Celebrities come and go in the Wood River Valley, but none have caused a media sensation like Houdini, the local Burmese python who ate an electric blanket.
Houdini became an international celebrity last week when his story was told on "Good Morning America," by the British Broadcasting Corporation, on CNN, on MSNBC and by virtually every major news agency in the world. From Sydney, Australia, to Beijing, China, people read, watched or listened to how the 12-foot-long snake swallowed an electric blanket and had to have it surgically removed.
Ripley's Believe It or Not wanted the blanket for one of its museums. Too late, it was already discarded, and Ripley's had to settle for a collection of photos sent to them by Houdini's owner, Karl Beznoska.
Thousands of newspapers, television broadcasts, radio programs and Internet services carried the story. A Google Internet search on Tuesday using keywords "Houdini, Burmese and python" turned up almost 25,000 hits.
But Idaho Mountain Express readers got the story first when it appeared on Page 1 of the Wednesday, July 19, issue. Houdini was already a morning topic of discussion at local coffee shops when The Associated Press picked up the Express story and sent it out on their wire service. From there, the story spread like the shot heard round the world.
The Houdini story had more media coverage than the Dalai Lama's visit last year, said Ellen Gillespie, public relations coordinator for the Sun Valley-Ketchum Chamber & Visitor's Bureau.
"He was a worldwide sensation -- our Houdini," said Gillespie, who tracks news media coverage of the area. "This is just the biggest pick-up I've seen on a story."
Express Publisher Pam Morris said the rapid spread of the Houdini story shows that the world was ready for some lighter, happier news.
"It's news of the weird—I think the interest in the story was indicative of the world's need for distraction, given world affairs." she said.
Some news media reports referred to Houdini as "an Idaho python," as if 12-foot tropical snakes are native to the state. Actually, Houdini is a native of Burma—hence the name "Burmese python."
Houdini immigrated to the Ketchum area 16 years ago to live with longtime resident Beznoska, a native of Austria.
Headline writers had a field day with the story. The Glasgow Evening Times in the United Kingdom wrote: "Eat-and-Heat python swallows electric blanket."
"When a snake eats an electric blanket, we are compelled to report," wrote New West in Boise.
"Snake finds meal quite shocking," read the headline on the DetNews.com story out of Detroit.
"Houdini, a python, makes blanket disappear," reported the Toronto Star in Canada.
Beznoska and veterinarian Karsten Fostvedt, who operated on Houdini along with veterinarian Barry Rathfon, became celebrities themselves when they appeared last Friday on "Good Morning America."
Beznoska took media calls from various television and radio stations, the BBC, and "Inside Edition." A reporter from Russia called the St. Francis Pet Clinic, the Ketchum facility where the surgery was performed.
In spite of news media requests, Beznoska steadfastly has refused to haul Houdini out of his cage for video or photography sessions.
"He needs his rest," Beznoska said.
"I looked in at him this morning and touched him, and he looked up at me, so he's doing OK," Beznoska said Monday.
Houdini is not out the woods yet. Beznoska is treating him with antibiotics to stave off the internal infection the blanket caused while in Houdini's stomach. Plus, he still has to heal from the some 100 stitches it took to sew him up.
"Everybody asks how Houdini is doing, but nobody asks me how much it's going to cost," Beznoska said.
So how much is it going to cost?
"I don't know—I haven't got the bill yet," Beznoska said. "It's probably going to be an expensive deal, though."
Beznoska has been able to sell some photographs to help offset the costs of the surgery.
He said he received a $1 bill from a boy in California who attached a note saying the money was to help pay for Houdini's surgery.
Touch by the gesture, Beznoska said he's going to send the boy some photographs.
Houdini suns himself at Karl Beznoska?s home north of Ketchum, a week or so before the 12-foot-long Burmese python became an international celebrity by eating an electric blanket. Photo courtesy of Karl Beznoska.
