A crystal clock that kept perfect time but appeared to have no moving parts, for example, or birds that would sing despite being made of metal.ĭespite his shaky beginnings as a magician, Robert-Houdin became famous indeed. Prior to opening his theater Robert-Houdin was well-known for his automatons, mechanical man and beast that would perform incredibly complex tasks due to the hidden mechanisms of the watchmaker craft. This, along with his use of slick, deceptive, and technically perfect magical automation is what earned him the title Father of Modern Magic. He recorded his discoveries in what would become the first playbook of the modern magician. Over time he developed a sense of the audience and the proper way to perform magic.

He had forgotten the lessons Torini had taught him and moved through his tricks too mechanically. At the age of 40 Robert-Houdin opened his very own theater but his first show bombed. In his memoirs Robert-Houdin later wrote of an encounter with a traveling magician by the name of Torini, from whom he learned the basics of showmanship. He practiced them in secret so as not to be thought frivolous, and both his watchmaking skill and his skill as a magician grew thanks to the constant exercises in manual dexterity. MagicianJean was fascinated and immediately began to learn various sleight-of-hand techniques. In a delicious twist of fate the bookseller accidentally gave him two volumes of scientific experiments, including the secrets behind many magic tricks. Determined to make something of his new career as a watchmaker, Jean purchased a set of books on horology. His fascination with the mechanical and toy making, however, was better suited to his father's trade and so young Jean was sent packing. Robert-Houdin was born to a famous watchmaker from Blois, and was sent to Orleans to study law as a young adult. Young Erich Weiss, some 100 years later, would mistakenly think that Robert-Houdin was the magician's first and last name, and added the letter 'i' to the end in belief that it would mean 'like Houdin.' Jean Eugène Robert-HoudinBorn Jean Eugène Robert in the early 1800s, Houdin would later be added to his name after his first marriage. Before Houdini, however, there was the man who put his stamp on Houdini's generation - France's greatest magician, Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin. Houdini's legendary escapes and bombastic personality put his stamp forever on the public perception of magic and magicians. Perhaps the most famous magician in the world was Harry Houdini.