J. Malcolm Bird

James Malcolm Bird (September 2, 1886 – October 30, 1964) was an American mathematician and parapsychologist.

Career

Bird was born in Brooklyn to James Gedney Bird and Eliza (Baltz) Bird on September 2, 1886."New York, New York City Births, 1846-1909," database, FamilySearch (accessed 15 May 2016), James Malcolm Bird, 02 Sep 1886; citing Birth, Brooklyn, Kings, New York, United States, New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,324,391. He trained in mathematics and taught as a Professor at Columbia University, he later became an associate editor for the Scientific American, upon quitting in 1925 he became the research officer of the American Society for Psychical Research (ASPR) from 1925–1931.Mauskopf, Seymour H; McVaugh, Michael Rogers. (1980). The Elusive Science: Origins of Experimental Psychical Research. Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 22. Polidoro, Massimo. (2001). Final Séance: The Strange Friendship Between Houdini and Conan Doyle. Prometheus Books. p. 106. Samuel, Lawrence. (2011). Supernatural America: A Cultural History. Praeger. p. 16.

Bird investigated spiritualist mediums such as Mina Crandon, John C. Sloan, Gladys Osborne Leonard, William Hope and Maria Vollhardt.Bird, J(ames) Malcolm (1886-1964). Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology, Gale Group, 2001. His experiences are mentioned in his book My Psychic Adventures (1924). Bird has drawn criticism from magician Harry Houdini and the psychical researcher Walter Franklin Prince for his conduct in the investigation of Mina Crandon. Houdini and Prince strongly suspected that Crandon was fraudulent, but Bird had endorsed some of her phenomena as genuine.Prince, Walter Franklin. (1926). A Review of the Margery Case. American Journal of Psychology 37: 431-441.Prince, Walter Franklin. (1933). The Case Against Margery. Scientific American 148 (5): 261-263.Christopher, Milbourne. (1969). Houdini: The Untold Story. Thomas Y. Crowell Company. pp. 187-199. Hansel, C. E. M. (1989). The Search for Psychic Power: ESP and Parapsychology Revisited. Prometheus Books. p. 245. In December, 1930 Bird was compelled to resign from the ASPR after he admitted he had known of fraudulent activity regarding Crandon from the start.Guiley, Rosemary Ellen. (1994). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits. Guinness Publishing. p. 72.

Walter Franklin Prince considered Bird "totally unreliable".Berger, Arthur S. (1988). Lives and Letters in American Parapsychology: A Biographical History, 1850-1987. McFarland. p. 92. The Society for Psychical Research's Honorary Research Officer V. J. Woolley noted that Bird was an inaccurate reporter, he had made factual errors about a séance sitting in 1923.Polidoro, Massimo. (2001). Final Séance: The Strange Friendship Between Houdini and Conan Doyle. Prometheus Books. p. 135. Historian Ruth Brandon has described Bird as a biased and unreliable witness.Brandon, Ruth. (1993). The Life and Many Deaths of Harry Houdini. Secker & Warburg. p. 265. More recently, authors William Kalush and Larry Sloman have suggested that Bird had conspired with Crandon in "stage managing the séances and achieving a positive vote from the majority of the committee."Kalush, William; Sloman, Larry. (2006). The Secret Life of Houdini: The Making of America's First Superhero. Atria Books. p. 420. Bird died October 30, 1964."United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (accessed 15 May 2016), Malcolm Bird, Oct 1964; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).

Gallery

Publications

Einstein's Theories of Relativity and Gravitation (1922) New York: Scientific American Pub. Co. My Psychic Adventures (1924) New York: Scientific American Pub. Co. Margery the Medium (1925) Boston: Small, Maynard & Company

References

J. Malcolm Bird

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