"The Secret of the Magic Gourd" is a Chinese children's film that tells the story of a little boy named Wang Bao who discovers a magic gourd. The gourd has the power to grant wishes, but only one wish per day. At first, Wang Bao is excited about his newfound power and uses it to get whatever he wants. However, he soon realizes that having unlimited wishes doesn't always lead to happiness. As Wang Bao continues to make wishes, he becomes greedy and selfish. He neglects his friends and family, thinking only about himself.
He neglects his friends and family, thinking only about himself. He wishes for material possessions and power, but each wish only brings temporary satisfaction. He soon realizes that true happiness comes from helping others and being thankful for what he already has.
Lenny Lipton, “Puff the Magic Dragon” Lyricist and 3D Filmmaking Pioneer, Dies at 82
After the huge success of the Peter, Paul and Mary hit, he founded StereoGraphics and developed an electro-optical modulator known as ZScreen.
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Lenny Lipton, who wrote the poem that became the Peter, Paul and Mary hit “Puff the Magic Dragon” and developed technology used for today’s digital 3D theatrical projection systems, has died. He was 82.
Lipton died Wednesday of brain cancer at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, his son Noah told The Hollywood Reporter.
While studying engineering as a freshman at Cornell University, Lipton, inspired by a 1936 Ogden Nash poem, “The Tale of Custard the Dragon,” wrote a poem in 1959 on a typewriter owned by another physics major at the school, Peter Yarrow.
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Yarrow discovered the poem — about a boy named Jackie Paper and his imaginary dragon friend in a land by the sea — in the typewriter and years later used it for the lyrics to “Puff the Magic Dragon.”
Yarrow’s Peter, Paul and Mary recorded the song in 1962. It was released in January 1963 and peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 as one of the folk trio’s most enduring hits.
“Pirates and dragons, back then, were common interests in stories for boys,” Lipton told L.A. Weekly in a 2015 interview. “The Puff story is really just a lot like Peter Pan.”
The tune spawned a 1978 animated CBS special and two sequels, 1979’s Puff the Magic Dragon in the Land of the Living Lies and 1982’s Puff and the Incredible Mr. Nobody, with Burgess Meredith voicing the dragon in all three.
A children’s picture book based on the song has sold more than a million copies and has been translated into more than a dozen languages.
Over the years, Lipton denied that “Puff” was about drugs, a “myth” he said was started by New York newspaper columnist Dorothy Kilgallen.
Yarrow had tracked down Lipton and granted him half the songwriting credit, and royalties allowed him to pursue his interest in filmmaking.
In the Hollywood 3D community, Lipton is known for developing the ZScreen electro-optical modulator — a tool used in digital 3D projection — through his company, StereoGraphics. After StereoGraphics was acquired by RealD in 2005, Lipton continued development of his technology as RealD’s chief technology officer.
Lipton also authored books including 1972’s Independent Filmmaking; 1979’s Lipton on Filmmaking; 1982’s Foundations of the Stereoscopic Cinema; and 2021’s The Cinema in Flux: The Evolution of Motion Picture Technology From the Magic Lantern to the Digital Era.
Born in Brooklyn on May 18, 1940, Leonard Lipton was 8 when his dad gave him a 16-millimeter projector. “It was a toy, but I really understood how it worked,” he said. “I didn’t take it apart as much as I really understood how it worked, so I made other things like it.”
Comic books and 3D movies in the early 1950s got Lipton interested in the stereographic medium, and in the ’60s, he shot several experimental films, including Let a Thousand Parks Bloom, about People’s Park in Berkeley, California.
He served as a production assistant on One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), founded StereoGraphics in 1980 and served as a convergence setter for the 3D film Dogs From Hell (1983).
As of 2015, Lipton held 68 patents and had dozens more pending. “The motion picture industry has made billions of dollars from my [ZScreen] invention, and they would be in the red and not the black if I had not done what I did,” he said.
The Smithsonian Institution honored him in 1996 for StereoGraphics’ invention of CrystalEyes, electronic eyewear for computer graphics and video applications such as molecular modeling, aerial mapping and medical imaging. (NASA selected it to remotely pilot the Mars Rovers, and it was used by Lockheed to upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope.)
In 2011, the International 3D Society (now the Advanced Imaging Society) presented him with its Century Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Survivors include his wife, Julie, and children, Anna, Noah and Jonah.
Immediately after the Peter, Paul and Mary’s recording came out in 1962, Dorothy Kilgallen, who was a columnist in a New York newspaper (it might have been the Daily News) wrote a piece saying that Puff, the Magic Dragon was about marijuana, hah-hah-hah-poke-in-the-ribs. When I was home from school as a kid my mom and I would listen to her on the radio. She had a talk show with her husband Dick. I think the show was called Dorothy and Dick and it was on WOR. The first thing I thought when confronted with her newspaper column was disbelief – how could that nice lady say such a thing? The second thing I thought was: What can you expect from a woman without a chin. She had a receding chin. Kind of nonexistent.
Through his magical journey, Wang Bao learns important life lessons about the consequences of his actions and the importance of gratitude. He discovers the true meaning of friendship and the value of selflessness. As he selflessly uses his wishes to help others, he experiences a profound change, becoming a kind and compassionate person. The film teaches children the importance of values such as generosity, kindness, and gratitude. It encourages them to think about the impact of their actions on others and the power of empathy. "The Secret of the Magic Gourd" reminds viewers that happiness doesn't come from material possessions but rather from genuine connections with others and a sense of appreciation for the present moment. Overall, "The Secret of the Magic Gourd" is a heartwarming tale that teaches children about the importance of values and selflessness. It encourages viewers to reflect on their own actions and consider the consequences of their choices. Through the journey of Wang Bao, children learn that true happiness lies in the relationships they build, the kindness they show, and the gratitude they express..
Reviews for "The Magic Gourd: How to Tap into its Power"
1. John - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with "The Secret of the Magic Gourd." The storyline was predictable and lacked depth. The characters were one-dimensional, and I couldn't connect with any of them. The acting was subpar, with awkward dialogue and forced emotions. Overall, I felt like I wasted my time watching this film.
2. Emily - 1 star - "The Secret of the Magic Gourd" was one of the worst movies I have ever seen. The special effects were cheesy and poorly executed. The plot was painfully slow, and I found myself losing interest within the first twenty minutes. The child actor, who played the main character, was annoyingly over-the-top and not believable. I wouldn't recommend this film to anyone.
3. Mark - 2 stars - I had high hopes for "The Secret of the Magic Gourd," but it fell short in many aspects. The story was not engaging enough to hold my attention, and I found myself zoning out during several scenes. The pacing was slow, and the film lacked a clear direction. Additionally, the CGI used for the magic gourd was unimpressive and looked fake. Overall, it was a forgettable movie-watching experience.
4. Samantha - 3 stars - "The Secret of the Magic Gourd" had potential, but it failed to deliver. The story was predictable, with no surprises or twists. The characters were underdeveloped, and I couldn't fully connect with their arcs. The film also relied too heavily on CGI, which looked flashy but lacked substance. While it was not the worst movie I've seen, it was far from memorable.