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Hong Kong actress From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Li Ching, also spelled Lee Ching ( Chinese: 李菁; pinyin: Lǐ Jīng ) ; ( 8 November 1948 – 22 February 2018 ) , was a prominent Hong Kong actress and producer from the early 1960s to late 70s.
Li Ching | |
---|---|
Born | |
Died | February 22, 2018 69) | (aged
Education | Precious Blood Secondary School |
Occupation(s) | Actress and Producer |
Li Ching was born in Shanghai as Li Guoying ( Chinese: 李國瑛 ) Her parents moved to British Hong Kong in 1949. She was the youngest in her family , with 5 older brothers and 2 older sisters. [1] From a young age , she was interested in movies. While attending Precious Blood Girls' School , she learned that Shaw Brothers " Southern Experimental Drama Troupe " was openly recruiting for its second group of trainees. Despite her parents' opposition , she was determined to audition. Over 2,000 people applied , but Li Ching's fresh appearance and natural acting talent earned her a spot. She was selected along with Fang Ying , Chiang Ching , Cheng Pei-pei , and Chin Pin , becoming classmates. During this period , she made cameo appearances in The Love Eterne and The Female Prince.
After graduating from the training class , she signed an 8-year contract with Shaw Brothers. Initially , she was cast in costume roles , playing supporting characters in films such as The Crimson Palm , The Lotus Lamp , and Inside the Forbidden City ; but her big break came when she was finally offered her first starring role as the Carp Spirit / Peong in The Mermaid alongside Ivy Ling Po.
In May 1965 , Li Ching won Best Actress at the 12th Asian Film Festival for her performance in The Mermaid. Since she was not yet 17 at the time , she was dubbed the “ Baby Queen of Asian Cinema ”
In 1967 , her performance in Susanna , her first modern romantic drama , received critical acclaim which further solidified her reputation. Following that, Shaw Brothers carefully planned her rise to stardom, producing a series of new films for her that consistently broke box office records.
In the early 1970s , Li Ching's film Have Sword, Will Travel - besides the actors Ti Lung and David Chiang - ranked as the 6th highest grossing film of the year ; and by 1969 , she had appeared in more than 20 films. Except for a 6 month break in 1969 due to a fractured left leg. Li Ching was almost constantly filming , completing numerous Huangmei opera movies. During her time at Shaw Brothers , she appeared in around 50 films , including Chang Cheh’s Dead End , King Eagle , and The New One-Armed Swordsman. She was also named one of the “ Top 10 Mandarin Film Stars ” for 3 consecutive years, becoming one of the most sought-after actresses in both Hong Kong and Taiwan.
At the end of 1976 , Li Ching ended her 13-year relationship with Shaw Brothers and began working as a freelance actress , travelling between Hong Kong and Taiwan. She also co-founded the “ Changtian Company ” with director Lo Ma and starred in their debut film The Chase. Li eventually announced her retirement as an actress in 1983 , after appearing in more than 60 films.[2]
It is said that at the peak of her career , she was a compassionate soul and quite energetic too! Giving out advice to those who just debuted and invited her friends to her home frequently after a long day of work.[3] But tragedy striked in 1979 , her long-time boyfriend , Lui Kok-Wah , the eldest son of the Lui family and an heir to the Kowloon Motor Bus company , passed away after a 10 year relationship. This deeply affected her , leading to a gradual reduction in her film work. Followed by her mother in 1983 , who had been by her side for many years , passed away. This impacted Li Ching immensely and completely withdrew herself from the entertainment industry.
It is said that after leaving the film industry , Li Ching began a second career in the stock market. However , not long after , news spread that she had suffered significant investment losses , it may also be her gambling addiction - a way to cope with the 2 significant losses in her life. In the end, she had to liquidate her assets to repay debts , some of these problems ended up leading to court. This took a severe toll on her health both physically and mentally. She supposedly got breast cancer as well on some accounts.
In the 1990s , Li Ching disappeared from the public eye. Even when Shaw Brothers digitally remastered and released their films in 2013 , this “ great contributor ” and “ old comrade ” didn’t even make an appearance!
On February 22 , 2018 , she was found dead at her home. Apparently , her neighbours smelt a rotten stench coming from her apartment , and called the firefighters to investigate. Turns out her body had been decomposing for several of days , she was 69 years old. Fortunately , her co-stars hadn’t forgotten her , and paid for her funeral expenses and memorials. [4][5]
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