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Vivian Yan

Remember the days when movie stars looked the same in photos as they did in person?
This week old images of screen idols Joey Wong Cho-yee and Chow Yun-fat from the 1980s surfaced (and went viral) on Chinese social media that show how great the actors looked in their youth without heavy airbrushing or Photoshop.
Remembering 11 Chinese stars who were taken from us too young
Here are five other silver (and small) screen stars from the same era who won the hearts of many in Hong Kong and the region with their natural good looks, beauty and talent.
Maggie Cheung Man-yuk
Cheung has been in more than 80 films since starting her showbiz career in 1983, when she won the first runner-up prize in the Miss Hong Kong beauty pageant. Her early films include Police Story (1985) and As Tears Go By (1988). In 2004, she became the first Chinese woman to win the best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival for the drama Clean.

Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing
Cheung, who committed suicide in 2003, was a Hong Kong singer and actor who CNN once referred to as the “most beautiful man in Hong Kong cinema”. He had fans not only in Hong Kong but throughout Asia.
Among his most memorable films were A Better Tomorrow (1986) with Chow Yun-fat, A Chinese Ghost Story (1988) with Joey Wong, and Rogue (1989).

Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia
A classic beauty, Taiwanese actress Lin is among the few movie stars who truly deserves the “screen goddess” title. An icon of Chinese cinema, Lin was active during the heyday of Hong Kong and Taiwanese cinema. Her best known works from the period include Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain (1983), Peking Opera Blues (1986) and The Bride with White Hair (1993).

Carina Lau Ka-ling
Lau started her acting career in television before appearing in her first film in 1984. Known for her girl-next-door roles in the 1980s, it was not until her performance in Days of Being Wild (1990) that the Suzhou-born actress caught the attention of critics.

Andy Lau Tak-wah 
Lau is one of Hong Kong’s most commercially successful film actors of all time, performing in more than 160 films while maintaining a successful singing career at the same time. Over the years, Lau has solidified his position not only as a superstar, but also as one of the hardest working entertainers in Hong Kong. He is probably best known for his TV roles, such as the lead in The Return of the Condor Heroes (1983).


Loved A Chinese Ghost Story? Four lesser-known films from Hong Kong’s Tony Ching Siu-tung

How 2009 movie John Rabe depicts Nanking massacre in China through a Western lens

Pierce movie review: Liu Hsiu-fu, Tsao Yu-ning play brothers in fencing-themed melodrama

Petition in South Korea demanding laws against celebrity bullying gains traction

Asian cinema

Andy Lau, Leslie Cheung, Carina Lau, Brigitte Lin, Maggie Cheung - ’80s movie star photos

Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia, 1980s

Handout image shows Carina Lam Ka-ling, in Naughty Boys, 1996

Actor-singer Andy Lau Tak-wah singing at the 11th Hong Kong Film Awards Presentation. 05APR92

Maggie Cheung Man-yuk at the 11th Miss Hong Kong Pageant in 1983, where she won the first runner-up prize. She went on to have a successful career in acting. Photo: Sam Chan

Leslie Cheung’s suicide: how the King of Canto-pop’s death shook Hong Kong 15 years ago

Bouquets of flowers outside the Hong Kong Mandarin Oriental Hotel where Cheung jumped to his death on April 1, 2003. Picture: SCMP

(FILES) This file photo dated 16 September 2000 shows Hong Kong's king of pop, singer Leslie Cheung, performing on stage during a concert at Shanghai Stadium. It was reported 01 April 2003 that Cheung had died from an apparent suicide. AFP PHOTO/LIU Jin/FILES

Leslie Cheung (L) and Fengyi Zhang at a scene from film Farewell My Concubine, directed by Chen Kaige (1993) (Handout)

Fans of Hong Kong actor-singer Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing wave to the hearse after Cheung's funeral service outside the Hong Kong Funeral Home, North Point. 08 April 2003

Culture

Film & TV

Lifestyle

Entertainment


With old images of Joey Wong and Chow Yun-fat going viral this week, we look at other stars from the time blessed with natural good looks
Who can forget the ‘most beautiful man in Hong Kong cinema’?



After decades-old images of Joey Wong and Chow Yun-fat went viral on Chinese social media this week, we look at other stars from the time who were blessed with natural good looks.


Chinese language cinema

Fame and celebrity

Andy Lau, Leslie Cheung, Carina Lau, Brigitte Lin, Maggie Cheung - ’80s movie star photos

With old images of Joey Wong and Chow Yun-fat going viral this week, we look at other stars from the time blessed with natural good looks Who can forget the ‘most beautiful man in Hong Kong cinema’?

With old images of Joey Wong and Chow Yun-fat going viral this week, we look at other stars from the time blessed with natural good looks

Who can forget the ‘most beautiful man in Hong Kong cinema’?