King Hu
Hu Jinquan (29 April 1932 – 14 January 1997), better known as King Hu, was a Chinese film director and actor based in Hong Kong and Taiwan. He is best known for directing various ''wuxia'' films in the 1960s and 1970s, which brought Hong Kong and Taiwanese cinema to new technical and artistic heights. His films ''Come Drink with Me'' (1966), ''Dragon Inn'' (1967), and ''A Touch of Zen'' (1970–1971) inaugurated a new generation of ''wuxia'' films in the late 1960s. Apart from being a film director, Hu was also a screenwriter and set designer. Early life Hu was born in Beijing to a well-established family originating from Handan, Hebei. His grandfather was the governor of Henan in the late Qing Dynasty. His father had studied in Japan and was the owner of the local coal mine. His uncle was a high ranking official in the Republican government. Several of his brothers held high positions in the Communist government. Hu grew up in Beijing as a child. He emigrated to Hong Kong in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Beijing
} Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 million residents. It has an administrative area of , the third in the country after Guangzhou and Shanghai. It is located in Northern China, and is governed as a municipality under the direct administration of the State Council with 16 urban, suburban, and rural districts.Figures based on 2006 statistics published in 2007 National Statistical Yearbook of China and available online at archive. Retrieved 21 April 2009. Beijing is mostly surrounded by Hebei Province with the exception of neighboring Tianjin to the southeast; together, the three divisions form the Jingjinji megalopolis and the national capital region of China. Beijing is a global city and one of the world's leading centres for culture, diplomacy, politics, finance, busi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hebei
Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, and 0.3% Mongol. Three Mandarin dialects are spoken: Jilu Mandarin, Beijing Mandarin and Jin. Hebei borders the provinces of Shanxi to the west, Henan to the south, Shandong to the southeast, Liaoning to the northeast, and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to the north. Its economy is based on agriculture and manufacturing. The province is China's premier steel producer, although the steel industry creates serious air pollution. Five UNESCO World Heritage Sites can be found in the province, the: Great Wall of China, Chengde Mountain Resort, Grand Canal, Eastern Qing tombs, and Western Qing tombs. It is also home to five National Famous Historical and Cultural Cities: Handan, Baoding, Chengde, Zhengding and Shanhaiguan. Historic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cult Classic
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. A film, book, musical artist, television series, or video game, among other things, is said to have a cult following when it has a small but very passionate fanbase. A common component of cult followings is the emotional attachment the fans have to the object of the cult following, often identifying themselves and other fans as members of a community. Cult followings are also commonly associated with niche markets. Cult media are often associated with underground culture, and are considered too eccentric or anti-establishment to be appreciated by the general public or to be widely commercially successful. Many cult fans express their devotion with a level of irony when describing entertainment that falls under this realm, in that something ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chinese Opera
Traditional Chinese opera (), or ''Xiqu'', is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more than a thousand years, reaching its mature form in the 13th century, during the Song dynasty (960–1279). Early forms of Chinese theater are simple, but over time various art forms such as music, song and dance, martial arts, acrobatics, costume and make-up art, as well as literary art forms were incorporated to form traditional Chinese opera. Performers had to practice for many years to gain an understanding of the roles. Exaggerated features and colors made it easier for the audience to identify the roles portrayed. There are over a hundred regional branches of traditional Chinese opera today. In the 20th century the Peking opera emerged in popularity and has come to known as the "national theatre" of China, but other genres like Yue opera ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chinese Music
Music of China refers to the music of the Chinese people, which may be the music of the Han Chinese The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive va ... in the course of History of China, Chinese history as well as Ethnic groups in China, ethnic minorities in today's China. It also includes music produced by people of Chinese origin in some territories outside mainland China using traditional Chinese instruments or in the Chinese language. It includes forms from the traditional and modern, Western inspired, commercial popular music, folk, art, and classical forms, and innovative combinations of them. Documents and archaeological artifacts from early History of China, Chinese civilization show a well-developed musical culture as early as the Zhou dynasty (1122 BC – 256 BC) that set ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Samurai
were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They had high prestige and special privileges such as wearing two swords and ''Kiri-sute gomen'' (right to kill anyone of a lower class in certain situations). They cultivated the '' bushido'' codes of martial virtues, indifference to pain, and unflinching loyalty, engaging in many local battles. Though they had predecessors in earlier military and administrative officers, the samurai truly emerged during the Kamakura shogunate, ruling from 1185 to 1333. They became the ruling political class, with significant power but also significant responsibility. During the 13th century, the samurai proved themselves as adept warriors against the invading Mongols. During the peaceful Edo period (1603 to 1868), they became the stewards and chamberlains of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cheng Pei-pei
Cheng Pei-pei (born 6 January 1946) is a Chinese actress, who is considered cinema's first female action hero. She is known for her performance in the 1966 King Hu ''wuxia'' film ''Come Drink with Me'', as well as her portrayal of Jade Fox in the award-winning 2000 ''wuxia'' film ''Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon''. Career Cheng moved to Hong Kong in 1962. In 1963, she began training at Shaw Brothers Studio through a recommendation by a family friend. Due to her Mandarin and dance background, she quickly worked her way up. And in 1964, she made her feature film debut as Liu Qiuzi in the 1964 Taiwanese drama film ''Lovers' Rock''. Cheng is perhaps best known for starring in the 1966 Hong Kong wuxia film ''Come Drink with Me'', directed by King Hu. Set during the Ming Dynasty, it stars Cheng as Golden Swallow, a skilled swordswoman on a mission to rescue her brother. Cheng continued to play expert swordswomen in a number of films throughout the 1960s. Cheng moved to Southern Cal ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Theater of the Second World War. The beginning of the war is conventionally dated to the Marco Polo Bridge Incident on 7 July 1937, when a dispute between Japanese and Chinese troops in Peking escalated into a full-scale invasion. Some Chinese historians believe that the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 18 September 1931 marks the start of the war. This full-scale war between the Chinese and the Empire of Japan is often regarded as the beginning of World War II in Asia. China fought Japan with aid from Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, United Kingdom and the United States. After the Japanese attacks on Malaya and Pearl Harbor in 1941, the war merged with other conflicts which are generally categorized under those conflicts of World War II a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Love Eterne
''The Love Eterne'' is a 1963 Hong Kong musical film of the Huangmei opera genre directed by Li Han Hsiang. An adaptation of the classic Chinese story "Butterfly Lovers", it tells of the doomed romance between the male Liang Shanbo ( portrayed by actress Ivy Ling Po, who also sang the character's vocals) and the cross-dressed female Zhu Yingtai (Betty Loh Ti, with singing dubbed by Tsin Ting). The film won 6 awards at the 2nd Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan, including Best Picture. It was also selected as Hong Kong's entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 36th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Plot A young 16-year-old girl, Zhu Yingtai, managed to convince her parents to send her to college at Hangzhou on the condition that she went in the guise of a man. Along her journey to the college, she met 17-year-old Liang Shanbo who was attending the same school. They became sworn "brothers" an ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Li Han-Hsiang
Richard Li Han-hsiang (; 7 March 1926 in Huludao, Jinxi, Liaoning – 17 December 1996 in Beijing) was a Chinese film director. Li directed more than 70 films in his career beginning in the 1950s and lasting till the 1990s. His ''The Enchanting Shadow'', ''The Magnificent Concubine'', and ''Empress Wu Tse-Tien (1963 film), Empress Wu Tse-Tien'' were entered into the Cannes Film Festival in 1960, 1962, and 1963 respectively. Li also won the Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards for his work on the movie ''Xi Shi'' in 1965. Most of his movies in the 1970s and 1980s were Chinese historical dramas. He died in Beijing due to a heart attack. He was seventy. Filmography Films This is a partial list of films. Awards * Star. Avenue of Stars, Hong Kong, Avenue of Stars. Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront in Hong Kong. See also * Stone House (Diamond Hill) References External links Li Han-Hsiang at filmaffinity.com* HK cinemagic entryLi Han-hsiang at senscritique.com 1926 birth ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Kingdom And The Beauty
''The Kingdom and the Beauty'' () is a 1959 Hong Kong musical-drama film directed by Li Han-hsiang. The film was set in Imperial China, directed by a Hong Kong based-Mainland Chinese director and produced by the famed Hong Kong Shaw Brothers film studio. Although there was minimal Singaporean input in the film-making, the film was selected as the Singaporean entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 32nd Academy Awards, but was not nominated.Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Cast * Siu Loi Chow * Lin Dai as Li Feng * Li Jen Ho * Bo Hong as Liu Jin * Wei Hong as Li's sister-in-law * King Hu as Ta Niu * Jing Ting (singing voice) * Wei Lieh Lan * Lam Ma as Chou Yung * Rhoqing Tang as Dowager Empress * Margaret Tu Chuan as Village Girl * Yuanlong Wang as Liang Chu * Chih-Ching Yang as Li's brother * Zhao Lei as Emperor Chu Te Cheng See also * List of submissions to the 32nd Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film * List of Si ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shaw Brothers Studio
Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. () was the largest film production company in Hong Kong, and operated from 1925 to 2011. In 1925, three Shaw brothers— Runje, Runme, and Runde—founded Tianyi Film Company (also called "Unique") in Shanghai, and established a film distribution base in Singapore, where Runme and their youngest brother, Run Run Shaw, managed the precursor to the parent company, Shaw Organisation. Runme and Run Run took over the film production business of its Hong Kong-based sister company, Shaw & Sons Ltd, and in 1958 a new company, "Shaw Brothers," was set up. In the 1960s, Shaw Brothers established what was once the largest privately owned studio in the world, Movietown. The company's most famous works include ''The Love Eterne'', ''The One-Armed Swordsman'', ''Come Drink with Me'', ''King Boxer'', ''Executioners from Shaolin'', '' Five Deadly Venoms'', and ''The 36th Chamber of Shaolin''. Over the years the film company produced around 1,000 films, some ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |