Thomas Solomon
Encyclopedia
Thomas Solomon is an American
escape artist
and magician.
Thomas Solomon began his career fascinated with mechanical devices . . . especially locks. At the age of thirteen, too young to acquire a legal work permit, he was apprenticed (as a favor) to a local locksmith for the summer with the "enviable" and unpaid job requirement of answering the phone and sweeping the floors. Endearing himself to the lock professionals with his quest for knowledge, they gradually took him 'under their wing' teaching him the 'real work'; how to open basic lever, warded, disc and pin tumbler locks without keys; how to fashion lock-opening tools from everyday objects; and how to crack safes. In the process,he learned that success in opening locks and safes is not just knowledge, but equal parts finesse, practice and patience—and mastering the shop's power and hand tools didn't hurt either. Solomon never forgot what he learned and has thus afforded a knowledge of locks that today is among the best in the world. It is said he is able to fashion a tool to open a lock with only a quick glance at the key.
Around age sixteen, a separate interest in stage magic began to blossom. To Solomon, the modus operandi of most illusions and stage magic ran parallel with his interest in mechanics. He's also said it helped him to overcome his shyness and meet girls! He began experimenting with a magic act of self-working mechanical apparatus and sleight-of-hand.
, Solomon first presented "The Great Escape," a show combining magic with one escape from a locked chain in which he demonstrated lock-picking. The nightclub, sensing potential asked Solomon to drop the magic and concentrate only on escapes. As a marketing ploy, the nightclub asked participants to bring whatever they wanted to the theatre (handcuffs
, locks, and straitjacket
s) to challenge the magician. It is said that over the course of three years, he never failed.
He has performed his award-winning handcuff act (2000 World Magic Awards, PAX Television) at The Roxy
, The Magic Castle
, Bally's and many others. He has performed aboard ships for Royal Caribbean Cruise Line traveling throughout Bermuda and the Caribbean. In 1988 he entertained President Ronald Reagan
at the White House
where he escaped the handcuffs of the Uniformed Secret Service
. He performed again in 1989 for President George Bush and Vice-President Dan Quayle at the White House. He has performed escapes and magic for major trade show clients, Ford Motor Company, State Farm Insurance, Procter & Gamble
, Absolut Vodka, Winston/Salem Cigarettes, Compaq Computers, Deutsche Bank, Birdseye Frozen Foods, Black and Decker and many, many others.
Standard issue police restraints,
Time Release Spider Lock,
French "I" Bar restraint,
Australian Letter Cipher Lock,
Lilly Irons (imprisoned the Lincoln Assassination Conspirators)
Various German restraints including Berliners, the Deutsche Polizei, the Dortmunder, Clejusos, and Dollars.
Various British restraints including Darbys, Sheffields and Hiatts.
Various French restraints including the Lapegy and La Massenotte.
Various Italian restraints of the Caribineri.
Various American restraints including Towers, Smith & Wesson and Peerless.
Various Communist bloc restraints including those from Bulgaria, Russia and East Germany.
Solomon is the only escape artist to have escaped from the handcuffs that held the Lincoln
assassination co-conspirator, Lewis Payne (Powell). Also, he has escaped the leg irons that imprisoned Billy the Kid at the Lincoln County Courthouse in 1881.
Solomon has escaped two locked safes in his career, one of them underwater for the British television show, Thomas Solomon: The Escape Artist.
Solomon has escaped 19 jails throughout his career in New York City, London, Philadelphia, Chicago, Milwaukee, Trenton and others. Most notable were his escapes from the maximum security prison Pentonville in the UK (that houses IRA prisoners) and from Al Capone's personal cell at Eastern State Penitentiary.
Solomon is the only person to have escaped the leather and canvas money bag previously used by the Metropolitan Transit Authority in New York City.
He has accomplished hundreds of straitjacket releases, most notably an escape from the all-leather straitjacket specifically created to thwart him by Menkes Leather Works. He escaped a tightly bound straitjacket in the pouring rain hanging upside down from a tower crane 150 feet above the street in Portland, Oregon in December 2006.
He spoke candidly about several of these bizarre characters in his dreams: the fluid man in the un-wrinkled suit who stands on the corner and won't let him cross the street due to a funeral procession that is his own; the statues in the church he visits that are missing or changed, the young boy that poses rhetorical questions about conflicts in the world and hints at answers, the women with the auburn hair and the yellow dress who never stops crying as well as many others.
Solomon also has a fascination with ciphers, codes and other wordplay. He is an amateur cryptographer and is striving to create an unbreakable cipher, that disallows complicated encryption and decryption techniques—making it user-friendly in the field. His posters, some images, his promotional decks of playing cards, DVDs and other items often contain hidden messages; some are written in cipher or code. Others are written backwards or worked in with graphics (as in the blue poster). He has used palindromes, recursive acronyms, Morse code and other devices to conceal messages, solutions to an escape, names or important dates related to the image. In a famous picture taken of him on the New York City subway, there are no less than six hidden images and written messages buried within the picture.
broken right wrist (twice),
broken right foot,
broken right ankle,
perforated left ear drum,
inch long laceration above left eye within eyebrow,
longitudinal fracture at the base of fifth finger of left hand.
Thomas Solomon: The Escape Artist 2003 Channel Four Great Britain,
The History of Magic 2004 BBC Great Britain,
The Secret World of Magicians 2005 Channel Five Great Britain
No Jail Can Hold Me 2007 The History Channel
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
escape artist
Escapology
For the Jessica Mauboy song, see Inescapable.Escapology is the practice of escaping from restraints or other traps. Escapologists escape from handcuffs, straitjackets, cages, coffins, steel boxes, barrels, bags, burning buildings, fish-tanks and other perils, often in combination.-History:The art...
and magician.
Thomas Solomon began his career fascinated with mechanical devices . . . especially locks. At the age of thirteen, too young to acquire a legal work permit, he was apprenticed (as a favor) to a local locksmith for the summer with the "enviable" and unpaid job requirement of answering the phone and sweeping the floors. Endearing himself to the lock professionals with his quest for knowledge, they gradually took him 'under their wing' teaching him the 'real work'; how to open basic lever, warded, disc and pin tumbler locks without keys; how to fashion lock-opening tools from everyday objects; and how to crack safes. In the process,he learned that success in opening locks and safes is not just knowledge, but equal parts finesse, practice and patience—and mastering the shop's power and hand tools didn't hurt either. Solomon never forgot what he learned and has thus afforded a knowledge of locks that today is among the best in the world. It is said he is able to fashion a tool to open a lock with only a quick glance at the key.
Around age sixteen, a separate interest in stage magic began to blossom. To Solomon, the modus operandi of most illusions and stage magic ran parallel with his interest in mechanics. He's also said it helped him to overcome his shyness and meet girls! He began experimenting with a magic act of self-working mechanical apparatus and sleight-of-hand.
The Great Escape
In Milwaukee, then ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Solomon first presented "The Great Escape," a show combining magic with one escape from a locked chain in which he demonstrated lock-picking. The nightclub, sensing potential asked Solomon to drop the magic and concentrate only on escapes. As a marketing ploy, the nightclub asked participants to bring whatever they wanted to the theatre (handcuffs
Handcuffs
Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists close together. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each half has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet that prevents it from being opened once closed around a person's wrist...
, locks, and straitjacket
Straitjacket
A straitjacket is a garment shaped like a jacket with overlong sleeves and is typically used to restrain a person who may otherwise cause harm to themselves or others. Once the arms are inserted into the straitjacket's sleeves, they are then crossed across the chest...
s) to challenge the magician. It is said that over the course of three years, he never failed.
He has performed his award-winning handcuff act (2000 World Magic Awards, PAX Television) at The Roxy
The Roxy
The Roxy was a fashionable nightclub on Neal Street in London's Covent Garden, known for hosting the flowering British punk music scene in its infancy.-Brief history:...
, The Magic Castle
The Magic Castle
The Magic Castle, located at 7001 Franklin Avenue in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California, is a nightclub for magicians and magic enthusiasts, as well as the clubhouse for the Academy of Magical Arts. It bills itself as "the most unusual private club in the world."-Nightclub:The Magic...
, Bally's and many others. He has performed aboard ships for Royal Caribbean Cruise Line traveling throughout Bermuda and the Caribbean. In 1988 he entertained President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
where he escaped the handcuffs of the Uniformed Secret Service
United States Secret Service
The United States Secret Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency that is part of the United States Department of Homeland Security. The sworn members are divided among the Special Agents and the Uniformed Division. Until March 1, 2003, the Service was part of the United States...
. He performed again in 1989 for President George Bush and Vice-President Dan Quayle at the White House. He has performed escapes and magic for major trade show clients, Ford Motor Company, State Farm Insurance, Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio and manufactures a wide range of consumer goods....
, Absolut Vodka, Winston/Salem Cigarettes, Compaq Computers, Deutsche Bank, Birdseye Frozen Foods, Black and Decker and many, many others.
Accomplishments
To date (2008), Solomon has escaped from more than 5000 pairs of handcuffs of all different types from all times in history. These include:Standard issue police restraints,
Time Release Spider Lock,
French "I" Bar restraint,
Australian Letter Cipher Lock,
Lilly Irons (imprisoned the Lincoln Assassination Conspirators)
Various German restraints including Berliners, the Deutsche Polizei, the Dortmunder, Clejusos, and Dollars.
Various British restraints including Darbys, Sheffields and Hiatts.
Various French restraints including the Lapegy and La Massenotte.
Various Italian restraints of the Caribineri.
Various American restraints including Towers, Smith & Wesson and Peerless.
Various Communist bloc restraints including those from Bulgaria, Russia and East Germany.
Solomon is the only escape artist to have escaped from the handcuffs that held the Lincoln
assassination co-conspirator, Lewis Payne (Powell). Also, he has escaped the leg irons that imprisoned Billy the Kid at the Lincoln County Courthouse in 1881.
Solomon has escaped two locked safes in his career, one of them underwater for the British television show, Thomas Solomon: The Escape Artist.
Solomon has escaped 19 jails throughout his career in New York City, London, Philadelphia, Chicago, Milwaukee, Trenton and others. Most notable were his escapes from the maximum security prison Pentonville in the UK (that houses IRA prisoners) and from Al Capone's personal cell at Eastern State Penitentiary.
Solomon is the only person to have escaped the leather and canvas money bag previously used by the Metropolitan Transit Authority in New York City.
He has accomplished hundreds of straitjacket releases, most notably an escape from the all-leather straitjacket specifically created to thwart him by Menkes Leather Works. He escaped a tightly bound straitjacket in the pouring rain hanging upside down from a tower crane 150 feet above the street in Portland, Oregon in December 2006.
Superstitions/Hidden Messages
While Solomon has never endorsed psychic ability in himself or others, he does acknowledge a 'magic' or a supernatural energy beyond human understanding that communicates through our five senses and intuition, as well as through numbers, words, dreams, and symbols. A believer in the Law of Karma and the power of symbolic messages in dreams, Solomon told the Magic Circular in a recent interview that he himself is plagued by recurring, sequential and often disturbing dreams and has been since childhood. The Magic Circular interviews, Escape Velocity, 2004He spoke candidly about several of these bizarre characters in his dreams: the fluid man in the un-wrinkled suit who stands on the corner and won't let him cross the street due to a funeral procession that is his own; the statues in the church he visits that are missing or changed, the young boy that poses rhetorical questions about conflicts in the world and hints at answers, the women with the auburn hair and the yellow dress who never stops crying as well as many others.
Solomon also has a fascination with ciphers, codes and other wordplay. He is an amateur cryptographer and is striving to create an unbreakable cipher, that disallows complicated encryption and decryption techniques—making it user-friendly in the field. His posters, some images, his promotional decks of playing cards, DVDs and other items often contain hidden messages; some are written in cipher or code. Others are written backwards or worked in with graphics (as in the blue poster). He has used palindromes, recursive acronyms, Morse code and other devices to conceal messages, solutions to an escape, names or important dates related to the image. In a famous picture taken of him on the New York City subway, there are no less than six hidden images and written messages buried within the picture.
Injuries
Four broken fingers on left hand,broken right wrist (twice),
broken right foot,
broken right ankle,
perforated left ear drum,
inch long laceration above left eye within eyebrow,
longitudinal fracture at the base of fifth finger of left hand.
Stage
- Theatre of the Macabre Off Broadway 1995-1998 (1500 performances)
- Ellusions Off Broadway 2002-2003
Television
World Magic Awards 2000 PAX Television,Thomas Solomon: The Escape Artist 2003 Channel Four Great Britain,
The History of Magic 2004 BBC Great Britain,
The Secret World of Magicians 2005 Channel Five Great Britain
No Jail Can Hold Me 2007 The History Channel