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According to Michael Kistner this fellow with the moustace has been in the film Rosa, We are Going to Eat You (first victim), Pantyhose Hero, Mr. Vampire 3 (one of Billy Lau's men), Enter the Fat Dragon (thug at the snack bar), Crazy Spirit (cameo as patient), Red Wolf and Sworn Brothers (cameo as thug). He appears to have been part of Sammo's stunt team.

Mike P writes in that was in Darkside of Chinatown and was also the action director of that film.

From Jude Poyer:

Just to let you know he is known by the English  name of Zebra Pan (no kidding). Yes, he was a member of Sammo's team. Before that, he was one of the regular stunt guys who worked with/for Bruce Lee.  He recently played one of the Chinese cooks in Zhang Zi-Yi's Visa commercial.

This rotund lady won the Carlsberg Singing Championship in 1985 and has gone on to produce a number of albums. At the same time, she has periodically appeared in films.

This new welcome face on the HK film scene shows great promise. She is probably most infamous as the director of Women’s Private Parts (a documentary in which women talk candidly about sex), but most memorable to me is her role in Runaway Pistol (for which she copped a HKFA Best Newcomer nomination) as the young hooker who massages a man’s private part as she gabs on the phone.  Her creditable follow up directorial effort was Truth or Dare: 6th Floor Rear Flat (an alternately amusing and touching young adult oriented offering in which she also has a small screen role – as Karena Lam’s boss). She also has had roles in Among the Stars and a cameo in Mighty Baby.

(Partly written up by YTSL)

Born 1946 in Wuzhou, Guangxi Province

Barry sadly died while working on Hard Boiled, but he left behind him a reputation as one of the better scriptwriters in HK. Some of the films that he helped script were - Kid from Tibet, Fight Back to School, She Shoots Straight, Outlaw Brothers, Eastern Condors, Righting Wrongs, Mr. Vampire, Yes Madam, Millionaires Express and The Dead and the Deadly. He also appeared in a few films - Truant Heroes, The Killer (Danny Lee's chief),Curry and Pepper (as Jacky Cheung and Stephen Chow’s supervisor), The Other Side of Gentleman (the priest) and as Chow's supervisor in fight Back to School.

(Information and partial write-up provided by Sebastian Tse)

This actress appeared in anumber of Cat. III films and some Girls with Guns films. She is a torture victim in "Devil Hunters" (1989) and is also in movies like "Brave Young Girls" and "Best Friend of the Cops". Some other films are Possessed, Night Girls, Erotic Nights, Club Girls Romance and Brother of Darkness.

(Thanks to Michael K. for information on this actress)

Ben Lam has always struck me as the material for being a good guy in films – tall, good looking – maybe it’s the slightly hooded eyes - but more often than not he is cast as a villain. He has shown some nice kung fu moves in a few films – That Saint of Gamblers, I Love Maria, Romance of the Vampires, Red Shield, Love on Delivery and Holy Virgin vs The Evil Dead, Conman in Tokyo, Police Story II (one of the gang) – but he has never quite been able to move into the “A” list of actors.

If I ever ran into Ben Ng on a dark lonely street I would immediately break into a nervous sweat and then kiss my ass goodbye! Perhaps no one does absolute vicious like he can. Almost always the bad guy, he has sent a chill through audiences with psycho performances in Red to Kill, Daughter of Darkness, Eternal Evil of Asia, Sexy and Dangerous, Raped by an Angel IV and Passion 1995.

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To a large degree Benny is the real thing when it comes to martial arts. He was a professional kickboxer before he gained legendary status for his two classic match ups against Jackie Chan. In both Wheels on Meals and Dragons Forever his two fights with Jackie are brutal and hugely entertaining. As far as I know the only other HK film he has been in was the 1998 Enter the Eagles in which he combats Shannon Lee. He has a book available on the Internet called "Training and Fighting Skills".

Bessie was a hostess on a cable talk show about sex - and has so far refused to bend to pressure to take her clothes off for a film! In fact during the show she stormed off in tears and quit after a caller told here to strip on live TV! She instead  joined her good friend Sophie Ngan to appear in the film Conspiracy (2000) and Untouchable Mania.

This Taiwanese actress is remembered today primarily due to the fact that it was her apartment in which Bruce Lee died. She later appeared in and produced the film called Bruce and I - but before this she was a well known actress and appeared in a number of Shaw Brother's exploitation films as well as comedies such as the Hui Brothers Games Gamblers Play and international films like Stoner. A few of her other films are The Night Is Young, Temptress of a Thousand Faces, Naughty, Naughty, Dear Murderer and 14 Amazons.

(Wong Ka Kui, Steve Wong Ka Keung, Yip Sai Wing, Paul Wong Kwoon Chung)

During the 20 years that Beyond has been in the entertainment business (formed in 1983) their music has probably appeared in more movies than the members themselves have (most prominently featured in A Moment of Romance; The Fun, the Luck and the Tycoon; and more recently, on the Young and Dangerous soundtracks).

Wong Ka Kui (6/10/62-6/30/93)

Ka Kui was the spirit of the band and his life was devoted to music.  However, shortly before his death he found his place in movie history in Jacob Cheung's critically acclaimed film, Cageman.  Cheung was looking for a youth who embodied the spirit of a reformed rebel who had many hopes and dreams; he found it in Ka Kui.  Ka Kui's breakout performance received much praise.

Ka Kui died after sustaining a head injury in an accident while filming a TV variety show in a Japanese studio.

(Written up by C.Y. Szeto)

Bill is one of the most loved and popular supporting actors through the 80's and 90s. In a recent theater showing of a film in which he has a small cameo (Just Heroes) he received a nice smattering of applause from the audience. He is best known to western audiences as Jackie Chan's boss in the Police Story films - but he has appeared in an enormous amount of films - usually family comedies such as Double Fattiness or the Mad Mad Mad World series of films. Another good one to look for is Bless this House in which he is the lead actor.

Uncle Bill has been a famous horseracing commentator in HK and Macau. He went to Macau after ATV lost the HK jockey racing TV rights to TVB in 1998. Recently, he has returned back to HK working again as a horseracing commentator. Oddly enough, in the film Its a Mad Mad World II, Bill attempts to get a job as a horse racing commentator, but fails the tryout miserably!

(Information and partial write-up provided by Sebastian Tse)

He is the brother of Peter Chan Lung, and actually when I first spotted Billy in Bruce Lee’s BIG BOSS I thought: "Wow, Chan Lung was quite a thin guy in his younger days". In BIG BOSS Billy’s part is brief but highly visible, it's at the moment Bruce Lee decide to intervene in the fight between the workers and the thugs at the factory. Billy holds a knife and receives Bruce's swift, snappy kick right in the jaw. Wow, it's a priceless cinematic moment, with it's speed and crisp feel it was the first real indication that Bruce was something more than the usual karate chopping martial star.

In the second half of the seventies he also did some work with Lau Kar Leung along with a couple of others like Wilson Tong and went back and forth in-between the two stunt-teams. In given time he rose to assistant action director then action director and with Lam Ching Ying and Yuen Biao were Sammo’s big action director assistants for his major works. All three won the H-K equivalent of the Oscar for their fight choreography in Prodigal Son. Unlike Yuen and Lam though I don't recall Billy ever been given any significant role beyond the occasional bit parts.

(Written up by Yves Gendron)

Michael Kistner sends in the following films that he was in:

Yes Madam (in the showdown), Shanghai Express (one of James Tiens gang), Righting Wrongs (cameo as cop), Road Warriors (gives the movie alongside Tommy Wong and Shing Fui On the title), Pantyhose Hero (thug with glasses), Beauty Investigators (Chung), Project B (Traitor), Heart of the Dragon (thug alongside Blacky Ko), My Cousin the Ghost (waiter).

A favorite action star of many for his appearances in films such as Kungfu Zombies in 1982 and Kung Fu From Beyond the Grave. He was also in Aces Go Places 5, but apparently got into a fight with director Lau Kar Leung and had his role dramatically reduced. He never made that many HK films - though I understand he is a big star in his home of Indonesia - but a few others are Super Power, Crystal Fist, A Hard Way To Die, Kung Fu Executioners and A Fist Full of Talons.

This Canadian born actor was HK Thai Kickboxing Champion from 1981 to 1984 and so he brings great authenticity to his action scenes. He was introduced into acting by Sammo and appeared in a number of his films. His serious good looks have almost always been cast for some reason as a bad guy - but whether good or bad, he is a pleasure to watch. He has occasionally delved into Cat III films.

Billy generally was cast in comic roles - often playing a bumbling, cowardly or sleazy character in the 80's and 90's. Some films - Mr. Vampire I & II, Haunted Cop Shop, Inspector Wears Skirts, Nocturnal Demon and in an unusual action turn in Eastern Condors. I wonder though - does anyone actually ever find Billy funny in his films? I find it difficult to understand how he managed to be in so many roles - both he and Natalis Chan sometimes make me worry about the comic tastes of the HK audience!

This tough stocky actor was almost always cast as a triad figure - and he can either bring a sense of good humor to his characters or a real sense of violence. In the 70s and 80s he was one of the top stuntmen in HK and Taiwanese films. Look for his motorcycle leap across a ravine in the classic bad film Pink Force Commando. He was actually referred to as the "Evel Knievel of Asia" for once leaping across the Yellow River on his motorcycle. He died in December 2003 in Shanghai at the age of 50 after an all-night drinking binge.

If you have ever watched King of Comedy - you know all too well who this guy is. He is the one in the hostess bar with a cockroach running around in his hair and something else crawling out of his ear. Yip has had many small roles and his Moe-like haircut makes him unmistakable. He makes the papers from time to time and is a bit of a celebrity in HK. He was apparently very annoyed at not being named one of HK's Top Fifty Most Handsome men! – and his financial and marital travails have made good reading.

Her slutty performance in Full Contact (Virgin) is a masterpiece of femme fatale camp - as she dishes out violence or giddily masturbates next to Chow Yun Fat in the car during a robbery. A few other films of hers - Pom Pom and Hot Hot, Dream Killer, Spiritual Trinity and The Street Car Named Desire. Her last film seems to have been in 1995.

Another in the Cinema City stable of young actresses in the 1980s, Bonnie starred in films such as Happy Ghost, Isle of Fantasy and Heartbeat 100 (Maggie Cheung's sister), but she retired from films fairly early.

She disappeared entirely for many years from the HK social scene though occasionally you'd see her photo in magazines with captions saying she's with her boyfriend who's a 'businessman'. It turns out (I think it was just earlier this year) that this businessman (who Law married in 1999) owed many people a lot of money, some which were not so lenient and had some gang members try to chop him up into bits. This made it to the top headlines, rumours spread that he was also involved in triads, and from then on, Bonnie's 'life' was really exposed. Bonnie has returned to make a film - and the press is speculating that it is to help pay off the debts of her husband.

(Write-up and information provided from Crayon)

One of his better roles was as the detective in Evil Instinct as he falls for the snakeish and sexy Carrie Ng. He was also in – King of Robbery, Project S, Doctor Vampire and was Chow Yun Fat's short lived friend in Hard Boiled - among many others.

Here is some info provided by Caroline Chai:

Bowie was a policeman before he entered showbiz.  After a colleague told him that he should pursue his dreams while he's still young, he left the force and joined Tina Lau & Deannie Yip's Black and White Record Company.  He released his first record in 1989 and released another two more in 1991 & 1992.  His singing career didn't really take off and he soon concentrated on his film and tv career.  He made his first tv series in 1991 and has been in over 20 series.  He began his tv career by playing mostly bad guys.

The biggest turning point in Bowie's career should be Healing Hands I (an incredibly important series since most of the major stars of HHI - Ada Choi, Lawrence Ng, Flora Chan, Nick Cheung, Steven Ma, William So & Bowie all saw their popularity surge with the success of the series.)

Bowie's portrayal of the flirtatious, scarcastic, commitment phobic Henry (this time, Bowie's a good guy) was very well received.  He started getting first lead roles and as characters with personalities that are similar to Henry.  The success of Healing Hands I lead to the making of Healing Hands II which helped revive Bowie's singing career because he sang several sub-theme songs for the series.
 
 

Born 11/03/54 in Taiwan

In a conversation the other day among a few HK film fans, people were talking about their favorite actresses and when Brigitte’s name was thrown out one woman simply said “She is a Goddess”. The rest of us nodded our heads in reverential agreement.  Tsui Hark - her often times director - said of her in 2003 "She used to be and still is the ideal lover for many Chinese men". One can safely say that there has been no actress like Brigitte Lin in the history of cinema. She is an icon, a cinematic Goddess, a hyper kinetic splash of dazzling paint thrown against the canvas. Her film career is a startling montage of flashing images burning through one's mind like a runaway train. For twenty years Brigitte Lin was the most revered actress throughout Asia  from her home country of Taiwan to Chinese communities around the world  – though she is still sadly generally unknown in the West for the most part.

Here is an interesting Tsui Hark interview from the Portrait of Lin Ching Hsia :  Tsui Hark mentioned that pre-"Zu", he told John Woo that he was planning to make a movie with Brigitte -- his idol, whose Taiwanese weepies, etc. he had watched tons of as a homesick student in the U.S. -- in it.  John Woo responded by telling Tsui Hark that "If you've never made a movie with Lin Ching-Hsia, you've never made a movie at all".  Upon hearing the story, Brigitte chuckled and said "Well, then, he (John Woo) has never made a movie!" :)

Born 1940

Over 27 years after his death and only a handful of films to his name, Bruce Lee is still one of the most famous figures around the world. Posters, t-shirts and videos of him can be found from Tibet to Timbuktoo. He is simply one of the greatest icons of the latter half of this century. The sinewy powerful physique, the intensity, the contempt shown for his enemies and his startling martial arts skills seared an image in people's minds that continues to this day.

Greatly disappointed and hurt, he returned to HK where he discovered that he was considered a major star for what he had done in America. A bidding war broke out between the Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest - with Golden Harvest winning. Over a period of only a few years he made four films - The Big Boss, Fist of Fury, Way of the Dragon and Enter the Dragon. He died of a brain hemorrage while making his fifth film in 1973.
 

Though looking at his films today, they may appear somewhat primitive in relation to the films of the 80’s and 90s - with plots that are barely serviceable - but there still remains the image of a Bruce Lee - glowering, sweaty, bare chested, tensed and ready to spring into action. Others have come after him with formidable skills - but none with his attitude.

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