RIP George Wang
He was not on the list.
Chinese actor George Wang died of heart failure in Taipei,
Taiwan, China on March 27, 2015. He was 88.
In 1935 he was admitted to the Department of Economics,
Northeastern University, Department of History, and there changed his name to
Wang Jue. After the outbreak of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident in 1937, he
dropped out of school to join the national salvation movement and appeared in
drama performances throughout the north in anti-Japanese propaganda plays. In
1938 he joined the "China Film Studio", the following year, he appeared
in Chongqing's first film "Paul’s Home." In addition to Chongqing
movies he also made dramatic performances on stage.
After World War II he moved to Shanghai finding work in a
factory. In 1947 he appeared in the Taiwan film "Hualien Harbor", the
following year he returned to Taiwan to narrate an experimental film
"Myanmar Dang". Little filming was going on and in 1949 the Chinese
film studios, actors, crews and equipment moved to Taiwan. Wang appeared in
drama performances at Zhongshan Hall and operated a Sichuan restaurant with his
wife called Sichuan Garden. In 1950 he is appointed head of Taiwan's studio
technology department, and appeared in several films during the early 1950s.
Wang went to Italy in 1959 to shoot a joint production
called the "Great Wall" (later renamed "Last Train to
Shanghai". After filming was completed he chose to stay in Italy where
motion picture filming was thriving, and participated in “The Mongols” (1961),
"55 Days at Peking” (1963) and eventually appearing in nearly fifty films.
Now billed as George Wang he was almost the only active Oriental film actor in
Europe, and became very influential in the Italian film industry, even
contributing to the cooperation with Shaw Brothers Pictures. During his stay in
Italy he became one of the Euro-western genre’s premiere villains and appeared
in over a dozen Euro-westerns including “A Taste of Killing” (1966) with Craig
Hill, “Blood and Guns” (aka “Tepepa”) (1968) with Tomas Milian, “Have a Nice
Funeral” (1970) with Gianni Garko, “Shanghai Joe” (1973) with Chen Lee and “A
Colt in the Hands of the Devil” (1973).
Thanks to his good knowledge of English, he was also active in a number of English language productions, notably appearing in Nicholas Ray's 55 Days at Peking. After portraying Machete, a Mexican antagonist in the 1967 film Taste of Killing, Wang claimed that he was the first Asian actor to play a non-Asian role in a non-Asian country.
In 1976 he returned to Hong Kong and had been involved in
films with his own film production company "Wang Film Company," such as “Along Comes
the Tiger” (1977) and “Hot, Cool and Vicious” (1978). In 1978 he returned to
Taiwan, performing in "Coldest Winter", where he won a Golden Horse
Award for Best Supporting Actor. He continued acting in such films as
"Xinhai Double Ten","Guningtou Wars" and other films. In
2009 he was awarded a Special Contribution Award at the 46th Golden Horse
Awards. His last appearance was in 2010’s “Close to You”. He was married to
actress Luo Yang His and his son is Tao Wang [1945- ] who is also an actor.
WANG, George (Wang Chunyang)
Born: 11/12/1926, Liao Ning Andong Province, China
Died: 3/27/2015, Taipei, Taiwan
George Wang’s westerns – actor:
Cisco - 1966 (Capobanda/Torro/Tuscerora)
A Taste for Killing – 1966 (Mingo)
A Colt in the Hand of the Devil - 1967 (El Condor/Il
Capataz)
Blood and Guns - 1968 (Mr. Chu)
Have a Nice Funeral - 1970 (Peng/Lee Tse Tung)
Kill Django… Kill First – 1971 (Lupe Martinez)
Jesse and Lester, Two Brothers in a Place Called Trinity -
1972 (Chinaman)
The Judgment of God - 1972 (Ramon Orea)
The Long Ride of Vengeance – 1972 (Ling Fu) [as Georgie
Wang]
Six Bounty Killers for a Massacre – 1972 (Ming/Messinas)
When the Devil Grips a Colt – 1972 (Warner)
Shanghai Joe – 1973 (Master Yang)
The Son of Zorro – 1973 (Pedro Garincha/Garcia
Filmography
E meng chu xing
(1951) as Luo Ping
The Dam on the
Yellow River (1960) as Wang (as Wang Jie)
Mi yue feng bo
(1960) as Chin CHun-Hsiung
The Mongols (1961)
as Subodai
55 Days at Peking
(1963) as Boxer Chief (uncredited)
The Pirates of
Malaysia (1964) as Sho Pa
008: Operation
Exterminate (1965) as Tanaka
Spy in Your Eye
(1965) as Ming
The 10th Victim
(1965) as Chinese hunter
James Tont
operazione U.N.O. (1965) as Kayo
The Almost Perfect
Crime (1966) as Chinese Driver
Dr. Goldfoot and
the Girl Bombs (1966) as Fong (uncredited)
Taste for Killing
(1966) as Ming
Black Box Affair
(1966) as Chinese agent
Mi vedrai tornare
(1966) as Prince Hiro Toyo
El Cisco (1966) as
Capobanda
Colt in the Hand
of the Devil (1967) as El Condor / Capataz
Scorpions and
Miniskirts (1967) as Dr. Kung
Your Turn to Die
(1967) as Chang
Tepepa (1969) as
Mr. Chu
36 Hours to Hell
(1969) as Major Koshiro
Have a Good
Funeral, My Friend... Sartana Will Pay (1970) as Lee Tse Tung / Peng
Kill Django...
Kill First (1971) as Martinez
Desert of Fire
(1971) as El Marish
Roma Bene (1971)
as Che Fang (uncredited)
Two Brothers in
Trinity (1971) as Chinaman
La tecnica e il
rito (1972, TV Movie) as Hun
La lunga cavalcata
della vendetta (1972) as Ling Fu
Sotto a chi tocca!
(1972) as Koyo the Balls Thrower
Colt in the Hand
of the Devil (1973) as Warner
Even Angels Eat
Beans (1973) as Naka Kata (uncredited)
The Big Game
(1973) as Wong
The Executioner of
God (1973) as Ramon Orea
Super Fly T.N.T.
(1973) as Poker Player #1
Studio legale per
una rapina (1973) as Lino
They Were Called
Three Musketeers ... But They Were Four (1973) as Kungfu Master
Mr. Hercules
Against Karate (1973) as Ming
Seven Hours of
Violence (1973) as a Chinese Thug
The Fighting Fist
of Shanghai Joe (1973) as Master Yang
Man with the
Golden Winchester (1973) as Pedro Garincha
Six Bounty Hunters
for a Massacre (1973) as Ming / Messinas
Milarepa (1974)
This Time I'll
Make You Rich (1974) as Wang
Il Sergente
Rompiglioni diventa... caporale (1975) as Chang
Nan quan bei tui
zhan yan wang (1977) as Mayor Yuen
Yuan (1980)
The Battle for the
Republic of China (1981)
The Coldest Winter
in Peking (1981)
Jing hun feng yu
ye (1982)
I Shall Return
(1982)
Yan wang de xi yan
(1982)
Zui chang de yi ye
(1983)
Hei bai zhu (1983)
Da Niu Yue hua bu
feng yun (1985)
Ri nei wa de huang
hun (1986)
Jin zai zhi chi
(2010) as Ta-Chieh's Grandfather
The Grandmaster
(2013) as Third Elder (final film role)