Magician Lu Chen Will Not Be Appearing In Tonight’s Lantern Festival Gala Because People Are Still Upset At His Joke

By Anthony Tao February 24, 2013 3:39 pm   Comments: 1

In the immediate aftermath of Taiwanese magician Lu Chen’s withering joke during the CCTV Spring Festival Gala — simultaneously seen live by millions, then re-watched over and over in the proceeding days, even after it got censored from subsequent reruns — we were told that all parties involved were cool with it. That might not... Read more »

Magician Lu Chen’s Big Blunder During The CCTV Spring Festival Gala Wasn’t His Leehom Wang Gay Joke

By Anthony Tao February 13, 2013 5:01 pm   Comments: 1

One of the most talked-about and controversial moments from this year’s CCTV Spring Festival Gala was magician Lu Chen’s “looking for Leehom” joke. His one-liner got the best crowd reaction — a mixture of delight and genuine shock that such a joke could fly — and ensured he’d stay in the public eye for days,... Read more »

CCTV Censors Spring Festival Gala’s Best Moment, Lu Chen’s Riff On Gay Innuendo Between Leehom Wang And Li Yundi

By Anthony Tao February 12, 2013 4:41 am   Comments: 1

Ah, live TV. Did magician Lu Chen give the CCTV Spring Festival Gala -- the most-watched show on Chinese television every year -- its Janet Jackson "wardrobe malfunction" moment? First, a little background. Top Chinese pianist Li Yundi and Chinese American singer Leehom Wang are best buds who spend so much time together that people openly question the nature of their relationship. (The two have repeatedly said they're not gay lovers.) It's kind of a running joke, the sort that feeds gossip mills and keeps tabloids in business.

Leehom Wang Does Thing, Ladies Swoon

By Anthony Tao June 25, 2012 4:55 pm   Comments: 1

Leehom Wang wasn’t the only Chinese Olympic torchbearer in Manchester on Saturday — there was also news anchor Bai Yansong, for instance — but Wang was most definitely the only Chinese torchbearer to make all the Chinese ladies in the crowd shriek their minds out. He was also probably the only torchbearer to do an... Read more »

Leehom Wang Flubs Famous Line In “As Time Goes By” At BJIFF’s Opening Night

By Anthony Tao April 25, 2012 1:03 am   Comments: 3

Taiwanese American heartthrob Leehom Wang performed "As Time Goes By" on Monday at the star-studded opening ceremony of the 2nd Beijing International Film Festival. All in all, Wang did a commendable job with Herman Hupfeld's song -- popularized by Dooley Wilson in Casablanca, of course -- but in front of a national audience -- the show was televised on CCTV-6 -- he flubbed the famous line, "You must remember this, / A kiss is just a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh" ("The fundamental things apply / As time goes by"). He said "a smile is just a sigh." Oops.