All stories

1 outlets · filed 31 October 2026

100 years later, Harry Houdini's death still haunts Detroit

This story is from the archive. It was covered between 31 October 2026 and 31 October 2026, and nothing below has been updated since. See what is happening now.

The legacy of magician Harry Houdini still looms large in Detroit 100 years after his death there. Some mark the anniversary of Houdini's death by trying to make contact with his spirit.

What the coverage shows

Both outlets frame the anniversary around Houdini’s death remaining culturally alive a century later, and both mention lingering questions or fascination around it. NPR emphasizes Detroit and says some people mark the date by trying to contact his spirit, while Fox News foregrounds the uncertainty itself, noting the official peritonitis explanation and saying theories about punches, mediums and murder still fuel debate.

Written by Crossfiled from the 1 headlines and extracts below, not from the articles themselves. It describes how the outlets framed this, not what happened. Open any headline for a summary of that article.

NPR

How it broke

In this story

1outlets
0videos
1articles