BEIJING, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- There is one less master in the cross-talk industry. Following the death of his uncle Chang Baohua in September this year, on November 30, his nephew Chang Guitian also died of illness at the age of 76.
The two were not only uncles and nephews, but also partners, and the "Hat Factory" they cooperated with was a sensation and became one of the representative works of Xiangsheng's direct involvement in major social life at that time.
Data chart: Mr. Chang Baohua and Chang Guitian (left) at the scene of the cross-talk performance. Image source: Visual China
Chang Guitian was born in Tianjin in 1942, the Chang family is a cross-talk family, Chang Guitian's grandfather Chang Lian'an is the founder of Chang's cross-talk, good at stand-up comedy.
In the 1940s, Chang Lian'an founded the Qiming Tea Society in Xidan, Beijing, and also introduced business philosophy to the cross-talk industry. It was also at this time that cross-talk began to develop from the street to the form of indoor theater, and gradually entered the fields of radio, film, record, and civilized drama.
Chang Guitian's father, Chang Baokun, whose stage name is "Little Mushroom", has become popular all over Zhangjiakou at the age of seven or eight. At the age of 9, he changed his name to cross-talk and later worshiped Zhang Shouchen as his teacher. Through the guidance of famous teachers and his careful study, he emerged at the age of 13. At the age of 15, he partnered with Zhao Peiru, interacted with each other, took turns to tease, and performed in Beiping and Tianjin, with frequent responses.
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Chang Guitian's earliest contact with crosstalk was at his grandfather's Qiming Tea House. When he was 3 years old, he was carried to the stage, stood on a stool, and said a nursery rhyme: "A stick I carry..." Before that, there was a cushion: Come, what is coming? Say crosstalk is coming? Will it be said? Yes. How many sets will there be? Will be three sets. Which three sets? Can eat, can pull, can urinate. Everyone was happy.
At the age of 6, Chang Guitian began to practice art. The father took the cross-talk apart and taught Chang Guitian what was suitable for the children, especially the ones that were suitable for the children. Chang Guitian followed his father for three months, and many famous characters also gave him guidance.
Infographic: Chang Guitian (left). China News Service reporter Zhang Daozheng photographed
In 1951, Chang Baokun was tragically killed in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. This news was like a thunderbolt on a sunny day for 9-year-old Chang Guitian. For many years, he could not accept the reality that his father had sacrificed, and always thought that his father was still alive.
Some people say that Chang Guitian is really lucky and was born in a cross-talk family. But he was unfortunate again, and tasted the life grief of "young man losing his father".
In 1954, Chang Guitian studied cross-talk with Zhao Peiru as a teacher. At that time, the fourth uncle Chang Baohua was already a literary and artistic soldier in the Haizheng Cultural and Labor Troupe, and he saw that his nephew wanted to enter the army, so he consulted with Chang Guitian's mother and asked his nephew to follow him to the army. In 1958, Chang Guitian reported to join the army.
In 1962, in the Sino-Indian border self-defense counterattack war, Chang Guitian paid tribute to the soldiers who entered Tibet to participate in the war at the Snowy Plateau Military Station, and they performed 14 times in the most day. In 1965, to resist the United States and aid Vietnam, he fought for a whole year, experienced a similar danger to his father's year, and if he was delayed by another minute, he was also "glorious".
For decades, he traveled almost to the inhabited islands and reefs of the sea frontier, performing for several warriors, and even for one warrior. Chang Guitian said that the most uncomfortable thing for the warriors was loneliness. In order to solve the loneliness of the warriors, he once used the telephone to say crosstalk to the soldiers of the "cat ear hole". As he spoke, the warrior cried, and he cried too.
Infographic: In 2014, Chang Guitian attended the event ceremony. Photo by Lu Xin, China News Service
Some units once wanted to transfer Chang Guitian from the army, but he refused. He said: "I think that soldiers are the most bitter, and it is my duty to relieve them of a little suffering and give them some spiritual comfort with crosstalk." ”
Chang Guitian not only worked in the army's cultural and labor corps, but here he also met his wife, Wen Keli.
They are also actors of the Haizheng Cultural and Labor Troupe, Chang Guitian in the quyi team, and Wen Keli in the dance team. The two met on a train to perform in Datong, Shanxi, when Wen Keli was impressed by chang Guitian's humorous language and interesting experience in the next car, Chang Guitian bought a bag of zongzi candy and gave it to Wen Keli, and Wen Keli unceremoniously accepted it all.
In this way, the two people slowly came together, and because they were in a different place, the two began a 6-year long correspondence. In 1968, the two married. After getting married, in order to support Chang Guitian's career, his wife also gave up dancing and retreated to the second line. Talking about the marriage between the two, Chang Guitian once said: "Two people should understand each other and be more tolerant. ”
Chang Guitian not only has a deep foundation in traditional cross-talk, but also can write and perform by himself. In 1962, Chang Guitian went to Tibet to comfort the troops on the plateau, and based on this experience, he created "The Sound of Trumpets", which was also his first work recognized by society. Later, his "Defending the Paracels" also had a great influence. In 1977, Chang Guitian and his uncle Chang Baohua performed "Hat Factory" together, and since then his reputation in the cross-talk industry has risen.
Some people once commented that Chang Guitian's cross-talk characteristics were "clear", probably because he had long performed for soldiers. There is a big difference between military cross-talk and local cross-talk, and the army's cross-talk requires high style, bright rhythm, warm content, and positive and upward movement.
Data chart: Chang Guitian and partner Wang Peiyuan. Image source: Visual China
In recent years, Chang Guitian has not made much public appearances, but his attention to cross-talk has not diminished. Regarding the development of today's cross-talk, he once said that his views are both happy and worried.
"The good news is that the small theater crosstalk is in the ascendant, and many young people, especially some highly educated young people, have entered the ranks of cross-talk actors, which is conducive to the development of the cross-talk industry."
"Worry, the cross-talk tradition is the cross-talk tradition, and the traditional cross-talk is the traditional cross-talk, which are two concepts. Either you will say a few pieces of traditional crosstalk, or you will inherit the tradition of crosstalk. Cross-talk actors must be worthy of the audience that raises us, the audience is the parents of food and clothing, and we live on them. It was, and it is today. ”
Image source: Visual China
Since the beginning of this year, a number of famous cross-talk artists have passed away. Some netizens said: "When I was a child, I liked to listen to crosstalk the most, but the familiar people walked more and more." And for Chang's crosstalk, this adds another layer of grief. Some people also said: "Is Fourth Master Chang short of a partner over there?" ”
Good way, old man.