Li Xiaqing or Lee Ya-Ching (; 16 April 1912 – 28 January 1998), also known by her stage name Li Dandan (), was a Chinese film actress, pioneering aviator, and philanthropist. She was the first Chinese woman to be granted a civil aviation license in China, in 1936, and also co-founded its first civilian flying school. As an actress, she starred in ''
Romance of the Western Chamber
''Romance of the Western Chamber'' (), also translated as ''The Story of the Western Wing'', ''The West Chamber'', ''Romance of the Western Bower'' and similar titles, is one of the most famous Chinese dramatic works. It was written by the Yuan d ...
'', and played the lead in
an early adaptation of Mulan for the screen. Lee Ya-Ching is an Anglicized version of her Chinese name.
Aviator
At the age of sixteen, Li witnessed an airshow in Paris, which left a strong impression on her.
In 1943, looking back on the start of her flying career, she explained that she had been troubled by Japanese aggression towards China and decided that she could best serve her country through flying. Li began training at the Contran École d'Aviation in
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, where she was the first female student to receive a pilot's license.
In 1935, she enrolled in the Boeing School of Aviation in
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
for advanced training. Later that year, she returned to China, where she was commissioned by the Chinese government to make a 30,000 mile survey of potential air routes.
Li also helped found the Shanghai Municipal Air School
and worked there as a flight instructor until civilian flights were grounded.
Filmography
* ''The God of Peace'' () (1926) - Lin Cuiwei
* ''Why Not Her'' () (1926) - Kong Qiongxian
* ''A Wandering Songstress'' () (1927) - Li Lingxiao
* ''
A Poet from the Sea
''A Poet from the Sea'' is a 1927 Chinese silent film written and directed by Hou Yao, starring himself as a quixotic poet who tried to escape from the constraints of modernity. Filmed in Stanley, Hong Kong, it contains one of the earliest footag ...
'' () (1927) - Liu Tsan Ying
* ''
Romance of the Western Chamber
''Romance of the Western Chamber'' (), also translated as ''The Story of the Western Wing'', ''The West Chamber'', ''Romance of the Western Bower'' and similar titles, is one of the most famous Chinese dramatic works. It was written by the Yuan d ...
'' () (1927) -
Hongniang
Hongniang, or Scarlet, is a fictional character from "Yingying's Biography", a Chinese story by Yuan Zhen (779–831), and ''Romance of the Western Chamber'', a Chinese play by Wang Shifu (1250–1337?). She is the maidservant of Cui Yingying. In ...
* ''Five Avenging Women'' () (1928)
* ''
Mulan Joins the Army'' () (1928) -
Hua Mulan
Hua Mulan () is a legendary folk heroine from the Northern and Southern dynasties era (4th to 6th century CE) of Chinese history.
According to legend, Mulan took her aged father's place in the conscription for the army by disguising herself as ...
* ''
Don't Change Your Husband
''Don't Change Your Husband'' is a 1919 American Silent film, silent comedy film directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Gloria Swanson. The film was the third of six "marriage films" directed by DeMille and the first DeMille film starring Gl ...
'' () (1929)
* ''
Disputed Passage
''Disputed Passage'' is a 1939 American drama war film directed by Frank Borzage and starring Dorothy Lamour, Akim Tamiroff, John Howard, Judith Barrett and William Collier, Sr. Set in war-torn China, the film was described by ''The New York ...
'' (1939) - Aviatrix (credited as Ya-Ching Lee)
See also
*
Fung Joe Guey
Feng Ru (; 1883–1912), also known as Fung Joe Guey (), was a pioneering Chinese aviator and aircraft designer.
Life and career
Born in Enping, Guangdong, Feng moved to the United States at the age of twelve, living and working in various parts ...
*
Hazel Ying Lee
Hazel Ying Lee (; August 24, 1912 – November 25, 1944) was an American pilot who flew for the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) during World War II.
Early life
Lee was born in Portland, Oregon. Her parents were Yuet Lee and Ssiu Lan Wong, f ...
*
Hilda Yen
Hilda Yank Sing Yen () or sometimes Yan, was one of the leading figures of Chinese American society for some decades. Coming from a high-profile family traditionally serving Chinese governments and society, she left the East while continuing to be ...
*
John Huang Xinrui
Huang Xinrui (a.k.a. Wong Sun-shui, ; March 15, 1914 – March 16, 1941) was a flying ace of the Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China and was among the original volunteer group of over a dozen Chinese-American aviators who joined the C ...
*
Kwon Ki-ok
Kwon Ki-ok (11 January 1901 – 19 April 1988), or Quan Jiyu in Chinese, was the first Korean people, Korean female aviator, as well as one of the first female pilots in China. She went into exile in China during the Japanese occupation of Kor ...
References
External links
China's First Lady of Flight airspacemag.com. Accessed 31 October 2022.
Li Xiaqing, Aviatrix and Actress forgottennewsmakers.com (3 May 2010).
*
Profile dianying.com. Accessed 31 October 2022.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Ya-Ching
1912 births
1998 deaths
Actresses from Guangdong
Chinese aviators
Women aviators
Chinese emigrants to the United States
Chinese women aviators
20th-century Chinese actresses
Chinese silent film actresses
Chinese film actresses
People from Haifeng County
Chinese women philanthropists
Chinese philanthropists
20th-century philanthropists
20th-century women philanthropists