Who is the most famous Magician of all time? And why?
The most famous magician on this list, Hungary-born Houdini was part magician and part entertainer, thrilling audiences all over the globe who traveled from far and wide to see him escape from impossible situations.
He was most famous for his ability to escape from what seemed like anything and everything, including ropes, handcuffs, straight jackets, jail cells, water-filled milk cans, and even nailed-shut boxes that had been thrown into a river.
It seemed like there was nothing Houdini could not escape from and nothing he could not make audiences believe. He was even able to make an elephant disappear!
Houdini began to expose the tricks used by mediums. He gave lectures on the topic and often included demonstrations of these tricks during his performances. He joined a committee organized by Scientific American and analyzed claims for a $2,500 prize for true psychic phenomena (no one ever received the prize). He spoke in front of the U.S. House of Representatives, supporting a proposed bill that would ban telling fortunes for pay in Washington D.C.
Even though Houdini brought about some skepticism, it seemed to create more interest in Spiritualism. The result being  Spiritualists were extremely upset at Houdini and he received several death threats.