When they were married, Harry was 19 and Bess was 18. She was from an Irish-Catholic family, but the difference of religion did not seem to matter to them. By then, he was a handsome, strongly built young man. She was very pretty, and also very small, only 5’ tall (152 cm). This helped make Harry seem taller on stage. Just as important, she could get in and out of the trunk more easily than Harry’s brother. She soon took Theo’s place on stage with Harry and the show was renamed The Houdinis.