Shih Kien
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| Shih Kien | ||||||||||
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 Shih Kien as a villain in an early black-and-white Wuxia film |
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| Chinese name | 石堅 (Traditional) | |||||||||
| Born | 1 January 1913 Shígāng Village, Panyu, Guangdong, Republic of China |
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| Died | 3 June 2009 (aged 96) Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Hong Kong |
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| Years active | 1949 - 1995 | |||||||||
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Shih Kien (traditional Chinese: 石堅; simplified Chinese: 石坚; pinyin: Shí Jiān; Jyutping: Sek6 Gin1; 1 January 1913 - 3 June 2009) was a veteran Chinese actor from Hong Kong. He is sometimes credited as Shek Kin (Cantonese pronunciation) or Kien Shih (in the Western order).
Shih starred in many of the early Hong Kong Cantonese Wuxia films. His name has become synonymous with "villainy" as he played the roles of villains most of the time. In Hong Kong, there is a slang expression for comparing one's evil deeds with Shih Kien's, despite the fact that those deeds were committed by the villains he played. Shih was well-respected within the Hong Kong motion picture industry and recognised as a kind and passionate person.
Shih's works dated back to the black and white Wuxia era. He played the roles of villains in almost all of the Wuxia classic films of that time, such as Yu Lai Shan Jeung (1964) (如來神掌) and Luk Ji Kam Mo (六指琴魔) (1965). Later in his career, he took on a comedic role with Jackie Chan in The Young Master. Shih Kien also played dramatic roles in non-Wuxia films as well, such as Hong Kong 1941.
Shih Kien is probably best known to Western audiences for his role as the villain Han in Bruce Lee's 1973 martial arts epic Enter the Dragon. Shih was trained at the Shanghai Chin Woo Association in martial arts[citation needed]. He received instructor certification in a number of styles, including Eagle Claw and Choy Lay Fut. His students included Lee Koon Hung, grandmaster of Choy Lay Fut.
Shih Kien was rumoured to have died in 1999 but this was disproved when appeared in the 2003 documentary Chop Socky: Cinema Hong Kong at the age of 90.
Kien died of kidney failure on June 3, 2009 at the age of 96.[1][2] At the time of his death, Shih was believed to be one of the oldest living successful actors in China. [3]
