Li Lin-Lin... mmm!

I'm supposed to be taking a vacation from blogging, but I couldn't resist posting this new addition to SHUESIK's channel: Maggie Li Lin-lin a-go-go-ing in Teenagers' Holiday (1968).

Happy Holidays and Warm Wishes!

Santa left this lovely photo of Patricia Lam Fung in my email stocking, and I would be a bad boy if I didn't share it with all of you.

See you next year!

What we do at a brewery... hurrrmmmm... :-)

A few nights ago, my department organized a trip to Guinness Anchor Brewery. We were invited by the management there and it was a 'all you can drink' session. The place was fantastic. They had all sorts of booze and I tried them all. There was this one brand that I really liked, called Kilkenny, from Ireland. It was the best beer I've tasted. It's not sold on shelves here in Malaysia but a few pubs have it. It’s so smooth and to taste a fresh pint straight from the brewery, that felt amazing.

It’s true that fresh beer taste better, apparently the taste depreciates as it ages, so today’s beer will taste a bit different than the same beer 1 week later. We also went on a tour of the factory. All I could see was lots and lots of beer. It was heaven. I just kept drinking and drinking... and drinking (until I lost count of the glasses). I hope I go back there again someday…

Oh yeah, meet The Tower! It's this long glass which can easily carry 2 or 2.5 cans of beer. We challanged each other to down the whole glass in less than  3 minutes. Guess what? Only 4 people out of 20 managed to finish it till the bottom. Others gave up half way. I'm proud that I was one of the Elite 4. I conquered the Tower! But unfortunatly I wasn't drunk. I was sober enough to remember everything the next morning, and reach the office 9AM sharp for work. Next time think twice before you challange me to a drink :P

More photos here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=90272&l=82425&id=548415341

The Arabian Nights of Au Kar-Wai

Swashbuckling Shaw star Pearl Au Kar-wai

After returning from her sojourn in New York, Pearl Au Kar-wai starred in two films that I am dying to see: The Talking Bird (1959) and Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (1960). Both movies were directed by Luk Bong, who was following in the footsteps of his 1958 two-part hit, Prince of Thieves, a Cantonese opera based on The Arabian Nights.

Here's an article about The Talking Bird from Southern Screen No. 21 (November, 1959).

THE TALKING BIRD
A Tale from the Arabian Nights

There is nothing like a fairy tale to delight both young and old.

The delight is all the greater when it revolves around the adventures of a pretty young girl.

In Shaw's latest production "The Talking Bird" you have all that. And what is more! Hongkong's lovely mermaid Pearl Au Kar-wai is in the starring role.

Adapted from the ever popular "Arabian Nights", the story is about Pearl's search for the Talking Bird to save her country from the tyrannical rule of a cunning and scheming prime minister.

She braves untold hazards and overcomes them one after another. In the end she finds the Talking Bird and with its aid carries the other treasures "The Singing Tree" and "The Magic Waters" back to save her brothers who had been turned into stones.

Sharing star billing with Hongkong's lovely Pearl is "teddy boy" Mak Kay who is in a different role.

Others seen in the film include Kong Yat-fan, Lam Yim, Ko Leung, Pan Pang and many others.

And here's an article about Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves from Southern Screen No. 27 (May, 1960).

Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves

Following on the success of "Glass Slipper" and "The Talking Bird" which were box-office hits with Cantonese-speaking audiences, Shaw Studio is bringing two more famous fairy tales to the screen.

Filming of one — "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" — has been completed, while shooting of the other — "Sleeping Beauty" — is scheduled to start soon.

"Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" stars Pearl Au Kar-wai, Cheung Ying-choy, Lam Yim, Shek Kin, Pang Pang, and Ngai Tung-kwa.

The film is produced by Chow See-look and is directed by Luk Pong.

From the eBay Archive: Collect Them All

There's an amazing collection of Hong Kong movie star photos going for auction on eBay right now. Bid now or download them to your computer. Here are a few of my favorites.

Unless you visit the Hong Kong Film Archive, this is the closest you are going to get to seeing Ding Lan, the Hokkien Marilyn Monroe. Even then, the archive only has a few of her nearly two dozen films.



Here are two lovely glamor shots of Cantonese action star Suet Nei. She sure was a cutie pie... when she wasn't scowling and shooting people in one of her best roles as the Dark Heroine Muk Lan-fa.



Finally, here is a rare and absolutely stunning signed photograph of Shirley Yamaguchi (left) aka Li Xianglan. The photo of Diana Chang Chung-wen (right) is also quite nice!

Cary Grant in Hong Kong

Cary Grant with Shaw stars Au Kar-wai and Ting Ning (ca. January 1960)

Recently, in a post about Pearl Au Kar-wai's U.S. sojourn, I mentioned that Cary Grant had been seen "monopolizing" her at a party thrown by director Otto Preminger. A year later, after Pearl had returned to Hong Kong, Cary Grant met with her again, as seen in the above photo from Southern Screen No. 24 (February, 1960).

Was Cary in Hong Kong "just to see his tailor", as gossip columnist Dorothy Kilgallen related? Or was he there "to look over facilities for filming of his production of 'One Arabian Night' here next year", as another U.S. paper reported?

Maybe it's just a coincidence, but Pearl's Arabian Nights–inspired film, The Talking Bird (1959), had just been released on December 30th, and a similarly themed follow-up, Ali Baba and the 40 Robbers (1960) was released just six months later.

Hmm... what did Cary have in mind? As far as I can tell, his One Arabian Night project never materialized, but I wonder if he'd wanted Pearl to play a part in it...

The Magical Life of Long Tack Sam

I was happy yesterday to see a new entry from Jean Lukitsh on her Electric Shadows blog. That it concerned the world famous magician and vaudevillian Long Tack Sam was a pleasant surprise. Long's great-granddaughter Ann Marie Fleming has lovingly documented his life in a film and a graphic novel, both entitled The Magical Life of Long Tack Sam. Watching this clip easily convinced me that I've got to get the DVD, which is available here from the National Film Board of Canada.



Wow! I can't wait to watch the rest of the film. By the way, Long Tack Sam wasn't the only Chinese vaudevillian. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for an entry about the Princess Jue Quon Tai...

Au Kar-Wai in the U.S.A., Part 1

Au Kar-wai a few days after her arrival in New York

On November 6, 1958 Shaw Brothers' Cantonese star Pearl Au Kar Wai arrived in New York City to prepare for her role in Otto Preminger's never completed The Other Side of the Coin. The director of such classics as Laura (1944), The Man with the Golden Arm (1956), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), and Exodus (1960), Preminger was known for tackling controversial subjects and challenging film censorship, and The Other Side of the Coin fit squarely with his penchant for presenting topical, polarizing issues in an objective manner that precluded easy judgments about right and wrong.

The film was going to be an adaptation of the just published novel by Pierre Boulle, author of The Bridge Over the River Kwai and Planet of the Apes. Set in British Malaya during the Malayan Emergency (the guerrilla war for independence waged by the Malayan Communist Party), The Other Side of the Coin is a terse satire of colonialism and Cold War politics. The book condescendingly observes what happens when the Pollyanna-ish American wife of a French rubber plantation manager decides to adopt and reform a young female Chinese rebel.

Preminger was quite serious about the project — and had even traveled to Kuala Lumpur in May 1958 to get permission from the Malaysian government and to scout for locations — but for a variety of reasons the production never got off the ground. It was probably a good thing that Au Kar-wai never made her Hollywood debut. Playing a communist rebel very likely could have ended her career in Hong Kong. Still, it would have been great to see her appear in a film by Otto Preminger.

Au Kar-wai appears to have stayed in New York until at least March, 1959 before returning to Hong Kong to continue her work at Shaw Brothers. Here are a few items concerning her U.S. sojourn, starting off with this article from the New York Times.

Au Kar Wai, who is obviously thousands of miles from her Hong Kong home, is quite at home in New York, too. The dark-haired, lissome 19-year-old Chinese actress, who was brought here the other day by director Otto Preminger to learn colloquial English for her role in the adaptation of Pierre Boulle's "The Other Side of the Coin," also could play the lead in a hypothetical film titled "A Chinese Girl in New York."

There was a wealth of movie material in her description of her first bewildering day at the Berlitz School for Languages. "I was the only Chinese girl," she said. There was also her first view of the Manhattan skyline — "nothing so beautiful, so much colors!" Her first, and last, subway excursion — "not good. Many people, coming and going at once." And, some homey fare when she was reunited with "auntie," a former Hong Kong actress, and other relatives who have settled in Chinatown.

How did Au Kar Wai get involved? Mr. Preminger had seen footage from six Chinese films she had made and "he called me and ask if I can help him make picture but I tell him sadly I know no English. He said, 'never mind, I will find someone to teach you.'" So, Miss Au Kar Wai will be here until she masters the language, undoubtedly adding "scenes" to "A Chinese Girl in New York."

—"By Way of Report" by A.H. Weiler, New York Times, November 30, 1958

Here is a picture (from the March, 1959 issue of International Screen) that shows Au Kar-wai standing besides Helen Li Mei, who was in the U.S. at the time on a four-month tour. Sitting next to Li Mei is veteran Cantonese actress Siu Yin Fei, who had recently retired and moved to New York. Hmm... was Siu the "auntie" referred to in the New York Times article? A few years later Siu produced and starred in Murder Case in Chinatown (1961), a true-crime story set and partially shot in New York Chinatown. The director of the American scenes was none other than Esther Eng, the pioneering Chinese American filmmaker who owned and managed a restaurant in New York at the time this photo was taken. She often played host to visiting Chinese actors.

Finally, let me end on a Hollywood note by quoting New York gossip columnist Dorothy Kilgallen's March 10, 1959 report that "Cary Grant captured most of the attention at Otto Preminger's recent party by monopolizing an adorable little Chinese girl, Au Kar Wai, who just arrived in Hollywood for 'The Other Side of the Coin.'" I'll have a little more to share about the two of them later...

Fanny Fan: I've Been Wronged

Here's an article published just before the release of Kiss Me Again (October 21, 1960) that provides a little counterspin to Fanny Fan's screen image as a sexy femme fatale. Maybe the about-face was meant to prepare the public for her more wholesome roles in the upcoming Chinese New Year releases All the Best (February 15, 1961) and Les Belles (February 25, 1961). One thing is certain: besides her amazing curves, Fanny is one cute puppy!

"I've Been Wronged" says Fanny Fan

Fanny Fan has, since her debut in the movie world, been billed the sex kitten and given other fancy names to publicize her rich natural endowments.

In keeping with being a sex kitten, all sorts of rumours, especially those connected with the opposite sex, have been attributed to her.

What does Fanny feel about all this?

"I've been wronged!" Fanny said.

"Anyone with intelligence would know that what they say about me is untrue", Fanny said, making no attempt at hiding her hurt feelings.

Fanny does not like being publicized as a sex kitten, and she certainly detests the rumours that are always surrounding her name.

Looking up from the script of "The Wrong Man", in which she will take the starring role opposite Chao Lei, Fanny declared: "The man who is wronged in the film eventually finds redress, but when will the public realize that these rumours about me are false?"

—from Southern Screen No. 32 (October, 1960)
Original article available as PDF

Fanny Fan: Kiss Me Again (1960)

Shown above is a novelty centerfold from Southern Screen No. 31 (September, 1960) that opens to reveal the resolution of the romantic triangle in Kiss Me Again (1960), Fanny Fan's second Mandarin film. Of course, with "jade girl" Grace Ting Ning in the picture, it's a given that Fanny plays the role of "the other woman".

Kiss Me Again was made by veteran director Bu Wancang, who got his start in 1920s Shanghai. It was Bu who recognized the talent of Ruan Lingyu and cast her as the lead in her debut film, The Couple in Name (1926). He directed her again in Love and Duty (1931), The Peach Girl (1931), A Spray of Plum Blossoms (1931), and Three Modern Women (1933).

Ruan wasn't the only actress that Bu launched into stardom. Grace Chang and Chung Ching were both his discoveries, and Diana Chang Chung-wen's Hong Kong debut Three Sisters (1957) was directed by him.

From 1957 to 1961 Bu worked for Shaw Brothers, and in 1960 he even directed three films for rival MP&GI. While none of his Shaw Brothers films are among those recently restored and released on DVD, two of his MP&GI films — Dreams Come True (1960) and The Bedside Story (1960) — are fortunately available. Both films are romantic comedies with a light satiric touch and prove his mastery of whatever genre he worked in.

Given Bu's track record of bringing out the best in budding actresses, it goes without saying that I would love to see what kind of performance he was able to elicit from Fanny Fan in Kiss Me Again. Maybe I'm just tilting at windmills, but I'm determined to prove that Fanny had more talents than just her curves (and her boldness in baring them). Just call me Dave Quixote!

Anyway, here are two articles about Kiss Me Again from Southern Screen magazine.

THE SECOND KISS

Shaw's latest romance opens with a kiss and fades out with a kiss.

But in between the two kisses a powerful drama of human emotions and tragic love is unfolded on the screen.

Starring Shaw stars Ting Ning and Fanny Fan in their first film opposite handsome leading man Chao Lei, the movie is one to tug at one's heart strings.



Ting Ning, Fanny Fan and Chao Lei are the three parties in a triangular love affair, with movie bad man Hung Por trying to edge in by wooing Fanny Fan.

Ting Ning after her successes in "Enchanted Melody", "Rendezvous in the South Seas" and "My Daughter, My Daughter", and Fanny Fan whose "Pink Murder" shot her to fame, are cast again in roles that are tailor-made for their talents.

The movie is directed by veteran Po Wan-chang, who calls on his years of movie experience to give yet another masterpiece to Mandarin movie audiences.

—from Southern Screen No. 29 (July, 1960)
Original article available here

KISS ME AGAIN

Shaw Studio's latest love story to be told on the screen is "Kiss Me Again", which stars two young Shaws stars Ting Ning and Fanny Fan opposite Chao Lei.

Ting Ning plays a young woman who had been orphaned in her childhood. For the first time in her young life she finds happiness when handsome Chao Lei returns her love.



But they have not reckoned with Ting Ning's cousin Fanny Fan, a scheming possessive type who is also in love with Chao Lei and is determined to have him for her own.

The film directed by veteran Po Wan-chang revolves around the scheming efforts of Fanny Fan to wreck the romance of Chao Lei and Ting Ning.

—from Southern Screen No. 30 (August, 1960)
Original article available here

Jeanette Lin Tsui: Beloved Tomboy and Girljock Extraordinaire

Lin Tsui sporting her MP&GI Studio team gear

Last week I posted about some of Lin Tsui's uncharacteristically sexy film appearances in the late 60s (as a bikini-clad spy and an undercover bellydancer). Some may find it a little pathetic to see her resorting to sexpot routines, but I think she was just having a little fun. I'm reminded of an astute observation from the Hong Kong Film Archive's publication The Cathay Story: "Lin Cui, nicknamed 'Student Lover', was frequently given athletic, tomboyish roles. Yet there seems to be a sexuality yearning to burst out." Hmm... I wonder if Lin's affair with macho man Jimmy Wang Yu was what brought out the "woman" in her...

Although I was eagerly curious to see a sexy Lin Tsui, I must say I prefer her beloved tomboy persona, which I first fell in love with in Our Sister Hedy (1957), Spring Song (1959), and Sister Long Legs (1960) — all highly recommended and all available on DVD.

Anyway, here a few choice items showcasing Jeanette in classic tomboy mode...

Lin Tsui and Sports

Lin Tsui who will star in "Spring Girl" [Spring Song] together with Grace Chang is probably the best athlete among all the actresses. Ever since she was a child she has been fond of sports more than anything else. At the age of five she had accomplished the art of roller skating. In school she was one of the top scorers of her basketball team. Today she is a polished athlete [who] excels in horseback riding, swimming, archery, golf and fishing.

—from International Screen No. 26 (December, 1957)
Original article available as PDF

Young Vagabond (1958)


Darling Daughter (1959)


Lin Tsui waterskiing in Spring Song (1959)

Further Reading
Lin Tsui biography by Paul Fonoroff

From the eBay Archive: Li Lihua Caught Kissing

In a recent post about Li Lihua's brief foray into Hollywood with the film China Doll (1958), I featured an American newspaper interview, where she was quoted as saying: "I have 63 pictures to my credit... and haven't been kissed in any one of them. In China things are different."

Dev Yang commented that Li Lihua had in fact kissed seven years earlier in The Fiery Phoenix (1951). Maybe she just made up an excuse to get out of kissing "onion breath" Victor Mature, or maybe it was just publicity spin covering up the fact that the depiction of interracial kissing on the silver screen was still taboo in the United States (where anti-miscegenation laws were still in effect in many states of the union).

In any event, this back cover from the program for The Fiery Phoenix (1951) is undeniable proof that in China, when it comes to kissing, things are not so different.


Li Lihua kissing leading man Liu Qiong

Lai Yee: "Technicolor Movie Queen" and Daughter of Charlie Chan

"Technicolor Movie Queen" Lai Yee in Beauty Trap (1954)
—from Silver Light: A Pictorial History of Hong Kong Cinema

Born and raised in San Francisco, Lai Yee (also known as Marianne Quon) was married to Chinese movie pioneer Joseph Sunn Jue (Chiu Shu-sun). Jue had produced — in San Francisco — one of the first Cantonese talkies, Romance of the Songsters (1933), which starred visiting opera performer Kwan Tak-hing in his first appearance on the silver screen. Kwan, of course, would become famous for his role as the legendary Wong Fei Hung during the 1950s and 60s in more than 80 films. Also featured in Romance of the Songsters was a nine-year-old Lai Yee, who had performed opera with Kwan during his tenure in San Francisco.

Sometime around 1946, Lai Yee, now in her early 20s, was again working with Jue. After the success of Romance of the Songsters, Jue had become one of the biggest producers of Cantonese films in Hong Kong during the mid to late 1930s. The Japanese invasion in December, 1941 put a halt to his operations there, and he returned to San Francisco, where he continued making movies catering to Chinese American audiences. Always the innovator, Jue started shooting in color on 16mm film, and it was in these movies that Lai Yee got her start as a "color beauty".

After Lai Yee and Joseph Sunn Jue got married, they moved to Hong Kong and became active in the film industry there. Besides working for other production companies, Lai Yee formed her own company, the Li'er Colour Film Company, which specialized in the production of color films. The films included a series of historical epics based on the classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms — Three Kingdoms (1951), The Story of Diu Sim (1953) and Beauty Trap (1954) — as well as two vehicles for Helen Li Mei — Return of the Pearl (1954) and Song of the Nightingale (1954). By the end of the decade, Lai Yee had starred in more color films than any other actress and could justifiably be called the "Technicolor Movie Queen" of Chinese cinema.

But before Lai Yee became a star in Hong Kong, she attempted a career in Hollywood. Billed under her English name Marianne Quon, Lai Yee debuted in the Paramount production China (1943), which starred Loretta Young as an American school teacher trying to evacuate her Chinese students from the invading Japanese. Lai played one of the students and seems to have made — if not a big splash — at least a favorable enough impression in Tinseltown, judging by the following gossip-column mentions.

Loretta Young, who remembers her own early struggles in Hollywood, has a habit of "adopting" ambitious movie beginners whom she meets in her films. The star's latest protege is a shy 18-year-old Chinese girl, Marianne Quon, who makes her debut in "China". Loretta encouraged her to forget her self-consciousness and gave her pointers on how to act easily and naturally. When a casting switch left open one of the principal feminine Chinese roles, Loretta asked Director John Farrow to give her friend a tryout. Thanks to Loretta's coaching, Marianne got the role.

—Erskine Johnson's syndicated column, December 6, 1942

Wowie — but Marianne Quon is a beauty! The prettiest Chinese girl these eyes have ever beheld. She is on the M-G-M lot playing Keye Luke's sweetheart in "Dr. Gillespie's Criminal Case". Marianne comes from San Francisco, where her father, Quon Kee, is a cafe owner and she herself has been studying marine drafting. When Paramount was in search of Chinese talent someone saw Marianne and she was brought to Hollywood. She was given a bit. But she photographs so well that M-G-M promptly signed her.

—Louella Parson's syndicated column, January 14, 1943

Her next film after Dr. Gillespie's Criminal Case was Charlie Chan in the Secret Service (1944), where she had a supporting role as the famous detective's daughter. M-G-M obviously had little use for a Chinese actress, because Lai Yee didn't work again until 1946, when she had an uncredited role in Twentieth Century Fox's Anna and the King of Siam (1946) as one of the king's wives. Such was the lot at that time for a Chinese American actress in Hollywood.

Lai Yee clearly had what it takes to become a star, but she had to move to Hong Kong to do it. Fortunately, a few of the Chinese American films she made after ditching Hollywood survive in the Hong Kong Film Archive, however it is unlikely that they will ever be seen outside of the Archive's resource center. At least we can get a glimpse of Lai's American side from her appearance in Charlie Chan in the Secret Service.

Graduation!

My graduation day finally came. I actually forced myself to go although I didn't see the point in it. But at the end of the day, I was greatful that I could meet my batchmates one last time. I never really thanked my mates and teachers for all they did to make my Uni life the best times I've had so far.

Of course I have to thank my parents for all the education they have given me, yes and everything else that I have :)

Next, the lecturers:

Mr. Alain Chong, my futsal kaki...

Thanks for all the guidance as a Head of Programme and warm friendship that you offered as a friend. You were the first lecturer that I made friends wit

h in INTI and till now we're still close buds. See you at futsal :-)

Mr. Kannan, my network Guru...

Thanks for all the 'cabling' and 'torturing' that you gave me during my final year. Lol! Actually, if I didn't get that I wouldn't be where I am today. So I owe my current job to you. I had so much fun hanging out with you and Miss Prem as well. 

Miss Prem, my makan buddy...

Thanks for being my crying shoulder through my ups and downs in my personal life and studies. Can't thank you enough for always being there. Although I was never really your academic student, I was your life student.

Miss Jasmine, my Dean...

Thanks for all the recommendations and encouragement. You always remembered me even when someone in your position wouldn't have.

Miss Desiree, my lunch kaki...

Thanks for all the fun times we had when we hung out for lunch with the gang. Never met such an enthusiastic lecturer like you. Keep doing what you do! You're good at it!

Other lecturers that I want to thank are Miss Wong (my bak kut teh kaki. we're in SJ so we can meet up often. thanks for that A for your subject), Mr.Alex (bitch! LOL! Yeah we had fun calling each other names. The most creative lecturer in INTI. You thought me my first subject in INTI) and Mr.Sethil (thanks for all the career advice. But you didn't give me an A... LOL!).

Then come the friends that I will never forget:

The apartment crew: Me, Sin and Yew Fei...

All the great times we had living together in one house. The times we spent bullying Sin in Counter Strike, the times I used to walk around in my boxers and you guys won't say a word, the times we used to go for 'Michael Jackson' (Soya Cincau) at 11PM at night, the times we would get up at 7AM just to eat a gigantic bowl of Yee Mee, the times we would sit in my room to watch movies till late night (like we had no life), the times we used to flood Sin's room with the water from the washing machine (remember to put the hose in the drain!), the times we spent wondering why Sin had male company (Taron) in his room with the door closed till late night... those were great times... i miss them... but wtf I see you guys in Cyberjaya now almost everyday...

Amina, always bubbly...

I think class would have been very bored with you entertaining us. I'll never forget all the screaming and running around that you did when Kannan chased you around the lab with a cable in his hand. Good luck in whatever you do! :-)

Muahd, my bro from Kenya...

We studied together and got our first class degree together. You're one of the smartest people I know and I wish you all the best for your bright future, bro! You'll be around Singapore so we'll keep in touch.

Larry, my football match kaki...

Thanks for joining me for midnight football games even when they were so close to exams. Had a blast with you in class as well. Keep in touch bro! 

Other friends that I want to thank are Yoges Akka (always very blur in class but still a very very good friend. Owe you a lot), Jason (the ultimate entertainment. INTI would have been boring without your unique character. Good luck collecting MNC companies) and the entire Class of 2008!

~Graduation is not only your day of glory, but your day to glorify others~

Grace Chang: Sampan Girl and Undercover Movie Star

In a previous post I mentioned that Grace Chang had a small role in Soldier of Fortune (1955), a big Hollywood production starring Clark Gable and Susan Hayward. Well, I just finished watching the film, which is available on DVD, and her role is indeed a very small one — less than one minute in fact. It's too bad that she couldn't have had more screen time. Grace's trademark charm and mega-kilowatt smile are all there, and she looks glorious in pristine CinemaScope DeLuxe color. Also amazing is the abundant location footage of 1950s Hong Kong, including such landmark sights as the Peninsula Hotel, the Peak Tram, and Victoria Harbour. Clark Gable and Susan Hayward are pretty cool too! This Cold War adventure romance was a pleasant surprise, and I highly recommend it to Hong Kong movie fans.

I Dream of Jeannette (Lin Tsui)

In my last post I mentioned that I never expected to see Jeanette Lin Tsui in a bikini. Well, the surprises never cease around here. SHUESIK has just posted a clip of Lin Tsui belly dancing! She's no Fanny Fan — that's for sure — nonetheless it's fun to see her step outside of her "Students' Sweetheart" image. Partly played for laughs, the scene comes from No Time for Love (1968), a Cathay production starring Peter Chen Ho and Tina Ti, the genuine sexbomb of the movie. As far as I can tell, Lin Tsui plays a reporter who's trying to get the scoop on performer Tina Ti. In the following clip, Lin (under cover as a dancer) is mistaken for Tina and dragged on stage by the nightclub manager.

Who's That Sexy Lady...

Wow! I never thought that I'd see my favorite tomboy Jeanette Lin Tsui sporting a bikini. She's always been more spunky than sexy (although no less attractive for it), but I was a little surprised — and disappointed — by her goody good girl performance in The Golden Buddha (1966), the first of Shaw Brothers' several James Bond clones. Not only did she not display even a hint of sexiness, she didn't get to kick any butt either!

Come on... Lin Tsui was *the* girl jock of Hong Kong cinema. MP&GI's campus comedy Spring Song (1959) was tailor made to showcase her athletic talents and featured her water skiing, hunting, and competing in archery. What a disappointment then to see Jeanette do so little in The Golden Buddha (especially compared to Lily Ho's role a year later in Angel with the Iron Fists). Instead, we get stuck with the Paul Chang Chung doing his best Sean Connery — and not quite pulling it off. (Thank goodness Fanny Fan is there to provide some genuine Bond-style excitement!)

So what's up with this film?... Secret Agent 101 (also known as Magic Fire 101), a Shochiku production shot in Hong Kong with the help of MP&GI and released the same year as The Golden Buddha.


How come Japanese audiences (and movie fans in Yugoslavia, which is where this poster comes from) were the lucky ones to see Lin Tsui looking sexy in a bikini and armed with a gun?! And more importantly, where can I find this film?