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Overview
Frank Hageman was a magician and an interviewee for the Federal Writers Project in 1939.

Frank Hageman
Frank Hageman was born in the early 1900s in New York City. In his youth, he admired the world famous Houdini and would attend every Broadway show he could afford. It was because of this love for magic that he decided to pursue a career as a magician. He was able to get his first show at a circus, and went on to sign a four month contract with the circus due to his success. After his journey with the circus, he decided to move to North Carolina in hopes of traveling the entire state to book as many shows as he could. He spent a lot of his time in North Carolina considering he booked many shows, and then decided to retire and settle down in the state that he traveled to share his magic.

First Show
At the time, the early 1920s, many people wanted to become a new Houdini also, so it was hard for Frank to get booked for a show. It was until one day that he went to a small circus in Brooklyn, that he got his first show. He went to this circus to see a sideshow magician only to find out that the magician had gotten sick. Tickets were being refunded until Frank had asked to take the magicians spot so tickets could continue to be sold. “He assented to skeptically, admonishing me that if it flopped, I would pay dearly. The show was a success, and an hour after the performance was over, I had a ten dollar bill and a four month contract with the circus” said Frank.

Leaving the Circus
Frank then toured many northern states with the circus until it started losing money and going out of business. With all of the circus members leaving, Frank decided to join a peer on his trip down south, towards North Carolina. Frank thought he was joining the peer and his wife, only to find out this woman was not his wife. The three of them had stopped in Virginia and that was when Frank realized that this woman was going to be part of a sex trafficking business. “"I picked her up in Pittsburg, and I'm taking her to North Carolina for something that could get me slapped in jail for ten years. Ever hear of the Mann Law?” the peer says to Frank. This had become a federal crime in 1910 through the passing of the Mann-Act, also known as “The White-Slave Traffic Act”. Wanting no part in this business, Frank parted ways with his peer and was finally able to safely plan his journey in North Carolina.

Houdini's Impact in the 1900’s
Erik Weisz, better known as Harry Houdini, was born on March 24, 1874 in Budapest. Hungary. Houdini was an illusionist and stunt performer that was widely known for his sensational escape acts. He took his performances to the US and went on to impact the american culture in the 1920s. Houdini was a perfect example of the “American dream” and gave light and hope for many people by making money for doing what he loves. Houdini's most famous stunt was called the “Water Torture Cell”, where he was placed upside down into a chamber of water with his hands clamped behind him. Then, a curtain was pulled across and moments later Houdini would pop out from the top once he freed himself. His fans would claim that “he would dematerialize through solid wood or stone and slide through keyholes”. He paved the way for magicians in the 1920s by showing the world the endless possibilities of magic.

Mann Act
The Mann Act, also known as the “White Slave Trade Act”, is a United States federal law that was passed in June 25, 1910. This law was passed to prevent human trafficking but was also used to make a crime out of consensual sexual activity. This law made it illegal to “transport any woman or girl” across state lines for “any immoral purposes” according to congress. Consequently, this law was used for reasons other than sex trafficking and even used as a weapon of racism. Oftentimes, it would be used to punish black men for violating the norms of white society by marrying a white woman. It was amended twice, and in 1986 the phrase “any other immoral purposes” was changed to "any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense.”

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