Hey Scott Leavitt:
I felt bad for leaving you with a defunct BBC link. So here's another you may enjoy (as well as the Houdini diehards).
Go to http://www.wellesnet.com/sketchbook4.htm and scroll down the page a bit and you will see a nifty little story about Houdini and the Kremlin as well as a sketch of Houdini by, I presume, Orson Welles.
Credit goes to "icicular" who posted this link on The Magic Cafe website.
Clay