Tang Kee-chan

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Tang Kee-chan
Chinese name 鄧寄塵
Chinese name 鄧寄塵 (traditional)
Chinese name 邓寄尘 (simplified)
Pinyin dèng jì chén (Mandarin)
Jyutping dang6 gei3 can4 (Cantonese)
Ethnicity Chinese
Born (1912-02-17)February 17, 1912[1]
Guangdong, China
Died Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist.[1]
Los Angeles, California, United States[2][3]
Other name(s) Tang Kei Chan, Deng Ji Chen
Occupation actor, singer, radio personality, screen writer

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Tang Kee Chan (Chinese: 鄧寄塵, February 17, 1912 - July 2, 1991), was a Hong Kong actor, singer and radio personality. He is often referred to as the "King of Comedy (諧劇大王)" which is a moniker given to him by the Hong Kong entertainment industry as evidenced by his profile in the 'Historical Dictionary of Hong Kong Cinema' by Lisa Stokes, Tang's official profile at Avenue of Stars and a radio broadcast titled '60 Years of Broadcasting - The Most Memorable Moments' by Radio Television Hong Kong.[4][5][6][7]

He is known in the radio broadcasting industry for voicing and playing up to eight to nine different roles for his story telling show and also for starring as part of a comedic duo (The Two Fools) with Sun Ma Sze Tsang in a series of films.[4][7]

Career

Tang had his start in his native Guangdong as a radio broadcaster before travelling to Hong Kong after being recruited by Rediffusion Television. He specialized in comedy and used up to eight to nine different voices and roles in his story telling show titled 'Tang Kee Chan's Comedy Show'. His characters ranged in age from small children to old citizens and included members of both genders.[7][8]

He branched out into the film industry in 1950 and starred in over 100 films. He also wrote the screen plays for some of the films including "The Feuds between Huang Tangjing and Chen Mengji" in which he co-starred with opera singer, Sun Ma Sze Tsang.[9]

Tang forged a partnership with Sun Ma Sze Tsang and starred with him in a series of films as the comedic duo known as "The Two Fools". Tang played the fool while Sun Ma Sze Tsang played the smarter member of the duo. Their disagreements were often improvised and comedic.[4][8]

In 1963, Chubby Checker held two concerts in Hong Kong. Under contract with Diamond Records, Tang was asked to perform with Checker. Owing to the language barrier, Diamond Records decided to re-write Pat Boone's Speedy Gonzales where Chubby sung in English while Tang replaced the English spoken parts with Cantonese dialogue. Because of the success seen during the performances, a version of this song was recorded in 1965 with The Fabulous Echoes singing in English while Tang reprised his speaking role in Cantonese.[1][10]

On May 30, 1963, Patti Page had two performances in Hong Kong to which Tang was a supporting act along with The Fabulous Echoes.[11]

In 1975, he immigrated to Canada and would occasionally travel back to Hong Kong to cameo in films such as Chasing Girls, All the Wrong Clues for the Right Solution, Behind the Yellow Line, Happy Ghost II, and The Isle of Fantasy.[8][9]

Tang has a plaque at the Avenue of Stars, Hong Kong which honours outstanding contributors to the Hong Kong Film Industry much like the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He is commemorated as number 29.[5][6][12]

In 2005, a Hong Kong comedic drama titled Scavengers' Paradise was created with characters based on Tang and Sun Ma Sze Tsang.[13]

In 2009, Tang was recognized as one of seventy-three significant contributing members to the Hong Kong Film Industry in a website created by DotAsia and Radio Television Hong Kong which celebrates 100 years of Hong Kong Films.[8]

Music

Tang Kee-chan started recording albums as early as 1956. Cantonese singers whom he partnered include Cheng Kuan-min (鄭君綿), Cheng Pik Ying (鄭碧影), Cheng Kwok Bo (鄭幗寶), Law Lai Kuen (罗丽娟), Lam Dan (林丹), Lee Bo-Ying (李寶瑩) and Ng May Ying (吳美英). His songs are mainly the humorous type.

Personal life

He had five children, none of whom followed in their father's footsteps into the entertainment industry. Third son, Professor Tang Siu Wa (鄧兆華) was a Professor and Chairman of Psychiatry at the University of California, Irvine and later, Chair Professor at the Department of Psychiatry in the University of Hong Kong Medical School before his retirement in 2008.[2][14][15]

In 1991, Tang died from emphysema in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 79. As most of his descendants reside in Toronto, Canada, he was flown there for his funeral rites and subsequent burial.[2][3]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role
1950 Five Blessings in a Row Ka-fook
1950 The Great Idler
1950 The Blundering Couple Chow Wai-kung
1951 A Star of Mischief Fan Dou
1951 The Conmen
1951 The Scatterbrain Yu Tau-wan
1951 The Story of Afu
1951 Dragon Rising
1951 Daddy and Sonny
1952 Three Good Fellas
1952 A Perfect Match
1952 A Comet of Laughter Lands on Earth
1952 A Fool on Honeymoon
1952 Master Adou, a Native of Darling
1952 Intoxication of a Spring Night
1952 All the Love Heaven Allows
1953 Tender Love
1953 Fortune Shines Down
1953 Honour Your Foster-Mother
1953 A Cadet in Love's Battle
1953 Peace to All Generations
1954 The Miserable Couple Peter
1955 An Actor's Struggle
1955 Mr. Wang and Fatty Chen Mr. Wang
1955 Crossroads
1955 The Pauper-Prince
1955 Romance in the West Chamber
1955 Fleeting Riches
1955 Snow White and the 7 Dwarves
1955 The True Story of Siu Yuet-Pak Part 1
1955 The True Story of Siu Yuet-Pak Part 2
1955 Love and Hate
1956 Wu Song's Bloody Fight on Lion's Bower Mo Tai Lung
1956 Lovers' Eternal Union
1956 Funny Girl
1956 The Smart Girl
1957 How Fang Tangjing Exasperated the Government Official
1957 The Feuds Between Fang Tanfgjing and Chen Mengji
1957 Loving Enemies
1958 Two Fools In Paradise
1958 The Rickshaw Puller Wins a Pretty Girl
1958 Two Fools in Hell
1958 The Sweep-Stakes Seller
1958 The Merry Phoenix
1958 A Patriot's Sword
1959 Two Fools Capture the Criminal
1959 A Fool in the Army Ah Sau/Cheung Sau
1959 Two Fools Capture a Ghost Lee Luk
1959 Two Good-for-Nothings
1959 The Spendthrift Son in the Underworld Master Wong
1959 Chances for Love
1959 The Broom Spirit
1959 Battle of the Sexes
1959 Lucky Ones Up to Mischief
1959 Peace to Man and Wife
1959 Funny Misunderstanding
1959 Love Under the Festival Lanterns
1960 A Wonderful Dream Wong Luk
1960 Silly Wong Growing Rick
1960 Much Ado about Nothing
1960 Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining
1960 They All Say I Do
1961 Non-sensical Son-in-Law
1961 Unexpected Fortune
1961 Installment on Marriage
1962 Heart to Heart
1962 The Swordswoman and Her 7 Partners (Part 1)
1962 Thief Captures Thief
1962 The Strange Lady Xue Yiniang
1962 How Shui Guanyin Thrice Tricked Bai Jinlong
1962 Our Adopted Daughter
1962 A Couple in Cold War
1962 The Swordswoman and Her 7 Partners (Part 2)
1963 The Wonderful Years
1963 Take the Money and Run
1963 Hire a Wife
1963 Joy to the World
1964 The Bride Who Lives Under the Staircase Chen Ding
1964 Bitter Love
1964 Take What You Can
1964 The Teacher Who Knows Everything
1964 Sword of Justice
1964 A Gambler Who Pawns His Wife
1964 Assassination of the Prince (Part 2)
1964 Husband of the Back Alley
1964 An Anxious Bride
1964 Grab What You Can!
1964 In Search of a Father
1964 Half a Bed
1964 Love Thy Neighbors
1965 The Maid Who Sells Dumplings
1965 A Modern Ji Gong
1965 Country Boy Goes to Town
1965 A Modern Monkey King
1965 A Tough World
1965 The Immature Bunch
1965 All Packed in a Small House
1965 May Luck be with You
1966 I Want You
1981 All the Wrong Clues Yummy
1981 Chasing Girls Fa's father
1982 Dragon Force Ah Chu
1984 Behind the Yellow Line Building Security guard
1985 The Isle of Fantasy Duncan Tang
1985 Happy Ghost II Uncle Tang

Writer

Year Title
1951 The Scatterbrain
1951 The Story of Afu
1951 A Star of Mischief
1951 Daddy and Sonny

Producer

Year Title
1958 Two Fools in Hell

External links

References

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