Chung Ling Soo

Born William Ellsworth Robinson in 1861, he became famous under the stage name Chung Ling Soo. Reliable sources describe him as an American magician who crafted a highly successful theatrical identity and toured widely, especially in music halls and variety theaters at the turn of the 20th century.

His act blended sleight of hand, grand illusion, and careful stagecraft. A big part of his fame came from maintaining the illusion of his invented persona in public as well as onstage, which made him one of the most talked-about magicians of his era.

Robinson died in 1918 after a malfunction during his bullet-catching trick, an accident that has remained one of the most famous tragedies in the history of magic. Even now, Chung Ling Soo is remembered as a striking and complicated figure: a master showman whose career reveals both the glamour of old vaudeville and the lengths performers would go to create wonder.