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I may be a little late with this post but I wasn’t aware of the man’s death until now, so I thought I would let other people know in case it passed them by also. The man was, after all, a legend as far as martial arts and Hong Kong actors go.
Shih Kien, who played Bruce Lee’s nemesis in the 1973 movie “Enter the Dragon,” died Wednesday 3rd June 2009 at a Hong Kong hospital at the age of 96.
Shih made his film debut in the 1940 “Flower in a Sea of Blood” and went on to act in about 350 films, most notably playing villains in films about Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hong.
Shih starred in many of the early Hong Kong Cantonese Wuxia films. His name has become synonymous with “villainy” as he played the roles of villains most of the time. In Hong Kong, there is a slang expression for comparing one’s evil deeds with Shih Kien’s, despite the fact that those deeds were committed by the villains he played. Shih was well-respected within the Hong Kong motion picture industry and recognised as a kind and passionate person.
Shih Kien is probably best known to Western audiences for his role as the villain Mr. Han in Bruce Lee’s 1973 martial arts classic Enter the Dragon. Here’s a video of the final fight between Han and Lee to refresh your memory of how awesome it was.
Unknown to many, Shih was a master martial artist as well as actor and received instructor certification in a number of styles, including Eagle Claw and Choy Lay Fut. His students included Lee Koon Hung, grandmaster of Choy Lay Fut. Here he is in action.
Shih Kien appeared in the 2003 documentary Chop Socky: Cinema Hong Kong at the age of 90.
Kien died of kidney failure on June 3, 2009 at the age of 96. At the time of his death, Shih was believed to be one of the oldest living successful actors in China.
