THE HOUDINI WAY

Before he was a legend, Harry Houdini was a struggling entertainer that nobody wanted to book. Within a few years he was the most famous man alive, with no internet, no mass media and no advertising budget.

He did it with methods, not magic tricks. In this keynote, magic historian Dean Carnegie reveals the business strategies behind Houdini’s rise, and shows how your people can use them today:

• Make the press tell your story. How Houdini earned headlines instead of buying ads.
• Turn a challenge into publicity. The escape challenges that packed theaters in every city.
• Reinvent before you go stale. Why he changed his act every time it began to fade.
• Defend your brand. How he dealt with the imitators who copied him.
• Invent yourself. Self-invention as a deliberate strategy.

Nearly 100 years after his death, Houdini’s name is still known around the world, while the other stars of his day are forgotten. That didn’t happen by accident.

Dean Carnegie is the historian of record on Houdini. He hosted the Arte television documentary on Houdini, has published more than 700 articles on magic history, hosts The Magic Detective podcast, has been featured on two MAGIC Magazine covers, and has spoken at TEDx. Nobody else can give this talk.

Bring The Houdini Way to your conference.