New Handcuff Queens Website

I just started a new blog devoted to female escape artists during the Houdini era, www.handcuffqueens.com . The feature article is “Pauline Braham – The First Queen of Handcuffs.” She and her husband Lewis were the first ones to present what came to be known as a “handcuff challenge act.” Hope to add a couple of articles each month. So far, I have found around 60 performers. Sadly, there is very little information on most of them. Please let me know If have any information, photos, ephemera or the like on these amazing escape artists.

Gary Hunt

I just started a new blog devoted to female escape artists during the Houdini era, www.handcuffqueens.com . The feature article is “Pauline Braham – The First Queen of Handcuffs.” She and her husband Lewis were the first ones to present what came to be known as a “handcuff challenge act.” Hope to add a couple of articles each month. So far, I have found around 60 performers. Sadly, there is very little information on most of them. Please let me know If have any information, photos, ephemera or the like on these amazing escape artists.

Gary Hunt

Only pic I have. Came from an earlier thread in this forum.
-Richard Knip-

I just started a new blog devoted to female escape artists during the Houdini era, www.handcuffqueens.com . The feature article is “Pauline Braham – The First Queen of Handcuffs.” She and her husband Lewis were the first ones to present what came to be known as a “handcuff challenge act.” Hope to add a couple of articles each month. So far, I have found around 60 performers. Sadly, there is very little information on most of them. Please let me know If have any information, photos, ephemera or the like on these amazing escape artists.

Gary Hunt

Found this while browsing on Youtube. Not as old as the other examples...but still a female escape artist. Never heard of her, though. Needs some work on the escape technique. LOL!
-RK-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCURaI3oz9g

I just started a new blog devoted to female escape artists during the Houdini era, www.handcuffqueens.com . The feature article is “Pauline Braham – The First Queen of Handcuffs.” She and her husband Lewis were the first ones to present what came to be known as a “handcuff challenge act.” Hope to add a couple of articles each month. So far, I have found around 60 performers. Sadly, there is very little information on most of them. Please let me know If have any information, photos, ephemera or the like on these amazing escape artists.

Gary Hunt

Magicians here, will of course recognize female magician, Celeste Evans - in the clip above.

http://www.celesteevansmagic.com/

She certainly didn't make her fame doing "escapes", and the above strait-jacket escape may have been the only time she even did an "escape". She was known for her glamour, beauty, and magic act (i.e. Doves and card manipulations).

I just started a new blog devoted to female escape artists during the Houdini era, www.handcuffqueens.com . The feature article is “Pauline Braham – The First Queen of Handcuffs.” She and her husband Lewis were the first ones to present what came to be known as a “handcuff challenge act.” Hope to add a couple of articles each month. So far, I have found around 60 performers. Sadly, there is very little information on most of them. Please let me know If have any information, photos, ephemera or the like on these amazing escape artists.

Gary Hunt

A great quest! Best of luck.

I'm looking forward to the finished project.

Nils

I just started a new blog devoted to female escape artists during the Houdini era, www.handcuffqueens.com . The feature article is “Pauline Braham – The First Queen of Handcuffs.” She and her husband Lewis were the first ones to present what came to be known as a “handcuff challenge act.” Hope to add a couple of articles each month. So far, I have found around 60 performers. Sadly, there is very little information on most of them. Please let me know If have any information, photos, ephemera or the like on these amazing escape artists.

Gary Hunt

Keep up the good work, this is fascinating history and it should be preserved and recorded.

I just started a new blog devoted to female escape artists during the Houdini era, www.handcuffqueens.com . The feature article is “Pauline Braham – The First Queen of Handcuffs.” She and her husband Lewis were the first ones to present what came to be known as a “handcuff challenge act.” Hope to add a couple of articles each month. So far, I have found around 60 performers. Sadly, there is very little information on most of them. Please let me know If have any information, photos, ephemera or the like on these amazing escape artists.

Gary Hunt

Thanks for all the kind comments and information.

Mark: May Delkano (Serenzia Maks Trinz) was married to Harry Trinz, and they performed as the Delkanos. This photo is from 1905 when they were in the sideshow with “Maccaddon’s Great International Shows”. This was supposed to be a multiyear tour of Europe. However, it soon went bankrupt in August of 1905 and stranded several hundred performers in France. The Delkanos did not get back to the US until January 1906, when they started to perform again.

The “Handcuff Queen” is Madame Zingara. I think she performed in England.

Richard: One of my favorite photos of Sirronje (Florence Enright Norris 1879-1947). She and Minerva were the most successful of the handcuff queens.

Will be posting some new articles soon. Will let everyone know when they are up.

Gary

I just started a new blog devoted to female escape artists during the Houdini era, www.handcuffqueens.com . The feature article is “Pauline Braham – The First Queen of Handcuffs.” She and her husband Lewis were the first ones to present what came to be known as a “handcuff challenge act.” Hope to add a couple of articles each month. So far, I have found around 60 performers. Sadly, there is very little information on most of them. Please let me know If have any information, photos, ephemera or the like on these amazing escape artists.

Gary Hunt

Just added two new articles to Handcuffqueens.com . One is on Marie Shannon who left a very successful juvenile singing group to become an escape artist. The other is on “Shee”, the Female Houdini,” who did a suspended straitjacket escape as the closing effect of her vaudeville act. Enjoy