Chen Qiang (; 1918 – 26 June 2012) was a Chinese film and stage actor and comedian best known for his performances as

villain A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...

antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the chief foe of the protagonist. Etymology The English word antagonist comes from the Greek ἀνταγωνιστής – ''antagonistēs'', "opponent, competitor, villain, enemy, riv ...

s in '' The Red Detachment of Women'', ''

The White Haired Girl ''The White-Haired Girl'' () is a Chinese opera, ballet, (later adapted to Beijing Opera and a film) by Yan Jinxuan to a Chinese libretto by He Jingzhi and Ding Yi. The folklore of the white-haired girl is believed to have spread widely in the are ...

'' and ''

Devils on the Doorstep ''Devils on the Doorstep'' (; ja, 鬼が来た!; literally "the devils are here"; the devil is a term of abuse for foreign invaders, here referring to brutal and violent Japanese invaders in China during World War II) is a 2000 Chinese black come ...

''. Chen began his career as an actor in 1947 and has played more than 40 different characters since then. His second son,

Chen Peisi Chen Peisi (; born 1 February 1954) is a Chinese sketch comedian, film and stage actor, and voice actor. Chen's oft-time comedy partner is Zhu Shimao. Name Chen Peisi is the second son of famous stage and film actor Chen Qiang. Chen Qiang's f ...

, is also a well-known actor and comedian.

Biography

Chen was born Chen Qingsan () to a poor family in Xujiahe Township of Ningjin County, in

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, an ...

province. When he was a child, he relocated to

Taiyuan Taiyuan (; ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; also known as (), ()) is the capital and largest city of Shanxi Province, People's Republic of China. Taiyuan is the political, economic, cultural and international exchange center of Shanxi Province. ...

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...

with his parents. In 1936, he attended Taiyuan Youth Theatre and Xinsheng Theatre; both were progressive groups organized by the

Communist Party of China The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

. In 1938, he went to

Yan'an Yan'an (; ), alternatively spelled as Yenan is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi province, China, bordering Shanxi to the east and Gansu to the west. It administers several counties, including Zhidan (formerly Bao'an ...

to study acting at Lu Xun Academy of Arts. After graduating in 1939 he joined the Song and Dance Troupe of Shanxi-Chahaer-Hebei Border Region. Chen joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1942, and made his comedy debut in ''The Second Uncle''. In 1945, he was cast as Huang Shiren, the despotic landlord, in the ballet play ''

''. His performance was so convincing, that an emotionally invested soldier in the audience almost shot him with a rifle in anger. In 1947, he was an actor in Dongbei Film Studio, that same year, he participated in ''Leave Him to Fight Jiang''. In 1949, after the founding of the Communist State, he appeared as Lao Houtou, an old worker in ''The Bridge'', which is the first feature film in the People's Republic. He also played as Yang Mingqing in ''The White Warrior''. He was transferred to

Beijing Film Studio } 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 ...

in 1953. At the same year, he appeared in the film ''Marriage''. In 1958 he starred in two films, ''He Beauty in the Picture'' and ''No Mystery Three Years Ago''. And he had a supporting role in the film ''A Visit to Relatives''. In 1961, he starred as Nan Batian in

Xie Jin Xie Jin (; 21 November 1923 – 18 October 2008) was a Chinese film director. He rose to prominence in 1957, directing the film '' Woman Basketball Player No. 5'', and is considered one of the Third Generation directors of China. Most recently h ...

's film '' The Red Detachment of Women'', which earned him a Best Supporting Actor Award at the 1st Hundred Flowers Awards and a Best Actor Award at the 3rd Asian - African Film Festival, in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, 1964. In 1982, Chen Qiang co-starred with his son

in ''Sunset Street''. In 1986, he played the lead role as Laokui in the comedy film ''Father and Son''. In 1995, he won the Best Supporting Actor Award at the 13th Golden Eagle Awards for his performance in ''When Something Amazing Happens''. On September 13, 2008, Chen won the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 29th Hundred Flowers Awards. On June 26, 2012, Chen died of

apoplexy Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...

at Anzhen Hospital, 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 ...

Personal life

Chen had two sons, Chen Buda () and

, and a daughter, Chen Lida ().

Filmography

Awards

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Qiang 1918 births 2012 deaths People from Xingtai Chinese male film actors Male actors from Hebei Deaths from bleeding 20th-century Chinese male actors 21st-century Chinese male actors Chinese communists Burials at Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery