Which of the most watched miniseries did you watch?

[B.J. Ewing]

I loved Mistral's Daughter and Hollywood Wives too! And Lace, Sins and Monte Carlo. Love 80s miniseries.

 

[Monzo]

I just watched Masada for the first time. At least, I thought I was. While watching, I remembered some of the gruesome scenes, so I must have actually seen Masada as a child, but most of it was new to me.

Masada is the ninth most-watched miniseries in the US, with an average rating of 26.4. The four episodes aired on ABC for four consecutive nights beginning April 5, 1981, and achieved the following ratings: 27.1 – 25.6 – 25.7 – 27.0. It is claimed that over 70 million Americans watched Masada in 1981, but the average rating of 26.4 will likely never translate accurately into viewership.

I'm a little surprised that Masada was so successful, as it didn't feature any big love stories like in other tragic miniseries like Roots and Holocaust, aside from the strange relationship between Peter O'Toole's character and Barbara Carrera's. It was essentially a miniseries without much emotion and a familiar ending, yet I was surprised that there was hardly a dull moment in its four episodes. Masada was nominated for thirteen Emmys but won only two, one of which went to David Warner for Best Supporting Actor.

Here is the New York Times review of Masada from April 1981: https://www.nytimes.com/1981/04/05/arts/tv-view-masada-a-mini-series-on-a-grand-scale.html

As successful as Masada was for ABC in 1981, the July 1983 rerun was a disaster. It averaged an 8.9 rating and gave ABC its worst week to date. In addition, ABC achieved the lowest ratings in network primetime television to date. Reruns of miniseries generally failed to match the success of their premieres.

 

[B.J. Ewing]

I just watched Masada for the first time. At least, I thought I was. While watching, I remembered some of the gruesome scenes, so I must have actually seen Masada as a child, but most of it was new to me.

Masada is the ninth most-watched miniseries in the US, with an average rating of 26.4. The four episodes aired on ABC for four consecutive nights beginning April 5, 1981, and achieved the following ratings: 27.1 – 25.6 – 25.7 – 27.0. It is claimed that over 70 million Americans watched Masada in 1981, but the average rating of 26.4 will likely never translate accurately into viewership.

I'm a little surprised that Masada was so successful, as it didn't feature any big love stories like in other tragic miniseries like Roots and Holocaust, aside from the strange relationship between Peter O'Toole's character and Barbara Carrera's. It was essentially a miniseries without much emotion and a familiar ending, yet I was surprised that there was hardly a dull moment in its four episodes. Masada was nominated for thirteen Emmys but won only two, one of which went to David Warner for Best Supporting Actor.

Here is the New York Times review of Masada from April 1981: https://www.nytimes.com/1981/04/05/arts/tv-view-masada-a-mini-series-on-a-grand-scale.html

As successful as Masada was for ABC in 1981, the July 1983 rerun was a disaster. It averaged an 8.9 rating and gave ABC its worst week to date. In addition, ABC achieved the lowest ratings in network primetime television to date. Reruns of miniseries generally failed to match the success of their premieres.

I have a sealed copy of Masada on DVD. Never watched it when it was on air (I was 8), but now I'd really like to!

 

[Soaplover]

My parents watched The Winds of War.. and I think my dad had the novel that the mini series was based on.

My mom adored I'll take Manhattan... and I have to admit I liked the book version of it. I didn't see The Thorn Birds in full... but the book is still a page turner.

 

[Monzo]

I watched Backstairs at the White House for the first time, which received a total of eleven Emmy nominations but only won Best Makeup. The four-part miniseries was very popular with audiences, averaging a 25.1 rating.

For me, as a non-American who doesn't know every detail of US history, it was interesting to learn more about the presidents and their first ladies. I wasn't aware that so much death took place in the White House between World War I and World War II: a president died, a first lady died, a presidential child died. All the presidents and first ladies had their flaws in the miniseries, but the Roosevelts were portrayed as perfect. Incidentally, I noticed that John Anderson, as Franklin D. Roosevelt, was mostly in a wheelchair, just as the actor later had to do in Dallas as Kimberly's father. I wondered if a casting director on Dallas remembered that John Anderson could portray a wheelchair user well and that's why he got the part of Herbert Styles. One of my favorite performances in Backstairs at the White House is Celeste Holm's portrayal of Florence Harding. She made me so curious about the First Lady that I even researched whether Florence Harding was really as eccentric as Celeste Holm depicted her.

Olivia Cole starred in Backstairs at the White House, and I realized I only know her from miniseries. I liked her in Roots, but I liked her best in North & South, perhaps because of the tragic end of her character, Maum Sally. It's a shame Olivia Cole never made it outside the world of miniseries. She was part of the main cast of three series (Szysznyk, Report to Murphy, Brewster Place), but none of them were successful.

What bothered me somewhat about Backstairs at the White House is its handling of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. One of the Black servants asked President Truman how long the war would last after the victory over Germany, and the president replied, "Not much longer." Then, a mushroom cloud appeared in the mirror the president was looking in; that was all that was ever shown or told about the atomic bombing. In another miniseries I recently watched, War and Remembrance, which deals extensively with World War II, the atomic bombing was also only briefly mentioned. I wonder if, in the 1970s and 80s, there was some kind of unwritten rule not to show anything critical about US conduct during World War II.

 

[Monzo]

Barbara Barrie has died at the age of 95.

Barbara Barrie, Oscar-Nominated Star of ‘Barney Miller’ and ‘Breaking Away,’ Dies at 95

Barabara Barrie, the Oscar-, Emmyy-, and Tony-nominated actress, died Wednesday in Manhattan.

variety.com

Barbara Barrie, who was nominated for an Oscar in 1979 for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Breaking Away, was a welcome presence in various miniseries: 79 Park Avenue, Backstairs at the White House, Roots: The Next Generations, I'll Take Manhattan, and Scarlett were all enriched by her contributions. She collapsed on the set of Scarlett, and shortly thereafter, she was diagnosed with cancer.

 

[Piggyrella Sanderson]

Barbara Barrie has died at the age of 95.

Barbara Barrie, Oscar-Nominated Star of ‘Barney Miller’ and ‘Breaking Away,’ Dies at 95

Barabara Barrie, the Oscar-, Emmyy-, and Tony-nominated actress, died Wednesday in Manhattan.

variety.com

Barbara Barrie, who was nominated for an Oscar in 1979 for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Breaking Away, was a welcome presence in various miniseries: 79 Park Avenue, Backstairs at the White House, Roots: The Next Generations, I'll Take Manhattan, and Scarlett were all enriched by her contributions. She collapsed on the set of Scarlett, and shortly thereafter, she was diagnosed with cancer.

She was excellent in comedies, I can remember her as Victoria´s mum in the TVM "Not Just Another Affair", an underrated romantic comedy with VP showing her... skills for the genre and Gil Gerard as a very hot suitor. The supporting cast was full of actors like Barrie (Robert Webber, Ed Begley Jr., and even Sharon Stone with almost no lines), and it was fun to watch. The plot and tone owed a lot to the best Blake Edwards romps of the 80s.

She was in every non-soap show from the last 75 years (over 120 credits), and her last role dates from last year.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

Are there any Euro-tellytalkers who remember this mini-series?

​

I think I watched it on Belgian television. I remember it as English language but I'm not 100% sure.
Drama, romance, secrets and tragedy - and it has ZERO reviews on IMDB (!)

Another one from the late eighties

Picture quality of the DVD is horrendous and I don't think I'll watch it again.

 

[Monzo]

She was excellent in comedies, I can remember her as Victoria´s mum in the TVM "Not Just Another Affair", an underrated romantic comedy with VP showing her... skills for the genre and Gil Gerard as a very hot suitor. The supporting cast was full of actors like Barrie (Robert Webber, Ed Begley Jr., and even Sharon Stone with almost no lines), and it was fun to watch. The plot and tone owed a lot to the best Blake Edwards romps of the 80s.

I’m not familiar with Not Just Another Affair at all, but it can be found on YouTube, so I have a chance to watch it after all.

It is truly remarkable how unpretentious Barbara Barrie was. She had just been nominated for an Oscar, yet she had no reservations whatsoever about appearing in some run-of-the-mill television movie alongside a Dallas star.

Are there any Euro-tellytalkers who remember this mini-series?

View attachment 59795​

I think I watched it on Belgian television. I remember it as English language but I'm not 100% sure.
Drama, romance, secrets and tragedy - and it has ZERO reviews on IMDB (!)

Another one from the late eighties
View attachment 59796
Picture quality of the DVD is horrendous and I don't think I'll watch it again.

I haven’t watched either miniseries, even though I actually like Constanze Engelbrecht. Incidentally, reviews for both miniseries among German fans are positive; Dirtwater Dynasty, in particular, is praised as a sort of The Thorn Birds that no one knows about.

Here is the premise of the 13-part miniseries Bonne espérance:
Jacques Beauvilliers (Jean-Pierre Bouvier), a descendant of the Huguenots, has settled in South Africa with his family. He owns a vast wine estate in the Cape region. A forbidden romance with a slave named Eva (Meryl Stoltenkamp) results in the birth of a son, Jean-Jacques (Kevin Smith). This sparks a multi-generational struggle for control of the estate, as Jacques’ wife, Emily (Constanze Engelbrecht), and their daughters—Clara (Trish Downing), Prudence (Agnès Soral), and Suzanne (Jocelyn Broderick)—are unwilling to cede the inheritance to the only male heir. Emily gives birth to another child, but it is a girl: Emily Junior (Sylvia Zerbib). Emily herself dies during childbirth.

Next on my list of miniseries to watch is Scarlett. I only watched it once, when it first premiered, and my recollection of it is rather negative in terms of the overall impression—though I barely remember any of the plot details. I picked up the DVD on sale, and I’m curious to see whether Scarlett has held up well as a miniseries or not.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

Here is the premise of the 13-part miniseries Bonne espérance:
Jacques Beauvilliers (Jean-Pierre Bouvier), a descendant of the Huguenots, has settled in South Africa with his family. He owns a vast wine estate in the Cape region. A forbidden romance with a slave named Eva (Meryl Stoltenkamp) results in the birth of a son, Jean-Jacques (Kevin Smith). This sparks a multi-generational struggle for control of the estate, as Jacques’ wife, Emily (Constanze Engelbrecht), and their daughters—Clara (Trish Downing), Prudence (Agnès Soral), and Suzanne (Jocelyn Broderick)—are unwilling to cede the inheritance to the only male heir. Emily gives birth to another child, but it is a girl: Emily Junior (Sylvia Zerbib). Emily herself dies during childbirth.

Thank you. The only information I could find was on French wiki.
Incidentally, I remember it as daughter Clara (a racist, embittered, bossy woman) having an affair with a native African, resulting in the half-breed boy whom she hated.
It's almost the same as hating her half-brother but I thought there was some tragic irony in the fact that she, of all people, had had an affair with an African. Apparently, that never happened!