Yesterday, I learned of the existence of a short-lived mystery series that aired on the short-lived Dumont network in 1951. The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong starred Chinese-American actress Anna May Wong as the owner of an art gallery who also solves crimes or catches spies. Ten episodes aired between August and November of 1951, then it was cancelled.
The lead role was a part specifically created for Wong, whose career as an actress stretches back to the silent days. She was a wonderfully talented actress, regulated to supporting roles through most of her career because of the racial bigotry inherent in our culture at the time. So getting to be one of the first (very possibly the first) Asian actor to land a lead role on TV is a pretty big deal.
I admit, though, that my personal geekiness centers my attention on the show itself. It's a great premise for an amateur detective show and, though the time period probably led to some stereotyping of Asian characters and culture, there's no reason it couldn't be a high-quality mystery. And there's no question that Wong would have been wonderful in the role.
But we'll never know. Why will we never know? Because not a single episode nor a single script survive.
Like many early TV shows, it was recording via kinoscope (point a film camera at the TV and record the show as it is broadcast), but in a vile crime against cultural history, many recordings of Dumont shows were eventually disposed of by dumping them into New York Bay. My understanding is that there was some sort of legal dispute going on over the recordings at the time, but apparently no one involved ever thought that these old shows might some day have monetary value. To be fair, no one would have seen the possibilities of streaming and home video at that time, but all the same--there are occasionally other issues at stake than mere money.
So we can't ever watch an episode of The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong. We can't even read a script or get a plot summary. No one has ever written down their memories of watching it. It's as if it never existed.
Gee whiz, until yesterday I didn't even know this show did once exist. Now the universe seems a cruel and empty place because I have to live without it.
So if I ever get access to a time machine, I'm going to give saving the recordings of The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong a high priority--right after watching a 19th Century baseball game and right before saving Abraham Lincoln. It's that important.
If you get a two-seater, I'll go along to help out. The missing 'Doctor Who' episodes and so many other vanished shows need to be rescued.
ReplyDeleteBut this was the first time I heard of this show and I read those prime-time encyclopediae cover to cover. (Okay, I am getting older and may have forgotten.)
It does sound intriguing and I would love to see a reboot.
In 1956, a newspaper article says, "The only rule Miss Wong has made for herself in TV is to steer clear of low-budget weekly shows which TV producers grind out in assembly-line style. Still vivid in her memory is a 13 week series called "Gallery of Madame Liu Tsong" (1951), a suspense program in which she suffered from everything but seven-year locusts. And so did the viewers."
ReplyDeleteSo I don't think Wong would want this series preserved for posterity.
Thanks for the information. Well, it was a cool premise for a show. It's too bad that it may not have worked out in practice. I'd still like to see an episode, though.
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