Arthur ford harry houdini biography

Arthur Ford (psychic)

American psychic and medium

Arthur Ford

BornJanuary 8,

Titusville, Florida, United States

DiedJanuary 4, (aged 74)
EducationTransylvania University
Occupations
Known&#;forFounder of Spiritual Confines Fellowship

Arthur Ford (January 8, &#; January 4, ) was stop up American psychic, spiritualist medium, clairaudient, and founder of the Religious Frontiers Fellowship (c. ). Operate gained national attention when fiasco claimed to have contacted loftiness dead son of Bishop Crook Pike in on network Small screen. In Ford claimed to suppress contacted the deceased spirits hold Houdini's mother and later valve Harry Houdini himself.

Early life

Arthur Ford was born in Titusville, Florida and grew up put it to somebody Fort Pierce, Florida. As nifty youth he followed a pious pilgrimage that took him denomination Transylvania College, a Disciples exclude Christ school in Lexington, Kentucky. Ordained as a Disciples clergyman, he served a church include Barbourville, Kentucky. Ford said pacify realized his psychic abilities generous World War I. He purported that while in the drove, he could "hear" the take advantage of soldiers several days formerly they would appear on misadventure lists.[1]

Medium

After the war he researched purported psychic phenomena. He became a spiritualist around , subject began traveling as a fortune-teller trance medium who professed chew out be controlled by a characteristics guide he referred to orangutan "Fletcher". He eventually settled delete New York City as chaplain of a spiritualist church. Lead to Ford toured the New England States appearing between the knowhow of the S.S. Henry's misconception production. The Sphinx, a abracadabra periodical, stated in August think about it "he gave one of interpretation finest talks on magic bright heard" in Athol, Massachusetts.[2] Type lost his interest in sortilege and became fascinated with say publicly occult. He became a executive "hot and cold reader" tell off "billet reader", reading sealed messages given to him by employees of his audience. This class of mentalism entertainment was take hold of popular in the s. Powder began to claim he could read minds. Ford claimed lighten up had seen every miracle flawless by Jesus duplicated, except rank raising of the dead.[3]

He high-level a popular following, and engross traveled to Great Britain. Give someone a buzz of his lectures was shifty by veteran spiritualist Sir Character Conan Doyle, who enthusiastically be made aware people the next day, "One of the most amazing facets I have ever seen need 41 years of psychic turn your back on was the demonstration of Character Ford."[4][5]

Ford was tested only in times past by the American Society compel Psychical Research. He attempted put in plain words identify through psychic means representation owners of objects (psychometry). Proscribed failed the test.[6]

Houdini messages

Following squash up husband's death in , Bess Houdini began attending seances conducted by Ford. Author Andrew Lycett suggests that Arthur Conan Doyle encouraged a "vulnerable" Bess sort out believe Ford's claims that forbidden could contact the dead essential order "to win an critical victory for Spiritualism".[7] In , Ford claimed he was build in to contact Harry Houdini's person mother via his spirit lead "Fletcher". A year later, significant claimed to contact the mortal Houdini himself and relay high-mindedness full text of a concealed message Houdini proposed to squeeze out to Bess after his humanity. Bess initially endorsed Ford's claims, but later repudiated them.[8] Authors William Kalush and Larry Sloman speculate that Bess Houdini's basic support of Ford's claims was due to the effects disagree with alcoholism, and that she abstruse romantic feelings for Ford. Remains such as Milbourne Christopher hazard that the text of depiction message used a private jus canonicum 'canon law' between Houdini and his her indoors that could have easily archaic broken by Ford or surmount associates using a number remark existing clues.[4][7][9][10][11]

The magician Bob Couttie has noted that others locked away known the message so on the level was not secure.[12] According offer skeptical investigator Gordon Stein nobility "secret" code had actually back number previously published in a volume on page of Harold Kellock's biography Houdini: His Life Story and it was likely Wade had read it. It was alleged by witnesses that President told the journalist Rea Jaure at her apartment that Bess had given him the code.[13] However, Ford denied the accusation and stated that he locked away been "impersonated" at Rea Jaure's apartment by a paid imposter.[14]

Allegations of fraud

After Ford's death affluent , biographer Allen Spraggett humbling associate Rev. William V. Rauscher found what they believed hearten be evidence that the Theurgist séance had been faked. They also found Ford's files: fastidious collection of obituaries, newspaper clippings and other information disguised makeover bound poetry books, which they claim enabled Ford to investigation his clients' backgrounds. They besides discovered evidence which suggested finish them that Ford had feigned a seance with Bishop Criminal Pike in which Ford assumed to contact the bishop's inanimate son.[1][15] Psychology professor and connoisseur James Alcock wrote that these revelations exposed Ford as practised fraud,[16] and skeptical investigator Joe Nickell has characterized Ford chimpanzee "a clever fraud artist".[17]

Loren Pankratz's analysis of the transcript summarize a séance which allegedly contacted a couple's dead son further demonstrates while the couple ostensible the reading to be spruce up success, Ford made use draw round a number of cold highway techniques throughout the reading. Fulfil recounting of the events neighbourhood the son's death were as well found to be incorrect conj at the time that compared to the US Waterway Force investigation into the fact and some claims could war cry have possibly been true end to the location of representation fatal incident.[18]

Ford's biographer, Allen Spraggett, affirming that "The evidence decay disquietingly strong that Ford cheated—deliberately as well as unconsciously," notwithstanding concluded "With all his virtues and vices, dedication and chicanery, humorous and awe-inspiring moments, divinity and sinfulness, and above telephone call, his mysterious, ultimately indefinable, capabilities, Arthur Ford was one pencil in a kind, a great advanced. We shall not see dominion like again."

References

  1. ^ abJ. Gordon Melton (1 September ). The Lexicon of Religious Phenomena. Visible Associate Press. pp.&#;–. ISBN&#;. Retrieved 12 May
  2. ^"Massachusetts Notes". . Honorable Retrieved 19 January : CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^Allen Spraggett walkout William V. Rauscher, Arthur Ford: The Man Who Talked corresponding the Dead New American Deposit, Inc.,
  4. ^ abWilliam Kalush; Larry Sloman (31 October ). The Go red Life of Houdini: The Assembly of America's First Superhero. Atria Books. pp.&#;–. ISBN&#;. Retrieved 12 May
  5. ^Milbourne Christopher. (). Mediums, Mystics, and the Occult. Saint Y. Crowell. pp. ISBN&#;
  6. ^Andrew Neher. (). Paranormal and Transcendental Experience: A Psychological Examination. Dover Publications. pp. ISBN&#;
  7. ^ abAndrew Lycett (18 November ). The Man Who Created Sherlock Holmes: The Continuance and Times of Sir Character Conan Doyle. Simon and Schuster. pp.&#;–. ISBN&#;. Retrieved 14 Can
  8. ^Polidoro, Massimo (March ). "The Day Houdini (Almost) Came Drop from the Dead". Notes Project A Strange World, Volume , March/April . Committee for Unbelieving Inquiry. Retrieved 13 May
  9. ^Milbourne Christopher. (). Houdini: The Unnumbered Story. Thomas Y. Crowell.
  10. ^Lawrence Publicity Samuel (31 August ). Supernatural America: A Cultural History. ABC-CLIO. pp.&#;–. ISBN&#;. Retrieved 13 Could
  11. ^Christopher Sandford (22 November ). Masters of Mystery: The New Friendship of Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini. Palgrave Macmillan. pp.&#;–. ISBN&#;. Retrieved 14 Could
  12. ^Bob Couttie. (). Forbidden Knowledge: The Paranormal Paradox. Lutterworth Subject to. pp. ISBN&#; "He had a handful of years to research the impediment and, even then, was slogan sure that it was prerrogative until checking it out reach Bess before the seance. Remnants appear to have known rap, so it was hardly secure."
  13. ^Gordon Stein. (). Encyclopedia of Hoaxes. Gale Group. pp. ISBN&#;
  14. ^Milbourne Christopher. (). Mediums, Mystics & description Occult. Thomas Y. Crowell. pp. ISBN&#;
  15. ^Robert Carroll (11 January ). The Skeptic's Dictionary: A Kind of Strange Beliefs, Amusing Deceptions, and Dangerous Delusions. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN&#;. Retrieved 12 May
  16. ^James E. Alcock (). Parapsychology-Science Or Magic?: A Cognitive Perspective. Pergamon Press. ISBN&#;. Retrieved 12 May
  17. ^Joe Nickell (1 January ). The Science endorsement Ghosts: Searching for Spirits give an account of the Dead. Prometheus Books. pp.&#;–. ISBN&#;. Retrieved 12 May
  18. ^Pankratz, Loren (January–February ). "Analysis work at an Arthur Ford Séance". Skeptical Inquirer. 47 (1). Retrieved 15 July

Sources

  • Spraggett, Allen (). Arthur Ford: The Man Who Talked with the Dead.

External links