Wong Fei Hung
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The tenth son of Wong Fei Hung said to most resemble Wong Fei Hung. |
Wong Fei Hung () (
July 9,
1847–
March 25,
1924) was a healer,
martial artist and revolutionary who became a
Chinese folk hero often described as the "
Chinese Robin Hood".
As a healer and medical doctor, he practiced and taught
acupuncture and other forms of
traditional Chinese medicine at his 'Po Chi Lam' (寶芝林) clinic in
Foshan, where he was known for his
compassion and policy of treating any patient.
A museum dedicated to Wong has been built in
Foshan.
Early years
Legend has it that Wong Fei Hung was born in
Foshan on the ninth day in the seventh month of Daoguan twenty-seventh year (1847). When Wong was five, he began his study of
martial arts under his father
Wong Kei-Ying. As his family was poor, he always followed his father to
Foshan and
Guangzhou to do martial arts shows and sell medicines.
Wong began showing great potential. When he turned thirteen years old, he was giving a martial arts show at
Douzhixiang,
Foshan. There Wong Fei Hung met Lam Fuk-Sing (林福成), the first apprentice of
Tit Kiu Saam, who taught him the "tour de force" of
Iron Wire Fist and
Sling, which helped him become a master of
Hung Gar.
When he was sixteen, Wong set up a
martial arts school at Shuijiao, Diqipu, Xiguan,
Guangdong, and then opened a
medicine shop named 'Po Chi Lam' at Renan Street. By his early 20s, he was fast making his mark as a highly-respected physician and a martial arts alumnus.
Later years
As a famous martial arts master, he had many apprentices. He was successfully engaged by Jiming Provincial Commander-in-Chief Wu Quanmei and Liu Yongfu as the military medical officer, martial art general drillmaster, and Guangdong local military general drillmaster. He later followed Liu Youngfu to fight against the
Japanese army in
Taiwan. His life was full of frustration, and in his later years he experienced the loss of his son and the burning of Po Chi Lam. On lunar year, the twenty-fifth day of the third month in 1924, Wong Fei Hung died of illness in Guangdong Chengxi Fangbian Hospital. His wife and two of his prominent students (林世榮，鄧世瓊) moved to
Hong Kong, where they continued teaching Wong's
martial art. Wong became a legendary hero whose real-life story was mixed freely with fictional exploits on the printed page and onscreen.
As a martial artist
Wong was a master of the
Chinese martial art Hung Gar. He systematized the predominant style of Hung Gar and choreographed its version of the famous Tiger Crane Paired Form Fist, which incorporates his "Ten Special Fist" techniques. Wong was famous for his skill with the technique known as the "
No Shadow Kick".
Wong Fei Hung also became adept at using weapons such as the wooden long staff and the southern tiger fork. Soon after, stories began circulating about his mastery of these weapons. One story recounts how he defeated a 30-man gang on the docks of Canton using the staff.
Wong is sometimes included in the
Ten Tigers of Canton (ten of the top
martial arts masters in
Guangdong towards the end of the
Qing Dynasty (
1644–
1912), a group to which his father
Wong Kei Ying belonged).
Film
There was a
Wong Fei Hung movie series in
Hong Kong from the late
1940s into the
1960s; it consisted of roughly 100 movies. The star,
Kwan Tak Hing, gained the nickname "Master Wong" due to his participation in the series. Some sources claim that it is the most prolific movie series ever, and that Wong Fei Hung is the most-portrayed character in movie history. Wong Fei Hung has been played by both
Jackie Chan (as a trouble-making youth in
Drunken Master and
Drunken Master II) and
Jet Li (as an adult contending with European influence on
China in the
Once Upon a Time in China series and in the comic tale
Wong Fei Hung chi tit gai dau neung gung). The character of Wong Fei Hong also appeared as a child (played by actress
Tsang Sze-man) in the movie
Iron Monkey alongside
his father (played by
Donnie Yen).
Because it was used as the theme song of the films, the Chinese folk music "On the General's Orders" (將軍令) is now associated with Wong Fei Hung, as is "A Man Should Better Himself" ("'當自強), arranged by the late
Wong Jim to "On the General's Orders".
A short list of films portraying Wong Fei Hung is as follows:
Challenge of the Masters (
1976), played by
Gordon Liu.
Drunken Master (
1978), played by
Jackie Chan.
The Magnificent Butcher (
1979), played by Kwan Tak-Hing.
Sammo Hung and
Yuen Biao starred as Wong's disciples, Wing and Foon.
Once Upon a Time in China (
1991), played by
Jet Li. This is the first in a series of six
films about Wong Fei Hung.
Great Hero From China (
1992).
Iron Monkey (
1993). The young Wong Fei Hung is played by female martial artist and actress Sze-Man Tsang.
Donnie Yen portrays Wong's father.
Legend of Drunken Master (
1994), played by Jackie Chan.
Ti Lung portrayed Wong's father.
Drunken Master 3 (1994), played by Willie Chi.
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The Last Hero in China (1995), played by Jet Li.
Around the World in 80 Days (
2004), Sammo Hung has a brief appearance as Wong Fei Hung.
Shao Nian Huang Fei Hong (
TV series,
2002),
China.
My Master is Wong Fei Hung (
TV series,
2004),
Hong Kong.
Others
The character of
Lee Rekka from
SNK's
Last Blade series is based on Wong Fei Hung.
The lead character of
Fei Fong Wong from the
Squaresoft video game Xenogears is based off Wong Fei Hung. In the original Japanese version, Fei Fong Wong's name is written in
Katakana: ウォン・フェイフォン (
Won Feifon), exactly the same as how Wong Fei Hung's name is written in Japanese. Mistranslation got the video game character's name Fong instead of Hung.
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Wong Fei Hung: The Man & the Legend - a comprehesive summary prepared by The Kung Fu Cinema
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www.wongfeihung.com
