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| The Great Houdini | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Also known as | The Great Houdinis |
| Genre | Biography Drama |
| Written by |
Peter Benchley Melville Shavelson |
| Directed by | Melville Shavelson |
| Starring |
Paul Michael Glaser Sally Struthers |
| Theme music composer | Peter Matz |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Production locations | 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California |
| Cinematography | Arch R. Dalzell |
| Editor | John Woodcock |
| Running time | 96 minutes |
| Production company | ABC Circle Films |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | October 8, 1976 |
The Great Houdinis a.k.a. The Great Houdini is a 1976 American made-for-television biographical film which is a fictionalized account of the life of the Hungarian-American escape artist and entertainer Harry Houdini. The film was written and directed by Melville Shavelson and features Paul Michael Glaser ( Starsky & Hutch) and Sally Struthers ( All in the Family) and originally aired on ABC on October 8, 1976. [1]
Overview
The movie features the early career of Houdini, the relationship between his wife and mother, and his and his wife's attempts to reach "the other side,” with him attempting to contact his deceased mother and her attempting to contact Houdini himself after his death. Although the film portrays a strained relationship between Houdini's wife and mother, in reality they got along relatively well.
Some notable performances were turned in by Vivian Vance as Bess Houdini's nurse (and the narrator), Ruth Gordon as Houdini's mother, Peter Cushing as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Bill Bixby as Rev. Arthur Ford.
When the film was rebroadcast on April 6, 1977, the title was changed to The Great Houdini. [2]
Cast
- Paul Michael Glaser as Harry Houdini (Erich Weiss)
- Sally Struthers as Bess Houdini
- Ruth Gordon as Cecilia Weiss
- Vivian Vance as Minnie (Nurse)
- Adrienne Barbeau as Daisy White
- Bill Bixby as Rev. Arthur Ford
- Jack Carter as Theo Weiss
- Peter Cushing as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- Nina Foch as Rev. Le Veyne
- Wilfrid Hyde-White as Supt. Melville
- Geoffrey Lewis as Dr. Crandon
- Maureen O'Sullivan as Lady Conan Doyle
- Clive Revill as Dundas Slater
References
- ^ "Making of The Great Houdinis". Retrieved March 19, 2011.
- ^ "'Great Houdinis' title mystery solved!". Retrieved July 19, 2012.
External links
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- 1976 television films
- 1976 films
- 1970s biographical films
- American Broadcasting Company original films
- American television films
- American biographical films
- Biographical television films
- Films about magic and magicians
- Films directed by Melville Shavelson
- Cultural depictions of Harry Houdini
- Cultural depictions of Arthur Conan Doyle
- Films set in the 1890s
- Films set in the 1900s
- Films set in the 1910s
- Films set in the 1920s
- 1970s American films
- American television film stubs
- Biographical film stubs