We're about to escape... "strait" outta these jackets.
Let's talk about that!
♪ (theme music) ♪
- Goooood Mythical Morning! - If you find yourself in a straitjacket,
- you're probably having a bad day! - True.
That's because straitjackets are used to restrain people who might harm
themselves or others, usually mentally ill people or criminals. It was invented back
in 1790 in France, but it has since fell out of fashion. Not that it was ever
fashionable, it's just not in fashion 'cause they decided it's kinda cruel.
Well, they are cruel, but you never know what fashion tastemakers may say is
- fashionable. - That's true! It could happen.
Before they fell out of said fashion, they were used by Houdini.
- Who? - Dini!
- Eyyyyy! (laughs) - The escape artist, not the rap group,
when he escaped from them as part of his act.
- Yes. - Did it behind a curtain, and then he
said, "Why do I do this behind a curtain? I should do this hanging upside down
- in front of a building!" - Yes.
- And that's what he would do. - And you know what? If Houdini
were still alive, we would have him as a guest on the show.
- Yeah. - And he would show us how to escape from
a straitjacket, 'cause that's what we're gonna be doing today. Unfortunately,
- I learned recently, Houdini is dead. - Dead.
- He is no longer with us. - Yep.
But you know what is longer with us? (chuckles) WikiHow! We're gonna use
wikiHow to figure out how to get out of a straitjacket. To the Straitjacket Joan!
- Where's Joan? - I'm sorry, I was expecting her but she's
- not showing up today. - Joan has not made it.
It's just the Zone. I do have my shirt tucked in, though. You might wanna
tuck yours in, because I hear that, when you're trying to get the straitjacket off,
- sometimes you'll take your shirt with it. - Ho!
And also, I'm ready to rock this again! I'm ready to rock the tucked-in shirt.
- I'm cool like I am. - Are you ready to rock, Link?
- I can go shirtless if it happens. - Okay.
That will be your reward if I get out of this straitjacket... Mom. I mean, ah, Wife.
- I mean... what? - (crew laughs)
I'm a little confused, but I'm just gonna move on.
My mom... whenever I take off my shirt, my mom's like, "Oh, you're muscular!"
- "You're doin' good!" - What?
- (crew laughs) - I don't know.
Are you at the pool with your mom these days?
No, my mom watches the show; my wife doesn't.
- (crew laughs) - All right, we're gonna let Link sort out
his own issues on his own time and we're gonna move on with this episode and get
- out of straitjackets. - Yeah. Put a straitjacket over my mouth!
We might just leave Link in one. Okay, we have the wiki instructions up here,
and we have our faithful straitjacket accomplices, Chase and Eddie, who are
gonna be putting these on us, but let me read this because we're gonna have to
take this first piece of advice as they're putting it on us.
- Okay, yes. - Here we go. "While you're being buckled
up, use one of your hands to inconspicuously pinch the front, giving you about three
inches of slack. Also, take a deep breath and tighten your muscles in order to make
your upper body as big as you possibly can."
- Okay, I got this. - By the way, as you can see, I am
prominently featured in these instructions, which gives me a lot of confidence.
That's-- okay, that's not you. All right, um... pinch this. And they say keep your
- stronger arm out? - (Rhett) Keep your stronger arm over your
weaker arm. Make yourself big, Link! Breathe in!
- (Eddie) Coming through! - Now, my shoulder has just--
- Whoa, whoa, Eddie, where's-- ohh! - (Eddie laughs)
- ... gotten better, and I-- - Something's happening under there!
I'm hoping I'm not gonna re-injure it today. Ooh, there it goes. Just lost
- my pinch. - You wait until Chase gets you on the
- underside. - What's happening back here?
Why're you grinning so much? It's like you've been waiting to put me in a
straitjacket or something? Chase is like--
(Chase) It's just amusing.
- You're manhandling me, Eddie? - Eddie!
- (both in silly voices) Eddie! - Watch yourself, Eddie! Be gentle with me,
- Eddie! - (high pitched) Woo! Woo!
- There's a crotch strap! - (normally) Yeah, I was telling you to
- get ready for that. - I gotta breathe in!
- (Eddie) Checking the buckles... All right. - (Link, normally) Pinch an inch...
- You look ready. - So you're on there.
- (Rhett) Yeah. - I've lost my pinched. My pinched inches.
That's like a life philosophy. "Hold on to those pinched inches, 'cause somebody'll
take 'em away from you." I don't even know what that could mean.
- 'Kay. - What if we had somebody named Joan
- working here? - (Link) We could.
Even if she wasn't going to help with this, and I accidentally said that...
Out of principle, we would've had to invite her in here and she'd be doing it.
- Whatever. - (Eddie) All right, that's good.
- Like from Mad Men? Yeah. - (Eddie) You guys are ready.
- (gruffly) What're you in for? - I'm not tellin' you. What're you in for?
I went a little nuts at the bowling alley. Took my nachos... accidentally thought I
was sticking my fingers in the bowling ball, stuck 'em right in the nacho cheese.
- They were like, "We gotta..." - Put him in a straitjacket? What?
- (crew laughs) - (normally) I don't know, my story
kind of fell apart. There was a bowling alley incident.
(gruffly) "There was a bowling alley incident." (normally) Okay.
(Link) "Loosen up. Once the straitjacket is secured..."
(Rhett) Well, hold on. Can I make the observation that it looks like you now?
- (Rhett) It looks like the old Link! - Oh yeah.
- Hey! - (Link) It's me.
(Link) "Once the straitjacket is secured, relax your upper body and breathe out."
(Link) "Make your upper body as small as possible..."
- (Rhett) Make it small. - (Link) "and let go of the slack you
created in the previous step--" Well, I let go of the slack when he was
- strapping me in. - I don't feel well right now. Like,
I feel like I could be taken advantage of, you know what I mean?
Oh, you could be smacked around. Slapped up?
- (Rhett) Yeah, right. Just-- - (crew laughs)
And if I get out of here first, that's what's gonna happen.
Okay. (grunts) Ngh. All right, so I'm loose. "Push your strong..."
(Rhett) Hold on. Now there's... it's a blondie now. I'm trying to follow the
logic here. Why is it different people for every step?
All types of people... blonds, brunets... get straitjacketed from time to time.
Okay. "Push your strong arm forcefully towards the opposite shoulder. This will
move the slack to where you need it for the next step."
- Push it. - "Bring the strong arm up and over your
- head." - Push it up to the shoulder. Like, get
that hand up to the-- push it to the shoulder. Look, look, see? Look at that.
That's progress right there, what I just did.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa. - It goes-- I got it like that.
- Just slide it right up there. - (Link) Okay.
- Just put-- - Oh, I'm using my leg.
- This is a new technique! - Check it, check it.
- (Link) I'm using my leg on my elbow. - We could be a group-- you know what?
Do magicians ever work in duos like-- oh yeah, Siegfried and Roy!
- (crew laughs) - (Rhett) Penn and Teller!
- They had some white tigers, too. - Did they ever both do straitjackets?
- (breathlessly) How did you do it? - I don't know, I just... really just--
- Ram it! Just push it hard! - I feel like I'm gettin' close.
Hold on, okay. You keep working on that step. Just keep loosenin' it up. I'm gonna
move on to the next step. But now the man's bald.
- (Link) He is! - Maybe it's the same person throughout
the entire routine, and that's his trick. He puts different hair on, and then he
- takes it off at this point and reveals... - (Link grunts and groans)
- Hey, I'm just a bald man! - Oh, I'm so close!
(Rhett) Okay, here we go. "Bring your strong arm up and over your head.
"Keep your weak arm down. Once you've done this, you'll be able to move your
arms around." All right, I'm gonna do that.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah! - (Rhett) Aagh!
(Link) Yeah! I can see an eye! I see an eye!
- (Rhett) Aah! Aaagh! - (all laugh)
- (Link) I see an eye! - Hold on, if I get stuck like this,
you gotta get me out. Someone-- Joan has gotta get me out if I get
- stuck like this. - Oh! Look, your arm is giving birth
- to a Rhett! - How do I look?
- (crew laughs) - (Link) You look like--
- My right eye feels compromised. - (crew laughs)
You look like a baby that's been in there too long.
- (crew laughs) - Graaaah!
- Do it. Do it! - Rrraah! Aagh! I'm gonna take my ear off!
- (Link) Do it! Do it! - RRRRRAAAAAAGH!
- (both) WOOOO! - WOOHOOHOO!
- YEAH! We're gettin' outta this joint! - Wha-- well-- I got some catchin' up to do.
- (both laugh) - Okay.
- I lost a lotta... whew. - All the blood went to your face, man.
That left ear really got it. "Unbuckle the sleeve buckle with your teeth," okay.
- I can do that! - Engh. Nnnnngh!
Hold on. If I can get this buckle off, I might be able to help you a little bit.
- (Link) Nngh. Oh! - Oh, you did it! You got it!
- You got it out! - I got it. I got it. Aah!
- Look at this, Link. - (Link) The noises!
Hey, we're gonna have so much fun when we get outta this place. Look at that!
- Look, look! - (high pitched) What-- You're amazing!
- I'm like an expert! - (giggles) You're a straitjacket genius!
Hold on, where's my ponytail? Where's my ponytail? Because that's
- what happens at this stage. - (Link) At this point...
- (Rhett) Apply your ponytail. - (Link) At this point you become a woman.
- Makes you a little smaller framed. - All right.
Okay, "Unbuckle the top and bottom buckles behind you, using your free hands."
My hands aren't free; they're in this freaking thing.
I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm-- (high pitched) I'm a little behind!
Aagh! Aaagh!
At this point, I would probably help you. We wanna get out. We wanna get to the
- bowling alley. - No no no, the more up, the crotch.
- The more you pull there, the more-- - Oh, the more the crotch! Oh!
- (crew laughs) - I'm gonna move on to my buckles in
- the back here. Oh look, see? - Oh! Oh!
(Rhett) Oho! Ohoho! Oh, you're gonna do it, Link!
- (crew laughs) - Oh!
(Rhett) Oh, my hands really... I'm trying to...
(Link) Aagh!
(Rhett) Hold on... did a buckle come out?
- Lemme see. - I got a buckle open, man.
- Yep, middle buckle's out. Do it, man! - (Rhett) How come it won't pop out?
- I gotta get my-- get my glasses off, man. - I'm almost-- Is it? What's happening there?
- (Link) I can't tell! - (Rhett) Is it buckled?
- Yeah, right here. Pull that to your left. - (Rhett) It's just, like, about to come
- out, right? - (Link) No, stop. Stop your-- let go of
- the other hand. - (Rhett) Oh, oh...
- (Link) It's out! - Ahaha! Hah!
- Hey, hey. Take my glasses off, man. - (crew laughs)
- (Link) Don't-- okay. Put 'em on there. - Put 'em on?
- (Link gasps) - Okay.
(Link) Eeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaeeeeeaaaaaaaah!
Probably that noise is attracting the attention of the authorities.
No, no, no. They probably expect it. We should probably make more noise.
- Aaaah! - Aaaagh!
They'll just think, "They're being normal in there!"
- Aaaaaow! It's the crotch! Aah! - Oh, gosh.
- How did you do it? - I feel like at this point...
- You take it off like a t-shirt. - Like a t-shirt? Yeah, it says, "Step on
"the material of one of your sleeves while tugging your body out of the straitjacket."
Woo! We're getting outta this joint! Of course, now we gotta get out the doors.
- Well-- - (Rhett) But I got hands now!
What, okay, yeah! Lemme-- nnagh!
- (crew laughs) - Just really, like really--
- No! I'm serious, the crotch, man! - (both laugh)
- Move the crotcher thing over. - I don't wanna deal with that.
- (Rhett) Just yank it. Sacrifice yourself. - I don't-- nnngah!
We can't walk into the bowling alley like this! I mean, we walk into the
bowling alley like this, they're gonna be like, "Those dudes aren't supposed to
- be here!" - You know what? Undo the buckles.
- (all laugh) - That is probably what I would do at
- this point, right? But I don't know, man. - Oh! (gasps)
- (Rhett) Oh crap! Oh crap! - Aah!
- (both laugh triumphantly) - Oh yeah! Woo! I did it!
- I did it-- owww! - Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
- (Link) I got a little too crazy. - Don't hurt yourself.
- I did it! - (Rhett) You know why that was so hard
for you and so easy for me? Because we pranked you.
- (Rhett and crew laugh) - What do you mean?
Because... let me show you my jacket. I'm really impressed that you were able
to get out of that, but it was so much easier for me, because...
- (Link laughs) Are you kidding? - You see this right here? You see how
you're buckled right there? Look at my jacket.
- Your shoulder strap? - Yesterday when you were not here, we
- did a little trick on mine. We cut that. - (both laugh)
- Are you kidding me? - I was acting, man.
- But look, I still got out! - But no, that was absolutely amazing that
- you were able to do that. - (Link) I'm not out all the way, but...
Ah... these are pretty loose, but that made it a lot harder for you. But you know
what? I think you're gonna pull this off! We can go to the bowling alley after all.
I was hoping that you were just gonna be stuck in there, though, forever.
- You jerk! - It was Eddie's idea.
(Rhett) You want me to unbuckle you at this point?
Yeah, yeah. You know I can-- That's the easy part. Become a woman,
- then undo your buckles. I can do that. - (Rhett) Let's go to the bowling alley.
Okay, well, I had to get you back, man. I had to get you back 'cause of the duct
tape, you did the thing with the Superglue, and you pushed me into the chocolate.
- Yeah, but it's-- - So now we're even.
It's my laptop that literally still smells like pickled pigs feet.
But we-- truce? No more-- I don't like pranks, man. No more pranks.
- All right, all right, all right. Truce. - I didn't enjoy that.
- I didn't like it either! - (crew laughs)
- You didn't enjoy it. - I didn't enjoy watching you try to give
- birth to yourself covered in canvas. - (giggles) Ah...
Okay, like we said, Houdini is dead, but if you wanna learn more about him, we
got a special deal just for the mythical beasts! Head over to Audible.com/GMM
and sign up for a free 30-day trial. They got 180,000 audiobook titles
- for you to listen to, - What?
including The Secret Life of Houdini: The Making of America's First Superhero. The
- link is in the description. - Audible.com/GMM. Thank you for liking,
commenting, subscribing, and sharing this video!
You know what time it is.
- I'm Becca. - I'm Matt.
We're at the Coliseum in Rome.
(Both) And now it's time to spin the Wheel of Mythicality.
Thanks to Audible for sponsoring this episode. Remember to go to Audible.com/GMM
- for your free 30-day trial! - And click through to Good Mythical More,
where we're gonna put Eddie and Chase in those straitjackets.
- One straitjacket. - Let's see if they can get out.
- Two guys, one straitjacket. - (laughs)
- (bell rings, music plays) - (Both) Whoaah!
(Link) Dingalingalingaling! Congratulations to...
(Rhett) Westwardadventurer, you win a personalized GMM.
- The other day I saw - (computer voice) Westwardadventurer
- walking their dog, and they - Uh huh.
- didn't have any bags, so then I saw - (computer voice) Westwardadventurer
- pick up the poop with their bare hands. - Ew!
[Captioned by Caitrin: GMM Captioning Team]