Hanussen: Hitler's Jewish Clairvoyant (Hardcover)

~ Mel Gordon (Author) "Erik Jan Hanussen was conceived out of wedlock and delivered by a midwife in the holding cell of a precinct jail in Vianna's Ottakring district..." (more)
Key Phrases: Erik Jan Hanussen, New York, Hypnotist Points (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Erik Jan Hanussen psychic, hypnotist, astrologer, amateur detective and publisher of tabloids was born Herschmann-Chaim Steinschneider in 1889 in a Viennese jail cell and murdered in Berlin in 1933 on the orders of SA officers who owed him money. His remarkable life is the subject of Berkeley professor Mel Gordon's Erik Jan Hanussen: Hitler's Jewish Clairvoyant, a fascinating account of Hanussen's many activities, many names and many lovers, supplemented by excerpts from Hanussen's writings and scores of illustrations (publicity posters, Hitler's astrological chart and advertisements for Hanussen's Sex Creme, for example). Hanussen's association with Hitler, which began when he predicted the future fehrer would rule Germany, was very brief, but Gordon does a good job of exploring this baffling alliance.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Gordon (theater arts, Berkeley) provides a detailed reconstruction of the career of the shadowy figure Erik Jan Hanussen. An Austrian Jew who went through several stage names during his adult life, Hanussen is chiefly remembered as the clairvoyant who held s ances for Hitler and who was murdered by the Nazis in 1933. Gordon has assembled an impressive amount of material reconstructing not only the details of Hanussen's life but also how he marketed himself as a magician, psychic, and occultist. In the process, the reader learns a great deal about the underworld of central European carnivals, magic stage shows, and in particular the spiritualism that gained prominence after the Great War. Although his reconstruction of Hanussen's life is impressive, Gordon is on less firm ground historically, making several small errors (e.g., he refers to the Hapsburgs as the "Duo-Monarchy"). In addition, his thesis that Hitler was unelectable in 1932 until Hanussen's involvement changed the course of history is one few historians are likely to back. Recommended with reservations for public and specialized libraries. Frederic Krome, Jacob Rader Marcus Ctr. of the American Jewish Archives, Cincinnati
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 274 pages
• Publisher: Feral House (November 20, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0922915687
• ISBN-13: 978-0922915682
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #288,967 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #30 in

  Books > History > Europe > Czech Republic

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sensational mix of politics and the supernatural, June 19, 2005

By	krebsman (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

Jan Erik Hanussen was a con man. But was he also a true clairvoyant? This hair-raisingly sensational biography draws no conclusions on that point, but raises some compelling evidence. There has been very little printed in English about the enigmatic Hanussen; and some of the German sources are suspect, as Hanussen himself altered documents and the Nazis destroyed as much evidence about him as possible. But Mel Gordon has nonetheless come through with a splendid book. On one level it's a rag-to-riches tale of a poor Jewish boy named Herman Steinschneider who re-invents himself as Danish royalty and develops an act that makes him one of the biggest stars of the era. But it becomes a kind of political thriller when the closet Jew attracts the admiration of up-and-coming politician Adolf Hitler. Not only that: the star has made enemies on his climb to the top who now see an opportunity to exact revenge. The life of Steinschneider/Hanussen was every bit as dramatic as fiction.

Parts of this book are disturbing, especially the harrowing scenes of his "training" a woman for a circus act that involved being run over and having a rock crushed on her. There are also scenes of Nazi sex orgies in which some of the participants are hypnotized. One of the most shocking things in the book is the plausible suggestion that Hanussen himself was responsible for the burning of the Reichstag by hypnotizing the ne'er-do-well communist Marinus van der Lubbe and commanding him to set the fire. This was the event that brought Hitler to power, resulting in World War II and the mass extinction of perhaps as many as six million Jews (with one of the first to go being Hanussen nee Steinschneider).

This is a dynamite book. Its sensational story is supported by more than a hundred black-and-white photographs as well as translated reprints of contemporary newspaper and magazine articles. The book includes an index, bibliography and notes. Gordon's thought-provoking book is a formidable accomplishment in the literature about World War II. Outstanding.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Man, February 8, 2002

By	Brad Henderson (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews

Jan Hanussen used simple conjuring tricks and an uncanny understanding of human nature to become the most celebrated and equally reviled psychic of the 1920-30's. Hanussen was the subject of numerous scandals and court cases, yet nevertheless managed to become so entrenched within the Nazi circle of political power that there was only one way out, his execution. Mel Gordon chronicles the life of this fascinating character. Though not the easiest read in the world, the players become so engaging that one truly wants to see how everything plays out. Did Hanussen have a latent gift? That will never be answered. The more interesting question, I think, is how did someone using his limited knowledge and informal training manage to capture the attention of an entire culture. I enjoyed the time I spent with this book and would like to have seen more of the "source materials" from which the author derived his conclusions. Those that were presented, I felt, were the gems of the book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Had to Have This, September 15, 2008

By	Bonnielu "Bonnielu" (Western, Maryland) - See all my reviews

After seeing the movie the Illusionist our curiousity was peaked. What a a great companion to the movie. Cover to cover it was well written and very engaging. I love the unusual and unique and this book certainly qualifies.