HBO's "Carnivàle" Debuts Big

The pilot episode of HBO's supernatural series about fortune tellers and midgets drew a huge audience on Sunday night, making the best debut of any HBO original series. 5.3 million viewers tuned in to the see the first episode. The previous record holder,  "Six Feet Under" (the highly acclaimed dark comedy about the dead, sometimes back-from-the-dead, and those who take care of them) drew an audience of 5 million when its pilot episode first aired in 2001.

"Carnivàle" tells the story of young man (Nick Stahl) who is taken in by a traveling carnival and the story of a preacher called Brother Justin (Clancy Brown) who gets a sign from God that causes him to believe he may possess mysterious powers. Set in the early 20th century, the series also stars Amy Madigan, Clea Duvall, and Michael J. Anderson.

Source: Variety