What does the Dalai Lama have in common with old Hollywood movies, a backwoodsman turned political hero, noir mysteries in wartime San Francisco, Ronald Reagan, an Egyptian mummy, President Taft’s bathtub, and a giant lizard terrorizing Japan? Quite a lot, actually.
Several years ago, I heard about a reference to the Dalai Lama in fake newspapers used as props in two classic Hollywood films: “Reefer Madness” and “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.” Although I can’t recall who shared this with me, and I couldn’t find any clues in my emails, it stuck with me.
The headline was “New ‘Living Buddha’ Reported Discovered,” referring to the 1936 discovery of the Dalai Lama’s new incarnation, or “tulku,” in Tibet. Initially, I was skeptical because I thought prop newspapers in old movies were entirely fabricated to avoid licensing fees. It turns out that in the early days of cinema, some of the stories were true — including the one about the Dalai Lama.
In “Reefer Madness,” you can barely make out this headline if you look closely. The main story is “Harper Verdict Expected Tonight,” which relates to the movie’s plot. Below that, there’s “Dick Tracy, G-Man, In Sensational Raid,” and beneath that, amidst the blur of a low-resolution TV scan of an old film, you can find “New ‘Living Buddha’ Reported Discovered.”
This headline is much clearer in “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” featuring a young Jimmy Stewart. This appears during the pivotal scene where Governor Hubert “Happy” Hopper tosses a coin to decide if a deceased senator will be replaced by a political lackey or a naive local hero. The newspaper influences his decision, with headlines including “New ‘Living Buddha’ Reported Discovered” and “36 Mexican Rebels Killed by Soldiers.”
I later discovered His Holiness appears in several other films as well, such as “This Gun for Hire,” “Gigantis, The Fire Monster,” and even a TV miniseries from 1979 called “Backstairs at the Whitehouse.” That’s the only color appearance I know of so far. He also showed up in “Girls On Probation” (1938), starring Ronald Reagan, and “The Mummy’s Tomb” (1942). The Dalai Lama, it seems, gets around!
The origin of these prop newspapers likely traces back to The Earl Hays Press, which has been supplying Hollywood with props for over a century. But is the “Living Buddha” story truly about the Dalai Lama and based on real news? The answers are yes and yes.
On May 27, 1936, an Associated Press story titled “New ‘Living Buddha’ Reported Discovered” appeared on page 25 of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The same story was picked up by other outlets with headlines like, “New ‘Living Buddha’ Discovered After Two-Year Search in Tibet,” featured in The Atlanta Journal on the same date.
Here’s the gist of the article: Tibetan priests, after a two-year search and studying reflections in a sacred lake, discovered a new Dalai Lama in the Han Jen district, believed to be the reincarnation of the thirteenth Dalai Lama who died in 1933. The Dalai Lama is both the spiritual and temporal leader of Tibet, believed to be immortal, with his essence passed down to a child born around his predecessor’s death.
Monks and professional diviners had been searching for the reincarnated Dalai Lama, with favorable omens reported earlier that year. When a vision of a house appeared in the lake, it led to the discovery of the new Dalai Lama’s residence and his identity.
Other genuine stories like “36 Mexican Rebels Killed by Soldiers” and “Fire Destroys State Arsenal” are also found in these prop newspapers.
So, the Dalai Lama’s story has popped up in various films over the years, with his headline visible in everything from classic films like “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” to “Gigantis” and “Reefer Madness.” If you spot any more appearances, let me know!
Interestingly, the same “Living Buddha” story can be seen in a prop newspaper in the miniseries “Backstairs at the Whitehouse,” just below a picture of President Taft’s infamous custom bathtub. My curiosity about this ubiquitous headline led me to track down the original source. Thanks for the information!