Li Tienlu 110th birthday谷歌涂鸦标志标志

Li Tien-lu 110th birthday谷歌涂鸦标志
24 December 2020

Today’s Doodle celebrates Taiwanese puppeteer, educator, and film actor Li Tien-lu, a beloved artist who helped introduce the world to the traditional hand puppetry of his homeland. Tien-lu was a charismatic symbol of Taiwanese identity who breathed new life into the artform of puppetry for over 70 years.

Li Tien-lu was born on this day in 1910 in the Taiwanese capital of Taipei and learned puppetry from his father when he was a child. He became a professional puppetry career as a young teenager, and in his early 20s he established his own troupe: I Wan Jan. Tien-lu brought together elements like Peking opera and Taiwanese Beiguan music to craft a new form of glove puppetry called Wai Jiang Pai, and the troupe achieved great success from the ‘50s to the ‘70s.

In 1973, a French scholar took an interest in Tien-lu’s craft and asked him to teach a few of the scholar’s students. Soon enough, Tien-lu had pupils from around the world who in turn helped bring global popularity to the art of Taiwanese of puppetry. He spent the rest of his life traveling the globe to promote the artform, and also acted in films like “The Puppetmaster” (1993), a biopic about his life.

In honor of his artistic contributions, Tien-lu was honored as a “Living National Treasure'' by the Taiwanese government, and in 1995 he was knighted by the French government.

Happy birthday, Li Tien-lu, and thank you for handing the gift of Taiwanese puppetry to audiences around the world.