Timothee Chalamet's 'Marty Supreme' will be released soon. However, fans have been curious whether the sports drama's story is based on real events.
Timothee Chalmet will soon be back on the big screen with his new sports drama, Marty Supreme. Directed by Josh Safdie, the new film has the fanatical energy of a 149-minute ping-pong rally. However, what really makes it interesting is that it is played by a single player running around the table. It's a marathon sprint of bizarre tragedies and uproar. To put it lightly, Marty Supreme is a sociopath-screwball nightmare, like something by Mel Brooks.
Timothee Chalamet has been doing an impeccable job promoting the film, with custom outfits, a casual rap collab with EsDeeKid, and befriending Britain's Got Talent star, Susan Boyle. Additionally, the project has been intriguing fans even more, as it was enticing enough to lure Gwyneth Paltrow out of retirement, so we already know it's gonna be worth a watch. However, one question that has been plaguing fans is whether the film is based on a true story. Let's find out.
Marty Supreme has been making headlines ever since the first glimpse of the sports drama was introduced. However, along with the intrigue about the film itself, fans have also been digging into the story and the man behind the film. While it's been alleged that the film is loosely based on the life of the tennis champ, Marty Reisman. However, is it true? Well, the short answer is yes, kinda, sort of. Marty Supreme is not a straight up biopic, unlike Timothee Chalment's previous role as 'Bob Dylan' in A Complete Unknown. The ping-pong saga is, however, loosely inspired by a real person, and it's none other than Marty 'The Needle' Reisman.
Marty 'The Needle' Reisman was a legendary table tennis player who fought his way out of poverty to become one of the biggest names in the history of the sport. However, his journey was anything but easy; it took a combination of sporting prowess, hustle, and his larger-than-life character to find his way in a world bigger than his imagination. The sports figure was known for wearing flamboyant outfits and quick wit.
Nonetheless, what made him lethal was the ability to break an opponent's cigarette in half from his side of the ping-pong table. When 'Marty Reisman' was a perfect idol for the film, then why was it not completely based on him? Well, rather than sticking rigidly to the facts, Marty Supreme uses his life as a general layout for the film as a springboard, blending real events with fictionalised elements (AKA Marty's affair with Gwyneth's character, Kay Stone).
Interestingly, the real 'Marty's' life has already been explored on a screen elsewhere. The sportsman had a documentary made on him in 2014 titled Fact or Fiction: The Life and Times of a Ping-Pong Hustler. The film explored his rise to success. Its director, Leo Leigh, recently told The Smithsonian that Marty Supreme's director, Josh Safdie, reached out to him to ask about the real 'Marty Reisman'.
Marty Reisman has become a figure of interest in recent months, thanks to the attention the team has garnered. However, the real question is who the sports star really was. Marty was born in 1930 and hailed from New York City. He was the son of a taxi driver and grew up facing tough times during the Great Depression (spanning 1929 to 1939). By the time Marty was a teenager, he was reportedly sleeping rough while making a name for himself playing high-stakes matches in underground clubs, back rooms, and pool halls.
For the most part, Marty Reisman would portray himself as an overconfident, wealthy opponent and pocket the cash after trouncing them. Speaking about his money-making techniques years later, at the age of 75, Reisman told Forbes, "Just get them to the table is my philosophy." He revealed that he was very young when he realised he was gifted, and because of that gift, only he could carve out a very interesting life from table tennis. He further added:
"I had a nervous breakdown when I was nine years old and ended up in Bellevue Hospital. Ping-Pong was the ultimate escape. My racket became a sensuous connection between the ball and my brain."
By the 1950s, Marty Reisman was a known force in the sports world and went on to win multiple national championships. His impeccable performance earned him a reputation not only for his skills but for his iconic trash-talking of opponents and eccentric approach to the game. Back in 2005, when asked about Marty, journalist (and friend), Sir Harry Evans told a media outlet:
"It's not just that Marty has a legendary forehand or the greatest drop shot ever seen on the face of the earth.. He has all these things, but he's also a master raconteur and rhetorician. His wit is as delicious as his drop shot. If you had to name the ten greatest players the game has ever seen, Marty would without a doubt be one of them."
Marty Reisman passed away at the age of 82 in 2012. According to his New York Times obituary, he left behind his wife, Yoshiko, and their daughter, Debbie, along with several grandchildren. Yoshiko remained a constant pillar of support in Marty's life, often being mentioned in connection with the sports legend.
What are your thoughts on Marty Supreme and the man behind the film?
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