Quick Facts
CancerBiography
Zhao Dan (June 27, 1915 – October 10, 1980) was a Chinese actor popular in the golden age of Chinese Cinema.
Biography
Zhao first became famous working in the Mingxing Film Company in the 1930s including playing opposite Zhou Xuan in Street Angel (1937). After the Sino-Japanese War, Zhao began a creative relationship with director Zheng Junli, with films such as the 1948 anti-Kuomintang drama-comedy, Crows and Sparrows.
Zhao remained on the mainland following the Communist victory in 1949 and continued to make films throughout the 1950s and 1960s notably in biographical films playing historical figures of Nie Er, Lin Zexu (both directed by Zheng Junli) and Li Shizhen.
Zhao joined Chinese Communist Party in 1957. During the Cultural Revolution, he was persecuted and imprisoned for 5 years. He died of pancreatic cancer in Beijing in 1980.
He was married to Ye Luqian in 1936. When he was arrested by Sheng Shicai in Xinjiang in 1939, it was rumored that he was killed. Thus Ye married the playwright Du Xuan. After the war, he was released and returned to Shanghai. He married actress Huang Zongying in 1948.
Selected filmography
As actor
| Year | English Title | Chinese Title | Director | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | Twenty-Four Hours in Shanghai | 上海二十四小时 | Shen Xiling | |
| 1937 | Street Angel | 马路天使 | Yuan Muzhi | Xiao Chen |
| 1937 | Crossroads | 十字街头 | Shen Xiling | Zhao |
| 1947 | Far Away Love | 遙遠的愛 | Chen Liting | Xiao Yuanxi |
| 1947 | Rhapsody of Happiness | 幸福狂想曲 | Chen Liting | |
| 1949 | Crows and Sparrows | 烏鴉与麻雀 | Zheng Junli | Little Broadcast |
| 1949 | Women Side by Side | 丽人行 | Chen Liting | Zhang Yuliang |
| 1950 | The Life of Wu Xun | 武训传 | Sun Yu | Wu Xun |
| 1951 | The Married Couple | 我们夫妇之间 | Zheng Junli | |
| 1956 | Li Shizhen | 李时珍 | Shen Fu | Li Shizhen |
| 1958 | Lin Zexu | 林则徐 | Zheng Junli | Lin Zexu |
| 1959 | Nie Er | 聂耳 | Zheng Junli | Nie Er |
As director
| Year | English Title | Chinese Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | The Dress Returns to Glory | 衣锦荣归 | |
| 1953 | Bless the Children | 为孩子们祝福 | |
| 1964 | An Evergreen Tree | 青山恋 | Also known as Precious Green Mountains |
