THE GHOSTBUSTERS VS THE GHOST OF HARRY HOUDINI

The Cabinet of Calamari

Original Air date September 30, 1987^[1]

Writers: Mark Edward Edens and Michael Edens

Director: Dale Schott

Main Cast:

• Lorenzo Music as Peter Venkman
• Frank Welker as Raymond Stantz
• Maurice LaMarche as Egon Spengler
• Arsenio Hall as Winston Zeddemore
• Laura Summer as Janine Melnitz
• Frank Welker as Slimer

(Rating 5 of 5)

Summary:  Peter and Egon chase Slimer around for messing with their clothes again, but fortunately it doesn’t delay them from the professional magic show that they were going to attend.  When they get there they watch the act of the Great Calamari.  Calamari did some basic magic tricks and was about to do an escape attempt where he would be lowered upside down into a tub of water.  In the tub appeared a ghost who caused the tub to explode and ruin the show. 

The Great Calamari, or so he claimed.

                Peter and Ray interview some of the stage crew while Egon and Winston investigated the props on the show.  At this point Egon and Winston is attacked by flying a saw and blades sent by Calamari.  They both survive and come to the wrong conclusion that it was the ghost who attacked him. 

Houdini's ghost is going to ruin the show.

Peter and Ray find the ghost and Ray tires the ghost whisperer thing and attempts to communicate with it.  Egon and Winston show up however and end that attempt by trapping the ghost.  As Ray was expressing his displeasure the ghost escapes right out of the trap.  Egon just thinks the trap is defective, but the Peter wants to use precautions so when they catch him again Peter wraps a chain around the trap and locks it.  The chain bursts open and the ghost escapes again.

Scarring the lovely assistant 

As the Ghostbusters turn their attention toward Calamari they go into his room and find a chest.  When they break it open they find newspaper clippings. Turns out Calamari has to change his stage name a lot and isn’t very good at his job.  At one point he caused an audience member to disappear and wasn’t able to bring him back.

Peter is heading into a trap!

Peter goes and confronts Calamari’s assistant Vanna again.  Vanna had earlier been hypnotized by Calamari and showed Peter Calamari’s magic cabinet with the intention of trapping him.  She closed the door and Peter was sent to another dimension.  In that strange dimension he saw many bizarre things, loses his keys, and finds Calamari’s lost volunteer, a man named Irving. 

Yeah, she is not totally here.

  The remaining Ghostbusters figure out what happened and confront Calamari who tells them the only way to free their friend is to catch the ghost.  The finally do by placing the trap in quick drying cement, but then they catch Calamari trying to take off.  During Calamari's attempt to flee the cement cracked and the ghost escaped again.  They catch Calamari and in his notes discover that he stole the notebook and magic cabinet of Harry Houdini.  They come to the collusion that Houdini is the ghost and that’s why he can escape all those traps.  Egon pointed out that he hadn’t lost his touch.  Winston realizes it wasn’t the ghost who attacked them it was Calamari.

Trying to trap Houdini, not much luck.

They gave Houdini his stuff back and he goes in the cabinet and rescues Peter and Irving.  Calamari tried to push them all into the cabinet but Houdini naps him first.  Before leaving completely he returns Peter’s keys.  The Ghostbusters return to the firehouse trying to help Vanna but it is no good.  Peter gets desperate and kisses her and it works.  Vanna is surprised she asks where they found the toad in the city because according to Calamari a toad kissing her would be the only cure.  Three of the Ghostbusters think this is hilarious.      

Is grateful that Peter kisses like a toad.

My Take:  The Ghostbusters meet a ghost who was a legend in his own time.  Harry Houdini the world’s greatest escape artist and leading skeptic, makes a challenging ghost for the Ghostbusters.  I love the fact that he kept escaping from their traps, I think he would have gotten through the concrete even without help if given the time.  This is one of those interesting episodes where the ghost wasn’t the villain a human was.

                Now for my stray observations:

·         I didn’t think Houdini’s ghost looked anything like him.  Doing a famous person is risky but he had been dead by sixty years by this point so who would care?

·         I liked the dialogue between Egon and Winston.  Egon thinks magic is ridiculous (in this episode), while  Winston pointing out how he didn’t believe in certain things until going the Ghostbusters.

·         Nowadays with the Internet and Facebook there is no way Calamari would have been able to keep changing his name an outfit for new acts especially after he lost a guy.  One quick Google search will scare away any potential employer.

·         Irving: “Do any of you have a dime?”  Winston: “It’s a quarter now.” 2016: “What’s a pay phone?”

·         Peter kisses like a toad to the point magic is fooled.

·         Good thing they never tried to put Houdini in a Containment Unit that would have caused problems.

·         For the record David Copperfield owns all of Houdini’s stuff.

A great episode with famous historical figure as the main ghost. 

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[1] Listed original air dates for entire syndicated season may not be correct.