阅读理解
The Man of Many Secrets - Harry Houdini - was one of the greatest American entertainers in the
theater this century. He was a man famous for his escapes - from prison cells, from wooden boxes
floating in rivers, from locked tanks full of water. He appeared in theaters all over Europe and America.
Crowds came to see the great Houdini and his "magic" tricks.
Of course, his secret was not magic, or supernatural powers. It was simply strength. He had the
ability to move his toes as well as he moved his fingers. He could move his body into almost any position
he wanted.
Houdini started working in the entertainment world when he was 17, in 1891. He and his brother
Theo performed card tricks in club in New York. They called themselves the Houdini Brothers. When
Harry married in 1894, he and his wife Bess worked together as magician and assistant. But for a long
time they were not very successful. Then Harry performed his first prison escape, in Chicago in 1898.
Harry persuaded a detective to let him try to escape from the prison, and he invited the local
newspapermen to watch.
It was the publicity(宣传) that came from this that started Harry Houdini's success. Harry had fingers
trained to escape from handcuffs and toes trained to escape ankle chins. But his biggest secret was how
he unlocked the prison doors. Every time he went into the prison cell, Bess gave him a kiss for good
luck - and a small skeleton key, which is a key that fits many locks, pass quickly from her mouth to his.
Harry used these prison escapes to build his fame. He arranged to escape from the local prison of
every town he visited. In the afternoon, the people of the town would read about it in their local
newspapers, and in the evening every seat in the local theater would be full. What was the result?
World-wild fame, and a name remembered today.
1. What did Houdini depends on when his success in prison escaped ?
A. his special tricks and supernatural powers
B. his magic tricks and unhuman powers
C. his unusual ability and a skeleton key
D. his wisdom and magic tricks
2. In the fourth paragraph, the underlined word "this" refers to _______.
A. the year 1898
B. his first prison escape
C. his failure escape
D. Harry Houdini's success
3. It can be inferred from the passage that Houdini became famous _______.
A. in 1898
C. at the age of 23
B. before he died
D. when he was about 24
4. Which of the following statement is right?
A. Someone gave him a key that fits many locks.
B. He made a key that could open every door.
C. Everyone hated him very much.
D. He was trained to escape again.
5. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A. How to escape from the prison.
B. A Man of Many Secrets
C. World-wild Fame
D. Great Escape
