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Kenneth Tsang
Kenneth Tsang
曾江
Born	Tsang Koon-yat (曾貫一); 5 October 1934; Shanghai, China
Died	27 April 2022 (aged 87); Yau Tsim Mong District, Hong Kong
Citizenship	Singapore
Education	McMurry University; University of California, Berkeley (BA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1955–2022
Spouses	; Lan Di (m. 1969; div. 1979) ; Barbara Tang (m. 1980; div. 1990) ; Chiao Chiao (m. 1994)
Children	2
Chinese name
Chinese	曾江
Hanyu Pinyin
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	zēng jiāng
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutping	zang1 gong1
Signature

Kenneth Tsang Kong (Chinese: 曾江; Sidney Lau: Jang¹ Kong¹; 5 October 1934 – 27 April 2022)^[1] was a Hong Kong actor. Tsang's career spanned 50 years and included a variety of acting roles. Tsang won the Best Supporting Actor Award at the 34th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2015.

Early life and education

Tsang Koon-yat was born in Shanghai with family roots in Jida [zh], Zhuhai, Guangdong. Tsang attended high school in Wah Yan College, Hong Kong and then Wah Yan College, Kowloon. He attended McMurry College, Abilene, Texas for his freshman year and transferred to University of California, Berkeley, where he received a degree in architecture.^[1]

Career

Tsang returned to Hong Kong in the early 1960s as an architect but was unsatisfied by the work.^[1] His younger sister by 2 years, Jeanette Lin (林翠), was a film star at the time and provided Tsang with several connections in the industry which boosted his acting career.^[1]

Tsang's film debut was in the movie The Feud (1955) when he was 21 , which was followed by a role in Who Isn't Romantic? (1956). In the mid-1960s, Tsang starred in detective films and classic kung fu movies with Hong Kong teen idols Connie Chan Po-chu and Josephine Siao. Tsang also appeared in a few Wong Fei-Hung movies in the late 1960s.

In 1986, Tsang worked as taxi cab owner, Ken, in John Woo's A Better Tomorrow. Subsequent collaborations with Woo included the role of Ken in A Better Tomorrow 2 in 1987, police officer Danny Lee's murdered partner in The Killer in 1989, and the strict adoptive father of Chow Yun-fat, Leslie Cheung and Cherie Chung in Once a Thief in 1991.

Tsang also filmed several Singaporean Chinese dramas during the 1990s, notably the 1995 epic The Teochew Family and The Unbeatables II in 1996.

Up to this point, Tsang had played roles in mainly Hong Kong movies. His first Hollywood film was The Replacement Killers (1998), also the Hollywood debut of co-star Chow Yun-fat. Tsang appeared alongside Chow once again in Anna and the King as well as Jackie Chan in Rush Hour 2. Tsang played General Moon in the James Bond film Die Another Day (2002), and he continued to appear in films from Hong Kong.^[1]

Personal life

Tsang had a younger sister, Jeanette Lin Tsui [zh] (林翠), who was also a Hong Kong actress.^[2]

Tsang was married three times. His first wife was Chan Laidi (張萊娣), stage name Lan Di (藍娣), a Malaysian-Chinese and his co-star in The Big Circus and had a son. They divorced ten years later in 1979 and his son left to live with his mother. They have since resided in Vancouver, Canada. Chan died in 1991.^[3]

In 1980, Tsang married columnist and model Barbara Tang (邓拱璧) and had a daughter, Musette. Tsang and Tang divorced 10 years later in 1990.^[3]

In 1994 Tsang married Chiao Chiao (焦姣), a Chinese-born Taiwanese actress.^[3]

Death

Tsang departed from Singapore and arrived in Hong Kong on 25 April 2022, where he began a seven-day Covid-19 quarantine at the Kowloon Hotel.^[4] On the evening of 26 April, he experienced chest discomfort and asked his family to deliver his medication for chronic hypertension, which they promptly did.^[5] However, the following day, he was found unresponsive in his room by health officials who arrived to conduct a PCR test,^[5] and paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.^[4]^[6]^[7]

Filmography

Films


Year	Title	Role	Notes
1955	The Feud 同林鳥	Liang Zuyi
1956	Love Is Everywhere 那個不多情	Cheng Jia-Shu
1962	Who Is Not Romantic? 那個不多情(續集)
1964	The Big Circus 大馬戲團	Han Ying Chieh
1965	Blundering Woman Detective 糊塗女偵探
	Master Cute 老夫子
	A Brave Young Girl's Spirit (Part 1) 玉女英魂（上集）
	A Brave Young Girl's Spirit (Part 2) 玉女英魂（下集）	Wu Yan-lung
	Book Without Words 無字天書	White Wolf
1966	The Dark Heroine Mu Lanhua	Ko Cheung
	The Golden Cup and the Wandering Dragon 金鼎游龍
	The Golden Cup, the Wandering Dragon and the Decree to Kill 金鼎游龍勾魂令
	The Woman in Black and the Black Dragon	Ko Cheung
1967	Lady in Black Cracks the Gate of Hell	Ko Cheung
	Green-Eyed Demon 碧眼魔女	Gold Hand Scholar
	She Is Our Senior 大師姐	Lei Hou-Yin
	My Fair Lady
	The Young Daughter-in-Law	Ah Cyun
	Romance of a Teenage Girl	Tai-Wai/David
	The Golden Swallow
	Lady with a Cat's Eyes 貓眼女郎	Sit Bong
	Good Wife	Chan Ngau
	Sister's Lover	Cheung Wei-Ming/piano teacher
	Every Girl a Romantic Dreamer 那個少女不多情	Leung
	A Girl's Secret 玉女的秘密
	Tragedy in a Fishing Village
	Wong Fei-Hung Against the Ruffians 黃飛鴻虎爪會群英	Ling Wan-Gai
	The Black and the White Cats
	Rocambole 殺手粉紅鑽	Luk Ting-Bong
	Paragon of Sword and Knife 天劍絕刀
	My Darling Wife 嬌妻
1968	Bride in Chains
	Lady Songbird	Lee Wai-Hon
	Wong Fei-Hung: The Incredible Success in Canton 黄飛鴻威震五羊城
	Orchid, the Songstress 歌女白蘭花
	The Deadly Dragon Sword 毒龍刀	Kong Fan-ching
	Buddhist Spiritual Palm Returned 如來神掌再顯神威
	Buddhist Spiritual Palm 如來神掌劈魔平九派
	Wong Fei-Hung: The Invincible "Lion Dancer" 黄飛鸿醒獅獨霸梅花樁
	Purple Night 紫色風雨夜	Kong Chi-Wai
	A Romantic Thief 多情妙賊	Tsang Tai-Hsiung
	The Flower and the Sword 紅花血劍
	Hotel Blues 藍色酒店	Jimmy Mak Jim-Mei
	The Grand Duel 武林大決鬥
	Three Heroines (Part 1)	Chu-kot Foon
	The Killing Sword 奪命刀	Tin-Ngan
	Wong Fei-Hung: The Eight Bandits 黃飛鴻醉打八金剛	Ling Wan-Gai
	The Magic Whip 神鞭俠
	The Magic Bow 神弓
	Wong Fei-Hung: The Duel Against the Black Rascal 黃飛鴻肉搏黑霸王	Ling Wan-Gai
	Paragon of Sword and Knife (Grand Finale) 天劍絕刀（大結局）
	Three Heroines (Part 2)	Chu-kot Foon
	The Magnificent Five 小五義大破銅網陣
	Wong Fei-Hung: Duel for the Championship 黃飛鴻拳王爭霸	Ling Wan-Gai
	The Dragon Fortress 天狼寨	Lung
	The Vengeful Spirit
1969	The Twin Swords 奪命雌雄劍	Ho Tin-Sang
	Colourful Paradise 七彩天堂
	Wong Fei-Hung: The Duel for the 'Sha-Yu-Qing' 黃飛鴻巧奪鯊魚青
	The Joys and Sorrows of Youth 冷暖青春	Chow Hoi-Kit
	The Little Warrior 小武士	General Sheung Kwun Hung
	Flying Thief, White Flower 飛賊白菊花
	Wise Wives and Foolish Husbands 聰明太太笨丈夫	Alan Lee Si Kong
	Teddy Girls 飛女正傳	To Shu-Yan
	Sky Dragon Castle 天龍堡
	The Strange Couple Who Steal	Cheung Wai-Man
	Wong Fei-Hung: The Conqueror of the 'Sam-hong Gang' 黃飛鴻神威伏三煞	Ling Wan-Kai
	Mysterious Weapon
	Bloody Handkerchief 血羅巾
	Red Rose, the Beautiful Avenger	Ah Kong
	Wong Fei-Hung's Combat with the Five Wolves 黃飛鴻虎鶴鬥五狼	Ling Wan-Gai
	Mother Wants Me to Get Married	Suen Kwok-Wai
	The Swinging Bunch (Colour) 七彩紅男綠女
	Girls Are Flowers
	Three Encounters 三招了	Wong Chun-Sing
	The Virgin Sword 玉女劍	Kam Chung-Yu
	Sword of Emei 峨嵋霸刀	Au Gong
	The Prodigal 浪子	Chan Oi-Lun
	Wong Fei-Hung in Sulphur Valley 黃飛鴻浴血硫磺穀	Ling Wan-Gai
	Let's Build a Family
	Famous Swordsman Tin Kiu 名劍天驕
	My Sweetheart 相思甜如蜜	Tong Chi-Hung
1970	The Magic Bowl 聚寶盆
	The Naked Runner
	The Lonely Rider 小金剛
	The Young Patrol
	The Young Girl Dares Not Homeward 不敢回家的少女	Peter Kuo
	To Crack the Dragon Gate 獨掌震龍門	Sun Kim-Chiu
	I'll Get You One Day 總有一天捉到你	Wong Dai Wai
	The Wedding Gown 嫁衣	Tang Tien Chi
	Flying Sword and the Smart Lad 飛劍神童
	I Will Remember You Always	Yiu Kwok-Kei
	Choi Lee Fat 蔡李佛勇擒色魔	Hung
	Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow 昨天今天明天	Health Department chief Zhou
1971	The Brave and the Evil 黑白道	Bandit Hsi Fei
	Demonstrator	Thao Kimalayo
	My Beloved 昨夜梦魂中	Eu Lieh
	The Playful Girl 淘氣姑娘
1972	Flash Boxer 閃電拳	Wei Li
	Love Is Smoke 輕烟	Mr. Tseng
	The Naughty Couples 淘氣夫妻
	The Perfect Match 門當戶對
	Narrow stairs 窄梯
1973	The Call Girls 應召女郎	TV moderator
	The Awaken Punch 石破天驚
	The Money-Tree 搖錢樹	Hsiao-cheung
	We Visited Southeast Asia 福祿壽遊南洋	Boss of SEA Detective Agency
1974	Bravest Fist 一山五虎	Teacher
	The Paradise 天堂
	Everyday Is Sunday 天天報喜
	Blood Reincarnation [zh] 陰陽界
1975	The Hooker and the Hustler 神女蕩婦綽頭王	Wang Kuo-Chun
	Where Have the Lovers Gone 晨星
	Sup Sap Bup Dup 十三不搭	Philandering man
	The Playboy 二世祖
	Frigidity
1976	The Eternal Obsession 未了緣	Wong Yat-Bun
1976	Divorce Hong Kong Style
1978	The Extras 茄哩啡	Ting Chung
1979	The Secret 瘋劫	Policeman
1982	Wild Cherry 野蜜桃
1982	Trap 大鱷	Ma Man-Rei
1983	My Mother
1983	The Body Is Willing 狂情	Francis Chao
1986	Silver Dragon Ninja	['Trap' Footage]
	Royal Warriors 皇家戰士	Captain Lau Chi-Shing
	A Better Tomorrow	Ken
	Peking Opera Blues	General Cho
	My Will, I Will 你情我願	Paul Wu Ke Jen
1987	Amnesty Decree 魔鬼天使	Tsai
1987	A Better Tomorrow II	Uncle Ken
1988	The Story of Hay Bo 喜寶
	Goodbye My Friend 再見英雄
	Last Romance 流金歲月	Li Chi Cheng
	Reunion 一樓一故事
1989	Return of the Lucky Stars	Uncle Kin
	Darkside of Chinatown 西雅圖大屠殺	Uncle Kwan
	The Immigrant Policeman 警察也移民
	The First Time Is the Last Time 第一繭	Jenny's father (cameo)
	The Killer	Sgt Tsang Yeh
	Triads – The Inside Story 我在黑社會的日子	Supt. Chan Tin-Lok
	Thank You, Sir 壯誌雄心	Mr Tsang
	I Am Sorry 說謊的女人	Edward Sung
	Shadow of China	Mr Lau
	Princess Madam 金牌師姐
1990	Return to Action	Officer Ng
	Brief Encounter in Shinjuku 錯在新宿	Mr Tseng
	Promising Miss Bowie	Mr. Chow
	Sleazy Dizzy 小偷阿星	Chief Inspector Lee
	奔向USA
	Point of No Return 都市煞星	Uncle Min
1991	Drugs Area 毒網
	Bury Me High [zh] 衛斯理之霸王卸甲	President of Carrinan
	Queen's High 紅粉至尊	Fan Yau Tim
	Once a Thief	Mr Chow
	Au Revoir, Mon Amour 何日君再來	Mui-Yi's father
	To Be Number One	Chief Inspector Tiger Lui
	The Plot 佈局	Kiu (The Boss)
	Inspector Pink Dragon	Chief Insp Pao
	Legend of the Brothers 四大家族之龍虎兄弟	Detective Lui Kwok Tin
	The Banquet	Waiter
1992	Megaforce from Highland 血染紅塵	Sgt Lau
	The Thief of Time
	The Story of Taipei Women 胭脂
	Changing Partner 夜夜伴肥嬌	Chief Inspector Wong Kwok Wing
	Police Story 3: Supercop	Khun Chaibat
	The Prince of Temple Street	San (cameo)
	Second to None 阿二一族	Julian's father
	Angel Terminators 轟天皇家將	Sawa Da / Zeng Jian
	The Night Rider 車神	Superintendent
1993	The Top Lady of Sword 葵花聖女
	Combat at Heaven Gate 決戰天門	Proefessor Chen
	Shadow Cop 神探乾濕褸	Officer Chiang
	The Bare-Footed Kid 赤脚小子	Ke Hu Pu
	Lover of the Swindler 千王情人	Doctor Wong
	Remains of a Woman 郎心如鐵
	No Regret, No Return 走上不歸路	Lau Sin
	The Trail 大路
1994	Dead End 死角	王達龍	Telemovie
1994	Long and Winding Road 錦繡前程	Bosco Chow
1997	Up for the Rising Sun抱擁朝陽	Kwok Yi Song
1998	The Replacement Killers	Terence Wei
	The Blacksheep Affair 碧血藍天	Lone
	Bishonen 美少年之戀	Sam's father
1999	Anna and the King	Justice Phya Phrom.
2000	Killer 刀手	Prince
2001	Rush Hour 2	Captain Chin
	Rude Husband
	Funeral March [zh]	Wong Cheuk Kong
2002	The Touch 天脈傳奇	Uncle Ping
2002	Die Another Day	General Moon
2004	6 Strong Guys 六壯士	Mr Lau
	Colour Blossoms	Inspector Cheung
	Butterfly	Flavia's father
2005	Memoirs of a Geisha	The General
2006	The Tokyo Trial 东京审判	Hsiang Che Chun
2007	追捕
2007	The Drummer	Stephen Ma
2008	Kung Fu Dunk	Wang Yiwuan
2009	The Treasure Hunter	Master Tu
	Formosa Betrayed	General Tse
	Prince of Tears	General Liu (劉將軍)
	Blood Ties	Woon Sir
	Motherland	Stanley Tang
	The Treasure Hunter	Tu Lao-dai
2010	East Wind, Rain 東風雨	Gentleman Yu
2010	Here Comes Fortune
2011	My Wedding and Other Secrets	Dr Chu
	Overheard 2	Tony Wong Sai-Tung
	Inseparable	Mr Wang
	Starry Starry Night	Xiao Mei's grandfather
2012	Joyful Reunion	Tang Shizhe
	Supercapitalist	Victor Chang
	37	Board Director
2013	The Truth of Love
2013	The Mercury Conspiracy	Mr. Feng
2014	The Eyes of Dawn
	You Are My Sassy Girl	Shen's father
	The Summer of Our Graduation
	Overheard 3	Uncle To
2015	Fight Up
2015	Wonder Mama
2016	Good Night 爱上试睡师
	Legend of Poker King
	Return of the Heroes
	For a Few Bullets	Oda Koki
2017	Baby Task Group
	The Express 恐怖快递
	Chasing the Dragon	Sir Chow
2018	Detective Chinatown 2	Uncle Seven
2018	Napping Kid	Chik Kuen
2019	Baby Task Group 2
2019	Dearest Anita	Night club boss
2020	Super Me
2021	Man on the Edge 邊緣行者	Senior LegCo member
	Daily Fantasy 日常幻想指南	Bubble car
	The Attorney 級指控	Tsang Kwok-Shan
2022	Deliverance 源生罪

Sources:^[8]^[9]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref
1982	Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils	Western Xia king
1983	The Superpower	Cheung Siu-san
1983	The Legend of the Condor Heroes	Wong Yeuk-si
1983	The Return of the Condor Heroes	Wong Yeuk-sze
1984	The Smiling, Proud Wanderer	Ngok But-kwan
1984	The Duke of Mount Deer	Chan Kan-nam
1985	Sword Stained with Royal Blood	Yun Sung-wan
1985	The Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain	Tin Kwai-nung
1986	New Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre	Tse Shun
1989	Deadly Secret	Ting Tin
1990	Blood of Good and Evil [zh] 我本善良	Chai Kiu Jing
1992	The Greed of Man	Lung Sing-bong
1995	The Teochew Family	Cai Qing-yang
1996	The Unbeatables II	Ye Zhong
1998	The New Adventures of Wisely	Chief Bai
1998	Legend of the Crow 乌丫传说			^[10]
1998	Riding The Storm 陌生人		^[11]
2005	The Great Adventure
2007–2008	Parental Guidance	Patrick Seto
2010	Who's the Hero [zh] 勝者為王
2011	ICAC Investigators 2011
2016	Stan Lee's Lucky Man	Freddie Lau
2019	The Great Craftsman [zh] 筑梦情缘	Chang Bingkun

Awards and nominations

Year	Organisation	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref
1999	Star Awards	Top 10 Most Popular Male Artistes	—	Nominated
2015	Hong Kong Film Award	Best Supporting Actor	Overheard 3 竊聽風雲3 (as Uncle To)	Won	^[12]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Ramzy, Austin (28 April 2022). "Kenneth Tsang, Veteran Hong Kong Actor, Dies at 87". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
^ "老婆胞妹外甥都做娛圈曾江全家都係星 | 蘋果日報 | 娛樂 | 20170120". 22 January 2017. Archived from the original on 22 January 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c Auto, Hermes (28 April 2022). "Kenneth Tsang dies at 87: 10 things to know about the Hong Kong actor | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Veteran actor Kenneth Tsang found dead in Hong Kong quarantine hotel room". AsiaOne. 27 April 2022. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
^ ^a ^b Tsang tragedy hits home with health bosses, The Standard, by Jane Cheung, 29 Apr 2022
^ "Tributes pour in for veteran Hong Kong actor Kenneth Tsang". South China Morning Post. 27 April 2022.
^ "Kenneth Tsang Dies: Golden Age Hong Kong Film Actor Who Later Entered Hollywood Was 87". Deadline. 27 April 2022.
^ "Hong Kong Cinemagic – Kenneth Tsang Kong". www.hkcinemagic.com. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
^ "曾江 Kenneth Tsang Kong".
^ 管雪梅 (3 November 1998). 《乌丫传说》 ["Legend of the Crow"]. Shin Min Daily News. p. 14. 演员方面，除了周莉的演出，让观众感觉她比在《真命小和尚》里的皇后有发挥外，曾江的演技仍有他的魅力，此外，几位本地演员秦伟、洪昭容、陈传之、李美玲和沈倾¤都表现不差的。¤－此符号代表非标准汉字，恕无法显示。
^ 钟雁龄 (20 November 1998). 新视前艺人纷回巢谁说好马不吃回头草？. Lianhe Zaobao. p. 8. 最近，好几名新视前艺人纷纷回巢，重新投入新视剧集的演出。例如，钱治钢在《陌生人》里头饰演大亨、李文海饰演曾江儿子、王沺裁演出《错体双宝》、林惠婵则参与了环境剧《我家楼下口多多》的演出。
^ Migration (20 April 2015). "Full list of Hong Kong Film Awards | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 29 April 2022.