International Screen: First 50 Covers

Having posted the first 100 covers of Shaw Brothers' Southern Screen magazine, it's only fair that I post some covers of International Screen, the in-house magazine of Shaws' number one rival, Cathay/MP&GI. Here then are the first 50 covers, minus those for Nos. 4, 14, 15, 20, and 36, which I've been unable to track down. Let me again thank the following eBay sellers for any of their scans I might be using: adamantine!, cyk5391antiques, kwsx, lvlalaysiaboleh, penangantiques, and rajah_borneo.

International Screen started publication on October 1955, almost two years earlier than Southern Screen. This reflects the Cathay Organization's lead in the race to modernize the Chinese film industry along Hollywood lines (especially the vertical integration of production, distribution, and exhibition). Cathay had started out as one of the largest theater chains in Southeast Asia, then entered into distribution in order to ensure a steady supply of films for its theaters.

In the mid-50s, Cathay ventured into production (including funding the independent productions of Yan Jun and Bai Guang) and initiated an actors training program. In 1956, it formally restructured its various Hong Kong companies into Motion Picture & General Investment, and the first MP&GI film, Golden Lotus (1957) starring Lin Dai, debuted the following Chinese New Year.

That same year, Run Run Shaw arrived in Hong Kong to oversee production at the languishing Shaws and Sons company. But he had bigger plans. He bought 46 acres of land in Clearwater Bay for the future Shaw Movie Town, and in March 1958 he officially announced the establishment of Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. The battle between Shaws and Cathay had begun.

One tactic used by Shaws was the stealing of stars, which can be traced on the covers of both studios' magazines. The most obvious example is Lin Dai, who was the cover girl for the premiere issues of both International Screen and Southern Screen. In fact, in the same month (December, 1957) that she appeared on the cover of Southern Screen No. 1, she also graced the cover of International Screen No. 26. Throughout the late 50s, she freelanced for both studios, until she finally settled down at Shaw Brothers in 1961.

Other stars, such as Li Lihua, Diana Chang, and Peter Chen Ho, were also lured away from Cathay/MP&GI over to Shaw Brothers. The one notable exception to this migration of talent was Lucilla You Min, who left Shaws in 1959 to join MP&GI.

As far as International Screen cover queens go, Lin Dai is the winner once again, as she was in the first batch of Southern Screen covers, with a total of 8 appearances. Grace Chang places second with 7 covers. Jeanette Lin Tsui follows in third with 5. And Li Lihua, Helen Li Mei, Julie Yeh Feng, and Kitty Ting Hao all score 4 each.

A special mention goes out to one-cover wonders Mu Hong, a Taiwanese compatriot of Diana Chang who had considerably less success breaking into the Hong Kong industry, and Nellie Chin Yu, who is best remembered for her screenplays (which include Her Tender Heart, The Wild, Wild Rose, and Sun, Moon and Star) than her two-film career as an actress.

Some of my favorite covers of this batch include: No. 3, a stunning portrait of the beguiling Bai Guang; No. 12, the brimming-with-optimism cover debut of 17-year-old newcomers Ting Hao and Soo Fung; No. 29, showing a deliciously bookish-looking Yeh Feng, with her turtleneck sweater and big forehead; No. 33, a simple, but absolutely radiant, close-up of Lin Dai at her most beautiful; No. 39, the perfect distillation of Lin Tsui's tomboy glamor; and No. 50, where Li Mei rings her bell, promising a very Merry Christmas indeed!

My least favorite is No. 34, You Min's International Screen debut, which I'm compelled to single out as the worst cover. You Min possessed a simple and natural beauty, but here she looks a touch garish. Compare this with her next cover, No. 43, which shows her at her usual girlish best.

Hopefully, it won't be long before I can show you the second fifty covers of International Screen!