A biography of the renowned escape artist Harry Houdini, examining his fascination with the occult and his promise to his wife on her deathbed that he would speak from the beyond.
Acting
Ruth Gordon as Houdini's mother steals every scene she's in.
Production
Genuinely impressive magic sequences for a 1976 TV budget.
Director
Melville Shavelson
Paul Michael Glaser
Harry Houdini
Sally Struthers
Bess Houdini
Ruth Gordon
Cecilia Weiss
Vivian Vance
Minnie
Adrienne Barbeau
Daisy White
Bill Bixby
Rev. Arthur Ford
Jack Carter
Theo Weiss
Peter Cushing
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Nina Foch
Reverend Le Veyne
Wilfrid Hyde-White
Superintendent Melville
Geoffrey Lewis
Dr. Crandon
Maureen O'Sullivan
Lady Conan Doyle
Clive Revill
Dundas Slater
Barbara Rhoades
Margery Crandon
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Vivian Vance's final screen role — yes, Ethel from I Love Lucy plays a supporting part in this deeply odd TV movie.
Released during the 1970s occult boom, this rode the wave of séance fascination that made The Exorcist a phenomenon — but as safe network television.
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