Magician. As a child, he liked to play dangerous games of "chicken" with oncoming trains to amuse his friends, among other things. At the age of 10, a chemical experiment went wrong, and he blasted the floor of a drugstore where he worked. Instead of facing his parents, he jumped a train and found a minister in upstate New York who offered to adopt him if he would study for the ministry. When they went to see a traveling show, he was captivated by The Fakir of Ava, and as he later confided to Houdini, he immediately got the urge to go on the stage. He obtained books on magic and left to go find Fakir, becoming his assistant and beginning his professional training. His first solo performance was at the age of 16, but he did not try again for two years. He was always in financial trouble and tried to avoid creditors, and would improvise equipment borrowed from locals. In 1869 at the age of 20, he took a job with the renowned Davenport Brothers and Fay who were later admired by magicians as the first successful stage mediums. Their innovations laid the foundation for Houdini's escape act. He then worked as an assistant then as business manager for the Davenport Brothers, who let themselves be bound to seats in a large wooden cabinet on stage, then made unseen forces strum guitars, ring bells, and hurl tambourines through the dark. He then went out on his own again in 1873, taking Fay with him. Combining his old magic tricks with a Davenport-inspired séance, he and Fay embarked on a long and successful tour through Canada, Mexico, and South America. In 1875, after a shipwreck on their trip to England left them destitute on arrival, Fay left to rejoin the Davenports. Refusing to give up, he formed a new troupe called The Royal Illusionists. For the next 30 years, through constant travel and skill, he would become one of the best-known magicians in the world. Houdini became a frequent guest at Kellar's estate in Los Angeles, and the two became great friends. Much of what is known about him comes through Houdini, who conducted several interviews as part of his effort to chronicle the history of their craft. Long after he had retired and just a few years before his death, Houdini convinced his friend to appear on stage for a show to benefit the families of the men who died when the troop transport Antilles was sunk by a German U-boat. Never one for understatement, Houdini arranged for Kellar to be literally carried off in triumph after his final public performance, as 6000 spectators sang "Auld Lang Syne." It was a fitting end to a truly magical career.