Superstar Linda Lin Dai
As a kid, I have always liked the old Chinese movies from Hong Kong especially from Run Run Shaw Studios. It is during the time when Hong Kong was still under the colonial Yoke. Where Chinese people were proud of their long lasting culture, their achievements, their history and their rich contributions to this world. They wanted to produce movies that highlighted the rich cultural history of themselves as a people and not be inundated with Hollywood. Hollywood was closed doors to Asians or anyone of color for that matter. The universal success of Run Run studios and it’s stars sent a message to the world. You don’t have to be what Hollywood portrays to be worth something.
There’s thousands of spectacular pictures by Run Run Shaw. The actors and actresses very famous in the East lived glamorous lives with intrigue, love, pain, success, and early deaths like their Hollywood counterparts. One of my favorites is Lin Dai. I have posted some information on her for you to read. She was indeed a tragic personality whose beautiful films live in the hearts of millions. Her beauty as renowned as Liz Taylor or the Liz Taylor of the east and her acting superb. She made everything believable.
Here are some information about this screen goddess of Mandarin-language films.
Linda Lin Dai was born as Cheng Yue-ru to a politician’s family in Guangxi, China in 1934. Lin migrated to Hong Kong with her family in 1948. She joined Yung Hwa Film Company in 1952 after leaving the Great Wall Studio, where she joined a year earlier, and made her big-screen debut in Singing Under The Moon. The film made her an instant success.
For the next decade, Lin won the hearts of audiences with more than 40 films. Off the screen, she married tycoon Long Sheng-xun in 1961 at the age of 26. Although she worked for several different studios, Linda Lin Dai is closely associated with the Shaw Brothers, where she became a contract player in 1961.
The Kingdom And The Beauty (1959)
Lin perfectly matched the vision Shaw Brothers had of itself as a studio and its ideal audience- sophisticated, cosmopolitan, erudite, elegant, modern, and decidedly bourgeois, or aspiring to be all those things.
The Blue & The Black (1965/ 1966)
Educated in Mandarin and English, Linda Lin Dai could by-pass the local Cantonese-speaking world of Hong Kong to speak to a transnational Chinese audience in America, Europe, Taiwan, and the Nanyang. She could play the classical Chinese beauty or the modern career woman. On screen she often played the heroine who sacrificed herself for the greater good.
Lin won over the critics by winning an unprecedented four best actress awards at the Asian Film Festival for The Golden Lotus, Diau Charn, Les Belles and Love Without End during her career.
Sadly, she committed suicide in 1964, leaving behind two unfinished films, The Lotus Lamp and The Blue And The Black (1 and 2). In 1995, she was the only Mandarin movie star featured in the Hong Kong Movie Stars stamp collection released by the Hong Kong Post Office. It is an evident that she is still living in the hearts of many Chinese audiences even though she has passed away for almost forty years.
This is a picture taken during her funeral procession
10 Top Movies By Linda Lin Dai Of Shaw Studios
- Diau Charn (1958)
- The Kingdom And The Beauty (1959)
- Les Belles (1961)
- Love Without End (1961)
- Madam White Snake (1962)
- Love Parade (1963)
- Beyond The Great Wall (1964)
- The Lotus Lamp (1965, Released Posthumously)
- The Blue & The Black Part 1 (1965)
- The Blue & The Black Part 2 (1966)
Above info extracted from:
- IVL Les Belles DVD
- http://hkmdb.com/db/people/view.mhtml?id=2126&display_set=eng
Movie clips:
Madame White Snake – (wonderful tale based on rich Chinese Mythology):
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/v20495552BB6KzDNM.mp4
Beyond The Great Wall – (Historical re Chinese Princess given to Mongols to save from invasion)
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/v2049553764P32JJY.mp4
Love Parade – (modern film highlighting the versatility of her acting)
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/v204955483ppnFMx5.mp4
The Battle of Love – (Lin Dai’s earlier movie)
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/v20495966fh34FTSK.mp4
Lin Dai – (A short Tribute)
or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUCgM0e0HPs&feature=related
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/v20495493mCCMFn2c.mp4
Please search on youtube for many more wonderful films by Lin Dai and Shaw studios. Very well made. Many of the films are available on dvd also. I have most of Lin Dai’s films.
The world is full of so many talented people. Growing up in US, I didn’t realize as I saw everything threw the eyes of Hollywood. The people there have very little idea of the richness lying untapped for films in the Far East. This is what I am trying to convey in this post. The dragon is waking now….
Tsem Rinpoche
Please support us so that we can continue to bring you more Dharma:
If you are in the United States, please note that your offerings and contributions are tax deductible. ~ the tsemrinpoche.com blog team
Lin Dai was a well-known Mandarin star actress of the Shaw Brothers Studio who was one of my favourites many years ago .She has acted more than 40 movies. I do enjoyed watching her movies that was only black and white those days . Amazing she could play a heroine role in classical Chinese beauty and the modern career woman. The film Shaw Brothers world lost a talented actress when Lin Dai committed suicide in 1964. Lin Dai won a number of awards been the Best Actress at the Asia Pacific Film Festival.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing.
There is something about the stars of yesteryear that is unmatched by today’s celebrities. The class, elegance, beauty and grace with which they conducted themselves and their private lives…they relied more on their talent to make them superstars, than their sex appeal (although of course, that was never very far behind).
Based on Rinpoche’s write-up about Lin Dai, it seems like she wasn’t typecast as a seductress or temptress which is refreshing. It reflects the level of her talent and the respect people had for her such that they didn’t reduce her into a sex kitten.
Stars like Lin Dai broke the barriers and paved the way for the Lucy Liu’s and Michelle Yeoh’s of today. But their problems and the problems of the stars of today are exactly the same – unhappiness is unhappiness and when you are surrounded by everything people say should make you happy, and you’re still not happy, I guess suicide seems like the only way out when you don’t know any better or any differently.
My mom was a fan of Lin Dai when my family moved to Hong Kong in the early 60’s. My mom told me that Lin Dai once held me (before I turned 1 year old) during her filming break in front of our house : )
I also enjoy those movies from ’50s and 60’s very much!
It so so sad to hear of untimely death from such talented actors and singers from the East and West. Marilyn Monroe and Whitney Houston was another such example. Things may seem all well and rosy from the outside but suffering is in all beings in samsara as its the nature of samsara. I am sure if they had the merits to meet with the dharma,situation could have been different for them as they are able to deal with whatever that they were experiencing with better control of it.
( Linda Lin) Lin Dai is one of Tsem Tulku Rinpoche’s favorite actress。。。。She is also one of my favorite fashion icon, she beautiful and glamorous.I was greatly inspired by her style during her era…….But Sadly, she committed suicide in 1964.Even though she is gone,her legacy still lives on…. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing:-)
aww, my parents love her very much also 🙂
Hmm. I am not so sure about that…
Astro did a run of Lin Dai’s movies and still continues to do so. I remember reading her in the magazines which my mum used to buy and admired her beauty, her smiling eyes. The story lines in all her movies are similiar: tragic, unrequieted love, the heroine who dies for all. She couldnt see beyond the illusions of her celluloid roles that she decided to end her life painfully. Its so sad to read that her family members are not able to forgive her even though so many years have passed.
very inspiring recording. Remind me of the values of history and the Chinese people. A view that the younger Chinese and other nationalities can learn to appreciate culture and talents of the past.
My mum was so thrilled when I told her that Rinpoche had put up posting on Lin Dai on his blog. She was an icon back then that every girls would dress up and look like her in every way possible. Despite the fame and the money that she made as a superstar, she was not happy with her life. My mum told me that she had attempted to commit suicide twice before but was successully rescued by her husband and it was a trick used by her to make sure that her husband remained loyal to her. Nonetheless the third attempt was fatal as her husband wasn’t anywhere near her to rescue her.
Grasping the ungraspable often leads us to do something that not only cause harm to us but also inflict sufferings to others. We always want things to remain the way it is, be it the relationship, careers, family, neighbourhood, etc and if something has changed and if the changes are to our disadvantage or we feel uncomfortable with the changes, we would try to contain the impact of those changes in our lives rather than embracing it, either by living in denial that everything remains the same even though it isn’t, or we resort to drastic masures to ensure that nothing changes by means of deception, lies, threats, and so forth. Often such actions bring pain and sufferings to our closed ones and ultimately drive them away from us.
I used to watch the black and white with Lin Dai and I do love the wonderful songs she ‘belt’ out. The other beautiful and talented actor that took her own life was Betty Loh Tih. It is a real shame that these celebrities and those of today cannot see the truth in ‘life’. It may seem bad to say but they are somewhat ‘self centred’ otherwise they would not take their own life for whatever ‘depressed’ state of affairs they undergone. This also proves that success and fame in this life is no guarantee of happiness. I dread the current generation of people who have no stability in thoughts and are constantly chasing for fame and fortune the ‘quick’ way. And how ironic that after attaining fame, they decide to keep their lives private.
Many a Saturday nights were spent with my mom in the cinema watching movies of Lin Dai, Li Ching and Ling Po, to name but a few. All the ladies were the superstars and legends in their own time. Lin Dai committed suicide at the prime of her career. She had ‘everything’, fame and fortune but happiness..?? She must have been deeply depressed that she can’t think rationally but take that course of action. Like some of the celebrities of recent times, they are too consumed with their own emotions that they cannot see the reality of their sufferings. If they have the good fortune to have come into spirituality/dharma, perhaps some of them would still be alive. Om Mani Padma Hum
Linda Lin Dai was beautiful, talented, charming and an angel. However she ended her life tragically with such sadness. Women can be beautiful during their prime but ageing is a fact of life. If only she had grown old gracefully with her family beside. She may have glamour, rich and wealthy but she was certainly not happy. If this state of unhappiness is left alone, depression sips in.
I feel for what she went through in her last moments of life. She must have thought about her actions before making the decision to take her own life. She was not able to see light at the end of the tunnel. Nobody should take that road.
I was a movie queen when I was young. My uncle owns a cinema in town and my family and I did not have to pay to see any movies. Almost every evening I would go movies with my grandmother, mother and siblings. Of course, Lin Dai was one of my favorite actress. Whatever movie comes to town I would surely be in the cinema. It is so nostalgic when I watch Lin Dai’s movie now. She was the best actress; everything about her acting and expression was really dramatic and real. She was renowned and extremely popular in the Chinese speaking countries. It was a blow when she committed suicide. What a waste….
I was a movie queen when I was young. My uncle owns a cinema in town and my family and I did not have to pay to see any movies. Almost every evening I would go movies with my grandmother, mother and siblings. Of course, Lin Dai was one of my favourite actress. Whatever movie comes to town I would surely be in the cinema. It is so nostalgic when I watched Lin Dai’s movie now. She was the best actress; everything about her acting and expression was really dramatic and real. She was renowned and extremely popular in the Chinese speaking countries. It was a blow when she committed suicide. What a waste….
Why crave for fame, when it is only a passing phase? There is a greater purpose in life than chasing fame. If only Lin Dai knew…..
Lin Dai’s story is classic case of Samsara’s Entrapments. No matter how beautiful, talented and famous you are, if your mind is not happy, in this case Lin Dai was always in depression, you will still go downhill especially if you don’t have merits to support your fame and stardom. Just like Elvis and James Dean and Merilyn, all these classic legends who became so famous so fast and died young. What I understand and from many of Rinpoche’s teachings is these famous people suddenly die is cos their good karma has been exhausted, that is why they go down very fast. But if you have Merits (which cannot be exhausted) from doing good/virtuous deeds, it helps to support you to continue doing your good works (if you are doing good works to begin with, like Dharma, charity, helping others etc.) Many do not understand Karma and Merits and if we really understand and apply it, we can grow positively very fast. Karma and Merits is not about a religion, it exists whether we like it or not, this explains why certain things happen, the cause and effect of everything that exist. So no point basking in our fame and glory for it may just disappear at a blink of an eye without you even realizing it.
This brings back so much memories when mum use to drag us to the old smelly cinemas to watch Lin Dai in Madam White Snake – and I loved it! Even as a little kid around 5 or 6 years old, I totally loved her because of her charisma, beauty and good acting. It’s a classic and I am quite surprised that Rinpoche like Lin Dai too! Rinpoche is really so versatile, you can relate to just about anyone from any age group and background. I guess this is what make Rinpoche so different and Rinpoche’s style more approachable to the masses.
This is my first time coming across Lin Dai, and when I saw the first black and white picture of her, I actually thought she was Liz Taylor!
Later, as I read more and saw her colour photos, I realised my perception of her changed a little, just by virtue of her being an Asian actress. Its not that I thought she was any less beautiful or elegant, but there was a definite shift in my perception of what she would be like and who she was.
My reaction came as a surprise to me, and I just wanted to share it with all, that sometimes, what we perceive through our senses, even with something as simple as this, does colour our perceptions of how things are or how things should be. And if we are unaware (or even if we are aware), we act from our expectations and that is what creates much unhappiness from all of us. Thank you for this post, i got something unexpected from it.
Lin Dai, watched her movies when I was young. Use to shrug when my mom makes us sit together and watch the show with her. Those singing sounded to horrible to me during that time. But as I grew up, I realised I started to appreciate those “dreadful” movies. We can really see how people from the era putting so much effort in the acting. Lin Dai is really a lady with pure talent and she can really act well. I love The Kingdom and The Beauty & Madam White Snake. My two all time favourites. It is a sad thing for her to die at young age by taking her own life. She is a lost to the entertainment industry and also a lost of talent. It will be great if we can relive such talents and remake the movies just like it is from that era. It will sure entertain us and will bring back the sweet memories 🙂
In the black and white photo, Lin Dai reminds me of Audrey Hepburn, an epitome of grace and classic elegance. These film clips, pictures and songs of old Shanghai evoke a sense of nostalgia of an era long gone. I’m not quite a movie buff, and I have no recollection of Lin Dai, but it is nice that we are able to let time stand still and capture forever moments that become lost as soon as they occur and we can relive them again and again and be transported back to that era in reminiscence.
The old Chinese movies have very tragic story lines that often tell of love and loss. My earliest memories of Chinese movies was when I was very small, living in the hospital where my mum worked as the matron. The nurses always had the TV and Redifusion on at the canteen in the nurses’ quarters. The medium of conversation around the hospital was mainly Cantonese. The black and while movies were always being played and they were all tear-jerkers. I had a nanny from Canton, an “Ah Ma Chair” who was celibate, sworn to service as a housekeeper, wore one long pigtail and whose dress code was always crisp white and black “sam foo”. That hospital where I lived, the Chinese Maternity Hospital in Pudu (which still exists today), was founded by the Run Run Shaw Foundation of Hong Kong, what a small world. Ah, this brings back a lot of my childhood memories forever etched in my mind.
I have never heard of this Linda Lin Dai. I also never watched any of her movies but if Rinpoche likes it, if I find one of these movies, I will like it for sure. All the pictures look extremely nice, they make Linda Lin Dai look extremely gorgeous. She gained many awards! It is sad that she committed suicide. Suicide is the worst option in life. That stupid option will send you directly to hell! I will search for the movies that are more recent like: The Blue & The Black Part 1 (1965) and The Blue & The Black Part 2 (1966).
I was so excited when I saw Lin Dai’s pics and story captured Rinpoche’s interest out of zillions of stars out there.Of course Lin Dai was no ordinary star – she was undisputed Queen of Chinese celluloid and probably won more awards for her beauty cum talent than any other HK stars then and now.
I also happen to be her no 1 fan and had seen all her movies many times. The record must be ‘Beauty and the Kingdom’ which I must have watched more than a dozen times and had memorised many of the songs there. She was also my mother’s no 1 fan and many people said my mom look like her – hence my bias !
Beauty, fame, fortune and intelligence cannot protect our mind.Lin Dai had all those things but could not find peace and contentment – the things that matter.
She left this world sad and regretful.
If we don’t learn from this lesson and take the dharma path, we will also suffer same fate for chasing after transience and things that don’t matter when death comes.
I remember being dragged to the movies to watch Lin Dai on the silver screen. I did not undertsand a word of what was goig on then but I found it interesting as she was very pretty and the idol of many people. She became the darling of the Eastern silver screen. She was very successful in the short span of her life. Sadly she left this world aged 30 while at the pinnacle of her acting career – she had fame, power, career – material fortune. A stark reminder of how life is so fragile. Nothing is certain; death is certain. Her legend lives on.
Lin Dai’s life story was an extremely weird one in my opinion because although she was a superstar, almost ALL of the characters she plays on screen commits suicide for the good of the many. In the end, due to gossips from the media that she was a loose woman, she committed suicide to protect her honor. My grandmother was one of her biggest fans and she told me how Lin Dai died. Even she noticed that Lin Dai died the way her screen characters did: suicide and disappointment after being forced into a corner or when being accused.
Perhaps, she acted those roles too many times until she internalized the mentality of her characters, and acted out based on them.This seems to be one of the examples of familiarization but unfortunately in the wrong direction. And how gossip can ruin another life and person.
Lin Dai is one of those famous celebrities that seem to have everything we can only dream of but are so hopelessly unhappy with their lives that they resort to taking their own lives.
People chase after fame, power, wealth etc, when they get to the top they worry about how long they will stay up on top and depress over the fear of losing them.
Rinpoche always teaches on how to have real inner peace – to focus on others, once we do that we destroy the cause for unhappiness, SELFISHNESS. If you want a powerful teaching on this , go to “We own nothing”: http://blog.tsemtulku.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/2010/04/we-own-nothing.html
Hi Elsie, thank you so much for taking the time to write and share more stories about Lin Dai. I also was not aware that she drank Detol. The thought is painful enough. However, I would not go to as far as to say that I admire people who take their own life. Ending one’s life does not stem from courage, it comes from fear and abject depression. When we feel trapped in some situation and we cannot see the light at the end of that long dark tunnel, we will withdraw deeper within ourselves. We will fall deeper into an abyss of negative emotions. In fact, I dare say that taking one’s life is the ultimate act of selfishnes. Because we have turned our backs to life, and we rather give up and not try anymore. So, in actual fact, we have totally stopped caring and are willing to abandon even ourselves. What you said about having someone around to help or to console is very valid. When our mind is so unstable, our emotions can derail us completely. This is one of the reasons why Rinpoche blogs, why Kechara puts on Rinpoche’s teachings into youtube and put out everything online. Someone who is down or depressed might come across these videos or teachings, or even this blog post and find it helpful. It might even save a life. Rinpoche often says that everything our mind projects, no matter how real it may seem is just an illusion. If a thought can be created from the mind, it can also be taken away from the mind, and even be replaced by a better thought. I know at this point it may sound easier said than done. Everything takes time and practice. But when we don’t give up and keep working at our own issues, things will eventually get better. We will become much stronger and nothing will throw us off ever again. It takes time to build strength and courage. No different than it takes time to build bigger/stronger muscles in our bodies. We have to keep working at it, and never give up. With every bad and self-defeating thought, we will replace it with ten good, uplifting thoughts and focus outwards. Rinpoche has said many times that the fastest cure to depression is to stop thinking about ourselves so much, and do more social or community work. Helping others is an instant reliever of misery, because we become someone useful and beneficial to others. Then we will begin to value the real purpose of life.
Terima Kasih Rinpoche!
And yes, my paternal grandparents and parents were some of her fans and the surprising news of her unfortunate demise was a tough one.
Her case, like many others, has served to give me a stark reminder of how fragile do some hold on to the thin thread of the precious human existence…
More importantly, it has taught me how to be more compassionate and understanding of these people and be of the best assistance that I can be in their ‘dark night of the soul’ moments when the only light they see is none…
Every such case that I read serves as a wake up call to certain realities of life, oft ignored or shelved away.
She shocked the entire Asia with the news of her suicide drinking Detol. (I was 6 yrs old then when she died.) Imagine how painful is that to drink detol, the pain and agony she goes through. She gave so much of joy and entertainment to other but inside her she suffers in silence. She was mocked by the Roman Catholics for committing suicide. (Her Catechism teacher was also my teacher in St Margaret church in Hong Kong) Her grave is still in Happy Valley Hong Kong. I visited the cementery on ‘All Souls’ Day for catholic Mass. The grave is not even taken care of by her family members it is really sad. Something must have pushed her to the brim to take such a drastice action. If only someone is there for her to help her to see her through and understand her needs to console her. Why still mocked her after her death isnt there forgivenss. I dont understand. Maybe she is suffering me because of her self centredness. She need more attention from her family but not receiving it. Is that what she is suffering. Self-centredness cause suffering as well. That is the danger of “I”. Therefore wer must learn to put others before us.
I am amazed by Rinpoche’s broad range of movies that he watches as they span east to west. I guess it must be Rinpoche’s ways to understand his Chinese students here in Malaysia. In order to be effective, Rinpoche had immersed himself in Chinese culture in order to understand his students better.
Rinpoche has been in Malaysia since 1992 and he has done a lot to understand the local Malaysian mentality and disposition. Therefore, his activities have increased tremendously with the culmination in Kechara House and its various departments. The departments are ingenious ways in which Rinpoche spreads the Dharma. They have recently come up with interested and informative website on these departments. Do check it out – http://www.kechara.com
Wow I didn’t know that she committed suicide – it’s such a shocker when you hear of talented, amazing, beautiful people killing themselves and you think, “what do they have to be sad about to kill themselves? they have everything in the world and the world loves them.” It’s such a sad thing to see that you could be at the top of the world and still feel like the loneliest person.
It’s really true too – when I was studying in this rich-bitch international school, the kids were more screwed up than you could ever know. They were drinking themselves to the hospital, doing pregnancy tests at 15, suffering eating disorders, depressed, going for counselling. You look at these kids with their amazing glamourous, rich, safe lives and you think, “what have you got to be unhappy about?”
Then you go to Nepal, where they have nothing and they have to paint walls for a living and they’re happier than anyone I’d ever met (I wrote these experiences in my book). Rinpoche himself shows us what it means to have that lasting happiness – from the time he lived in a cow shed, to now, living in a beautiful, comfortable Ladrang in KL, he has never changed, never been more happy or sad in either condition, his happiness completely unaffected by a material surrounding. This is something really worth aspiring to.
I think Rinpoche is far more glamorous than Liz Taylor or Lin Dai could ever have been and this stems from the fact that he is so REAL, unchanging, consistent and kind. There is so much glamour in finding happiness no matter what the conditions around you are, and further, giving that happiness to others also.
Dear Rinpoche
Your blog on Lin Dai brought back many childhood memories of going to her movies with my mother when I was very young. I remember very clearly the story of Madame White Snake. When her songs played on Redifusion, my mother used to love singing along with her! Yes, she left quite an impact on many people, myself included
Thank you for sharing about this very special being!
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing about Lin Dai. It is such a tragedy that such a jewel is so vulnerable. “Here today gone tomorrow ” sad that all fame, glamour and riches didn’t give her happiness but bitterness,agony and pain that gave her the courage to take her own life. Somehow I always respect those people who have the courage to take their own life. I respect their courage cos I don’t have.