Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted August 14, 2008 Administrator Share Posted August 14, 2008 The first time I ever saw Fu Sheng was in LEGENDARY WEAPONS OF KUNG FU. His was the only part of the movie that I not only didn't enjoy... but I actually hated. I felt like the comedy bits were incredibly intrusive, and the horrendous music they play during these scenes greatly amplifies their "suck factor". For a long time after that, if I heard Fu Sheng was in a film I didn't want to see it, fearing it would be more of the same nonsense. When I finally saw him in HEROES TWO I realized I had misjudged him based on that one performance, and he quickly became an actor/performer I respected and looked forward to seeing more of. I even eventually came to appreciate the merits of Fu Sheng's comic timing and physical skills displayed in those LWoKF scenes. Though I still HATE that stupid music. When I mentioned this whole thing to some people, they all agreed that those scenes were annoying and marred an otherwise awesome film. But one of them also said that this was a big deal role for him because it was his comeback after breaking both his legs. Supposedly people were afraid that he had suffered a career-ending injury, and this was his way of saying "I'm still going strong". I also remembered reading this somewhere, but can't recall the source. So can anyone (Chinatown Kid, Teako...) tell me the facts surrounding this "incident"? I'd love to hear the "where, when, and how" on this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member teako170 Posted August 14, 2008 Member Share Posted August 14, 2008 At work and don't have access to my notes, so this is all coming from memory.... The broken leg occurred in Sept. 79 (his 2nd Black September). Fu fell from a wire during the shooting of Heroes Shed No Tears and was out of commission for nearly a year. I believe I have some photos/scans at home that I'll post later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted August 14, 2008 Author Administrator Share Posted August 14, 2008 At work and don't have access to my notes, so this is all coming from memory.... The broken leg occurred in Sept. 79 (his 2nd Black September). Fu fell from a wire during the shooting of Heroes Shed No Tears and was out of commission for nearly a year. I believe I have some photos/scans at home that I'll post later. Of course, Teako to the rescue... His second Black September? What does that mean? And only one leg, not two huh? Looking forward to hearing more. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member The Dragon Posted August 14, 2008 Member Share Posted August 14, 2008 Yeah those injuries put several projects on hold and he was never quite the same afterward. The worst part was Yuen Woo Ping wanted him for Snake in the Eagles Shadow, and Shaws wouldn't lend him out or break his contract. I really like Fu Sheng as a performer, and thought he could "crossover" to American roles even more versatile than the others who gained more fame after his career ended. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member teako170 Posted August 14, 2008 Member Share Posted August 14, 2008 Yeah, just one leg (his right). It was all busted up which put a bunch of pix on hold - putting him and the SB at odds. The only pic I've seen of Fu on crutches is below. All the other stuff I have is from his Black September #1 -- when he busted up his noodle and had to wear a neck brace for some time. During this hiatus, he accompanied Jenny during her overseas performances in Canada, the US and Taiwan. It was also during this time that they purchased the three-story villa (BL's house?) which I mentioned here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Chinatown Kid Posted August 14, 2008 Member Share Posted August 14, 2008 Interesting info on one of my favorite stars, thanks T. Could you tell how Fu injured his neck during that first accident? My favorite Fu Sheng performance is of course Chinatown Kid, a kung fu movie with heart that tells a rather sentimental story alongside the fights and violence. Even though I was at a young age when I first viewed it, I'm not ashamed to say that when he handed over his watch to Sun Chien at the end I was touched. I wasn't too crazy over his performance in LWOC but liked his performance in HK Playboys where he showed his comedic charisma. And of course his Shaolin "buddy" movies with Chi Kuan Chun were great as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member teako170 Posted August 14, 2008 Member Share Posted August 14, 2008 Interesting info on one of my favorite stars, thanks T. Could you tell how Fu injured his neck during that first accident? During the filming of The Deadly Breaking Sword, in Sept 78, he fell head first (supposedly into a wine urn) causing serious neck injuries. He was out of action for a while and his continued dizzy spells made him seek out a specialist in the UK. This accident held up various productions, including Ten Tigers, which he had been working on just the previous month. Here's some scans .... one of these days I have to learn how to read Chinese, as there's so much good stuff available in these mags (if one can read it). Southern Screen / Oct 78... At an awards banquet... The happy couple... ...props to Carol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Chinatown Kid Posted August 14, 2008 Member Share Posted August 14, 2008 Thanks for the info and scans T, much appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted August 15, 2008 Author Administrator Share Posted August 15, 2008 Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member GwaiLoMoFo Posted August 15, 2008 Member Share Posted August 15, 2008 For a long time after that, if I heard Fu Sheng was in a film I didn't want to see it, fearing it would be more of the same nonsense. Ha, I felt the exact same way the first few films I saw with Fu Sheng. But after seeing more of his films he kinda grew on me. Deffinitely have a greater appreciation for his work now. Some of his more comedic roles such as :"Treasure Hunters", "LWOC", and "Deadly Breaking Sword" are among my all-time fav Shaws. And thanks Teako once again for the great info! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member ironfistedmonk Posted August 15, 2008 Member Share Posted August 15, 2008 Looking at those scans it looks like Hu Chin won an award, what category did she win in? Best on screen whore lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Karlos Posted August 15, 2008 Moderator Share Posted August 15, 2008 Fu Sheng came to the UK? WHOA!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member The Dragon Posted August 15, 2008 Member Share Posted August 15, 2008 Man the sacrifices these people made... And some of you Bruce haters out there don't realize the importance of his idealist views on raising the bar in the quality of HK productions, due to no labor unions, no insurance/medicare, and the lack of overall safety on the production front. It looks like Fu Sheng was in terrible shape in hospital. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Tosh Posted August 16, 2008 Member Share Posted August 16, 2008 Some of these guys made serious sacrifices for their careers, I guess it's the price you pay for being a KF star. I loved Fu Sheng in LWoC, especially the bath house scene, hillarious good stuff there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member kungfusamurai Posted August 16, 2008 Member Share Posted August 16, 2008 I personally found his role in Legendary Weapons a bit too much. His best material is the Shaolin Cycle, which started with Heroes Two and ended with Shaolin Temple in '76. Chinatown Kid is also another classic. His later stuff is a bit sporadic, since he seems to take a back seat to other performers, and his roles get really serious. His mischevious nature doesn't really shine through until he does My Rebellious Son, which for me is his best, last performance. He was good in Eight Diagram Pole Fighter, but his performance is incomplete, and he doesn't really do much in that last film except act crazy (i.e. there isn't much fighting for him). My Rebellious Son (it looks sped up, but I think it's an artifact of compressing the DVD image into an MPEG or FLV by the person who uploaded it): zStV9smibl4 And another clip from My Rebellious Son (it's just the first one in this three clip edit): oAffHZOg8R8 KFS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member venoms5 Posted March 16, 2010 Member Share Posted March 16, 2010 During this hiatus, he accompanied Jenny during her overseas performances in Canada, the US and Taiwan. Was this the '78 tour, Teako? I have a newspaper article that says she went on this tour alone, although Fu was originally supposed to join her. I can't post the pic and article right now, but will do so tomorrow. I stumbled upon this thread after searching for the origin of the HEROES TWO opening theme. I didn't find it. I seem to remember someone posting where it came from, supposedly of Japanese origin. If someone could repost that info, it would be very much appreciated. A friend was asking about it and I thought it was posted here somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member teako170 Posted March 16, 2010 Member Share Posted March 16, 2010 Was this the '78 tour, Teako? I have a newspaper article that says she went on this tour alone, although Fu was originally supposed to join her. I can't post the pic and article right now, but will do so tomorrow. Let me get back to you on this in a day or two.... T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member venoms5 Posted March 18, 2010 Member Share Posted March 18, 2010 Here it is, T. It's the first pic in this article. You or someone else can post the pic here if you prefer. I don't have time to fool with imageshack right now. http://www.coolasscinema.com/2010/03/assorted-bits-pieces-vintage-hk-news.html The clipping (the one about Jenny partaking in her tour alone) by itself is below... http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kRBTLr-TZ68/S6Fu4kDheDI/AAAAAAAANGE/RcOX8o2paB8/s1600-h/kungfu24 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member teako170 Posted March 18, 2010 Member Share Posted March 18, 2010 V5 - OK here's three scans. But two questions first... Was this the '78 tour, Teako? You meant 1979 I'm assuming? Fu broke his leg in '79. Here it is, T. It's the first pic in this article. Thanks for that article. Do you have any dates when it was published? Ok, the pix. The first one is from SS (May '80) which speaks of Fu joining Jenny overseas (that I had mentioned in my earlier post). The second and third pix are Cinemart (Dec '79) which speaks of Jenny's performance in LA on November 7, 1979. By the pix themselves, it shows them both together but Jenny is not wearing the same outfit (when she is singing solo). Perhaps the Chinese text would better reveal if they were together or not. Strange that we have two published pieces yet they contradict one another. Interesting.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member venoms5 Posted March 18, 2010 Member Share Posted March 18, 2010 I displayed the dates in the link provided. It's from November 10, 1979. There is another brief snippet from a letters section for another paper dated September 15, 1979 with a pic of the two together and fans curious of what they are up to and about her variety show. At this point, there is no mention of an accident involving the actor, at least not in this publication. This was apparently from an English translated newspaper from Malaysia(?) as all the writers have Oriental names. It states in that piece that she had already left on her tour the month prior. Possibly he did join her, but at a later date. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member venoms5 Posted March 18, 2010 Member Share Posted March 18, 2010 You meant 1979 I'm assuming? Fu broke his leg in '79. Yes, '79. Some of these papers are from '78, which I was looking at the time I was typing this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Fang Shih-yu Posted March 19, 2010 Member Share Posted March 19, 2010 Interesting info and clippings relating to Fu Sheng's "Black September" injuries.... As to the first incident that occurred during production of "The Deadly Breaking Sword", did it hold up making the movie? A look at the end product suggests it had little to no impact; he [pretty much] finished the picture, I'm inclined to believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member teako170 Posted March 19, 2010 Member Share Posted March 19, 2010 I displayed the dates in the link provided. It's from November 10, 1979. ughhhh.. How'd I miss that? It states in that piece that she had already left on her tour the month prior. Possibly he did join her, but at a later date. That might have been the case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member venoms5 Posted March 19, 2010 Member Share Posted March 19, 2010 ughhhh.. How'd I miss that? That might have been the case. I have several people who could translate these articles. The only problem is, they have been bugging me to come back to work for them. I don't relish working in the Chinese restaurant again if I can help it, lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member The Dragon Posted January 31, 2011 Member Share Posted January 31, 2011 Fu Sheng. What a cool guy from that era. I wish he could have made a few films for another studio. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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