In Film
The only film record of Chung Ling Soo that exists today shows him greeting World War I veterans at a 1915 benefit performance.
A magician inspired by Chung Ling Soo appears briefly in The Prestige. In an early scene, John Cutter (Michael Caine) challenges his assistants to figure out how Soo does his trick where he appears to magically summon a fishbowl. After watching him, Borden (Christian Bale) deduces that Soo carries the fishbowl between his legs where it is hidden by his skirt. However, the real trick is how Soo pretends to be crippled so the audience never suspects the obvious.
Read more about this topic: Chung Ling Soo
Famous quotes containing the word film:
“The obvious parallels between Star Wars and The Wizard of Oz have frequently been noted: in both there is the orphan hero who is raised on a farm by an aunt and uncle and yearns to escape to adventure. Obi-wan Kenobi resembles the Wizard; the loyal, plucky little robot R2D2 is Toto; C3PO is the Tin Man; and Chewbacca is the Cowardly Lion. Darth Vader replaces the Wicked Witch: this is a patriarchy rather than a matriarchy.”
—Andrew Gordon, U.S. educator, critic. “The Inescapable Family in American Science Fiction and Fantasy Films,” Journal of Popular Film and Television (Summer 1992)
“This film is apparently meaningless, but if it has any meaning it is doubtless objectionable.”
—British Board Of Film Censors. Quoted in Halliwell’s Filmgoer’s Companion (1984)