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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 Houdinisa.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]
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]
Erik Weisz, known as Harry Houdini, was a Hungarian-American escape artist, illusionist, and stunt performer, noted for his escape acts.
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Houdini is a 1953 American Technicolor biographical film from Paramount Pictures, produced by George Pal and Berman Swarttz, directed by George Marshall, that stars Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh. The film's screenplay, based upon the life of magician and escape artist Harry Houdini, was written by Philip Yordan, based on the book Houdini by Harold Kellock. The film's music score was by Roy Webb and the cinematography by Ernest Laszlo. The art direction was by Albert Nozaki and Hal Pereira, and the costume design by Edith Head.
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Houdini is a two-part, four-hour History Channel miniseries written by Nicholas Meyer and directed by Uli Edel. It premiered on September 1, 2014. The series stars Adrien Brody as Harry Houdini and features the life of the legendary illusionist and escape artist from poverty to worldwide fame.
Scott Allen Nollen is an American author known for writing about the history of film, music, literature and African American studies. He was born on April 2, 1963, in Harlan, Iowa. His father, Harold N. Nollen, served in the United States Coast Guard prior to running a successful petroleum distribution business, to which his mother, Shirley A. (Stoltz) Nollen, also contributed. Nollen was educated at the University of Iowa (1984-1989), where he received Bachelor's Degrees in Broadcasting and Film and Honors History, Phi Beta Kappa, and a Master's Degree in U.S., Modern European and African-American History. From 1991 to 2001, he served as an archivist and historian for the National Archives and Records Administration.
Houdini & Doyle is a British television drama series loosely based on the real-world friendship of Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A 10-episode first season was ordered by Fox in the United States, ITV in the United Kingdom, and Global in Canada. The pilot episode was written by co-creators David Hoselton and David Titcher. The first episode was broadcast simultaneously on ITV and ITV Encore on Sunday 13 March 2016.
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