Joe Posnanski on the Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini

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4.7 • 4.3K Ratings

🗓️ 23 December 2019

⏱️ 85 minutes

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Summary

Journalist and author Joe Posnanski talks about his book, The Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Posnanski explores the enduring fame of Houdini who remains an iconic cultural figure almost a century after his death. Topics discussed include the nature of celebrity, the nature of ambition, parenting, magic, and the use of public relations to create and sustain reputation and celebrity.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Econ Talk, part of the Library of Economics and Liberty.
0:07.7	I'm your host, Russ Roberts of Stanford University's Hoover Institution.
0:12.3	Our website is econtalk.org where you can subscribe, comment on this podcast, and find links
0:17.6	and other information related to today's conversation.
0:20.4	You'll also find our archives where you can listen to every episode we've ever done
0:24.4	going back to 2006.
0:26.8	Before you mail address ismailadycontalk.org.
0:29.3	We'd love to hear from you.
0:33.6	Today is November 6, 2019, and my guest is journalist and author, Joe Pustanski.
0:38.6	Joe is probably my favorite sports writer working today, and maybe my favorite writer, period.
0:43.0	He is a senior writer for the athletic and he blogs at Joe Blogs, his latest book, and
0:48.1	the topic for today's episode, which is a little out of the ordinary content, but I think
0:52.4	you'll see how it ties in.
0:54.5	His latest book is the life and after life of Harry Houdini.
0:58.7	Joe, welcome to Econ Talk.
1:00.7	It's great.
1:01.7	Thank you.
1:02.7	This is a very strange and delightful book.
1:04.9	It's strange because it is not really a biography of Houdini.
1:08.5	It looks like one with a life of, but it turns out we don't know much about him that's
1:12.6	reliable, and I would describe it more as an homage to the idea of Houdini, the impact
1:17.6	of Houdini on the world even today.
	...

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