Complainant Says ‘Handcuff King’ Was Disorderly.

City Magistrate James M. Barrett issued a summons yesterday charging Harry Houdini, “the handcuff king,” with disorderly conduct. The complainant is George Young of the Francis P. Houdina Company of 1,476 Broadway.

Houdini, it is alleged, entered the company’s office last Monday and charged the officers of the company with using his name unlawfully in the conduct of their business. He tore from a packing case a tag addressed “Houdini,” the complaint says, and when ordered to return it refused, seized a chair and broke an electric chandelier when they tried to prevent him from leaving the room.

Mr. Houdini said last night that for some time he has been getting bills and letters intended for the Houdina concern, and that he believed the confusion of names was intentional. He seized the chair, he said, to protect himself from attack when he tried to leave the office.

Francis P. Houdina, who is described as an electrical engineer and inventor, is the head of The Houdina Company. He said last night that there had never been any intention on his part to capitalize the name of Houdini.

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