Snapshots of the Past

[Houdini versus products of the Weed Chain Tire Grip Company] – Antique Print

[Houdini versus products of the Weed Chain Tire Grip Company], [after 1913] — historic print
[Houdini versus products of the Weed Chain Tire Grip Company], [after 1913]. Historic print from the Astrology & Magic collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

A window into the past: [Houdini versus products of the Weed Chain Tire Grip Company], preserved in this historic print. The original is held by the Library of Congress, so what you hang is a true record of its time.

The framed print arrives ready to hang; the unframed option suits custom framing. Perfect for a home, office, library or classroom wall, and a gift with a story behind it. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Snapshots of the Past has been bringing history to the wall since 2001, for tens of thousands of customers worldwide.

[Houdini versus products of the Weed Chain Tire Grip Company]

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Eight padlocked Weed chains, two steel-rimmed automobile wheels, and handcuffs and leg irons made Houdini's May 22, 1908, escape a harder test than the six-chain release he had performed on April 10. The Weed Chain Tire Grip Company made anti-skid chains for automobile tires, and this advertisement, dated after 1913, reuses the spectacle to promote the product. Houdini's escapes were staged as public challenges, and the Friday evening performance was billed as an even more demanding version of his earlier feat. The halftone process used here, which breaks the image into a pattern of dots, was standard for mass-produced magazine and newspaper advertising of the period.

Created / published[after 1913]
Medium1 photomechanical print : halftone.
NotesThis advertisement for the Genius of Escape Who Will Startle and Amaze
Subjectsrecalls Houdini in one of his earlier and most famous challenge events. On the evening of April 10, 1908, Houdini overcame six padlocked Weed Chains. On Friday evening, May 22, 1908--challenged to outdo himself--he performed an even more amazing version of this escape by liberating himself from eight padlocked Weed chains used in combination with two steel-rimmed automobile wheels. For added excitement, handcuffs and leg irons were also employed. Release demanded extreme effort, but Houdini emerged triumphant.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan1,432 × 1,147 px · prints to 5 × 4 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-217296

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