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In 2018, as Chen Peisi's partner for more than ten years, Zhu Shimao showed helplessness when recalling Chen Peisi's "door cutting".
"Let's go out, he has a pair of socks a month, that smell, don't mention it, and (is) bare-to-the-toe socks." The tone was full of shock.
"Socks like this, shorts too," he said of the excitement, he stood up, his voice raised an octave, "the next day I got up and looked at it, on the radiator (baking)." ”
"I said Teacher Chen, why do you sleep naked at night?"
In the face of Zhu Shimao's joke, Chen Peisi, as a party, actually curled up on the sofa with a smile on the side, and his shoulders shook slightly.
Recalling Chen Peisi's clothing for decades, a pair of black cloth shoes was worn for five years, and the soles were seriously worn; A sweater worn for sixteen years, worn to the point of a hole, and continued to wear; A Santana has been driving for more than a decade; Mobile phones are also still fool machines.
No one could have imagined that he had lived such a simple life in the comedy industry for more than thirty years.
But is he really slamming the door?
Not really. To a certain extent, such a life is related to his indifference to fame and fortune and his choice to stay away from a glamorous and bright life.
And his attitude of not caring about fame and fortune began with that disastrous decade.
But this attitude also makes the audience understand his purity and love for art.
01 Disgust with fame and fortune
Chen Peisi's father, Chen Qiang, became a household star at the beginning of the founding of New China by starring in the feature film "White Haired Girl" "Huang Shiren".
In 1952, Chen Qiang accompanied the Chinese film delegation on a visit to Hungary. While performing "The White-Haired Girl" in Budapest, his wife sent a telegram announcing the good news and asking him to name his newborn son.
Thinking of the enthusiastic Hungarian audience after the performance, Chen Qiang thought for a moment and decided to name his son "Buda" to commemorate the trip abroad.
In 1954, the second son was born, and Chen Qiang named him "Pace".
Since his father was a famous film actor, Chen Peisi's life when he was a child can be described as a worry-free food and clothing.
Chen Qiang can earn 250 yuan per month, so every weekend, he will take the family to the restaurant and order a bowl of fried meat for four or five yuan to relieve the child's hunger. In that era when five yuan could hold a banquet, Chen Qiang was undoubtedly very willing.
However, such a happy day soon became completely distant from Chen Peisi because of the turmoil of ten years.
In 1967, Chen Peisi was only 13 years old and began to witness his father every day, being taken away by a group of menacing people. Chen Qiang, who has been abroad and has also played a villain, has become a thorn in the eye of this group.
When he was taken away, he was still cleanly dressed; Back at home, the clean clothes were already covered with piercing blood marks, and Chen Peisi was very scared to see it, and he would hide away every time.
But it is said that suffering is a sharp weapon to stimulate people's growth, after witnessing his father's tragic situation, Chen Peisi, who was young, has seen clearly the reality and the so-called fame and fortune.
What "top ten stars", what hundred flowers award for the best supporting role of the first winner, but overnight, these have all disappeared, the father is directly falling into the abyss, suffering from thousands of people spitting, everyone can come forward to spit at him.
Fame and fortune are just flowers in the mirror, just the moon in the water, what is the role?
Chen Peisi, who could see through this, was still powerless. He had not yet graduated from junior high school, and later in 1969, he boarded the recruit vehicle of the military reclamation unit, went to the Inner Mongolia Construction Corps, and began to go to the mountains and go to the countryside.
Such a life is naturally hard, but what Chen Peisi can't stand the most is that he can't eat enough every day. If you want to eat a steamed bun, you still need to walk 40 miles, and you may not be able to eat it.
In order to stop starving, Chen Peisi began to seek other ways out.
02 The beginning of a comedy life
Under the influence of his father Chen Qiang, Chen Peisi has shown his talent in acting since he was a child.
With such an advantage, Chen Peisi went to apply for the Beijing Military Region Cultural and Labor Troupe and the General Political Drama Troupe, but they were all brushed off, because their appearance was too ordinary.
When he was looking for a way out, Chen Qiang, who had just come out of the cowshed, was also considering Chen Peisi's way out. He was not willing to let Chen Peisi take the road of literature and art, but his acting talent made him a little entangled.
In 1973, Chen Qiang, who made the decision, found Tian Hua, an actor who played the "white-haired girl". At that time, Tian Hua was in charge of the enrollment of bayi film studios. He begged Tian Hua to take Chen Peisi in.
In this way, Chen Peisi entered the Bayi Factory and became a dragon set actor who specialized in playing small roles such as bandits and goons.
Later, Chen Qiang, who had seen Chen Peisi perform, suggested that he go to comedy.
Facts have proved that Chen Qiang's vision is poisonous.
In 1980, the revolutionary film was still the main theme, and the comedy film "Look at this Family" undoubtedly became a highlight of this red era, which not only gained the love of the public, but also made Chen Peisi a hit.
In 1983, Chen Peisi played the comedy role "Erzi" in the movie "Xizhao Street", and later launched a series of films with "Erzi" as the main character, creating the first comedy film in China.
His comedic life officially kicked off. After that, though, there was a crucial opportunity waiting for him.
Because the Bayi Factory only has a telephone installed in the guest house, the callers often line up in a long line. At this time, Chen Peisi, who had been waiting in the team for a while, waited too bored and simply ran upstairs to find someone to chat.
However, this conversation actually led to a skit "Eating Noodles".
Chatting with Chen Peisi was his later partner Zhu Shimao. At that time, Zhu Shimao, who was the same age as him, became the first student in the film industry at that time with the movie "Wrangler".
The two hit it off and began to put "EatIng Noodles" on the stage.
In 1984, the Spring Festival Gala program team handed an olive branch to Chen Peisi and Zhu Shimao, inviting them to participate in the review of the Spring Festival Gala. Because it was too funny, the show was once taken down. At that time, laughter was also limited.
But in the end, Huang Yiming, the director of the Spring Festival Gala at the time, withstood the pressure and let the two go first.
Fortunately, the result was good, in the spring evening of that year, not only was the "sketch" comedy art category born, Chen Peisi and Zhu Shimao, but also became popular all over the country.
At the same time, they also provided more than ten sketches for the Spring Festival Gala in the following fifteen years. "Selling Lamb Kebabs", "Protagonist and Supporting Role", "Wang Ye and the Postman", etc., were all classics that were popular at that time.
However, no one can stand on the top forever.
03 "Blocking"
In 1998, because of the creative presentation and shooting method of the sketch, Chen Peisi and the new Director of the Spring Festival Gala had a disagreement, and after Zhu Shimao's discussion, the two decided to withdraw from the following year's Spring Festival Gala.
Of course, the Spring Festival Gala brought him fame and fortune, but at the same time, it also imprisoned the development of comedy sketches and Chen Peisi's further innovation of the form of art performance.
Quitting the Spring Festival Gala undoubtedly made Chen Peisi, who originally did not like to perform, greatly relieved and began to seek something suitable for himself and what he also liked.
He set up his own film and television company, invested millions of dollars, and shot three films.
However, although these movies are acclaimed and popular, Chen Peisi has not made any money, and even has two million debts. In order to pay off these debts, he and Zhu Shimao frequently went to the cave and performed everywhere.
At this time, Chen Peisi suddenly discovered that the company under CCTV, without the consent of him and Zhu Shimao, had made the eight sketches they performed into VCD for publication and distribution.
In fact, as early as 1994, Chen Peisi had a dispute with CCTV over copyright. Later, under the mediation of director Zou Youkai, the two sides reached a settlement.
However, things seemed to be calm, but in fact, they buried the "giant thunder" that followed.
Chen Peisi and Zhu Shimao tried to communicate with the infringing company, but many methods were unsuccessful, and in desperation, the two could only resort to the law. In the end, the two won the lawsuit and received 300,000 yuan in compensation.
Chen Peisi's appeal was originally reasonable and legitimate, but after some exaggerated media reports, the matter became a "CCTV blockade storm", which directly intensified the contradiction between him and CCTV.
Some people think that he has no meaning in fighting this, but in his view, he must speak up, and he must also "fight against the mighty, and cannot let future generations laugh at himself", and cannot make them feel that this generation is accepting the might.
After the lawsuit, Chen Peisi, who was once known as the "emperor of comedy", actually fell to the point of "no one caring" - no performance, no endorsement, and the film and television company also closed down. This is very similar to the situation that his father had encountered.
But for Chen Peisi, what does it matter?
Ben was already bored with fame and fortune, so he was more relaxed.
However, in the end, it is in a dilemma, almost destitute, and Chen Peisi needs to reinvigorate.
And what helped him get back on was a crucial person.
04 His wife helped to start a drama career
Chen Peisi's wife, Wang Yanling, is this vital person.
In 1999, chen Peisi, who was in trouble, was dragged by his wife Wang Yanling to the mountains of Yanqing in Beijing.
Wang Yanling was originally a nurse, and in 1983, she was introduced by a friend and came together with Chen Peisi. At the first time he saw her, Chen Peisi had a vague feeling: this woman must live with herself for a lifetime.
After 7 years of marriage, Wang Yanling gave birth to a son, and Chen Peisi named his son Dayu, which means that great wisdom is foolish.
When he became popular with "EatIng Noodles", at his request, Wang Yanling quit her job and went home to become a full-time wife, taking care of the remuneration for his performance.
But that doesn't mean she knows nothing about Chen Peisi's situation outside.
In 1998, when Chen Peisi decided to quit the Spring Festival Gala after that, Wang Yanling expected that the contradiction between him and CCTV might break out sooner or later.
Therefore, she quietly took out 700,000 yuan and contracted 10,000 acres of barren mountains in Yanqing for a period of 50 years, just to leave a way out.
Chen Peisi listened to her foresight and was stunned; Seeing her take the contract out of her bag, his eyes were even more sour. Perhaps no one would have thought that at the time when Chen Peisi's career was at its most prosperous, she actually thought of danger in peace and thought about retreating.
"From tomorrow onwards, go up the mountain with me, carry a hoe here as a mountain dweller", "You and I both have a pair of industrious hands, a clever head, can you still starve to death?" ”
In fact, the couple not only did not starve to death, but also two years later, ushered in a fruitful harvest.
The economical trees they planted by their own hands became sought-after wood; The fruit hanging from the fruit trees also attracted fruit merchants who bought them. These two alone won the couple a profit of 300,000 yuan.
In 2001, Chen Peisi's Avenue Film and Television Company was re-listed, and he smashed the 300,000 yuan into the company, with the drama work "Childcare", entering the drama industry.
In this period of "lifelessness" in the theater, his boldness naturally attracted sideways attention. Not only that, but he was also unwilling to do the same as other theaters, multi-party dotting, giving away tickets everywhere.
In his heart, he wants to watch the drama and trouble you to pay for it yourself.
Chen Peisi's "inaction" did not affect the 95% attendance rate of "Childcare" and the subsequent national tour. At the end of the 30-game tour, Chen Peisi invested 300,000 yuan, bringing back 20 million yuan of harvest for him.
His drama career began.
Since then, he has launched high-quality drama works such as "Relatives and Friends Good Accounting", "Balcony", "Ah Dou" and so on.
In particular, "Ah Dou", launched in 2008, after its premiere at the Grand Theater of the National Palace in Beijing, not only caused a sensation, but also set off a domestic drama fever. The theater is no longer always dark with lights.
Chen Peisi climbed to the top again, but at this time, the death of his father made him slow down.
05 The study of comedy continues
In early 2012, at the age of 94, Chen Qiang was admitted to the hospital with a high fever caused by pneumonia and kidney failure.
Chen Peisi pushed off all his work and concentrated on taking care of his father. Chen Qiang did not remember many things, and Chen Peisi accompanied him to talk about the present; He was massaged, fed every day, and sometimes taken out for a walk.
In June of the same year, Chen Qiang passed away, and Chen Peisi endured grief to take care of the aftermath. After that, it took him a long time to recover from his grief.
2015, in a way, was the year chen Peisi made a strong return to the public eye.
This year, he directed and acted in the TV series "Good Big One Home", which reappeared on the CCTV screen, indicating that his relationship with CCTV has "broken the ice";
The drama "Drama Stage", which was performed at the National Centre for the Performing Arts, was a great success, which caused Chen Peisi to sigh: as if in the first 60 years, he lived for this play.
From the beginning of his drama career, he put all his energy into drama. He took his son Chen Dayu to do dramas, toured the country, and even went abroad.
When he wasn't performing, he studied and practiced the possibilities of comedy behind closed doors. After leaving CCTV for nearly 20 years, he has studied almost only this one thing.
In those years, the call for "hoping that Chen Peisi would appear on the Spring Festival Gala stage" was always high. People have lamented more than once that he lost the stage of the Spring Festival Gala.
He was glad he left Vanity Fair and was glad to be able to try all the ideas he wanted to try on the stage of the play.
In 2019, he entered the short video platform to share daily life and shoot some segments. The rapid development of science and technology has also allowed him to keep pace with the times in the form of artistic performance.
In 2021, after 23 years away from the CCTV stage, Chen Peisi returned. In the CCTV variety show "Gold Medal Comedy Class", he served as a mentor together with Guo Degang and Yingda.
On June 24, 2022, Chen Peisi updated the passage with his son Chen Dayu on his short video account. The funny power is especially good, and the integration of traditional comedy and new media is more natural and smooth.
Now 68 years old and in retirement, he is still researching and practicing the possibilities of comedy.
Only by disdain for fame and fortune can he still maintain his original intention of comedy to this day. Whether it was in the prison of public opinion or in the near-destitute predicament, he did not give up.
Zhuge Liang once said that there is no clear ambition without indifference, and there is no far-reaching without tranquility.
Perhaps only after resisting the temptation of fame and fortune can you truly understand your own pursuits and your own love.
Only by maintaining inner peace and not being troubled by fame and fortune can you achieve your goals.
This is a truth that has not changed through the ages.
Resources:
- Easy to see 2014 Chen Peisi: I have no expectations for fame
- Film and Television Storm 2018 "The Beijing Flavor Life of a Comedian: Chen Peisi"
- Interview with Yang Lan 2014 Chen Peisi: The Comedy Dream of Three Generations of Father and Son
- People 2018 "People" Dialogue Chen Peisi Those external, flashy, the drama is gone as soon as it is scattered.
- Labor Security World 2016 "The Sadness and Joy of 16 Years of Bald-Headed Harmonic Star Chen Peisi"