Rest in Peace, Lydia Shum (肥肥; 1945 - 2008)
auntie68
February 20, 2008, 05:13 AM posted in General DiscussionI am fighting back tears as I type this post about the death, on Tuesday 19 February 2008, of Lydia Shum (a.k.a. 肥肥), an actress/comedian who brought so much joy to so many Chinese people -- all over the world -- during the course of her long career that stretched from the days of "black & white" film, to a final, award-winning TV career in this century in a smash-hit English-language sitcom named after her. Even if you don't know her by name, you might have known her by her horn-rimmed spectacles, her "round" figure, and -- in early years -- her beehive. Even Singaporeans who were too young to have watched films from her Cantonese film career, or did not speak Cantonese (or were even Malay or Indian or "other"), couldn't help falling in love with her portrayal of a very lovable character named "Lydia Lum" in an English-language sitcom called "Living with Lydia".
Here is a Hollywood Reporter article that describes her life and career so much better than I could ever dream of doing:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/international/news/e3i8285dc17bf73338d85f72cf7af60f9ab?imw=Y
I am posting this in case any CPOD members know who she is, and feel like posting something about this extraordinary woman. Please don't post if you are too impossibly cool to have anything nice to write about Lydia Sum.
Rest in peace, Lydia.
cassielin
February 20, 2008, 08:00 AMauntie68, I also like 沈殿霞，and i agree with Johnb, she brought joy to many people's lives. She is not only a good actress but also a good mother. She set a very good example for many people, especially those who have no confidence about themselves. Rest in peace, Lydia
auntie68
February 20, 2008, 08:46 AMcasie, you are pure class. And I mean it. Lydia taught the whole world a brave and meaningful lesson about the true meaning of having "confidence" about oneself, when -- in the last ten years of her lfe, ie a full 40 years into her film career - she dared to try some thing radically new, namely: Act in an English-language sitcom ("Living with Lydia"). And she did it so amazingly well; I am happy that she received pan-Asian awards recognizing her amazing work in this new line. Some of the episodes were so funny that I still smile or laugh when I think about them. Just imagine: her character was a widowed mother of two, from Hong Kong, forced by circumstances to share a small house in Singapore with a resentful widowed Singaporean father. Just because his great-grandfather had made some promise to a business partner, decades ago. Hard for a "westerner" to swallow, but still so very plausible in today's SE Asia! I loved watching her character, "Lydia Lum", go through various stages from "full-scale war" with Billy B Ong, to helping him when he was at a low point because his (fish-)balls, the pride and joy of his family business, lost their "bounce". Okay, better stop now... In this role alone, Lydia taught uptight Singaporeans to laugh at themselves. And in return, she was loved by Singaporean viewers of all races, including Indian and Malay Singaporeans. I know that her earthy, "Cantonese''-stye, humour was much appreciated by older folk who had missed it for many years in Singapore. RIP, Lydia...
johnb
February 20, 2008, 06:30 AMThat's a shame. I knew her mostly from Mandarin dubs of her Cantonese films, but she was always funny and, without a doubt, brought joy to many people's lives.