HOUDINI Chinese Water Torture Cell Restored, 2002
Houdini's Chinese Water Torture Cell was almost entirely destroyed in a fire at the Houdini Hall of Fame in Niagara Falls, Ontario, in 1996. The owner of the apparatus, Sid Radner, hired John Gaughan of Los Angeles to rebuild the famous illusion using the original hardware. John had inspected the illusion in 1991 and was familiar with its secrets. The beautifully restored illusion is now on loan for display in Las Vegas at the Houdini Magic Museum owned by Geno Munari of the Houdini Magic Shops. This photo shows Henry Mueller who owned the Houdini Hall of Fame, Bill Brehm creator of this website, Sid Radner, and John Gaughan. The illusion was at New York, New York, hotel and casino for the Official Houdini Seance on Halloween 2002.