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Jimmy Wang Yu | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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王羽 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Wang in 1960s | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Wang Zhengquan (1943-03-28)28 March 1943 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 5 April 2022(2022-04-05) (aged 79) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1960–2013 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouses | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | 3, includingLinda Wong | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese | 王羽 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Wang Zhengquan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 王正權 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 王正权 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Jimmy Wang Yu (28 March 1943 – 5 April 2022)[1] was a Hong Kong-Taiwanese martial artist, actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. Initially a contract player forShaw Brothers, he rose to fame for his starring role inThe One-Armed Swordsman (1967) and its sequels, and was one of the first major stars ofmartial arts andwuxia cinema. At the height of his fame in the 1970s, he was the highest-paid martial arts actor in the world. According toThe New York Times, Wang was "the biggest star of Asian martial arts cinema until the emergence ofBruce Lee."[2]
Wang Yu was well known for his volatile personality and ties to organized crime off-screen. He was a suspected member of theBamboo Union triad, and was charged in the 1981 murder of severalFour Seas Gang members, though he was acquitted due to a lack of evidence.
BornWang Zheng Quan (王正權) inShanghai in 1943, Wang and his family moved toHong Kong when he was still a child. From a young age, he trained inkarate,tai chi,Wudang quan andtaijijian. For a time he served in theNational Revolutionary Army, and was also a competitive swimmer and a car racing enthusiast.
Wang joinedShaw Brothers Studio in 1963 as a stunt performer, and had his first acting role in the 1965 filmTemple of the Red Lotus. In 1968, he acted withCheng Pei-pei in thewuxia filmGolden Swallow, directed byChang Cheh.[3] Following that, Wang starred in many other wuxia films, includingOne Armed Boxer (1971),Master of the Flying Guillotine[1] (1976) andReturn of the Chinese Boxer (1977).
IfThe One-Armed Swordsman was the movie that launched Wang's acting career,The Chinese Boxer was the film that sealed his fame inHong Kong cinema. The latter has been credited[citation needed] as being the first Hong Kong martial arts film that kickstarted the unarmed combat genre, mainlykung fu. It also triggered a phenomenon that filled the ranks of many Chinese martial arts associations acrossSoutheast Asia. Chinese youths, in their bid to emulate Wang, took to punching sandbags, and reading up on the history ofShaolin Kung Fu.
Controversy dogged Wang after the fame that exploded withThe Chinese Boxer. He broke his contract with theShaw Brothers Studio, and was promptly slapped with a lawsuit. The legal tussle that ended in the studio's favour led to Wang being banned from making films in Hong Kong. Wang then looked to Taiwan for better career prospects, linking up withGolden Harvest and other independent film outfits. His subsequent works were mostly filmed in Taiwan.
With the success ofThe Chinese Boxer, Wang stood unchallenged in Southeast Asia for a short time as the Chinese actor with the most formidable fists and legs. But beginning in the 1970s, Wang's star began to be eclipsed with the entry of new actors, many with superior martial arts training such asTi Lung,David Chiang, and especiallyBruce Lee, whose role inThe Big Boss (1971) revolutionised the martial arts film genre.
In 1975, Wang starred in theAustralian action filmThe Man from Hong Kong.[4] In 1976, Wang appeared alongsideJackie Chan inLo Wei'sKiller Meteors. In the late 1970s, Wang helped Chan when then the latter sought his help in settling a dispute with Lo Wei that allegedly involvedTriads. Chan eventually repaid the favor with his roles in Wang's films,Fantasy Mission Force (1982) andIsland of Fire (1990).
In 1986,Sammo Hung cast Wang asWong Kei-ying (the father of Chinese folk heroWong Fei Hung) inMillionaire's Express. In the years that followed, Wang kept a low profile, making a rare public appearance in 2002 at the funeral ofChang Cheh.
Footage from Wang's 1976 film,Tiger & Crane Fists (also known asThe Savage Killers), was used in the 2002 filmKung Pow! Enter the Fist, alongside new footage shot bySteve Oedekerk to create an original plot unrelated to the original film. In the film itself, Oedekerk, who wrote, produced, directed, and starred in the film, digitally inserted himself over Wang in many scenes where theTiger & Crane Fists footage is used.
Wang often associated with members of theBamboo Union, a Taiwan-basedtriad, though his status as amade man was never confirmed.[5][6]
In a 2007 interview with theLiberty Times, Wang claimed that Bai Wan-hsiung, theKuomintang Director of Mainland Affairs, had asked him and another Bamboo Union member to assassinateDemocratic Progressive Party chairmanHsu Hsin-liang in 1979.[7] The Kuomintang long held ties to Bamboo Union. At the time, Hsu was living in exile the United States. In the same interview, Wang implicated the Kuomintang in the murder ofHenry Liu.[8]
On April 23, 1976, Wang invited Hong Kong film mogulCharles Heung and several friends, including Bamboo Union members, to the Xinghua Pavilion restaurant inTaipei. Several members of theFour Seas, a rival triad, were also present. Wang allegedly instigated a fight between the two groups that ended in the deaths of Four Seas members Qiu Wenxiang and Gao Wenzhang.
The incident attracted much media attention, and Wang fled to Hong Kong to avoid arrest. He was eventually arrested and sentenced to five months in prison, which was reduced to a fine on appeal.[9]
On January 10, 1981, Wang and a group of friends were eating at the Tianchu Restaurant onNanjing Road, when they were ambushed by members of the Four Seas triad in an apparent assassination attempt. Wang survived, but three of his friends were killed. Wang had previously had a falling out with the Four Seas after losing 1 millionYuan at a casino owned by Four Seas leader Liu Weimin, and his life had been repeatedly threatened.[10] Wang reached out to Bamboo Union leaderChen Chi-li, requesting protection.[11] Following a meeting between Bamboo Union leadership and Wang, the Union carried a string of retaliatory killings against the would be assassins. One of the targeted perpetrators, Liu Tieqiu, survived albeit with significant injuries.
The murders led to a crackdown on triads by Taiwanese authorities. Chen Yonghe, a Four Seas higher-up, asked Flying Eagle Gang member Liu Taisheng to act as an intermediary between the Four Seas and Wang, but Wang berated him and offered 400,000 Yuan for Liu's leg.
On May 8, Wang and Bamboo Union member Huang Shaocen were charged by theTaipei District Court forfirst-degree murder. The hearing was attended by members of Bamboo Union, Four Seas, and Flying Eagle. During a recess, Liu Taisheng attempted to negotiate with Wang. The conversation escalated into a fistfight, and Liu was stabbed by one of Wang's bodyguards. Wang and the other Bamboo Union members were subsequently taken into custody.[12]
Wang was eventually acquitted due to a lack of evidence, though Huang Shaocen was sentenced to two years in prison for the attempted killing of Liu Tieqiu.
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In 1969, Wang married actress Jeanette Lin Chui, who was nine years his senior.[13] Before that, Wang had an affair with the wife of film director Chun Kim, who hanged himself before a divorce took place. Jeanette Lin, who had a high profile in Hong Kong cinema in the 1950s and 1960s, left the industry almost immediately after her marriage, which turned out to be tumultuous for both Wang and Lin. Amid allegations of domestic violence by Wang, the marriage crumbled in 1975. Wang and Lin had three daughters,[13] and their eldest daughterLinda Wong[13] became a popularCantopop singer in the 1990s. Lin migrated to the United States in 1977 and died in 1995 from an asthma attack.
Wang later remarried in 1978 to air hostess Wang Kaizhen.[13] This marriage was also tumultuous, with Wang Kaizhen ultimately filing for divorce and starting an affair with young businessman Zhang Zhao (張昭). After learning of it, Wang, accompanied by reporters and the police, surprised the couple at their lodging and publicly exposed his wife. After public humiliation was heaped on the couple, Wang divorced his second wife in 1997.
Wang's involvement in public brawls also made headlines from time to time.[14]
In 2011, Wang suffered a stroke which caused him to lose much of his strength in the left side of his body. However, he worked vigorously in physical therapy, even exceeding the doctor's recommended pace. He would reportedly lift his arm 1000 times a day instead of 200 and walk three times the suggested distance. As a result of his efforts, he regained most of his ability to walk and talk, and he could lift his left arm, though he could no longer use its full strength.
Since his recovery, Wang tried to live as normal a life as possible and had even returned to film work. In an interview, he admitted to even driving to his physical therapy session with the use of only one arm but explained that his daughter put a stop to it when she found out, and that she had hired a driver for him.
Wang died on April 5, 2022, in Cheng Hsin Hospital,Beitou District,Taipei, at the age of 79.[15][16]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 15th Golden Horse Awards | Best Actor | Brotherly Love | Nominated |
| 2011 | 48th Golden Horse Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Dragon | Nominated |
| 2012 | 31st Hong Kong Film Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Nominated | |
| 2013 | 15th Taipei Film festival | Best Actor | Soul | Won |
| 2013 | 50th Golden Horse Film Awards | Best Leading Actor | Soul | Nominated |
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