Gordon Liu

For the Chinese-American politician ( Lưu quý minh ), seeGordon J. Lau.

Gordon Liu
Lưu gia huy
Born	Sin Kam-hei ( Tiển cẩm hi ) (1951-08-22)August 22, 1951 Foshan,Guangdong,China
Occupation(s)	Actor,martial artist
Years active	1973–present
Spouse	Ma Fei-feng ​ ​ (m.1991;div.2009)​ (2nd)
Children	Angie Sin (daughter),with first wife Bonnie Sin (daughter),with first wife Kris Sin (son),with Ma Fei-feng Sonia Sin (daughter),with Ma Fei-feng
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	Lưu gia huy
Simplified Chinese	Lưu gia huy
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Liú Jiāhuī Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Lau4Gaa1-fai1
Sin Kam-hei
Traditional Chinese	Tiển cẩm hi
Simplified Chinese	Tiển cẩm hi
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Xiǎn Jǐnxī

In thisChinese name,thefamily nameisLiu.

Gordon Liu(Lau Kar-faisimplified Chinese:Lưu gia huy;traditional Chinese:Lưu gia huy;pinyin:Liú Jiāhuī;Wade–Giles:Liu Chia-hui;Jyutping:Lau4 Gaa1 fai1); bornSin Kam-hei(simplified Chinese:Tiển cẩm hi;traditional Chinese:Tiển cẩm hi;pinyin:Xiǎn Jǐnxī,22 August 1951)is a Chinese actor and martial artist.

Born inGuangdong,Liu studiedhung gakung fuat the school founded byLau Kar-leung’s father, Lau Cham.He entered theHong Kong film industryas a stuntman. His early acting credits include minor roles in several Hong Kongkung fu films,including theShaw Brothers-produced5 Shaolin Masters(1974). He went on to appear in many Shaw Brothers films, such asChallenge of the Masters(1976), in which he portrayed the folk heroWong Fei Hung,Executioners From Shaolin(1977),The 36th Chamber of Shaolin(1978), in which he played the lead role asShaolinheroSan Te,Dirty Ho(1979),Return to the 36th Chamber(1980),Martial Club(1981),The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter(1984), andDisciples of the 36th Chamber(1985). By the late-1980’s, he had begun accepting smaller roles, such as inLau Kar-leung'sTiger on the Beat(1988).

Liu made his American debut in 2003. He played two roles inQuentin Tarantino'sKill Billfilms: Johnny Mo, the leader of the Crazy 88yakuzagang inVolume 1(2003), andkung fumasterPai MeiinVolume 2(2004).

Early life

Liu was born Sin Kam-hei inGuangdongProvince,Chinaon 22 August 1951, prior to his adoption into another family.He is often wrongly cited as being the adopted son ofLau Cham,and adoptive brother of directors and actorsLau Kar-leung(Liu Chia-liang) andLau Kar-wing(Liu Chia-Yung). He was not adopted by the family but is Lau Cham's godson.

In his youth (ages 15–20), he skipped school to train inChinese martial artswithout his parents' knowledge. He trained at Lau Cham's martial arts school ofHung Gardiscipline, which descended fromWong Fei-hung's grand student (father toLau Kar Leung). Lau Cham's wife assisted in his training and due to the friendship and respect Liu felt for Lau and his wife, he took on the name Lau Ka-fai. As he grew up, he found a job as a shipping clerk to make ends meet. His interests had always been towards martial arts and he was eventually offered a role by Lau Kar-leung.

Career

Liu's first break was with Chang's Film Company (aShaw Brotherssubsidiary operating inTaiwan) acting small parts for such films as5 Shaolin Masters,Shaolin Martial Arts,and4 Assassins.He starred inChallenge of the Masters(1976), as the folk heroWong Fei Hung,and was featured inExecutioners From Shaolin(1977) before starring in his signature role asShaolinhero San Te inThe 36th Chamber of Shaolin.

The tale of the imperialistic struggle, while not a new one, was significant for the intense focus placed on the inner workings of Shaolin Temple itself. San Te, Liu's character, overcomes the temple's thirty-five chambers as he unwittingly undergoes the rigorous training regimen imposed by the temple's Head Abbott on the pretext of "earning" a right to study martial arts there.

The "zero-to-hero" tale turned Liu into an international icon in spite of a frame far slighter than that of the folk hero himself (known as "Iron Arms" for the muscularity of his physique) and paved the way for a very healthy working schedule into the mid-1990s, even as younger, more agile martial artists eventually emerged. By the late 1980s, he had begun accepting smaller roles, such as inLau Kar-leung'sTiger on the Beat.

Liu has also been active in television, and was contracted toHong Kong'sTVBcompany for many years, continuing playing roles as a martial arts master. Though still performing some martial arts roles, he is at home as well in comedic, self-deprecatory or emotional characters. His second-most common role in TVB has been playing aHong Kong Police Forceofficer.

Quentin Tarantinohad long been a fan of Liu, and hoped to find him a role in one of his movies. This eventually came to pass with the roles of Johnny Mo and Master Pai Mei in Tarantino'sKill Billfilms. His roles inKill Billraised Liu's profile again and a renewed interest was shown by Chinese producers; sinceKill Bill,Liu has returned to doing movies while continuing to do television for Hong Kong's TVB station.

In 2008, Liu added aBollywoodfilm to his profile. Collaborating withIndianactorAkshay Kumarwho is a top-billed Bollywood actor and also a martial arts performer in a film titledChandni Chowk To China(CC2C).He played the role of the villain, Hojo, a smuggler and a well-trained martial artist. Before this, he appeared as himself (along with his mentor Lau Kar Leung) in the 2009 filmDragonland,the first Italian documentary about martial cinema history, by Lorenzo De Luca. Liu attended as special guest star at the premiere in Rome, meeting his Italian fans for the first time. During August 2011, Liu had a stroke and put all his plans on hold to recover. Liu had cancelled all public engagements as of March 2012.

Personal life

Liu has been married twice. He has two daughters, Angie and Bonnie, from his first marriage which ended in 1986, and a son Kris (Tiển tuấn long) and daughter Sonia (Tiển vịnh san) from his second marriage with Ma Fei-feng (Mã phi phượng) of Thai-descent which ended in 2009.

In August 2011, while inTo Kwa Wanperforming with his band, Liu had a stroke and hit his head. He had partial right-sided paralysis and a speech impairment as a consequence of the stroke, needing a wheelchair to travel. At the same time, his estranged family from his second marriage had begun pressuring him for money. Depressed at his physical state and family complications, he isolated himself in a nursing home. In June 2012, Liu decided to divorce his second wife and focus on his recovery.

During his medical crisis, Liu entrusted his assets to his assistant and spokesperson, Eva Fung. However, the two fell out, and Fung refused to return his assets.Subsequently in 2013, he arranged for Hong Kong actressAmy Fanto become the legal guardian of his assets.Liu later took legal action to recover his assets, and on April 29, 2014, a day before the court date, Fung agreed to return them with interest. In 2015, it was reported that he no longer spoke with a slur but continued to use a wheelchair, and that he had resided at a nursing home for several years.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1973	Hero of the Waterfront	Extra	The Hero of Chiu Chow
1974	5 Shaolin Masters	Chang Yung	Cameo
	Shaolin Martial Arts	Ho Chen-kang
1975	The Four Assassins	Aburiha / Abulahua	Marco Polo
	The Monk	Foon Ying's Thug / Monk	Brief Appearance
1976	Challenge of the Masters	Wong Fei-hung
	7-Man Army	Mongolian Commander #2
	Boxer Rebellion	Boxer	Bloody Avengers
1977	He Has Nothing But Kung Fu	Shang Kai-Yuan (as Chia-Fai Liu)	Stunt Coordinator
	Executioners from Shaolin	Tung Chien-chin (Tong Qianjin)
1978	Breakout from Oppression	Hsiao Tu (Tsao Chan)	Director, Action Coordinator
	The 36th Chamber of Shaolin	Liu Yu-de / Monk San Te
	Heroes of the East	Ah To
	Shaolin Mantis	Shaolin Fighting Monk (Guest Star)	Brief Appearance
1979	Fury in the Shaolin Temple
	Dirty Ho	Wang Tsun Hsin (11'th Prince)
	The Shadow Bo xing	Chang Chieh	Spiritual Boxer Sequel
1980	Clan of the White Lotus	Hong Wen-Ting
	Return to the 36th Chamber	Chao Jen-Cheh
	Fists and Guts	Ah-San / Shaolin Priest
	Shaolin Warrior	Fa Tien	Producer
1981	My Young Auntie	James
	Elders
	Shaolin and Wu Tang		Director
	The Shaolin Drunken Monk	Lao Chung
	Treasure Hunters	Monk Mo Seung
	Martial Club	Wong Fei-hung
1982	Raiders of Shaolin Kung Fu	Ga-wi Yu
	Legendary Weapons of China	Ti Tan (Guest Star)
	Godfather of Canton	Lin Si Hai
	The 82 Tenants	Ah Hui
	Cat vs Rat	Emperor Yung Hsi (Guest Star)
1983	Lady Is the Boss	Lee Hon Man (Ah Man)
	Shaolin and Wu Tang	Hung Yung-Kit
	Tales of a Eunuch	Emperor Kang Hsi / Siu Yuen Tzu
1984	The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter	Yang Wu-lang (Fifth Brother)
1985	Two Jolly Cops	Lo Tak-Fai	Producer
	The Young Vagabond	So Chan
	Disciples of the 36th Chamber	Monk San Te
	Crazy Shaolin Disciples	Monk Wu Ching
	USA Ninja		Action Director
1986	The Story of Dr. Sun Yat Sen
1988	Legend of the Phoenix
	Tiger on the Beat	Fai, The Hitman
	A Bloody Fight	Inspector Lau Fai
	Peackock King	Kubira
	Shaolin vs. Vampire	Hyo Daiyu (as Ryu Chafi)	Director
	Let's Rage the Gangland
1989	A Fiery Family	Wei
	Fury of a Tiger	Rambo / Sergeant Mang	Action Choreographer
	White Lotus Trio		Avenging Trio
	My Heart Is That Eternal Rose	Lai Liu
	Ghost Ballroom	Chai
	Killer Angels	Michael
1990	Tiger on the Beat 2	Lau Fai
	The Fortune Code	Japanese Commander in Blue
1991	The Killer	Inspector Wong
	Crystal Hunt	Officer Lung	China Heat
	The Banquet		Brief Appearance
	A Fate of Love
	The Story of the Gun	Officer Lau Fai	Guns of the Master Killer
1992	Passionate Killing in the Dream	Chit-Chit
	Cheetah on Fire	Mainland Gang Leader (as Ka Fai Lau)
	Cry Killer		Martial Art Director
1993	Flirting Scholar	Evil Scholar
	Last Hero in China	Master Liu Heung (as Ka-fai Lau)
	Legend of the Liquid Sword	Shaolin Monk (Guest) (as Ka-fai Lau)	Cameo
	The Buddhism Palm Strikes Back	For-wan Tse-san
	The Mystery of the Condor Hero	Yuen-tsan
	Bogus Cops	Hood
1994	The Kung Fu Scholar	His Excellency
	Drunken Master III	Governor Lee (as Kar Fai Lau)
	American Shaolin	Abbot Hung Chi	Treasure Hunt
	If You Were Here	Mr. Chiang	Stunt Coordinator
	Funny Shaolin Kids		Two Shaolin Kids in Hong Kong
1995	Lethal Girls 2
1997	Super Cops	Uncle Shing	Action Coordinator
1998	Thunder Scout
1999	The Set Up
	Heaven of Hope	Coffin Leung
	Generation Consultant	Lieutenant Chow
	Generation Pendragon
	Gambler Series: Fraudelent Culture
2000	The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber	Sing Kwan
	The Legend of Lady Yang	Chan Yuen-lai
	The Island Tales	Bo
2002	Drunken Monkey	Detective Hung Yat Fu
2003	Star Runner	Master Lau (Coach Lau)
	Kill Bill: Volume 1	Johnny Mo
2004	Kill Bill: Volume 2	Johnny Mo /Pai Mei
	Shaolin vs. Evil Dead	Pak / Brother White
	Dragon in Fury
	Snake Curse	Dr. Gao Er
2005	Dragon Squad	Ko (Police Driver)	Dragon Heat
	A Chinese Tall Story	Jade Emperor
	Insuperable Kid	Japanese Ambassador
	Dragon Get Angry
2006	Katana-Man
	Mr. 3 Minutes	Triad Head (Mahjong Debt Collector)
	Hung Kuen vs. Wing Chun	Liu Chiaoxi
	My Kung Fu Sweetheart
2007	Shaolin Vs. Dead: Ultimate Power	Roam Chow
2008	Heroes of Shaolin
	Anaconda Frightened	Master Mao Dashi
2009	Chandni Chowk to China	Hojo	CC2C
	Frankenstein Unlimited		SegmentFlesh for Kung Fu
2010	Lost in Love	Banker
	Citizen King	Master Cheung
	The Immemorial Magic
	Hot Summer Days	Uncle Fai
	True Legend	Old Sage
2011	Love in Space	Mr. Chen
	Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair	Johnny Mo / Pai Mei
	Flying Swords of Dragon Gate	Eunuch Wan Yulou
2012	Nightfall	Retired CID Officer Lung
	The Man with the Iron Fists	The Abbott
	Painted Skin: The Resurrection	Uncle Da
	Blood Money	Shaolin Monk
	Kill 'em All	Snakehead
	No Retreat
	Warrior
2013	High Kickers	Zhao Yumin
2014	Future Fighters

Television

Year	Title	Chinese Title	Role
1990	The Legend of the Invincible	Kiếm ma Độc Cô Cầu Bại	Gong Zan-hung
1991	Mystery of the Twin Swords	Nhật nguyệt thần kiếm	Jin Pin-cin
1992	Mystery of the Twin Swords II	Bắt yêu kì binh
1993	The Mystery of The Condor Hero	Bắn điêu anh hùng truyền chi Cửu Âm Chân Kinh	Jyun Zan
	The Buddhism Palm Strikes Back	Như Lai Thần Chưởng tái chiến giang hồ	Ngou Cin-saan
1995	The Condor Heroes 95	Thần điêu hiệp lữ	Kam-lun Fat-wong
	Detective Investigation Files II	Hình sự lùng bắt hồ sơ II	Cing Gan
1996	Journey to the West	Tây Du Ký	Bull Demon King
1997	Bonds of Blood	Thiên thu gia quốc mộng	Zhang Baozi / Chen Jiongming
	Taming of the Princess	Say đánh kim chi	Lei Gin (Sing Ping's 8th Royal Uncle)
1998	Journey to the West II	Tây Du Ký	Bull Demon King, Golden Horned King
1999	Witness to a Prosecution	Tẩy oan lục	Nip Yan-lung
	Hero of Shanghai	Trung Hoa đại trượng phu	Hoi's Dad
	Dragon Love	Người long truyền thuyết	Sea Dragon King
2000	The Legendary Four Aces	Kim trang tứ đại tài tử
	Legend of Lady Yang	Dương Quý Phi	Chen Xuanli
2001	The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber	Ỷ Thiên kiếm Đồ Long đao	Cheng Kun / Yuan Zhen
	A Step into the Past	Tầm Tần Ký	Cho Chau-dou
2003	The King of Yesterday and Tomorrow	Cửu ngũ chí tôn	Heung Yeung
2005	Real Kung Fu	Phật Sơn tán sư phụ	Lin Yung
	The Gateau Affairs	Tình mê khu rừng đen	Tong Sam
2006	A Pillow Case of Mystery	Thi công kỳ án	Sima Jui-fung
	Lethal Weapons of Love and Passion	Phúc vũ phiên vân	Lai Yue-hoi
2007	Best Bet	Nghênh thê tiếp phúc	Tsang Dai-lik
	On the First Beat	Học cảnh ra càng	Yuen Moon
	The Ultimate Crime Fighter	Thông thiên làm thăm	Lai Chun Cheung
2008	The Four	Thiếu niên tứ đại danh bộ	Lam Po-Tian
2009	Man in Charge	Phía sau màn đại lão gia	Tai Yau-Kung
	Chinese Paladin 3	Tiên Kiếm Kỳ Hiệp truyền tam	Evil Sword Immortal
2010	A Pillow Case of Mystery II	Thi công kỳ án II	Si Ma Jeui-fung
	Beauty Knows No Pain	Nữ nhân nhất đau	Ng Lap-chau
	Links to Temptation	Dụ tình chuyển bác	Lam Chung-pau
2011	Relic of an Emissary	Hồng Vũ 32	Yim Chun
	Curse of the Royal Harem	Vạn hoàng chi vương	Tunggiya Shumung

Documentaries

Year	Title	Role	Note
1991	A Fate of Love		Video
1992	Yesterday Once More	Assassin	Video
1994	Cinema of Vengeance	Self	Uncredited
1995	Top Fighter	Self	Video Documentary
2002	The Art of Action: Martial Arts in Motion Picture	Self (Interviewee)	Movie Documentary
2003	Cinema Hong Kong: Wu Xia	Self	Movie Documentary
	Chop Socky: Cinema Hong Kong	Self (as Ka Fai Lau)	Movie Documentary
2008	Dragonland	Self	Italian Documentary
2010	Medallion of Kung Fu	Self (Action Director)	Short Video
2011	Tarantino, the Disciple of Hong-Kong	Self	French Documentary
2013	Wu Xia Pian	Self	French Documentary

See also

• List of Shaw Brothers films
• Shaw Brothers Studio

External links

• Gordon LiuatIMDb
• Gordon Liuat theHong Kong Movie Database
• Gordon LiuatHong Kong Cinemagic
• Gordon LiuatLove HK Film
• Gordon LiuBiography atHong Kong Cinema