Today marks the tenth anniversary of the death of Li Lili, the goddess of the early Chinese screen, and this year is also the centenary of her birth. In Guan Jinpeng's "Ruan Lingyu", there were many early Shanghai film stars, Ruan Lingyu played by Maggie Cheung and Li Lili played by Liu Jialing. However, Li Lili in real life is not well known to young audiences now, let's first understand Li Lili's life and screen journey.
Above left: Li Lili right: Ruan Lingyu Bottom picture left: Maggie Cheung right: Liu Jialing They played Ruan Lingyu and Li Lili in the movie "Ruan Lingyu".
Li Lili, born in 1915 in Beiping, was originally named Qian Zhenzhen. She grew up as a handmaiden and had a very unfortunate childhood. In 1927, Li Lili moved to Shanghai, and Qian Zhuangfei, her father, who was an underground party, sent her to the Chinese Song and Dance Troupe sponsored by Li Jinhui to learn song and dance, and because of her outstanding performances, she was known as the Three Masters of Song and Dance with Wang Renmei and Hu Die.
Young Lily Li
In 1932, Li Lili starred in "Volcano Love Blood" directed by Sun Yu;
In 1933, Li Lili starred in "Tianming" and participated in the filming of "Gadgets";
Stills from Gadgets
She starred in "Sports Queen" and "The Road", which conquered the audience with a lively, healthy and contemporary image, and was recognized as a typical "sweet sister", which was quite popular with students and young people at that time. Especially in "Sports Queen", it appeared in swimsuit style and swept the country.
Stills from "The Queen of Sports"
Cover of Electroacoustic magazine
In 1939, Li Lili participated in the filming of "Far Island Paradise" of the Hong Kong Land Film Company;
In 1940, Li Lili filmed "Plugged in the Wind";
In 1946, Li Lili studied acting at the Catholic University of Washington in the United States;
In 1947, Li Lili returned to China.
In 1953, Li Lili participated in the filming of "Wise Huashan";
In 1955, Li Lili entered the Beijing Film Academy's special training class, and later stayed on to teach at the school and became a professor in the Department of Acting. Fade off the Chinese screen.
In the first semester of the Beijing Film Academy Actors' Seminar, in the middle is teacher Li Lili.
Yuan Qingfeng, a professor at the Communication University of China, believes that the screen image created by Li Lili has revolutionary significance in the history of Chinese cinema. Li Lili was originally known for her participation in left-wing films, but from the 1930s onwards, she was involved in all new film forms or genres in the history of Chinese cinema. As a generation of superstars in the Republic of China films, Li Lili represents the most glorious history of the Republic of China films, which makes future generations admire infinitely; as a generation of beautiful women, Li Lili retired from the world without controversy, not only to live in peace in her old age, but also to enjoy a nine-rank life, which is admired and admired.
Li Lili's family and descendants have been influenced by her and have devoted themselves to the Chinese film industry:
Younger brother Qian Jiang - a famous Chinese film director and cinematographer, was once the cinematographer of the first color feature film "Blessings" in New China. He also filmed "Lin Jia Puzi" and "Revolutionary Family"; directed the films "Newsboy" and "Jinling Night".
Son Luo Ann - excellent photographer of Beijing Film Studio, graduated from the Beijing Film Academy's photography department's major works "Wilderness", "Cold Night", "Three Treasures in Shenzhen" and so on.
Daughter-in-law Ye Xiangzhen is a director of Beijing Film Studio and graduated from the Directing Department of the Central Academy of Drama. The main film works "Wilderness" (won the "Popular Film" Hundred Flowers Award for Best Feature Film Award, "The Sound of the Wind Blowing", "Three Treasures in Shenzhen", etc.;
Daughter Luo Xiaoling, a director of Beijing Children's Film Factory, graduated from the Directing Department of Beijing Film Academy. His main works are "Lucky Search" and "Young Boys and Girls", and the films he has made have been selected and sent to film festivals at home and abroad for many times;
Son-in-law Pan Jinyuan - a photographer of Bayi Film Studio, graduated from the Beijing Film Academy's 60th Photography Department, whose main works are "Visiting Relatives on Hutou Mountain" and "The Motherland is Hometown Everywhere";
Nephew Qian Tao - cinematographer, the film "Old Shop" won the Chinese Film Golden Rooster Award for Best Cinematography; the TV series "The Orphan of Zhao" won the Golden Eagle Award for Best Cinematography;
Niece Qian Lingling - director, editor, graduated from the film school directing department, works "Confession of Heaven and Earth", "Wang Zhongzhong", etc., of which "Wang Zhongzhong" won the Lily Award for Excellent Film Award, won the Excellent Director Award;
Granddaughter Pan Jie - director, actress, China's first fashion model on the screen, starred in the movie "Lonely Soul of the Black House" in 1988, starred in dozens of films and television; in 2008, the director's first film "Jinzhou Woman" won the Hebei Province Five One Project Award; in 2012, he directed the theatrical film "Beautiful stupid woman" and was shortlisted for the Shanghai International Film Festival Media Award.
On August 7, 2005, Li Lili died in Beijing at the age of 90.
Under the influence of Qian Zhuangfei and Li Lili, this family has been engaged in the film industry for four generations, and continues to work hard to fight for China's film industry...
Attached: Pan Jie reminisces about her grandmother Li Lili (slightly abridged)
Many people know that Grandma was born in a revolutionary family, and her father, Qian Zhuangfei, was the originator of our underground work in the Communist Party of China, but in fact, their lives were really not like the dance parties, fine wines, nightclubs, and some even had a relationship as depicted in some film and television dramas.
The real situation is that the underground workers are not only in danger all the time, but also often because of the needs of underground work, they have no time to take care of their families and children, when she was a child, she was first sent to an orphanage, and then sent to others as a child bride, and my grandmother told me that she always had nightmares later, dreaming that someone chased her, but her shoes were not heeled, and she could not run fast. In fact, it is related to her childhood life, the family she fostered was very bad for her grandmother, she never had a pair of her own shoes, all of which adults wore the rest, and did not fit their feet, so they collapsed on their shoes every day to walk. Her turbulent childhood led her to meet her once after liberation when Premier Zhou met her, and when the Prime Minister asked her what she most wanted to do after liberation, she would say that she wanted to open a nursery, and she hoped that the children would not be like her, and they would have a happy childhood.
After the 1927 "4.12" incident, Grandma's father, Qian Zhuangfei, and mother Zhang Zhenhua (also underground workers). It was grandpa Qian Zhuangfei's introduction to the party) because of the needs of work to move to Shanghai, this time her father personally asked where her daughter was going, he felt that her grandmother was lively and liked to sing and dance, so he sent her to the Mingyue Song and Dance Society founded by Mr. Li Jinhui. Grandma once told me more than once about the hardships of practicing there, she said that when she joined the troupe, she was already older, and she could only rely on death to make up for it, in the Mingyue Song and Dance Club, in addition to practicing singing every day, dancing was the most important part. Grandma said that the pressure on her legs made it difficult for her to go down the stairs, so she could only sit on the stairs and move down step by step. Due to the hard work of Grandma, of course, there are also talents in it, Grandma and Wang Renmei, Xue Lingxian, hu Di in the song and dance troupe have become the "Four Little Heavenly Kings" of the song and dance troupe, and Grandma is also the most prominent member of this troupe. This experience also laid a solid foundation for grandma to be called a big star in the future.
In 1930, when grandma was 16 years old, because she did not have the opportunity to go to school regularly, but she urgently felt that she needed to learn culture for a long time, so she began a life of half-work and half-study, while filming and going to school. In the days when she was studying in Nanyang Gaoshang, grandma was very happy, carrying a school bag and riding a bicycle with a tennis racket every day to learn from Xujiahui to Shanzhong Road. At that time, Grandma was already famous, the income of the film was already 150 pieces of ocean, the whole family had to rely on Grandma to give, the burden was also very heavy, but I really felt that Grandma was a particularly optimistic and positive person, that's it, she didn't relax at all about learning. She said that the film shooting cycle was very long at that time, so she usually went to school during the day and went to make movies at night.
Grandma starred in the movie "Sports Queen" in 1934 should be regarded as one of her most popular images of the audience, it can be said that her healthy and fresh image brought a breeze to the twists and turns of the talented women at that time, in fact, I want to say more than this, I want to say that the reason why Grandma can have such a healthy image, it is also inseparable from her usual cultivation, you may not know, my grandmother in Nanyang High Business, is the school she went to school, is the sprint 50 meters champion, He also performed diving at the opening ceremony of the Shanghai Swimming Pool. At that time, there were not many actresses who could swim, let alone diving, so it was accidental and inevitable that director Sun Yu could choose her as the heroine of "Sports Queen".
The first star to appear on the Chinese screen in a swimsuit
Grandma often told me that she made special efforts to learn to read, take a book, and when she encountered words that she did not know how to read, she would always ask people passing by, because people passing by had people from everywhere they went from south to north, so Grandma was not very accurate about many words at that time. But it is precisely because of her grandmother's studious spirit that she can say every line without worry when the sound film appears. Lay a good foundation for creating a better screen image.
Grandma took us to the tooth sacrifice
I took a picture with my grandmother on her 88th birthday
Grandma not only loves sports, but also likes to draw, and the most contacted are the big painters Ye Qianyu and Zhang Guangyu brothers. There is also the cartoonist Ding Cong, and Grandma said that her interaction with them has broadened her horizons and enhanced her artistic cultivation, which actually has a potential impact on her performing arts. My grandmother painted several self-portraits at that time, but unfortunately it is very old, and I have only seen the photos. What I want to say is that the cultivation of actors should be multifaceted, multi-talented, and maintain the heart of learning, and the heart of curiosity and exploration.
"Lotus Pond Moonlight" Ai Zhongxin painting
After the Cultural Revolution, she was as low-key and peaceful as ever, took the initiative to demote herself to level 3, concentrated on teaching in the film school, and also returned the buildings assigned to her by the film school to implement the policy. Say you can live. This is the grandmother who has just experienced ten years of catastrophe, was criticized, was shaved her yin and yang head, and her husband was persecuted to death. I remember when I was in kindergarten, living in school, my grandmother sent me mooncakes, and there was obviously unwashed pen water on the pockets of clothes I wore, and my classmates were very surprised, is your grandmother really a movie actor? Because at that time, we thought that the film actors were high, and maybe I was very vain and showed off with my classmates at that time. I think my grandmother may have deliberately not let me have a different sense of superiority from my classmates.
At my grandmother's farewell party, a boy cried very sadly and came to me to comfort him, he said that he was my grandmother's year-old friend Xiao Han, Wang Ying's English translator, he once helped Wang Ying send a letter to my grandmother, and since then he has often exchanged letters with my grandmother, which has become a year-old friend. He was surprised that my grandmother also spoke English very well. Why is Grandma's English so good? In fact, it is also the result of diligent study and hard work. It was 1944, and my grandmother went to New York because a company in the United States invited her to perform a play. Advanced to the Pontifical Catholic University Summer School in Washington spent two months studying acting while learning English. Grandma was still watching dramas there, learning from her peers, and broadening her horizons. During his time in the United States, he also studied vocal music with a private teacher. In order to have money to pay for tuition, she went to a cannery factory as a temporary worker and taught overseas Chinese about Chinese. The Tang poems that her mentor, director Sun Yu, once taught her, also came in handy and became a way for her to earn tuition. Think of the old saying handed down by the old man: art is not pressed down is really like this Ha. She also went to her American female classmates to practice speaking, and lived for a while in a small rural Town in the United States.
Grandma is in the United States
In 1946, in order to save troublesome formalities and travel expenses, she and director Sun Yu drove from New York to Hollywood by themselves, driving 200 or 300 kilometers a day, and ran for about ten days to Los Angeles. In order to save some money, they moved from the hotel to the home of overseas Chinese, and grandma made Chinese rice for them every day. I say this just to let you know that my grandmother's life in the United States can be said to be very poor. In such a situation, there was an American company looking for her to shoot a scene, which was originally a very happy thing, but when it came to the role of insulting Chinese, Grandma Li Lili refused without discussion. Therefore, cultivation is not to make you have no temper, blind gentleness, humility, and there must be backbone when there should be backbone.
To be honest, I envy the actors of their time, and in the context of that era, everyone has a common belief: to defend the family and defend the country. In Shanghai, the 918 Kou invaded China, Grandma did not hesitate to give up the work of Lianhua Company, gave up the salary of 1,000 yuan, at that time a thousand yuan, do you know what the concept is? In 1937, the price of shanghai was relatively high, but a piece of the ocean could buy 20 catties of rice. Like a banquet for a luxurious banquet, abalone shark fin and other expensive dishes have about 25 oceans, why do I give these examples, is to let everyone know that my grandmother gave up the 1,000 yuan ocean is a lot, they can really give up anything for the sake of the country. Between 1934 and 1936, Grandma filmed films such as "Blood on Wolf Mountain", "Gadgets", and "The Great Road", all of which had anti-imperialist content, and although the Kuomintang government did not allow Japanese imperialism to be pointed out, they all had strong anti-Japanese sentiments in the hearts of their actors.
Stills from "Wolf Mountain Blood"
"Lonely Island Paradise" is a film about the War of Resistance, directed by Cai Chusheng, which is about a group of patriotic young people who risked their lives to fight against the traitors after Shanghai became an isolated island. In the end, this group of young people used their wit to eliminate the traitors and join the guerrillas to kill the enemy for the country. Because there was a shortage of actors at that time, Grandpa had to invite grandma who was already pregnant to play. In order not to see it on camera, he constantly tightened his belt and designed a black cloak to block his stomach, causing his uncle to be born only 5 pounds. I also wrote an article called "Uncle's Complaint" that is the story that was written. Their shooting environment in Hong Kong was very difficult, Grandma's monthly salary at that time was only a few dozen yuan, so she had to live in the lowest ward, so in order not to delay the shooting, Grandma only gave birth to a child for three days and continued to work, Grandma said that she also felt very hard at that time, but she was still very happy in her heart, because she knew that this was to pay a part in the War of Resistance. Grandma said that at that time, they felt that while they were acting, they were also being educated in patriotism, and they especially hoped to use the movies they played to ignite the flames of the people's war of resistance, hoping that our whole nation could fight with the enemy and go to the country together, so that China could gain vitality! Writing this, I can't help but burst into tears, touched by their spirit, and can't help but be ashamed of us now. When there is a chance to play the starring grandmother is so serious, even desperate, in the face of small roles, grandma is also serious.
Grandma's last screen image should be the recently deceased Guo Wei director's "Wisdom to Take Huashan", she played the wife of the Kuomintang officer in it, you can see that Grandma is meticulous about every line and every physical action, many scenes are not on Grandma, Grandma is seriously willing to be the background, when she was a child, she felt that Grandma acted like a real image, and now when she watches it, she can't help but play and feel sad. After liberation, various sports came pouring in, as a former big star, what kind of mentality and how strong grandma was!
Grandma's Friendship
Grandma and Wang Renmei are at least 60 years of close friends, they are the same age, 12, 3 years old together into the Mingyue Song and Dance Club, and later together to lianhua film, when they were independent, Wang Renmei starred in "Wild Rose", "Morning in the City", "Fishing Light Song", etc., Grandma starred in "Gadgets", "Road", "Sports Queen" and other films. I especially envied their sincere friendship at that time, when Wang Renmei's "Fishing Light Song" and Grandma's "Big Road" were selected to be sent to the Soviet Film Festival, just because "Big Road" had anti-war content, in order to avoid the inspection of the Kuomintang, it was sent to the Soviet Union by water, and when it was sent, the film festival had ended Grandma's "Big Road" and did not catch up with the award, and "Fishing Light Song" became the first film for Chinese films to win awards abroad.
Grandma and Wang Renmei
I remember when I went to visit Ma Chongle, a student who visited my grandmother, he also remembered deeply, both of them were elders who were familiar with him at that time, my grandmother was still his teacher, I felt that they were very sincere between them, and my grandmother said to him that as long as it was for the glory of the country, he would be happy for her. Aunt Silent of the North Shadow told me that at the memorial service of Grandma Renmei, Grandma also put a calla lily next to Grandma Renmei's neck, in order to cover grandma Renmei's neck.
The film that Grandma and Ruan Lingyu have cooperated in is "Gadgets" as mother and daughter, and "National Style" plays two sisters, saying that Ruan Lingyu never hesitates to praise her. When filming "Gadgets", Ruan Lingyu was a very popular star, and Grandma was a newcomer, she was very nervous, but she did not expect that on the first day of filming of "Gadgets", Ruan Lingyu was the first to go to the dressing room, they each silently put on makeup, when the two eyes met, Ruan Lingyu smiled, and Grandma's nervousness was relaxed by half. Then in later filming, Ruan Lingyu always took the initiative to inspire and induce the grandmother of the young actor. For example, there is a scene: Jewel was seriously injured in the "1.28" war, and the mother played by Ruan Lingyu hugged the grandmother who played her daughter and cried, but the daughter instead endured the pain, laughed and said to her mother: "Mom, don't cry, the little fool only cries." Then he died with a smile.
Grandma and Nguyen Ling Yu
Liu Jialing and Maggie Cheung's version of "Ruan Lingyu"
To be honest, I think grandma acted particularly well in this scene, and as a result, she said that in fact, Ruan Lingyu inspired her to act like this in this scene, saying that she had a lot of insight into the inner world of the character. I didn't expect my grandmother to tell me so directly. This makes me feel that the real grandmother is even more admirable.
I remember going to Shanghai last year to see Grandma Qin Yi, and told me that my grandmother was living in Chongqing at that time, and my grandmother would especially have fun in pain, and stir-fry it with lard residue and peppers, which was very delicious. Once, the two of them were wandering the streets hungry, and when they met a film company owner whom grandma knew, they took them to a good meal, which was a tooth sacrifice. When she was in a marriage change, her grandmother helped her watch the children and helped her escape.
From left: Qin Yi, Grandma and Zhang Ruifang
I went to Shanghai to visit the old artist Qin Yi
Born into a family of filmmakers — Pan Jie
Pan Jie: Director, actress, China's first fashion model to go to the screen,
Starting from starring in the movie "The Lonely Soul of the Black Building" in 1988, he starred in dozens of movies and televisions;
In 2008, the director's first film "Jinzhou Woman" won the Hebei Province Five One Project Award;
In 2012, he directed the theatrical film "Beautiful stupid woman" and was shortlisted for the Media Award of Shanghai International Film Festival;
In 2015, he won the Special Award of the Youth Film Handbook Organizing Committee.
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