31 Days of Halloween | Day 31: Halloween — 100 Years After Houdini's Death

About this episode

On Halloween night in 1936, a group of people gathered on the roof of Hollywood's Knickerbocker Hotel. At the center of the gathering sat Bess Houdini, widow of the legendary escape artist Harry Houdini. Ten years earlier, Houdini had died on October 31, 1926. Before his death, he and Bess had agreed upon a secret message. If he could communicate from beyond the grave, she would know it was really him. For a decade, she waited. And on that Halloween night in 1936, she made one final attempt to reach her husband. Now, exactly one hundred years after Houdini's death, we're exploring the strange, sometimes disturbing history of Halloween in America. From ancient Irish traditions and Victorian fortune-telling rituals to the origins of trick-or-treating, we'll uncover how Halloween evolved into the holiday we know today. We'll investigate the terrifying legend of poisoned Halloween candy and the true story of Ronald O'Bryan, the Texas father who murdered his own son with a poisoned treat. We'll revisit the infamous 1938 War of the Worlds radio broadcast, the devastating 1963 Indianapolis Coliseum explosion, and Detroit's notorious Devil's Night fires. And finally, we'll return