Interview with Michael Miu: Letting go of the past, living in the present, and looking to the future

Here's another great interview that I came across -- of course, since I grew up watching TVB series, I was a 'fan' of the Five Tigers. Michael was one of my favorites back in the 80s (though it's really hard to pick a favorite among those five, since they each have their own unique talents)and since it's rare to find an in-depth interview with the 80s actors, I definitely wouldn't pass up this one! :-)

Just my two cents regarding the article:

.-- I like Michael's outlook on life. With the entertainment industry being such a pressure cooker, it's definitely a good thing to have a positive attitude.

.-- Not surprisingly, Michael is often asked about Barbara in interviews and such (and this particular one is no exception). Despite how much he hopes for 'bygones to be bygones', I doubt that people are going to stop asking him. Either way, I definitely agree with him that the whole situation was a huge tragedy and no matter what our individual opinions are of why Barbara committed suicide, nothing is going to change that fact.

.-- It's interesting that alot of people didn't feel that Michael Miu and Jamie Chik's marriage would last (probably because of Michael's 'image' from his many ancient series from the 80s). Whatever the case, they have been married for 21 years now and their relationship is still as strong as ever! Who says that relationships in the entertainment industry don't last long?

.-- Aww, the part where the article talks about how the Five Tigers came to be brought back so many memories! And Michael's comparison of how the environment was back then to how it is now is so true!

.-- Having been in the business world for more than a decade myself, I can definitely relate to Michael's sentiments in terms of how complicated and stressful the business sector can be. I admire his ability to be able to give up such a lucrative business and return to his acting roots -- it's not an easy decision to make at all!

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Interview with Michael Miu: Letting go of the past, living in the present, and looking to the future

Article originally published on August 25, 2011

Source: Sina News

Translated by: llwy12

He likes people to call him ‘Third Brother’ (三哥), however it seems that people are already more used to calling him ‘Yeung Hong’ (杨康) [TN: his character’s name in 《Legend of the Condor Heroes》]. No matter how much he tries to break away from the ‘Five Tigers’ era, he is unable to avoid the constant questions and fond memories that many people still have towards that era. Throughout his life and career, he has experienced many peaks and valleys, highs and lows – starting as an obscure actor and eventually making a name for himself in the entertainment industry, he later became a businessman, earning millions in the business sector. Recently, with his return to the entertainment industry, it can be said that he has now come full circle. He is Michael Miu, and this week, his new Mainland series《金枝玉葉》[loosely translated as “Noble Beauty”] has officially premiered on CCTV-8 throughout Mainland China. [TN: The series is considered the Mainland version of TVB’s 2008 series 《The Gem of Life》]

Currently 50 years old, the passing of time hasn’t carved too many wrinkles in Michael’s forehead – rather, we see elements of calmness, wisdom, and ease. He doesn’t like to look back on the past, as doing so halts progress forward; instead, he hopes that from this moment on, audiences will get to know him as someone who enjoys life and views filming series as his way of having some ‘playful fun’.

A tragic and unfortunate accident

Not only was the 1983 version of 《Legend of the Condor Heroes》 one of the earliest HK series to become popular in the Mainland, it was also an important symbol of the success of HK series in that era. In the prime of their careers back then, the stars of the series are no longer the ‘young kids’ they once were – among them, some have enjoyed the fruits of their popularity, some have retired to a more peaceful life, and some still continue to silently toil….but for many of us, the one we are least able to forget is the one who currently resides in Heaven – our ‘Wong Yung’, Barbara Yung. Such a young and delicate life with a promising career, tragically cut short, leaving behind much grief and a feeling of what could have been…

Back then, none of Barbara’s friends ever imagined that she would choose such an extreme path of ending her own life. 26 years later, upon hearing mention of his close friend Barbara, Michael sighs and states: “Originally, she was such a cheerful, vibrant girl. Whenever I filmed with her, I rarely treated her as a girl – she was like a good ‘brother’ of mine! No one ever thought that she would end her life in such manner.” It is widely understood and believed by many people that Barbara committed suicide due to relationship issues, however it less widely known that perhaps she never really intended to leave this world. As Michael himself states: “I believe that she originally wasn’t intending to die, perhaps she just wanted to ‘scare’ a certain person – the unfortunate part is that it went too far and turned into a tragic accident. It’s a huge tragedy and loss – we all miss her very much.”

Admires wife’s unwavering devotion to taking care of their family

In the series 《金枝玉葉》, Michael plays a rich real estate developer, which coincidentally draws some similarities to his former real life status as the “King of Eyeglasses” [TN: after Michael left the entertainment industry back in the late 80s,/early 90s he went into the lucrative business of selling eyeglasses and earned lots of money.] All the complications of surviving in the business world – including the fickleness of the private sector and the often pressure-filled climb up the corporate ladder – that the characters in the series encounter are all too familiar to someone like Michael, who has toiled in the business sector for over a decade. However, what attracted Michael to the series the most is the unwavering love and devotion that the main male character has towards the main female character – a love and devotion that is very similar to his real life relationship with his wife of more than 20 years, Jamie Chik. In an industry where breaking up is just as common as starting a relationship, there were very few people who believed that this couple would truly be able to remain together for so long. Back during that ‘Golden Era’ of TVB, there were many celebrity couples who ‘loved vigorously, but broke up thoroughly’ – looking back now, Michael and Jamie’s relationship is one of the few that has withstood the test of time.

Michael expressed that what he admires most about his wife is her “unwavering devotion to taking care of the family, taking care of the kids, and taking care of me.” He further states: “One of the most important things in a relationship is mutual respect as well as tolerance of each other’s flaws and weaknesses – not only in a relationship between husband and wife, but also between friends and co-workers, it should be this way. Each person has their own unique personalities and it’s important for one to be able to tolerate the other’s flaws in order to become friends; the same concept applies in a marriage – when you take a step back, the sea and the sky become boundless.”


Did everything without complaint

The series 《金枝玉葉》explores a wide range of real life issues, such as ‘wealthy second generation’, inflation of real estate prices, etc., -- the most interesting by far is how the series inadvertently brings to light one of today’s ‘unwritten rules’ of the entertainment industry – the fact that young artists are oftentimes required to give up their dreams and even their dignity in order to get to where they want to be in the shortest amount of time. Looking back to the HK entertainment industry of 30 years ago, the young artists of that generation were a lot more naïve and simple-minded – as Michael describes it: “We were just a group of young boys with nothing to our names – no experience, no money, nothing – all we had was a type of stubborn enthusiasm. Everyday, we would put our heads down and throw ourselves into filming series – we didn’t understand anything about fighting for certain privileges, striving for fame, or adhering to unwritten rules.”

In the early 80s, five energetic youth – Tony Leung, Andy Lau, Felix Wong, Michael Miu, and Kent Tong -- caught the eye of certain people at TVB and quickly, the company decided to push their careers forward. In 1983, during one of TVB’s flagship large-scale variety shows《星光熠熠劲争辉》, the 5 youth formulated a group called ‘the Five Tiger Generals’ (五虎將) and performed a series of acrobatic stunts on stage – the highlight of the performance was Andy Lau lying on a bench and having a huge slab of rock shattered on his chest [TN: 80s TVB fanatics will surely remember that famous performance]. Thinking back to those days, Michael fondly states: “Back then, we were grateful that the company gave us the opportunity to perform, so we threw our heart and soul into it, with the goal of doing the best job possible. For instance, there were certain stunts that people thought we would never be able to do, such as backflips, somersaults, and of course, the shattering of the rock – these stunts that were usually undertaken by professional stuntmen, we went and practiced them, then performed for the audiences. At the time, all of us were full of energy and enthusiasm and were happy to have the opportunity to perform for the audiences – we did it willingly and without complaint.”


When people think of Michael Miu, they think of the year 1983

The glory days of the ‘Five Tigers’ era officially ended in 1991 when the action film 《五虎将之决裂》[English title《The Tigers》] debuted in theaters – from that moment on, the 5 Tigers went down different career as well as life paths. The film also marked the last time (and only time) that the Five Tigers reunited to collaborate in a movie.

Not surprisingly, when people think of the title of the movie, they can’t help but draw comparisons to real life and wonder whether these 5 Tiger brothers really accumulated years of resentment and grudges toward each other offscreen. Hearing this, Michael laughs and states: “Well, the title of the film does sound like there’s some hidden meaning and I could understand why people would think that way – however, the movie was not a reflection of real life. We never had any conflicts or breaking off of that nature – rather, we ended up going down different paths because our goals were different. That’s the reality of the entertainment industry -- each of us have our own busy careers and may not see each other for years, yet when we do get the chance to meet up, it’s as though we never separated. Even throughout the many years when I went into business, I never lost contact with my friends in the entertainment industry – Eric Tsang, Andy Lau, Alan Tam, etc., we’re all good friends and we never ‘broke off’ any relationships.”

A lot of times, Michael doesn’t feel like talking about those ‘glory days’ of the past: “For a lot of people, when they think of me, they think of 1983 and the Five Tigers – everyone always asks me and sometimes I feel a bit helpless. All of that is in the past, there’s no point dwelling on it anymore. Rather than remembering me as ‘Yeung Hong’, I actually hope that people will call me ‘Third Brother’ when they see me. If everyone started calling me ‘Yeung Hong’ all the time, I don’t know how I should respond – all of that happened in the 80s. I feel that if we’re constantly thinking about the past, it’s as though we are constantly stuck in time and not moving forward. I like living in the present and looking to the future – the way I am now is the ‘true’ me. I hope that audiences know me for who I am now.”


The complexity of the business world is hard to fathom for some

Michael Miu’s nickname ‘Third Brother’ is actually the name of a character he portrayed in the 1988 triad-themed film <>; after the film debuted, people started calling him ‘Third Brother’ in real life as well. Even after Michael became a successful businessman and a prominent figure in the business world, many people still continued to affectionately call him ‘Third Brother’. Michael often jokes about this and constantly tells people: “As long as you don’t call me ‘Big Brother’, then it’s fine – being called ‘Big Brother’ is a dangerous thing!”

After 1983’s 《Legend of the Condor Heroes》, Michael starred in numerous series and was heavily promoted by TVB. Yet, when his acting career was at its peak, Michael decided to leave the industry and enter the business world, successfully taking over the biggest eyeglasses chain store in HK and running the business for more than a decade. Due to his success in the business world, it is said that Michael is the HK entertainment industry’s very first multi-millionaire.

Throughout the past 2 decades, there have been various ‘rumors’ about Michael’s decision to leave the entertainment industry at the peak of his career – some say that it was due to Barbara Yung’s death, others say that he was ‘frozen’ by TVB so he had no choice but leave, and still others claim that built up animosity between the 5 Tigers triggered his decision to split. The truth, as Michael reveals, is no where close to what was rumored. In reality, Michael didn’t just brazenly abandon his acting career and go into business – actually, back when he was filming series, he was already helping out with the family business on the side [TN: his family owned an eyeglasses business]. One day, he discovered that there was potential with the family business and at the same time, his acting career was bottlenecked, so he decided to let go of his acting career: “Actually, there was never really a ‘peak’ in my acting career – at the time, I felt that there wasn’t much room for further development in my acting and wasn’t sure how to keep going down that path; I was lost without a sense of direction. Coincidentally, the family eyeglasses business was going quite well, so naturally, I decided to place more focus there and that’s where I remained for the next 17 years. Having the opportunity to be in a completely different environment and encounter completely different experiences was definitely an eye-opener – it helped me to know myself better and later on, when I returned to the entertainment industry, it also helped me improve in terms of my acting.”

It can be said that the business world is similar to a war zone. With all the complexities and struggles that could take place, these 17 years surely have not been easy for Michael: “HK was very much impacted by the financial crisis as well as SARS – also, in the business world, so many things are profit-driven, plus there is the pressure of maintaining the business – the complexity of the business world can be very difficult for some people to fathom. Fortunately, we were able to survive that period and get through each difficult stage in one piece.”


Doesn’t care about being first or second brother

After the SARS crisis, HK’s economy was greatly affected – during this time, Michael decided to sell his business and return to the entertainment industry: “Having a business is a gamble – the competition in the market can get very intense and when reality set in, it made sense to sell the business. Also, at the same time, I was invited to participate in a filming project, plus a lot of people have been asking when I would return to the industry, so I thought, why not? Besides, I discovered that I still had an interest in acting. A lot of people say that the entertainment industry is complicated, but in my opinion, nothing can be more complicated than the business world. After experiencing so many ups and downs in the business world, being an actor is way easier and more relaxing in comparisons.”

But the landscape of today’s entertainment industry in HK has changed and has given rise to a new generation of artists. Amongst the ‘Five Tigers’, Tony Leung and Andy Lau have had the most successful acting careers, with both being multiple ‘Best Actor’ winners and maintaining their immense popularity even today. After being away for so long, how does Michael compare to his Tiger brothers in popularity? Actually, Michael does not care about this: “Returning anew, I realized the entire environment and landscape had changed, but it actually felt very refreshing – I was like a newbie entering the industry for the first time. I didn’t feel any apprehension, in fact, it felt quite casual and unrestrained – who cares about being a first brother or second brother? The important thing is doing your own job well. As actors, we are all friends – if we place too much importance on fame and fortune and put that in front of all else, it would be difficult to get through each day. I won’t put that type of pressure on myself – if all day long, I’m comparing myself to them and lamenting why someone has an award and I don’t, I would never be happy. I would much rather maintain a relaxed, casual attitude and happily enjoy each day!”

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Chinese version:

苗侨伟：往事不必再提 翁美玲是一个悲剧

　撰文、编辑/白郁虹 摄影/王同

　　他喜欢人们称他“三哥”，但更多人习惯性地喊他“杨康”；他想和“五虎将”时代做一次彻底“决裂”，但总避免不了人们对那个时代的追问和记忆。他的人生起起落落，看尽沧海浮沉，从籍籍无名的小演员到驰骋商海的亿万富翁，如今回归原点，重返娱乐圈。他是苗侨伟，本周，由他出演的电视剧《金枝玉叶》登陆央视八套。

　　50年光阴，岁月刻在他额头的不是沟壑，是从容、智慧、洒脱，他不再回望过往，因为回望会让人止步不前，他希望从现在起，观众认识的是一个享受生活和把拍戏当“玩乐”的——“三哥”苗侨伟。

　　“翁美玲是一个悲剧，其实她并不想死，只是想吓唬某一个人。”

　　83版《射雕》是最早引入内地的港产剧，也是港产剧的时代标杆，当年风华正茂的年轻人已经迈入不惑之年，这其中，有人红得发紫，有人隐退江湖，有人还在默默奋斗……但我们最不该忘记的是生活在天堂里的“俏黄蓉”，一个年轻娇好的生命如同烟花绽放般绚烂又转瞬即逝，空留下几多哀怨，几多叹息。

　　当年的“郭靖”“杨康”们，谁也没有留意身边的“俏黄蓉”会以如此极端的方式舍命赴死。26年过去了，重提翁美玲，曾经的红颜知己，苗侨伟仍然叹息不已，他说：“原本她是一个开朗活泼的女孩，跟她一起拍戏，从来没把她当做女孩子，她就像我们的一个好兄弟，谁也没有想到她会用这种方式结束生命。”谁都知道，翁美玲为情自杀，不知道的是，翁美玲也许从没想过真的要告别人间。就像苗侨伟所说：“原本她不是想去死的，可能只是想吓吓某一个人，但不幸的是出了意外。那是一个悲剧，我们都非常怀念她。”

　　“我最欣赏她的就是全心全意照顾家，照顾孩子，照顾我。”

　　在《金枝玉叶》中，苗侨伟饰演房地产大亨，与他曾经的“眼镜大王”的商人身份颇有几分暗合。剧中的人情冷暖、商场角斗，是苗侨伟再熟悉不过的场景，但更让他倾心的是男主人公对女主人公的专一感情，就像现实生活里他和太太戚美珍二十多年颠扑不破的爱情。在娱乐圈司空见惯的分合大戏中，几乎很少有人相信这对神仙眷侣真的可以走过风雨20年。当年的无线艺人们，爱的疯狂，分的也彻底，如今再回首，唯有苗侨伟与戚美珍的爱情，可以面对似水的流年。

　　苗侨伟最欣赏妻子的就是“全心全意照顾家，照顾孩子，照顾我”。他说：“人与人相处最重要的是尊重、包容，不仅夫妻，朋友同事之间也要如此。每个人都有自己的个性，你容忍对方的缺点才可能跟他做朋友。做夫妻也一样，退一步海阔天空。”

　　“空翻、碎大石，所有武行做的我们都去做，毫无怨言。”

　　《金枝玉叶》涉及了不少现实话题，富二代、房价飞涨等等，其中更影射了娱乐圈中的潜规则，年轻人为了走捷径不惜放下尊严、梦想。时光回溯到30年前的香港娱乐圈，当年的小演员大多思想单纯，就像苗侨伟说的：“一群毛头小伙，什么都没有，只有一把蛮劲，每天低头拼命拍戏，什么功利心、潜规则，完全不懂。”

　　80年代初，五个精力充沛的年轻人梁朝伟、刘德华、黄日华、苗侨伟、汤镇业(微博)让无线另眼相看，公司有意将他们推上更高峰。1983年，无线举办大型综合性节目“星光熠熠劲争辉”，五人组成“五虎将”上台表演杂技，刘德华还亲自表演了胸口碎大石。想起当年的情景，苗侨伟不由感叹道：“那个时候公司让我们表演，我们都全力以赴做到最好。比如大家认为我们不能做的，打空翻啊、碎大石啊，这些武行做的动作，我们都会去练习，然后表演给大家看。那时候的我们，充满激情，也心甘情愿，没有一点怨言。”

　　“很多人看到我就想起1983年，每一个人都问我，让我太无奈了，一切都过去了。”

　　“五虎将”的辉煌时代随着电影《五虎将之决裂》的公映而彻底终结，从此五虎将各奔前程，命运结局天地之差，这也是五虎将聚首的最后一部电影。很多人想当然地把影片片名与现实作比照，猜想五虎将之间到底积攒了多少恩怨是非。闻听此言，苗侨伟笑道：“影片听起来确实有点意味深长，但我们哪里有什么决裂、冲突？只不过大家道不同不相为谋吧。娱乐圈就是这样，大家各有各忙，好几年碰不见面，但只要碰到，我们都还会一见如故。就算我做生意的那十几年，我和娱乐圈的朋友也没有断过，曾志伟、刘德华、谭咏麟(微博)都是我的好朋友，我们从来没有‘决裂’过。”

　　更多时候，苗侨伟不愿提及当年，他说：“很多人看到我就想起1983年，想到五虎将，每个人都来问我，让我太无奈了，都过去了，过去的事就不要想了。我希望大家最好不要记得我是杨康，你们看到我，叫我‘三哥’就好。如果叫我杨康，我都不知道该怎么去回应他们，这都是80年代的事了，如果老是怀念以前，就好像永远在原地踏步，我喜欢往前看，喜欢活在当下，现在的我才是真正的我，我希望观众认识的是现在的我。”

　　“商场的复杂程度是你想象不到的，但所幸我们活着走到今天。”

　　三哥是苗侨伟与莫少聪(微博)等人拍摄电影《江湖接班人》时饰演的角色，影片公映后，三哥的名号就传开了。苗侨伟后来转投生意场，呼风唤雨、驰骋江湖，大家仍然亲切地尊称他为“三哥”。苗侨伟常常开玩笑说：“只要不叫我大哥就行，大哥听起来好危险的。”

　　83版《射雕英雄传》之后，苗侨伟拍摄了很多经典剧集，是无线五虎将中颇受力捧的一位。然而事业高峰时，苗侨伟却选择离开影坛，开始从商，商海十余年，他执掌了香港最大的眼镜连锁店，据说是香港演艺圈中第一个亿万富翁。

　　说到苗侨伟的隐退，坊间各种传闻，诸如翁美玲之死，遭无线雪藏，五虎将心生嫌隙等等。事实上，苗侨伟称，当年的他并不是一拍脑袋就决定冒险经商的，那时的他已经一边拍戏一边在帮家人打理生意。有一天，当他发现眼镜生意开始有起色，而演艺事业遇到瓶颈时，他决定放手娱乐圈。“其实我的演艺事业从来没有高峰过，那时候觉得在演戏上没有太大进步的空间，我不知道该怎么往下走，找不到方向。刚好我的眼镜生意发展得蛮好，那就顺其自然做我的生意了，一做就是17年。去另一个环境接触另外的事情，对自己也是一种全新的认知，对往后演艺发展也有很大的帮助。”

　　商场如战场，17年经商路并不好走，利益之争、市场冲击。苗侨伟说：“你知道香港经历过金融风暴、非典，而且商场是有很多利益上的关系，你还要对生意承担很多压力，商场的复杂程度是你想象不到的。但所幸我们活着走到今天，什么难关我们都能闯过去。”

　　“我从来没有什么心理落差，我觉得我进来得很潇洒，管他什么一哥二哥。”

　　经历了非典的香港，市场经济出现巨大波动，此时的苗侨伟决定将公司卖掉，重回娱乐圈。“生意就像一场赌博，市场竞争太激烈，也太现实，所以卖掉公司就轻松很多了。那时也刚好有戏找到我，很多人希望我出山，那么，为什么不呢？而且，我发现我对演戏仍然有兴趣。别人都说娱乐圈很复杂，我说娱乐圈再怎么复杂也比不过商场。所以，做生意时碰到很多起起落落，经历过这个阶段后，再复出，会觉得做演员非常轻松简单。”然而，如今的香港娱乐圈早已更新换代，当年“五虎将”中的刘德华、梁朝伟，事业更是如日中天，纷纷坐上了影帝宝座。还有谁记得《射雕》中风流倜傥的杨康，《绝代双娇》中冠绝天下的江枫？

　　苗侨伟却不在乎这些，他说：“重新回来，所有的环境、局面都不一样了，但对我来说还是很有新鲜感，我好像新人一样再进娱乐圈。我从来没有什么心理落差，我觉得我进来得很潇洒，管他什么一哥二哥。其实，做人也是这样，做好自己的本分就好。大家都是演员，也都是朋友，如果把名利看得太重，日子会很难过。我也不会给自己任何压力，如果总是和他们比较，谁谁做了影帝我没有做，那我永远不会开心。还是看轻松一点，潇洒一点，快乐地享受每一天。”

(责编： 葱尾)

Nnadia Chan's (陳松伶) Interview with MingPao

Here's another great interview from Mingpao (I'm a huge fan of their interviews!)...I actually translated this interview a few days ago for AF and figured I'd post it here as well.

It's been awhile since I've heard anything about Nnadia Chan, since she pretty much left the HK entertainment industry. And from the looks of it, she isn't going to be returning to the industry any time soon -- therefore, interviews such as this one will probably be few and far between.

Not sure how many people reading this are Nnadia fans (I have to admit that I'm not a fan, but I really like Nnadia as an actress and a singer), but regardless, I'm sure that you will enjoy this article. The message it conveys is a very positive one as well (one that everyone can learn from)!

Enjoy!

.******.

Mingpao Interview: Nnadia Chan forgives and forgets

Source: HKChannel (Original source: MingPao)

Translation: llwy12

Many years ago, Nnadia Chan sang a children’s song called《烏卒卒》[loosely translated as ‘Dark’], which became so popular that it was known and sung by everyone ‘from the streets to the alleys’. She had also participated in many of TVB’s ‘classic’ series such as《Songbird》, 《Instinct》,《Cold Blood Warm Heart》, etc. in which she got the chance to collaborate with such ‘cool’ guys as Leon Lai, Ekin Cheng, and Louis Koo, and also became one of TVB’s fa dans. Behind all the fame and fortune however, Nnadia had to endure some painful experiences: she once ran away from home and broke off all relations with her family for 20 years, plus her relationship with her former manager ended unhappily due to a misunderstanding – within a day, she was left to fend for herself, with barely a penny to her name. Despite going through so many peaks and valleys in her life, Nnadia continued to hold steadfastly to her belief in the ‘2Fs’ – Forgive and Forget – believing that as long as one is alive, there is always a chance to start over again. In the end, she was able to achieve this – not only had she made amends with her family and now has a great relationship with them, but she is currently a happy housewife, as she recently revealed that she married Mainland actor Zhang Duo and the couple are living a wonderful life together.

In recent years, Nnadia has virtually disappeared from the Hong Kong entertainment industry; even in the Mainland, she is barely seen in any recent series – her last Mainland series was 2008’s 《Single Mother》. Recently, Nnadia returned to HK and while attending the Book Fair in July, she announced that she and her boyfriend, Mainland actor Zhang Duo, married already and so she is officially ‘Mrs. Zhang’. In addition, she has agreed to film the new ICAC series for RTHK,《ICAC 2011》, in which she will participate in one story. Nnadia expressed: “The main reason for my return to HK this time around is to oversee the remodeling of my mother’s house and also to sort out my massive book collection; because of the huge number of books, there is no way to ship them to the Mainland, so I decided to donate most of them to the library. I also checked my emails online and discovered that a lot of people had contacted me, including RTHK. Apparently, ICAC had chosen me for an upcoming collaboration and I also was interested in the role, so the agreement was made almost immediately. Actually, I’ve been wanting to give back to society for quite some time, so this is a great opportunity to do so.”

In between a foolish person and a nice person

Nnadia has high praises for the ICAC, saying that the bureau is one of the most righteous agencies in government. Asked whether she had ever encountered a situation involving corruption in real life, Nnadia replied: “I never encountered a real corruption situation, but I’ve seen people give small gifts – in my opinion, that’s not considered bribery, but just a normal human act, usually as an expression of gratitude…the most important thing is that it doesn’t cross the line. It’s just like in life, when people take things to the extreme – helping someone too much can lead to spoiling that person, while reprimanding too much could push the person over the edge. In all matters, it’s necessary to find the proper balance – I’m actually still learning this right now, don’t know if it’s too late.” (Could it be that you are relating your own experience of helping someone to the point of spoiling them?) Nnadia responded: “Of course I’ve experienced it, which is why I would think that way. Actually, all along, my personality has always been one that is very tolerant and forgiving of others, to the point that I can’t even tell whether I’ve become a foolish person or an extremely nice person – I feel that I’m probably somewhere in between.” (Are you referring to your former manager?) “I’m just relating experiences that I’ve had, it doesn’t matter whether it was with my former manager or with someone I may encounter again in the future – what has happened is already in the past.”

Fell painfully, picked herself up quickly

With regard to the breaking off of her relationship with her former manager, it had actually resulted in Nnadia losing all of the money that she had put in much ‘blood and sweat’ to earn during her 20 years in the entertainment industry. Despite such a huge setback, Nnadia did not give up and instead, bravely picked herself back up again and continued to persevere. Her actions set a great example for today’s youth and demonstrate that in the face of defeat and despair, don’t give up easily.

Nnadia expressed: “During that time, I held onto my belief in the ‘2Fs’ -- no, not curse words, but rather the words Forgive and Forget. I chose to forgive the person and also forget the bad experience – as long as I’m still alive, there is no doubt that I will be able to start over again, plus when I came into this world, I had nothing anyway.” Nnadia also revealed that back when she first entered the industry, she was still a student, so she would bring her homework with her on the set – having to balance school and work was no easy task: “I understand that sometimes, one’s dream can be in conflict with real life. My advice to the younger generation is to not give up on education so easily. If there is financial burden, then work part time while continuing to go to school – in fact, that’s how my sister completed her Masters program. Sometimes, no matter how difficult it may seem, if you are able to properly manage your time, it’s definitely possible to accomplish.”

For now, no plans for a baby

Nnadia admits that she is very much enjoying her current life with her husband and the couple mutually decided that they do not want to have children as of yet. “Currently, we are not concerned about carrying on the family name. My parents were never rich and had to work hard for most of their lives to raise their children. It’s the same for many parents – they have to make so many sacrifices and take on a lot of responsibility for their children, so having children is not an easy decision and shouldn’t be taken lightly. For us, another reason we chose to put off having kids is because I want to spend more time with my mother and properly handle the issues in my family. That’s why I say that after getting married, I sometimes feel like a ‘social worker’, since I seem to be resolving family issues most of the time. Actually, my family definitely needs someone to handle various issues that occur – if a small issue isn’t taken care of, it could quickly escalate into a big issue. Every family has their own share of difficulties and problems, but no matter how hard it may be to handle, it’s still necessary to face it head on.”

Ran away from home, broke off ties for 20 years

During the interview, Nnadia revealed that she had run away from home many years ago and as a result, was not in contact with her family for 20 years. It wasn’t until Nnadia bumped into her younger sister on the streets of Central District one day while she was filming a series that her relationship with her family started to change. In the end, she was reunited with her family and the misunderstandings they had eventually dissolved with age. Nnadia indicates that currently, she has a very close relationship with her family: “Whether it’s members of my own family or other people, I’ve developed better understanding of them and wholeheartedly want to be involved in resolving issues. In reality, sometimes the smallest issue could be of the utmost importance and many small issues added together could become a big issue. Actually, the concept of being the primary problem solver in the family is not difficult to learn, but you need to understand your own abilities and see if you’re capable of handling it – otherwise, you could potentially create even more problems and the relationship could get worse instead of better. When I say ‘ability’, I’m referring primarily to the ‘time’ factor – some issues can’t be resolved in 1 day or even 1 week – even if it takes a few months or a few years to resolve, you have to be willing to invest the time and face the situation as a family. If your family happens to be elsewhere, in another country for example, then constant communication via phone is necessary.” Nnadia indicated that she sets aside 1 day every week as family day, also called ‘settling accounts day’, during which each member of her family spends time together talking and communicating honestly with one another.

Her husband is her ‘third eye’

Nnadia admits that her personality is still the same as before and hasn’t changed much despite everything she has experienced. She deeply believes that her personality will never change, so all she can do is constantly learn and improve: “In my heart, I try to keep a ‘scale’ that helps me measure whether things are fair or not – the most important thing is making sure that there is fairness. I’m very open to advice from my husband Zhang Duo as well as other people – my husband is actually a lot more rational than I am, probably because he has been very independent since he was young; therefore, I listen to his advice very objectively and with an open mind. He is my ‘third eye’, as he is very thorough when it comes to weighing the pros and cons of a situation.

Her most unforgettable pain

Nnadia reveals that the situation that has affected and changed her life the most is losing both her father and grandfather within 2 years of each other. Watching both of them struggle so hard to stay live is something that she will never forget: “Compared to everything I experienced in the past, none of it mattered anymore! Watching your loved ones leave you and realizing that there was still so much that you hadn’t done for them yet and so many things you haven’t told them – it’s difficult to find words to describe that type of feeling, especially knowing that you can’t make up for those lost times! That’s why now, I don’t care about what others may think of me. For example, when I was asked about why I didn’t return to work after getting married and when I will be filming series again, my only response was to smile – because that’s my own personal issue and as long as I feel happy and am enjoying the moment, that’s all that matters.”

Talent can’t keep negative trends away

Nnadia can be considered a multi-talented artist – in addition to singing and acting in TV series, she also starred as the female lead in God of Songs Jacky Cheung’s acclaimed stage musical 《Snow Wolf Lake》, plus she has also written books and essays related to beauty and also served as the spokesperson for a beauty salon. Possessing such a perfect blend of skill and talent, it is definitely the entertainment industry’s loss that Nnadia is semi-retired from the industry and has decided not to return to filming series.

“I don’t have plans to film any more series in the near future and don’t have much interest in singing again either. Right now, I want to concentrate fully on my job as ‘social worker’ for my family. In the future, if I encounter a good script, I may consider it, but it also depends on what type of message the series intends to convey. In the current entertainment industry, I see a lot of people working hard to fulfill their dreams, but unfortunately, the atmosphere is not that good – people like me are too fragile, so it’s necessary to leave, only strong people can continue to stay.” (Is it because of the ‘leng mos’ [young models] that are causing such a negative atmosphere in the industry?) “I’m the fragile type and would probably ask them why they are like that – I also would probably tell them to put more clothes on.”

Nnadia indicated that the reason why she agreed to participate in 《ICAC 2011》was because of the opportunity to interact with the ICAC and learn more about them – plus she felt that she has reached a certain age that is suitable for the type of character that she will be portraying; in the past, most of the characters she played were ones that always needed to be ‘saved’.

Assistant director for Ekin Cheng

Throughout her career, Nnadia collaborated with many male artists – including Leon Lai, Jacky Cheung, Ekin Cheng, Julian (Chilam) Cheung, Louis Koo, Roger Kwok, Adam Cheng, etc.

“One time, I started thinking about Ekin Cheng all of a sudden, probably because I collaborated with him the most in the past. I remember back when we were filming《Instinct》, Ekin once said that he wanted to be a director and told me to be his assistant director. I believe that if he were to become a director today and asked me to be assistant director, I would help him! Back then, Ekin was always very passionate about his work, but I was never able to match his enthusiasm, as I really wanted to pursue an education. Knowing that I was more interested in school, Ekin even told me back then that I should stop filming series and go back to school, as the knowledge I would obtain is mine and is something I could always use.”

.---.

Chinese Version:

陳松伶寬恕忘仇

陳松伶早年憑兒歌《烏卒卒》唱到街知巷聞，演過《天涯歌女》、《笑看風雲》及《天地男兒》等無綫經典劇集，分別與黎明、鄭伊健及古天樂等型男合作過，成為當年無綫的當家花旦。可是名利雙收的背後，她亦遭遇過慘痛的經歷；曾經離家出走，與家人斷絕來往20年；與前經理人因誤會決裂，一夜之間變成身無分文。陳松伶經歷人生起跌，幸好她多年來堅守「2F」信念，即Forgive and Forget（寬恕及忘記），認為人只要有生命，總可以重新站起來。結果，她做到了，現在與家人感情要好，亦已下嫁內地藝人張鐸，過幸福生活。

陳松伶（松松）近數年絕迹香港娛樂圈，就連內地也罕有她的作品，對上一齣劇集，要數到2008年的內地劇《單親媽媽》。松松最近重返香港，在書展上宣布已成為張太，與內地男藝人張鐸已結為夫婦，又答應港台客串《廉政行動2011》其中一個單元。松松說﹕「今次回港，主要是想為母親的物業作裝修，並整理自己一批藏書，因有太多無法運去內地，唯有送去圖書館。其間上網看電郵，發現有很多人找我，當中包括港台，原來廉署選角揀中我，自己亦有興趣參演，於是一拍即合。其實我一直想回饋社會，今次都算是一個機會。」

傻人與好人之間

松松大讚廉政公署是最正派的政府部門。現實生活中有否遇見貪污事件？她說﹕「真正的貪污未見過，只見過有人送少少禮物，但人情不等同賄賂，可能是表示感謝，最重要是不要踩過界線；等於做人一樣，過多幫助會變成溺愛或寵壞，太過嚴厲責備，就似將一個人推到盡頭！凡事要中庸，不過我仍是學習階段，不知道會否學得遲。」

是否曾經過分溺愛身邊人，所以有感而發？

「當然是經歷過，才會有這想法。其實一直以來，我做人寬容性好大，大到自己是否變成一個傻人或過分好人，自己都搞不清楚，感覺是兩者之間。（所指的是否前經理人？）只是代入自己一直以來遇過的事，不論以前經理人，還是會再接觸的人，過去的都過去了。」

跌得傷 起得快

提到與前經理人決裂一事，記得松松當年因此失去在圈中打滾20年、辛苦掙回來的血汗錢。但松松遇上挫折並無放棄，還勇敢地站起來，足以給年輕一代借鏡，不要遇上少少挫折便輕易放棄，甚至尋死。

松松說：「那段時間心中抱住兩個F的信念，但不是粗口，是Forgive and Forget，選擇寬恕及忘記，不要記着慘事，只要自己仍有生命、仍然健全，就一定可以重新站起來；况且，來這個世界時，亦是什麼也沒有。」松松自爆入行初期，不時帶功課到片場做，要兼顧學業及事業，甚感吃力，「生活同理想會有衝突，年輕人不要輕易放棄學業，如經濟沒能力，可以半工讀，我的妹妹也是這樣完成碩士課程，有時如何艱難都好，只要好好分配時間就可以。」

暫時未想生BB

松松坦言享受現時的生活，夫妻二人已有共識暫時不要小朋友。她說：「我們這刻沒有傳宗接代的想法。我的父母不是有錢人，要經過大半生辛勞，才將子女養育成材；為人父母要為子女負出及承擔，所以不是隨便話生便生。另一個原因是我想多留一點時間陪母親，以及處理家人的問題。所以，有時感覺自己婚後變成『社工』，化身『家庭事務所』去處理問題。其實家中真的需要一個人去處理所有問題，一些小事沒人理會可能會化為大事，每一家都有本難唸的經，但如何難唸都總要去面對。」

離家出走20年

原來松松昔日曾離家出走，與家人沒聯絡20年，最後在中環街頭拍劇時遇上胞妹，情况才得以改變，之後與家人重聚後，箇中誤會隨年紀長大而化解。松松指現時與家人關係是最親密的，她說：「無論自己的家人或外家，都多了了解，願意坦誠解決眼前問題；其實芝麻綠豆小事也很重要，加起來也是一件大事。其實『家庭事務所』理論不難學習，但要看清自己的尺度，本身也要有能力，否則會製造更多事端，關係愈搞愈差。能力是指時間，有些問題不是一日或一星期可以解決，要一起面對，一兩個月甚至一兩年都要付出。如果分隔兩地，要多點電話聯絡。」松松指每周會有一天作為家庭日，也叫作清算日，互相傾訴慰問，認真的溝通，說出心事。

丈夫是第三眼

松松自嘲性格依舊，沒有因任何事醒覺，深信亦沒有「醒」來的一天，唯有繼續學習及改進，「我心中只會抱持一個秤，最重要是大家公平。我會聽取丈夫張鐸及其他人的意見，丈夫較我理性很多倍，可能是他自小已很獨立，我會採取客觀態度聽取他的意見。他是我第三隻眼睛，對好與壞看得更透徹。」

最難忘的傷痛

松松透露影響及改變自己最大的，是兩年內先後目送爸爸及外公離世，兩人如何不想過身及掙扎過程，是她一生人不可以忘記的事，「相對以往自己種種經歷，已是不再重要，因為最愛的人在你面前離去，原來自己還有很多事未為對方做、有很多說話未跟對方講，那種難過感受是難以形容的，亦無法彌補！。所以我現在不會理會別人的看法。例如被問到為何婚後不工作、不再拍戲？我只會笑一笑，因為這是自己的事，這一刻感覺享受就可以。」

才藝難擋歪風

陳松伶不單止唱兒歌出色，曾擔正做張學友經典音樂劇《雪狼湖》女主角，實屬演得唱得之人，加上曾出版美容書及散文集，又為美容院任代言人，可謂聲色藝俱全，如今半退休不再拍劇，實是娛樂圈一大損失。

「暫時不會再拍劇，對上一套劇集《單親媽媽》是兩三年前的事，現在對唱歌的興趣不是太濃厚，只想專心做好『家庭事務所』這份工。日後若遇到好劇本才想，也要看主題是宣揚什麼信息。現在的娛樂圈，我看到有不少藝人為理想而努力，但風氣不是太好，我這類人太脆弱了，所以要走；堅強的人才可繼續留低。（是否指o靓模的風氣不太好？）我很脆弱的，會問她們點解，也會忍不住叫她們著多件衫。」松松指今次為港台拍攝《廉政行動2011》，是想借機會接觸廉署，加上去到一個適合的年齡去演這類角色，以往自己演的，多是被人拯救的人。

松松當年扮鬼扮馬唱兒歌。

做伊健助導

松松合作過的男星不少，四大天王有黎明及張學友，其餘鄭伊健、張智霖、古天樂、郭晉安及鄭少秋亦在不同劇集合作過。

「有次突然想起鄭伊健，因過往合作最多的男星是他，記得當時拍《笑看風雲》，伊健說想當導演，叫我做助導。如果今時今日真的叫我做助導，我會幫他做的。當初伊健是滿腔熱誠去工作，而我就很想讀書，伊健也有叫我不要拍劇，回去上學，讀多一點書，得着是自己的。」

Kent Tong's interview on 《魯豫有約》("Appointment with Lu Yu")

It's been a long time since I've heard anything about Kent Tong (well, he does appear with his Tiger brothers occasionally, but for the most part, he has focused his career in Mainland China, so he is not in HK as often). Of course, as a 5 Tigers fan, I perk up my ears whenever I hear anything about them, so that's why when I found out that Kent was invited to appear on 《魯豫有約》[loosely translated 《Appointment with Lu Yu 》, I really wanted to watch the interview.

The below is an article that I found summarizing his appearance on the interview show -- since it only covers some parts of the interview (mostly the segment about Barbara), I plan on doing a follow up post (or two) about the actual interview itself (after I watch it, that is) -- sort of like what I did for the LOTCH reunion show....so stay tuned for that.

Meanwhile, here's the article (the English version translated by me as well as the original Chinese version:


*Article originally published 8/17/2011 (the interview itself occurred back on 8/8/2011)*

Source:  Sina News

Translated by:  llwy12

Picture courtesy Sina Weibo

Picture courtesy Sina Beijing & YangChing Evening News

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Actor Kent Tong goes on Mainland interview show, Michael Miu makes him cry

In the popular Mainland series《宮》[loosely translated as “Palace”], which recently finished airing on Hunan TV, Hong Kong actor Kent Tong successfully portrayed the role of Qing Dynasty Emperor Kangxi. Last week, Kent Tong appeared on Mainland interview show《魯豫有約》[《Appointment with Lu Yu》] with his wife and twin daughters as well as his older brother, fellow actor Tong Chun Chung. During the interview, Kent shared aspects of his current happy life with his family as well as his thoughts regarding the various relationships in his life, including brotherhood, love, family, and friendship.

In the past 2 decades, every time Kent appears on any type of show, he is inevitably asked about his relationship with his former girlfriend, late actress Barbara Yung. With Barbara’s death from suicide 26 years ago, Kent was subsequently labeled as a ‘heartless man’ by the general public and the Media, as it was widely believed at the time that Barbara committed suicide because of him. All these years, Kent endured much contempt and criticism because of Barbara’s death and even had to move to Mainland China to start his career (and life) over again – despite all that he has endured, in the 20+ years that followed, Kent rarely spoke about the tragedy and never once provided any type of explanation in his own defense.

Last week, during Kent’s appearance on 《Appointment with Lu Yu》, fellow actor and good friend Michael Miu decided to speak out in defense of his ‘Tiger’ brother. Through a pre-recorded video segment, Michael sought to put the matter to rest by providing the long-awaited ‘explanation’ that Kent had kept in his heart for many years: In actuality, Kent and Barbara had broken up already long before Barbara decided to commit suicide – it’s just that the Media did not know about the breakup so it was rarely reported on. After Barbara died, Kent was immediately subjected to all sorts of criticisms and angry comments coming from every direction, yet he decided to remain silent. Instead of defending himself and refuting the Media’s harsh speculations, Kent silently threw himself into helping to arrange Barbara’s funeral – seeing all this, the close friends and family who knew the truth about the situation were both moved and saddened. As Kent’s close friend and ‘brother’ for over 20 years, Michael Miu – who had the best understanding of the entire situation as well as the Kent/Barbara relationship due to his close friendship with both artists – felt that after so many years, it was finally time to reveal the truth in the hopes that his ‘brother’ Kent could be vindicated. Michael also stated that he hopes now people will stop misunderstanding Kent.

Upon hearing Michael’s words, Kent was visibly moved by his Tiger brother’s efforts to help clear his name – for over 20 years, Kent never provided a single explanation and never publicly shed a tear despite all the ‘persecution’ he endured from the Media – yet, sitting there and listening to Michael’s explanation, he could not hold back his tears any longer and cried.

Back in the 80s, after the situation occurred, Kent did not want to be a burden on his friends or family, so he left Hong Kong and hid himself from the public, keeping a low profile and also leaving the entertainment industry for a period of time. Years later, he met his first wife, with whom he had a daughter and twin sons; after that marriage ended in divorce, Kent dated a woman from Guangzhou, with whom he had another son. In 2008, he married his current wife Wen Jing, a woman from Qingdao who is 26 years younger than him, and shortly thereafter, he became a father once again to twin daughters. Currently, Kent is a father of 6 children and expressed that his family life is very happy and fulfilling.

With regard to his children, Kent expressed that he will make sure all of them get a good education, however he also revealed that he is less strict with the girls than he is with the boys: “The girls are raised rich and the boys are raised poor.” A few months ago, in June, Kent and his twin sons participated in a photo shoot for a magazine – upon seeing the pictures of the shoot, netizens commented that Kent’s sons are very handsome and encouraged them to follow in their Dad’s footsteps and join the entertainment industry.

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Chinese Version:

湯鎮業做客談話節目 被曝翁美玲死前兩人已分手

近日，在《宮》中成功塑造康熙皇帝的湯鎮業(微博)攜妻女、與哥哥湯鎮宗一起做客《魯豫有約》，展示如今的幸福生活，並與觀眾分享他的兄弟情、愛情、親情和友情。

　　湯鎮業每一次出場，都會被提到翁美玲的名字以及他們之間的感情糾葛。二十多年前隨著“俏黃蓉”翁美玲的自殺，湯鎮業身上被貼上了“負心漢”的標籤，很多人覺得翁美玲是因他而自殺。湯鎮業背負罵名二十多年，從未辯解過一句。但是在這次訪談中，當年與湯鎮業同為“無線五虎將”之一、人稱“三哥”的苗僑偉，通過視頻卻給出了一個截然不同的答案：湯翁戀情其實在翁美玲自殺之前一段時間已經結束，只是媒體不知道沒有報導；事情發生後，湯鎮業即使受到各方的惡評，一直不作解釋，默默為翁美玲辦理後事，讓知情人都非常感動。所以三哥覺得在可以公布真相的今天、作為最了解整件事情始末的自己，想為兄弟討回一個公道，希望大家不要再誤會湯鎮業。

　　聽到三哥這席話後，這個背負了多少罵名都未曾開口解釋一句、流過一滴淚的男人，竟忍不住流下了眼淚。當年，湯鎮業不願拖累別人，離開香港將自己隱藏起來。之後，湯鎮業曾有一段婚史，與前妻育有一女及一對雙胞胎兒子，還有一名與廣州的紅顏知己所生的兒子。2008年，湯鎮業迎娶小自己26歲的青島姑娘文靜，再添一對雙胞胎女兒。如今的湯鎮業已是6個孩子的父親，一家人生活其樂融融。

　　湯鎮業表示，6個兒女的教育他都會把關，但是對待兒子女兒的教育方法卻不同：女兒要富養，兒子要窮養。今年6月，湯鎮業還與雙胞胎兒子───大寶小寶為某雜誌拍攝一組時尚照片，網友大呼：帥氣的大寶小寶進軍娛樂圈吧！(王普)

Jacky Cheung discusses life and death with his daughters

Awww, this is such a sweet article! When I read it a couple days ago, I knew that I just had to translate it and post it!

Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did. :-)

P.S.:  A quick note:  Guess where Jacky went on his trip to the U.S.?  He was right here in Los Angeles!!  He took his daughters to Disneyland and Universal Studios (among other places) and was also spotted (not surprisingly) at LAX International Airport.  Obviously, I could kick myself for not knowing ahead of time!  LOL!

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Article originally published August 15, 2011

Source: Liberty Times

Translated by: llwy12

Jacky Cheung discusses life and death with his daughters

Having just turned 50, God of Songs Jacky Cheung just crossed an important age milestone in his life. Well aware of the limitations of human life, Jacky does not mind discussing his age and is not afraid of growing old. It’s no surprise then, that Jacky doesn’t feel that talking to his 11 year old and 6 year old daughters about death is taboo: “It’s better to let them understand and accept reality early on – some day, I will eventually leave them, so they need to learn to be independent and take care of themselves.” Jacky’s attitude is very open and candid, calmly confronting the task of teaching his daughters about the realities of life, including the difficult subject of coping with death. However, his calm demeanor seems to have the opposite effect on his youngest daughter Zia (張瑤萱), as she starts to cry upon hearing her Dad talk about leaving them.

Keeps himself healthy for the sake of his daughters

“I’m actually very much looking forward to old age, as I’m curious to know how I will be like when I grow old!” Jacky Cheung turned 50 back on July 10th – despite this year’s birthday being a ‘half century’ milestone in his life, Jacky did not feel the need to celebrate in any special manner and also did not feel any sadness towards growing old: “There’s no need to face old age with a heavy heart, as each milestone has its own distinctness and meaning – some people may feel very old at 80, while others may feel very active.” Jacky bluntly admits that he doesn’t dare to say that he is perfectly healthy and active, but he strives to be as healthy as possible for the sake of his daughters: “I try my best to maintain good health so that I can be with my daughters longer.”

World Tour concert will extend through next year; will most likely break 100 show record for the third time

For his birthday, Jacky’s daughter gave him a card that she personally made herself – on the card, she wrote: “Love you, love you, love you the most”. Such sweet words from a daughter who obviously adores him, however Jacky plays down the moment: “Whether that is truly the case or not, it really doesn’t matter.” Nevertheless, it is obvious that for this benevolent father, the joy of having his daughters is already enough to make him happy.

Currently in the middle of a World Tour concert, Jacky specially requested from his management company to give him 1 month off for summer vacation so that he could be with his daughters. During his time off, he accompanied his daughters on a trip to the U.S. for vacation, as his eldest daughter Zoe (張瑤華) was interested in taking summer classes there; originally, she was excited about taking classes related to criminal investigation – smiling, Jacky ‘complained’: “Who knew that she would end up losing interest in it?”

Prior to his birthday on July 10th, Jacky had already completed 60 shows of his World Tour concert and it is estimated that he will continue to perform up until his birthday next year – at this rate, he will very likely exceed 100 consecutive shows for the 3rd time in his career, and also break his previous record of 105 shows [for his 2007 “The Year of Jacky Cheung” World Tour]. However, Jacky reveals that his intention is not to break records: “Actually, those numbers have no meaning for me. My only wish is to allow more people to experience a new and fresh performance this time around.” He does admit that when he broke records the first time, he did have a ‘that’s awesome!’ feeling, but the second time, he started to feel that ‘breaking records’ is superficial and no longer felt the excited for the moment.

After his 2007 World Tour, Jacky initially thought that it was a good time to stop and perhaps retire: “But after 4 years, I discovered that I still had the energy and strength physically to continue performing – since I still had the ability, I figured I’d go ahead and do it.”

Jacky’s ½ Century Tour will resume again on 8/18 in Taiwan – he will perform for 4 days straight at the Taipei Coliseum. No matter how challenging the singing or dance moves may be, Jacky Cheung is ready to show his Taiwan fans that at 50 years old, he still has the charm and charisma to put on an awesome show!

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Chinese version:

張學友笑談生死 幼齡女兒嚇哭

記者劉衛莉／專訪

歌神張學友剛跨過「五十知天命」的門檻，他很認命，不介意談年齡、不怕老，還不避諱和才11歲、6歲多的2個女兒聊生死，「要讓她們早點接受事實，我總有一天會離開她們的，她們要學會照顧自己。」他態度開放、坦然面對，反倒把幼齡的女兒嚇哭了。

保持身體健康 想多陪女兒

「我滿期待，想知道自己老了會怎麼樣？」7月10日張學友度過50歲生日，人生過了半百，他既沒特別慶祝，也不特別感慨，「不必帶著恐懼的心情去面對老，不同年齡有不同味道，有人80歲就很老，有人仍活蹦亂跳。」他不敢誇稱自己現在仍是「一尾活龍」，「就是盡量維持健康，可以陪女兒們久一點。」

巡演到明年 可望3度破百

女兒親手製作生日卡，甜言蜜語寫著：「愛你愛你最愛你」，張學友輕描淡寫的說：「不管說的是真的假的，都沒關係。」其實已透露有女萬事足的幸福感。為了女兒，原本在進行「1/2世紀」演唱會的張學友，向經紀人要求「放暑假」1個月，帶著她們去美國上暑期班，大女兒瑤華本來興致高昂的選了刑事鑑識課程，「誰知她後來上了沒興趣。」

「1/2世紀」巡演在他生日前已完成60幾場表演，預計唱到明年生日前結束，應該會讓他第3度創下破百場的紀錄。他卻透露沒想過要再破紀錄，「其實那數字沒有意思，只希望讓多一點人看到這次新的表演。」他承認第1次締造紀錄時認為自己「好厲害喔」，但第2次又唱破百場時，只有「很膚淺」的心情。

2007年唱完「學友光年」巡演，他原以為應該差不多了可就此打住，「過了這幾年，發現體力還好，還可以繼續表演，能做就去做。」

「1/2世紀」台北場從8月18日起連唱4天，這次不管是對體能或歌喉都是一大挑戰，張學友已準備好，要讓台灣歌迷親眼見證50歲男人的魅力。

My Thoughts on "The Voice" Season 3 (episode 1)

The 3rd season of TVB's "The Voice (超級巨聲)" started airing this past weekend (in the U.S. at least) and even though I had said that I most likely won't watch the 3rd season because of all the frustrations I had with the 2nd season, curiosity definitely got the better of me and I ended up tuning in for the premiere show.

For what it's worth, here are my thoughts regarding the first episode:

.> I definitely like the theme song for season 2 better -- the tune and lyrics were alot more catchy and the song overall was more memorable (I still remember the "Make me a Superstar" chorus even now!) The new themesong sounds a bit weird to me....who knows though -- it may end up growing on me later on? We'll see....

.> The 2 hosts (Sammy Leung and Krystal Tin -- the same hosts as last year) were still as annoying as ever in terms of talking too much. As I said last year, I really don't want to hear so much from the hosts, especially since their role in this instance is to facilitate and the 'meat' of the show is really the singing and the judging -- too much time is wasted with the hosts' nonsensical banter and crude jokes. Again, like I said last year -- I would much rather TVB cut out the banter from the hosts and include more of the feedback / commentary from the judges regarding the contestants' performances.

.> So far, the 'quality' of the contestants this season is nowhere near that of Season 1 and 2....in fact, I have to honestly say that almost every contestant's singing made me cringe, except for 2 or 3 who actually sang quite well -- considering how many people auditioned and how few people actually made it into the final, that's not a very good number at all. Come on TVB -- don't tell me that the 18 people you guys picked as finalists were the 'cream of the crop' because they are nowhere close (but then again, it IS TVB -- a company that doesn't know how to recognize talent if it's staring them in the face)...go figure!

.> According to the hosts, there were 4000 people who auditioned and out of that, 18 people were picked as finalists for the show. Hmmm.....makes me wonder what the "criteria" is for determining the finalists....I would dare to say that 90% of the finalists (the 18 chosen ones) are from outside of HK and aren't fluent in Cantonese or Mandarin (actually, to be honest, the percentage is probably closer to 99%). After listening to the first round of singing, I pretty much came to the conclusion that most of the contestants have bad Chinese pronunciation. It's really hard for me to believe that out of 4000 people, they had to pick 18 who didn't speak Chinese....um, were there no native Chinese speakers who auditioned? Or did their singing really suck that badly? Call me biased, but I just feel that if you are going to participate in a Chinese language singing competition, you should at least know Chinese....is that too much to ask?

.> Surprisingly, I'm actually satisfied with the judging on this first episode (those of you who have been following my posts on the previous season of The Voice will know exactly why I say "surprisingly"). The judges were pretty tight with their scoring this time around and their scores were appropriate to the performances for the most part....I'm hoping that it stays this way for the rest of the season (though I highly doubt it)....

.> The addition of Coco Lee and Jun Kang to the judging panel is definitely refreshing and gives a whole different perspective on the performances (especially considering the other judges were all the same as last season). Unfortunately though, I don't think they will be on the judging panel permanently....I read somewhere that Coco and Jun are only going to be guest judge for a few episodes....that sucks!

The above is just my initial reaction after watching the first episode....I may have more thoughts later on as I watch additional episodes (though I probably won't blog about every episode because I just don't have the patience or time for that....)

Book Review: 從零開始 (Now and Then II) -- post #5…Danny Chan (陳百強)

Continuing with my 'book review' of "Cong Ling Kai Shi", the next 80s/90s artist I would like to write about is late singer / actor Danny Chan.

Danny's story is a tragic one -- another instance of a talented artist who died way too young. In the 18 years since he passed away (can't believe it has been almost 2 decades already), whenever I hear mention of him every year around the anniversary of his death, I can't help but think about what could have been. It especially saddens me knowing that his career as an entertainer (basically the pressures that come with it) is ultimately what led him down the 'path of no return' -- and reminds me once again that being in the entertainment industry is not as 'glamorous' as some people may think (and definitely not suited for everyone)....

** Disclaimer #1: The below is a recap of one of the interviews in the book and is written from my perspective – it is not by any means a direct translation of the entire interview. For a detailed description of what this particular book is about, please refer to post #1.

** Disclaimer #2: This book does NOT tell the entire life story of Danny, but rather focuses only on certain aspects of his life and career gathered from previous interviews with him (as well as the writer's own knowledge of him). Therefore, please understand that the below recap won't be 'all-inclusive'.

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INTRODUCTION

In my previous post about Anita Mui, I had mentioned that 2003 was a bad year for HK, not only because of SARS, but also because the HK entertainment industry lost two of its biggest stars – Leslie Cheung and Anita Mui. Unfortunately, 2003 was not the first time that we lost 2 big stars in the same year…exactly a decade earlier, in 1993, the HK music industry was rocked by major tragedy – the deaths of 2 hugely talented singer / songwriters -- pop/rock group Beyond’s lead male vocalist Wong Kar Kui, who died from a tragic accident on June 30th, followed later on in the year by Danny Chan, who died on October 25th after being comatose for 17 months (both died in their 30s).

It can be said that Danny’s introverted personality perhaps made him unsuited for the complicated, oftentimes ‘dark’, and almost always stressful world that is the entertainment industry, though there are certainly other factors that contributed to his mostly ‘strained’ relationship with the industry – for example, his childhood, family background, life experiences, etc. In the book, the introduction that was written to the chapter about Danny best sums up his personality as well as the tragedy of his life:

Danny was a ‘child at heart’ who was very much in need of love. His god-brother [fellow singer] Kenny Bee described him as ‘the entertainment industry’s protected species’. [Cantopop Queen] Anita Mui once said: “Leslie [Cheung] is my older brother, someone who is able to take good care of me; Danny is my younger brother, I need to protect him.” Though Danny was a man brimming with musical talent and creativity, he unfortunately had a naturally ‘sensitive’ disposition –‘happy’ times were always very few but ‘unhappy’ times occurred very often. On May 18th, 1992, Danny collapsed at his home and was rushed to the hospital…during the ambulance ride, his heart had stopped once, but was resuscitated. From that moment on, he slipped into a coma and never woke up again.

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CHILDHOOD / PERSONAL LIFE

Danny was born into a middle class family – his father was the owner of a watch shop and his mother was a typical housewife. On the surface, it appears that Danny would have a happy childhood, and I guess in a sense, you could say that he did to some extent. But one factor that set his family apart from other typical middle class families – Danny’s father had 2 ‘wives’ (though under HK law, the first wife is the official one and the second wife is only the ‘mistress’). Therefore, even though Danny technically had 3 older brothers, 1 older sister, and 1 younger brother, all of them were actually half-siblings born to his father and ‘official’ wife….his own mother only bore 1 child (him). Growing up, Danny lived separately with his mother and did not see his siblings much, so unfortunately, his childhood was one of loneliness.

Danny’s mother Mrs. Chan was a very benevolent mother, doting on her only son ever since he was born and also fiercely protective of him. Danny attended the best schools growing up and before he even graduated from high school, he had the opportunity to study abroad in the U.S. (in the state of Nevada) – however after 6 months of living abroad, he could not get used to the new (and different) environment, so he returned to HK. Not long after enrolling in 11th grade at a prestigious international school in HK, he decided to quit school completely.

As a youth, Danny’s musical talent was already obvious. In the mid-70s, when the electric keyboard started to become popular, Danny taught himself how to play the instrument and just like that, started composing songs. The first song that he wrote was actually a birthday gift to one of his high school classmates – unfortunately though, the sheet music to that first song has long been lost, so it never got a chance to be part of Danny Chan’s official music repertoire.

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CAREER / LOVE LIFE

Danny ‘officially’ entered the music industry back in 1977, when he participated in a songwriting talent contest and also won first place in the HK Electronic Keyboard Contest (not sure what the actual name of the contest was). In 1979, Danny released his first album entitled {Tears Cried for You}, which became an immediate hit and almost overnight, Danny became a star, idolized by many youth throughout HK. When a reporter asked him where his inspiration for writing music came from, Danny replied: “Whenever I feel unhappy, I would lock myself in a room, take the unhappy mood that I’m in, and vent it out through the process of creating a song.”

At the age of 21, Danny was already a ‘star’ in his own right, but at the core, he was an ordinary person, just like you and me. With that being said, of course, as an ordinary person, he also had his idols whom he looked up to and admired as a fan. Not sure how many people knew this, but Danny’s idol was popular Japanese actress/singer Yamaguchi Momoe (山口百惠) – Danny adored her and like any dedicated fan, he was devoted to her and jumped at any opportunity to meet her. Fortunately for him, he had entertainment industry friends in Japan and throughout his life, he had the opportunity to meet the Japanese superstar 3 times. Danny admired the relationship that Yamaguchi had with her husband and felt that the love that they shared was something that he may never experience himself. During an interview, Danny once stated: “All along, I’ve had the desire to truly truly love someone – unfortunately, after searching for half my life, I’ve never found someone to love.”

Indeed, for most of his life, Danny had been unlucky in love. Even back during his high school days, when he would encounter someone he liked and tried to pursue her, it always turned out that the girl either didn’t like him or she already had a boyfriend. After Danny entered the industry, despite his popularity and talent, he experienced the same failures in the pursuit of love, to the point that the outside world (i.e. the Media and general public) started to speculate about his sexual orientation (typical Media reaction, though unfortunately the speculations will have a huge impact on him later on).

In 1982, Danny collaborated with popular actress (at the time) Mary Jean Reimer (翁靜晶) on the movie {Encore} (one of the few films that Danny starred in). To promote the film, Danny and Mary Jean would appear together at events constantly, oftentimes holding hands and looking like a sweet young couple. When people asked him about his relationship with Mary Jean, he was very honest about his feelings: “I like her and we get along quite well together…especially physically, we are very compatible, just like Yamaguchi Momoe and [her husband] Miura Tomokazu. However, we are not dating – her personality is a bit coyish and is used to being pampered, while I’m a bit of a chauvinist.”

A decade later, in 1992, as Danny was comatose in the hospital, Mary Jean went to visit him and broke down into almost inconsolable tears. Not too long after that, during a rare interview, she finally discusses the special relationship she had with Danny that basically boiled down to a ‘youthful infatuation’ and not a true love / romance relationship. While it was obvious that Danny cared a lot about Mary Jean and she also cared about him (she cried genuine tears of pain and sadness at his funeral), and perhaps at one point there may have been feelings that went beyond that, it didn’t amount to anything in the end. Mary Jean Reimer eventually married martial arts teacher and director Lau Kar Leung (who was 30 years her senior) in 1984 and her relationship with Danny officially ended.

The following excerpt from the book best describes the relationship between Danny and Mary Jean – a passage I decided to include because I feel that it is important in helping us understand some of the things Danny went through in his life (and perhaps helped shape his future):

For the two ‘little friends’, days of happiness eventually came to pass. She [Mary Jean] felt that Danny was becoming more and more unhappy – he was no longer that playful ‘big kid’ who liked to play jokes on others. As for herself, she seemed to ‘grow up’ faster than he was able to and eventually she chose the more mature Lau Kar Leung. With his ‘little friend’ falling in love with someone else, Danny was very upset and for many years after that, refused to speak to her.

Looking back at the past, Mary Jean Reimer still can’t say for sure whether she and Danny could be considered ‘lovers’. She says: “The most ‘affectionate’ we ever got was merely holding hands and kissing on the cheek—our relationship was very pure and innocent. This type of friendship, I don’t believe it will happen again in my lifetime.”

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PERSONAL STRUGGLES: “A Precious Flower That Wilted Too Early”

After Danny passed away at the young age of 35 (on October 25, 1993), one of his half-brothers summarized his life struggles in this way:

“Danny was a man of much sensibility and was constantly in pursuit of perfection – even the tiniest blemish was taken to heart and would cause him to brood over it. All this time, he has been pursuing what he wanted in life – eventually he had fame, and he had fortune, and after that, he no longer knew what else he could pursue. Actually, at that time, he didn’t need to pursue anything more, however he began to constantly worry that one day, he would eventually fall. This was a worry that weighed heavily on his mind and in his heart.”

From the start of his career in the late 70s, it can be said that Danny’s career was pretty smooth in that he quickly became popular and was able to attain fame and fortune fairly early. However, the one aspect of being in the entertainment industry that Danny was never quite able to come to terms with was the constant pressure placed on entertainers by the Media and general public. In the mid 1980s, Danny’s fellow entertainment industry ‘brother’ and good friend Leslie Cheung started to rise in popularity and not surprisingly, the Media and general public started comparing the 2 artists constantly. In response to such sentiment from the outside world, Danny once told the author (Huang Li Ling) during an interview: “I hate it when people ask me ‘Leslie Cheung is so popular now, how do you feel about that?’ How do they expect me to feel? Am I supposed to be jealous of him? Am I expected to constantly think of ways to overtake him? We were once under the same manager and I personally saw how he overcame adversity to achieve the success he has now – I will only be happy for him!” When I read this section, I genuinely felt saddened at how frustrated Danny must have felt back in those days having to constantly deal with the unending questions and ‘pestering’ from the Media. Unfortunately, almost 2 decades later, nothing has changed in terms of the Media and how ‘public figures’ are treated – the Media still has the same ‘old-school’ mindset.

Even though Danny did feel frustrated over constantly being asked about Leslie, that was only a minor irritation in comparisons to the emotional and mental ‘beating’ that Danny endured from the Media (and general public) in 1985 (which many feel that he never fully recovered from). The anguish that he felt during that time eroded his confidence and it took him more than 2 years to regain the strength and confidence he needed to continue on with his career (and life). Reading this section of the book really upset me because even though I am fully aware of the ‘cruelty’ that the HK Media and paparazzi are capable of (it’s hard not to be aware after following the entertainment industry for so many years), I can’t help but feel angry at their actions (and the whole ‘it comes with the territory of being in the industry’ type mentality, which I personally feel is a bunch of BS!). In the following section, I will attempt to recount the struggles that Danny went through in 1985 and the impact it had on him subsequently, as it will provide much insight into what led him down the path he took that eventually cost him his life.

In September 1985, Danny had to enter a hospital for a few days. Almost immediately, all sorts of horrible rumors and speculations started to surface – including rumors that he had contracted AIDS (remember that people had speculated about his sexual orientation at one point) and even rumors that he had died! Just when the rumors became more and more intense as well as horrific, Danny finally re-appeared in public and ended all speculation….unfortunately though, the damage was already done. The below excerpt from the book describes Danny’s feelings during this period and the impact that the rumors had on him (sorry for including such a long passage, but I feel that it’s important to hear Danny’s words directly rather than paraphrase…):

Knowing that Danny was safe and sound, I [the author Huang Li Ling] called him up to see how he was doing. He said: “I am very upset – those rumors truly crossed the line! I don’t understand why those people had to say those types of things!” After a short silence, he muttered: “It’s really difficult being an artist.”

Sensing the tiredness and worrisome anger in his voice, I asked him what had truly happened. He replied: “My biggest issue is that I don’t have a place to live. A few months ago, a geomancer told me that my house [in Happy Valley] has bad feng shui, so I planned to move out, but the better houses are too expensive, so I decided to temporarily move back to my father’s house to live. Unfortunately, my ears are way too sensitive – if there is even a tad bit of noise, I am unable to sleep. Not sleeping well for a period of time, I will naturally be moody and in bad spirits.”

Asked why he went to the hospital, Danny’s sensitive nature started to surface: “What is unusual about a person going in to get a physical examination? My heart was beating faster than usual, but other than that, everything else was fine physically. My mood gets tense and nervous very easily – it’ s my personal issue and doesn’t have anything to do with anyone else, so there’s no need to pull innocent people ‘into the water’. I’m sure you understand what I mean?” [The ‘innocent person’ that Danny was referring to was Leslie Cheung, as Leslie had jokingly made some comments about Danny at his concert earlier – in good fun, since they were both good friends and ‘brothers’ – however the Media took the words out of context and made it into a big issue, trying to make it seem like Danny and Leslie did not get along when that was far from the truth. Danny was upset at the Media’s actions, however the Media spun it to make it seem like he was upset at Leslie].

To combat the rumors, even Danny’s god-mother Mrs. So as well as his own mother Mrs. Chan couldn’t help coming to his defense:

Mrs. So: “Danny has a serious case of insomnia – even if we were to walk by in slippers, that little bit of noise would still wake him.”

Mrs. Chan: “A musician’s ears are truly very sensitive. Our entire family is already helping him try to find a place to live. This son really causes me to worry about him.”

When the author (Huang Li Ling) met up with Danny again in 1988, she could tell that he was still very unhappy. Indeed, during an interview at that time, he indicated to her that he would sit at home during the night, look out at the beautiful view outside the window, and feel lonely. The author even commented that the last time she saw the playful, happy Danny was in 1984 and since then, things had changed drastically…..

He [Danny] admitted that the nasty rumors from 1985 had indeed knocked him down quite severely. I told him that he should have come out and said something at that time, as that would have shut people’s mouths quickly, to which he replied: “Unfortunately, I am a bit foolish and also very weak – the more people said things, the more I would retreat and eventually close myself up to others. That was the worst torture I had ever endured, the worst curse. Ever since I entered the industry, my path had been relatively painless, so to all of a sudden encounter such a situation, I didn’t know how to handle it. At that time, Katie Chan [Danny’s manager in the later part of his career – she was also his close friend; currently, she is manager to Faye Wong and Eason Chan] wasn’t my manager yet and so I didn’t have anyone to help me or anyone to talk with, so I became silent.”

He thought a little more, then continued: “The person who first started the rumors seemed to have purposefully timed it, to purposefully ‘chop down the flower’ and make me no longer able to exist in the industry. Nevertheless, I should probably thank that person, because at least that situation made me somewhat stronger – though I am still not as strong as I need to be. It took me 2 years to regain my confidence – that time period was truly very difficult for me.”

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CONCLUDING THOUGHTS

Without a doubt, Danny had tremendous talent when it came to music – unfortunately though, he was not cut out for a career in the oftentimes cruel and unjust world that is the entertainment industry. Knowing what I do about Danny, I sometimes wonder whether his fate would have been different if he had gone into a different field. And thinking about this, along with the other HK entertainers who have left us over the years, I can’t help but lament the plight of the industry.

Three years after he had entered the industry (in the early 80s), Danny considered leaving the industry for the first time – but he held on and persevered. After having endured a particularly difficult year for him (1991 was a low point for him in terms of his career), Danny finally decided in 1992 that he would retire from the industry for good. In March 1992, he held 3 concert shows in Shanghai, China – this was to be the first leg of his farewell concert tour, his last before retiring. During the last segment of the show, when he ended with his classic song {一生何求} [the themesong to “Looking Back in Anger”], the entire audience stood up and clapped to the beat of the song – a particularly poignant and touching moment that meant a lot to Danny…in his words, this was “a moment I will never forget for my entire life.” The next month, in April 1992, Danny performed at a special event in Shanghai (along with other artists) to promote environmentalism – this was his last appearance in public and also the last time that he would perform on stage.

I would like to end this post with an excerpt from the book – a particularly well-written section that, through a mother’s words, recaps the struggles her son faced in life while at the same time, relays her heartbreak and pain at the tremendous loss of a precious life – a sentiment that I’m sure everyone who cared about Danny (whether a fan of his music or not) shared:

On May 18, 1992, he [Danny] collapsed at his home and after being rushed to the hospital, remained in a comatose state; it was reported that his collapse was due to consuming a particular medication after drinking alcohol. His mother, Mrs. Chan, went to the hospital every day to sit by his bedside and keep him company, patiently waiting for the day when a miracle would happen. She would tell me: “the ‘reborn’ Danny definitely will not be the same Danny as the past – he definitely will NOT remain in the entertainment industry. He will leave all the gossips and unhappiness behind him and be an ordinary person. In the past, I would always encourage him to ignore what people say and don’t be concerned about all the gossips….but he couldn’t find the strength and allowed himself to sink deeper…..” Day after day, the benevolent mother continued to sit by Danny’s bedside and whisper words of encouragement in his ear – but unfortunately she was not able to rouse him. 17 months later, he passed away.

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Danny is truly a legend and is truly missed by all of his friends, family, and fans! Rest in peace, Danny!