He escaped to become famous (7)

I believe the answer is:

houdini

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'he escaped to become famous' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.

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(Other definitions for houdini that I've seen before include "Escape artist, d. 1926" , "American escapologist, d. 1926" , "Showman" , "Weiss -" , "Entertainer bound" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian and The Globe and Mail.

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