Madam Mimi

As early as 1955, William Branham introduced a "fortune teller" into his stage persona, claiming that spiritualists and "mystics" frequently sensed his "supernatural" presence while the average person could not.  Over time, this claim became transitioned into a fundamental part of his "life story".

He also claimed to have visited "camps" of "spiritualists" where he witnessed amazing displays of "supernatural" power.  He often described pianos and guitars coming alive in the room, playing "shave and a haircut-two bits", a 7-note musical phrase used often in the Beverly Hillbillies television comedy and other forms of entertainment. 

And so I’ve been in camps where the spiritualists, and where there come a piano, weigh a half a ton, lift up off the floor, and guitar lay in the room come through strumming music and everything like that, and a coat hanging on the wall come through and set down in a chair by the side of you, knives and forks coming through, and see them—the wizard lay a—lay a—a piece of paper down, take a pencil, lay on top of it, and see this spirit come and run up a stovepipe and come back down playing “Shave and a Haircut-Two Bits,” and write in unknown tongues, and this medium stretch, pull hisself all together like that and interpret these, up and down like that, and tell it, and—and interpret those tongues, and tell what was said. So you can’t say that speaking in tongues you got the Holy Ghost.[1]

Two hours north of Jeffersonville in Chesterfield, IN, a spiritualist camp entertained guests with the exact "supernatural" feats described in Branham's addition to his "life story." Camp Chesterfield was started in 1891 by Maggie and Kate Fox, who claimed to have the ability to communicate with the deceased. Their supernatural gift, however, was more entertainment than power.

Here's a ghostly tale without a ghost, only some shrewd Hoosiers. And, to be honest, some gullible ones too. It began when a pair of young sisters, Maggie and Kate Fox, started claiming they could communicate with the deceased. They became celebrities, and their story gave birth to the booming movement of spiritualism. Before her death, Kate Fox admitted that the sisters had made up their supposed communications with the Other side, and it seemed that spiritualism would be dealt a death blow.[2]

In 1949, a new "medium" attraction was introduced: Madam Mimi. Madam Mimi claimed to have the ability to channel unearthly voices and move physical objects, feats which attracted the curious from all parts of Indiana. One of the performances Madam Mimi frequently used at Camp Chesterfield included the 7-note musical phrase, "Shave and a Haircut-Two Bits".

"The spirits are strong this night," intoned Madam Mimi. "With whom do you wish to speak?" She never received her answer. Abruptly, the table, which had tipped just moments before, lifted completely off the floor, levitating sideways in a long arc before landing back on the floor with a dull thud. Next an entire series of knocks erupted from the table until all present recognized the familiar cadence of "shave and a hair cut- two bits." Suddenly, the sound of a bell filled the room once again, this time ringing frantically. "Sounds like it's dinner time!" whispered the dark shape of Mr. Wirtz.[3]

In the early part of his ministry, William Branham used similar tactics as part of his stage persona. In 1947 Branham describes having the ability to move bracelets using his mind:

Now, then of course, fastening my eyes to that bracelet, which you can yourself, if you won’t doubt it in your heart, and it started moving around. And then it moved back and forth, around, crossways, and stopped it. She said, “Brother Branham,” she said, “that’s spiritualism.” I said, “I—I thought maybe you’d say something like that.”[4]