Manny Weltman

Manny Weltman was born in Ohio. A well-known and regarded biographer and bibliographer on legendary magician and escape artist Harry Houdini, Weltman amassed an extensive collection on Houdini over a fifty year period that included an autograph diary Houdini kept in 1916 and a scrapbook on spiritualism that was given to Houdini by noted psychic researcher Henry Ridgely Evans. Moreover, Manny not only was the author of the books "Houdini: A Definitive Bibliography" (1991) and "Houdini: Escape Into Legend - The Early Years" (1993), but also was an accomplished close-up magician as well as an original member of the Magic Castle in Hollywood, California, was a regular contributor to a monthly opera guide, and even appeared in several films and TV shows in small roles. Weltman died at age 62 on May 16, 1994 in Los Angeles, California.