Since there was no process for patenting or copywriting magic tricks, famous illusionist Harry Houdini (neé Erik Weisz/Erich Weiss) found a way to perform a little legal sleight of hand to protect his professional trickery. In 1911, he developed a famous act, titled “The Chinese Water Torture Cell,” comprised of the magician’s feet being locked in stocks before he is suspended in mid-air from his ankles with a restraint brace, and then lowered into a glass tank overflowing with water. The restraint is locked to the top of the cell.
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