Lovecraft's Brilliance: Annecdote Submitted by Casper Kelly

In search of more clues as to why (if at all) HPL might have been selected by Houdini to assisst in battle against the Spiritualists, we have this gem. From Sonia's memoir, this quote is submitted by Casper Kelly.

"H.P. never called himself an American; he insisted that he was still an Englishman. Not only that, he regarded himself as a displaced Englishman, although he had never been in England. Apropos of this, he could describe thoroughly every part of London, Stonehenge, Stratford-upon-Avon, and many other places in England. In fact when he had ghost-written the story for Houdini he described Gaza so accurately that one would think he had been there."

It shows how impressive he was among his peers. In New York he associated with Hart Crane and other struggling artists luminaries, who were stunned by his affability on one hand and brilliance on the other. Recall elsewhere on the blog we mentioned that Houdini autographed his book to HPL "To my friend, Howard Lovecraft / Best Wishes, / Houdini / "My brain is the key that sets me free."