NPR logo NPR Books

The Glorious Deception

The Double Life Of William Robinson, Aka Chung Ling Soo, The "Marvelous Chinese Conjurer"

by Jim Steinmeyer

The Glorious Deception

Hardcover, 451 pages, Pgw, List Price: $27 | purchase

close

Purchase Featured Books

  • The Glorious Deception
  • The Double Life Of William Robinson, Aka Chung Ling Soo, The "Marvelous Chinese Conjurer"
  • Jim Steinmeyer
Your purchase helps support NPR Programming. How?

Book Summary

A fascinating chronicle of the great Chinese illusionist Chung Ling reveals his mastery of magic and his double life as an American passing himself off as Chinese, which was revealed when he died dodging bullets during his performance of "Defying the Bullets."

NPR stories about The Glorious Deception

Arts & Life

'Glorious Deception' in Magic

Teller, the usually silent half of the magician duo Penn and Teller, reviews the book, The Glorious Deception, by Jim Steinmeyer. It's a biography of the magician known to audiences as Chung Ling Soo, who Teller says was a genuine enigma.

Comments

 

Please keep your community civil. All comments must follow the NPR.org Community rules and Terms of Use. NPR reserves the right to use the comments we receive, in whole or in part, and to use the commenter's name and location, in any medium. See also the Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and Community FAQ.

NPR logo NPR Books