The Glass Eye story
Jim Whitely tells his cousin a story about how their late extended cousin Julia fell in love with ventriloquist Max Collodi. Julia was so devoted that she traveled all over the country to watch Collodi's act with his child-sized dummy. After writing many letters, Julia was finally able to meet Collodi in person, but she discovered that "Collodi" was the dummy, and the puppet was the real man, wearing a mask. Julia took with her "Collodi"'s glass eye as a keepsake of her love. Directed by: Robert Stevens. Story by: John Keir Cross, Stirling Silliphant.
7 total · 1 choice · 2 major · 3 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| obsessive love | choice | The story concerned Julia's infatuation with ventriloquist Max Collodi. She traveled the country to see his shows, though she could ill afford to do so. |
| loneliness | major | Julia was desperately lonely and daydreamed of finding a man. We gather that the actor playing Max Collodie's doll had complex and related emotions as well, as he gazed wistfully after Julia as she ran away from him. |
| ventriloquism | major | The story concerns a woman who follows the professional ventriloquist Max Collodi as he performs around the country. |
| coping with an obsessive fan | minor | Max Collodi didn't seem to mind his enamored groupie, Julia. |
| dealing with children | minor | Julia took an ill-behaved boy to see a ventriloquist perform on stage. |
| human familial relationship | minor | The story was narrated by Jim Whitely who was speaking to his cousin about a mutual cousin, Julia. |
| artificial body part | not | the story concerned a glass eye, though it transpires that it had belonged merely to a doll [eye] |