Dorothy Dietrich
Featured in Women In American History by Pat Lamphier
Dietrich, Dorothy (1969-) Third-Wave Feminism (1990-Present) Page 287 (1 of 2)
"An accomplished magician and escapologist, Dorothy
Dietrich is renowned for her work as the "female Houdini." She is the only woman to have performed the
bullet catch with her mouth and set a world record for
performing a Straitjacket escape while suspended hundreds of feet from a burning rope. Dietrich has dupli-
rated several of Harry Houdini's original escapes. She
is considered a world-class magician and has paved
the way for women in the male-dominated fields of
magic and escapology.
Dietrich was born on Halloween in 1969 in Erie.
Pennsylvania. Her brothers often had her play the tiedup damsel in distress during childhood games but she
learned to escape her bonds. As a girl she began reading books on Houdini. who became her idol. Dietrich
learned her tricks and escapes mostly from books.
When she was 13 years old she ran away to New Yotk
City to escape her abusive father. Her first break came
while working in a variety show in a working-class
venue in Times Square. Concurrently she worked for
the Parent Assembly of the Society of American Magiclans with well-known magicians such as Russell
Swann and Walter B. Gibson. who mentored the development of her skills. She also studied with AI
Flosso. a onetime regular on The Ed Sullivan Show, as
well as Jack London and Lou Lancaster. By the late
1980s and early 1990s Dietrich had become a favorite
act with New York booking agents
. |
Dietrich performed in nightclubs, resort hotels,
trad shows. and college auditoriums. She created a
routine with several types of animals, including doves,
rabbits, and poodles. She became noted for her expertise
as a dove worker. Dietrich also developed acts that
few women attempted, including sawing men in half,
escaping from a straitjacket, and levitating people chosen
from the audience. Along with Dick Brookz, Dietrich
was a founder of New York's Magic Towne House,
a popular attraction in New York City that became the
longest running magic show in the city's history. The
Magjc Towne House also became an important performance
venue for many aspiring magicians.
Dietrich is best known for her death-defying escape
from a straitjacket while suspended 15 stories
high from a buning rope and without a net, which she
performed for an HBO special. She is one of five people in the world attempt the feat and the only woman
to accomplish it. In addition, she successfully performed the bullet catch. She caught at .22-caliber bullet in a metal cup in her mouth at the International
Brotherhood of Magicians Convention. The stunt had
killed 12 men, and Houdini considered it too dangerous
to attempt. In 1988 Dietrich performed the bullet
catch at Donald Trump's Resorts International's 10th
anniversary in Atlantic City. The act was televised"
|
DOROTHY DIETRICH
Female Houdini (tm), First Lady of Magic, Pioneer woman magician, escape artist
Columbia University Encyclopedia picked the 8 most noted magicians of the late 20th century
and included... Siegfried and Roy... Doug Henning... Harry Blackstone, Jr.,
David Copperfield..... and Dorothy Dietrich.
The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition 2006
Columbia University Press
The Society of American bestowed her with the rare and best and highest award the Presidential Citation for her unique contributions to the art of magic.
Go to 
Dorothy_Dietrich_US_Magazine Feature Story
Go to
Dorothy Dietrich First Woman To Do The Original Official Broken Wand Ceremony For Houdini.
Go to
First Lady Of Magic-Female Houdini-Weekly World News
Go to
the photo session that made one of her posters possible.
Go to
Ron Walotsky: the world famous fantasy artist who painted this poster. He also did covers for Conan the Barbarian.
For availability call The Houdini Museum at (570) 342-5555
Go to
Magician Dietrich with celebrities such as Robert Klein, Muhammed Ali, Tony Curtis, Kiss, Tom Snyder, Bill Cosby, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, David Copperfield, Doug Henning, etc
Go to Magician Dietrich with some of her pet animals.
Go to
Magician Dietrich's exhibit at The Houdini Magic Hall of Fame in Niagara Falls before it burned down
Go to Magician Dorothy Dietrich's performing and winning first prize at the New York City Book Fair and representing Harper Collins new book by author Kenneth Silverman, "Houdini!!!".
Go to some of Magician Dorothy Dietrich's television appearances.
Go to Magician escape artist Female Houdini (tm) Dorothy Dietrich doing a daredevil style upside down Straight Jacket Escape 150 feet above the earth suspended from a burning rope after being put in by police and security guards. The only woman in history to do this stunt.
Go to Female Magician Dietrich doing the famous jinxed bullet catch stunt at Resorts International, the stunt that has killed twelve men, and injured many others. She is the first and only woman to ever catch a bullet in her mouth. Dare devil/magician Houdini backed away from doing this stunt!
Go to Woman Magician Dietrich doing the Jinxed Bullet Catch Stunt for the International Brotherhood of Magicians.
Go to The Famous Houdini Museum, of which Dorothy Dietrich is a director..
MagicUSA
The Society of American Magicians Cover story and 8 page biography about Dorothy Dietrich
Page 1 with pictures.
Page 2 with pictures.
Page 3 with pictures,
Page 4 with pictures,
Page 5 with pictures,
Page 6 with pictures,
Page 7 with pictures,
Page 8 with pictures.
END OF DOCUMENT
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