Harry Houdini

Erik Weisz was born in Budapest, but his family moved to the U.S. when he was just 4. He began his magic career still as a teenager, and took on a stage name in homage to a French magician. He soon became experimenting with escape arts, and became most known for his wild escapes from chains, straitjackets, underwater, and ropes slung from skyscrapers. He was also president to the Society of American Magicians that expanded under his leadership and is still busy advancing and maintaining standards in the field of magic.