A Friend of Houdini's named Carlos Maria de Heredia SJ

[Heredia Finder]

I am looking for any information on a friend of Houdini's named Father Carlos (Charles) de Heredia SJ. He was a Jesuit combatant of spiritualism and wrote Spiritism And Common sense which Houdini mentions in his own book. I believe he is a distant relative of mine and would like any personal letters or anything about him because this side of my tree is covered in mystery and confusion because the woman he told was his niece later on in life was orphaned as a child. Thanks, Ciaran
Ps I am new to the forum and am not sure if I am posting this correctly please help...

[Ted M]

I'm sure you've read this foreword to Spiritism and Common Sense, but this may give others leads to go on, such as the association with Hermann:

Publishers' Foreword

The author of this book, Rev. C. M. de Heredia, S.J., is so interesting a personality to meet, so fascinating when he, a Jesuit of dignity, is at play with his "ghosts" and ectoplasmic "spirits" that we give here, for the reader's benefit, a short account and description of him as taken from an interview, "The Secret of Spirit Trickery," printed in the Boston Sunday Post of March 14, 1920.

"Father Heredia is a rather short, stocky man, of Mexican birth, with a little forward thrust of his head and two of the most amazing blue eyes I ever saw. One moment they are looking at you, dreamily, quietly, almost sleepily. And the next they sharpen to a point and gaze through your skull at the wall behind you. The effect was most discomforting to skeptical me.

"For Father Heredia is a master of magic and mystification, a student in his youth of the great Herrmann, an artist supreme of the arts of the medium and clairvoyant. Yet, as he told me, his delving into the mystery of the shadowy world of the unseen is only a hobby. Primarily he is a studenta student of the modern languages and the classics, of philosophy and science. His father was a very rich Mexican, who had built a private theater for him and his brothers. When any celebrity came to Mexico, the father arranged to have him come and give a private performance in the boys' theater. Once Herrmann, the famous magician, was in Mexico, and performed before the boys in their theater. The father was so impressed at the magician's skill that he arranged to have him teach the boys his art. With this instruction by Herrmann began Father Heredia's interest in magic. All through his life he has followed the various tricks of the great magicians, many of whom have been personal acquaintances of his.

"When spiritism became popular, he perceived that most mediums were but unadept magicians, and devoted his spare time to disclosing many of their so-called mysterious powers."

P.J. Kenedy & Sons

[Heredia Finder]

Yes I had seen this thanks though. I have read that they were friends (Houdini and Heredia) do you know if I would be able to find letters written between the two archived anywhere, online or otherwise?

[Joe Pecore]

One place that could have something would be http://conjuringarts.org/category/research/