That prompts an unexpected run-in with Sherlock Holmes creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whose wife claimed she could patch Houdini in to the great beyond.Īdmittedly, there are some interesting moments detailing how Houdini achieved his spectacular illusions and escapes. The mini’s second half, meanwhile (after the most anticlimactic opening-night cliffhanger imaginable), focuses squarely on Houdini’s determination to contact his beloved and departed mother (Eszter Onodi), leading to the war on mediums he conducted, branding them psychics and frauds. Along the way, the project takes detours to chronicle some of the other historical figures Houdini encountered, which included using that access to spy on behalf of the Americans and British before World War I. Leaping about in time, the movie chronicles Harry Houdini’s upbringing as Ehrich Weiss, a Jewish immigrant from Budapest (where, incidentally, the miniseries was shot), parlaying his early love of magic into a stage act that eventually made him one of the most recognizable figures of his era. Overall, the Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton TV biopic was watched by 3.5 million viewers – more than double last night’s SBTB pic.Nor is there much supporting help for Brody, with Kristen Connolly coming off as a nag playing Houdini’s perpetually concerned wife, Evan Jones as the architect behind his many tricks, and practically no one else registering. Still that was less in the 18-49s than last year’s Liz & Dick starring Lindsay Lohan which had 1.3 million in the demo. The Jason Lapeyre directed TV got 1.1 million among the demo. While that total viewership number is not so great for a show that had social media atwittering, the SBTB pic was almost all the key demo of adults 18-49. On at 9 PM, the biopic of the 80s/90s NBC series pulled in just 1.6 million viewers. On fellow A+E Networks owned Lifetime, The Unauthorized Saved By The Bell Story did not have such a good night. The network drew big numbers with Bonnie & Clyde last year and Hatfields & McCoys in 2012, along with its epic 10-hour 2013 mini The Bible, which has spawned a sequel. Houdini also tied up 1.5 million in the 25-54 demo for the 9 PM ET opening two hours of its latest mini based on a historical figure.

Part 1 of History’s four-hour miniseries starring Adrien Brody as Harry Houdini drew 3.7 million total viewers on Labor Day.

Houdini brody