Hong Kong movie mogul Shaw dies at 107
8 Jan 2014 6:27 AM IST
Shaw's prolific studio helped bring kung-fu films to the world but he also passed on the chance to sign one of the biggest names in that genre: the young Bruce Lee.
The missed opportunity was a rare misstep for Shaw, who died at age 107 on Tuesday, according to a statement from Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB), which he helped found in 1967. No cause of death was given.
His Shaw Brothers Studios, once among the world's largest, churned out nearly 1,000 movies and gave young directors like Woo their start. He produced a handful of US films that also included the 1979 disaster thriller Meteor.
His television empire, which remains a dominant force in Hong Kong, was where stars like Chow got their first breaks. Wong Kar-wai, the director behind critically acclaimed art-house movies like Chungking Express and In the Mood for Love, got his start through a TVB training course and worked at the station briefly as a production assistant.
Shaw (pronounced Shao in Mandarin) led TVB until retiring as chairman in December 2011 at the age of 104. He is survived by his second wife and four children from his first marriage. Shaw was born near Shanghai to a wealthy textile merchant.
The missed opportunity was a rare misstep for Shaw, who died at age 107 on Tuesday, according to a statement from Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB), which he helped found in 1967. No cause of death was given.
His Shaw Brothers Studios, once among the world's largest, churned out nearly 1,000 movies and gave young directors like Woo their start. He produced a handful of US films that also included the 1979 disaster thriller Meteor.
His television empire, which remains a dominant force in Hong Kong, was where stars like Chow got their first breaks. Wong Kar-wai, the director behind critically acclaimed art-house movies like Chungking Express and In the Mood for Love, got his start through a TVB training course and worked at the station briefly as a production assistant.
Shaw (pronounced Shao in Mandarin) led TVB until retiring as chairman in December 2011 at the age of 104. He is survived by his second wife and four children from his first marriage. Shaw was born near Shanghai to a wealthy textile merchant.
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