Observance Daily What day is today, and why are we celebrating it?
National Magic Day is celebrated every year on 31 October in honour of Harry Houdini and the art of magic.
History: Houdini, born Ehrich Weiss in Budapest in 1874, became the most famous magician and escape artist in history, known for escapes from chains, ropes, handcuffs, straitjackets, locked boxes and water-filled milk cans. He died on 31 October 1926 in Detroit from peritonitis after a ruptured appendix. Less than a year later, in the summer of 1927, magicians began observing Houdini Day, with his wife Bess presenting a trophy in his honour. In 1938 Les Sholty, a Chicago member of the Society of American Magicians, sought official sanction, and with Bess Houdini’s permission 31 October was proclaimed National Magic Day. The Society, of which Houdini had been president, later expanded the celebration into National Magic Week, 25 to 31 October, with free performances for hospitals, schools, nursing homes and shut-ins. In 2026 the day marks 100 years since Houdini’s death.
How to celebrate: learn a simple card trick or coin trick, watch a magic show, read about Houdini’s escapes, and share a safe, family-friendly trick with children.
Facts: Houdini was also a prolific writer and a fierce opponent of fake mediums and pseudoscience; he was not killed by a failed escape, but by illness after appendicitis; his wife held a Final Houdini Seance ten years after his death.
Related: see also https://observancedaily.com/october-31