Alfonso Wong (; 27 May 1923 – 1 January 2017), also known by his pen name ''Wong Chak'', was a

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

manhua () are Chinese-language comics produced in China and Taiwan. Whilst Chinese comics and narrated illustrations have existed in China in some shape or form throughout its imperial history, the term first appeared in 1904 in a comic titled ''Cu ...

artist who created one of the longest-running

comic strip A comic strip is a sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th and into the 21st ...

s, ''

Old Master Q ''Old Master Q'' (; Wong's romanization: ''Lo Fu Gee''"Q&A with Mr. Alfonso Wong" i"OMQ remembers Alfonso Wong" ''老夫子 - Old Master Q Comics'') is a Hong Kong manhua created by Alfonso Wong. The cartoon first appeared in the newspapers a ...

'', that became popular across Asia.

Biography

Wong was born in

Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popul ...

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

. He studied Western art at

Fu Jen Catholic University Fu Jen Catholic University (FJU, FJCU or Fu Jen; or ) is a private Catholic university in Xinzhuang, New Taipei City, Taiwan. The university was founded in 1925 in Beijing at the request of Pope Pius XI and re-established in Taiwan in 1961 at ...

, then based in

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 ...

and finished school by 1944. In 1956, he moved south to

British Hong Kong Hong Kong was a colony and later a dependent territory of the British Empire from 1841 to 1997, apart from a period of occupation under the Japanese Empire from 1941 to 1945 during the Pacific War. The colonial period began with the Briti ...

. He was responsible for drawings in

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

s for a French

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

missionary in the colony and also became the art editor for Hong Kong Catholic magazine, ''Lok Fung Pao'' ().Wong, Wendy Siuyi.

002 002, 0O2, O02, OO2, or 002 may refer to: Fiction *002, fictional British 00 Agent *''002 Operazione Luna'', *1965 Italian film *Zero Two, a ''Darling in the Franxx'' character Airports *0O2, Baker Airport *O02, Nervino Airport Astronomy *1996 ...

(2001) '' Hong Kong Comics: A History of Manhua''.

Princeton Architectural Press Princeton Architectural Press is a small press publisher, specializing in books on architecture, design, photography, landscape, and visual culture, with over 1,000 titles on its backlist. In 2013, it added a line of stationery products, including ...

, New York. Wong became well known in 1961 when he made the manhua ''

''. The comic was one of the most influential pieces of work in Hong Kong under British rule before it was transferred back to China, and was popular across Asia. It voiced the opinions of the citizens in an exaggerated comical sense at a time when comics avoided controversial political issues. From integration with mainlanders to the education gap, there were few limitations being broached by the sensitive subjects which accompanied his stories. The comic became known for maintaining popularity for over 40 years against endless competition with other Hong Kong manhua and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

. Later adaptations into movies,

Chinese animation Chinese animation refers to animation made in China. In China and in Chinese, donghua ( zh, s=动画, t=動畫, p=dònghuà) describes all animated works, regardless of style or origin. However, outside of China and in English, ''donghua'' is co ...

and other works of fiction continued well after his retirement. He later emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and retired by the mid-1990s. In an exhibition showcasing Wong, the

Hong Kong Arts Centre Hong Kong Arts Centre (HKAC; ) is a non-profit arts institution and art museum established in 1977. It promotes contemporary performing arts, visual arts, film and video arts. It also provides arts education. Its rival is the government-managed ...

called his work, "a collective memory of Chinese-speaking communities around the world." Original pieces of Wong's work have been exhibited by both

Sotheby's Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and ...

and

Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...

auction houses.

Personal life

Wong was

ambidextrous Ambidexterity is the ability to use both the right and left hand equally well. When referring to objects, the term indicates that the object is equally suitable for right-handed and left-handed people. When referring to humans, it indicates that ...

(i.e. capable of drawing with both hands) and particularly enjoyed drawing fish. He used his eldest son's name ''Wong Chak'' () as a pen-name and relinquished the comic to him in 1995. Wong died of

organ failure Organ dysfunction is a condition where an organ does not perform its expected function. Organ failure is organ dysfunction to such a degree that normal homeostasis cannot be maintained without external clinical intervention. It is not a diagnosi ...

on 1 January 2017, at the age of 93. He is also the son of the ethnic-

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name. The Later Jin (1616–1636) and ...

Chinese warlord Wang Chengbin.

References

External links

Official Old Master Q Website Background of Alfonso Wong

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wong, Alfonso Yellow Bus Chinese comics artists Chinese comics writers Chinese animators Chinese animated film directors Chinese animated film producers Fu Jen Catholic University alumni 1923 births 2017 deaths Hong Kong comics writers Artists from Tianjin Writers from Tianjin Manchu people People involved in plagiarism controversies