask questions, explore perspectives, and bring history to life.