Originally posted by The Italian Stallionette:
Originally posted by Don Vanchenzo:
[QB] Post from TIS:
[QUOTE] During the sequence when baby Fredo has pnemonia. There is a glass on his stomach. What is under the glass?
DV, I read that it was a "leech" under the glass they had on Fredo's stomach. I didn't see it in the movie either, but I read that it was a superstition used to draw out the virus or something. Not complaining mind you, but now I am curious.
TIS TIS, this practice, called "cupping," was very common among Italian and Eastern European immigrants in that era. A glass hemisphere was heated with a candle, then placed on the sick person's skin, to "draw the bad blood" to the surface. No leeches were involved in this process. It's yet another of FFC's many marvelous authenticity touches.
