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Modern Day Houdini: Secrets of My 25 Greatest Escapes
 
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Modern Day Houdini: Secrets of My 25 Greatest Escapes [Paperback]

Dick Wolfsie (Author), Bill Shirk (Author)
2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)


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Paperback, October 1, 2003 --  

Book Description

October 1, 2003
For 30 years people have been calling Bill Shirk "crazy."

It doesn't seem fair. Just because he has buried himself alive 10 times, hung 1,600 feet from a helicopter in a straitjacket by an ice skate, run with the bulls in Pamplona (while in a straitjacket), and jumped off numerous bridges and cliffs.

He's been on 15 national TV shows; garned eight escape world records (including fastest time to get out of a straitjacket; highest escape from a straitjacket; and fastest jail escape), and laid claim to the title, world's greatest escape artist.

Everyone is fascinated by magic, and the mystique of Houdini-like performances have an even greater allure. How did he do that? Why did he do it? Now, for the first time, Bill Shirk reveals how he has done some of his greatest escapes. Some he stole from the great Harry Houdini (his hero), others he created himself. Each one different, each more spectacular and heart-pounding than the last. In an easy-to-read format supplemented by photographs of the event, Shirk gives the background to each escape, then details the method he used to accomplish each feat.

Learn how Shirk stuck his head in a bag with a hot rattlesnake; was run over by a train; or hung by an ice skate from a helicopter as he wiggled out of a straitjacket. Read how he survived being buried alive for three days with a python and a timber rattlesnake, and how he escaped from a jail while chained and handcuffed. See what happened when 10 tons of wet cement fell on top of him. How about hanging from a burning rope over a shark-infested pool? There are more examples. Lots more.

Of course, just because Shirk tells you how to get out of a straitjacket in four seconds doesn't mean you'll be able to do it. Once you know how to put your head in a bag with a rattlesnake, you'd rightly be crazy to try it. Leave it to the experts. As Shirk says, "If I was really crazy, I'd be dead."


Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Shirk, "the number one escape artist in the world," shares his life story, explaining how he went from being an afternoon disc jockey at an Indianapolis radio station to pulling stunts like being buried in a coffin underground for 96 hours with a python and a spider. With self-deprecating wit and honest assessments of his failures, Shirk, who admits that for many years he "had the biggest ego in the world," explains how he felt about 25 of his craziest escapes. About being suspended on a cable from a helicopter while dangling from one ankle 200 feet in the air, Shirk writes, "If you have some grand vision about soaring like a bird under a helicopter, you need a fantasy readjustment. This was not fun." Among Shirk's other escapades are being run over by a train (it missed hitting him by 6 inches, as he flattened himself on the tracks "half a second" before it arrived) and hanging from a burning rope, while handcuffed and chained, over a pool of 30 sharks. Photos.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"After 30 years in television, I thought I had seen or heard every outrageous story and interviewed every off-the-wall person. Then I read Modern Day Houdini. If you doubt that a story can spine-tingling and funny at the same time, put down your TV remote and pick up Bill Shirk's book."--Burt Dubrow former Executive Producer The Jerry Springer Show


"What a treat to be taken "backstage" into a profession that has fascinated people since Harry Houdini. A behind the scenes of the world's greatest escape artist. An incredible read about the planning, pain, motivation, endurance and fear that go into an escape."-- Carl Andrews
International Award-Winning Magician

Product Details

  • Paperback: 240 pages
  • Publisher: Lyons Press; 1st edition (October 1, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1592281966
  • ISBN-13: 978-1592281961
  • Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7 x 0.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,012,415 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Average Customer Review
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars The secret: there are no secrets here, February 13, 2004
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"arthurford" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Modern Day Houdini: Secrets of My 25 Greatest Escapes (Paperback)
I was disappointed in this book. Though 25 escapes are described, with various misadventures, etc., there are hardly any tips or tricks revealed. Good from a magician's code of honor viewpoint, but misleading. I was also disappointed in the photos-to-text ratio - nothing wrong with lots of photos, but most of these scream 'filler' to me. I think this is a perfectly ok book if you want to read what it's like to do Guinness Book-type stunts. If you're a Houdini fan, there's better out there.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars self important tripe, July 22, 2004
This review is from: Modern Day Houdini: Secrets of My 25 Greatest Escapes (Paperback)
This what happen when a lay-person as opposed to an actual magician writes a book - don't waste your time. The entire book is about a self indulgent egotist.
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