In December, the countdown to 2023 began.
Looking back on this year, many Hong Kong celebrities familiar on the screen have passed away one after another. Among them are famous actors, gold medal producers, and well-known musicians.
They are the memory of a generation, and they have left a deep imprint on the growth and youth of a generation.
Today, let's take stock of the Hong Kong celebrities who died this year.
May they go all the way!
01 Zhou Haimei, 57 years old
On December 11, 2023, the news of Zhou Haimei's death suddenly spread on the Internet, but her studio did not make any response.
Many fans can only learn the news that she was admitted to the hospital for emergency treatment due to illness through a media reporter who is familiar with her, Hong Kong veteran actor Tian Qiwen.
Just when fans thought she was out of danger, her studio suddenly released an obituary, confirming that Zhou Haimei had passed away due to a sudden illness.
As soon as the obituary came out, it can be said that countless netizens were full of sorrow.
She is the memory of a generation, and it is the youth of a generation.
Zhou Haimei's first role in her life was "Yang Jiumei" in "Yang Jiajiang". But what made her an instant hit was "Zhou Zhiruo" in "Heaven and Dragon Slayer". The amazing degree of this role made Jin Yong once express his willingness to change the ending for her.
Since then, she has starred in more than ten classic masterpieces.
In 2002, Zhou Haimei moved to the mainland film and television industry and participated in TV series such as "Eight Arrays", "The Legend of Wu Meiniang", and "Fragrant Honey Sinks Like Frost". In 2018, she was promoted from Zhou Zhiruo to Exterminator.
The road to acting has been smooth and smooth, but her road to love has been bumpy.
As early as 1985, Zhou Haimei and Lu Liangwei formed a fate because of their cooperation in "Little Island". Although the two are 11 years apart, the outside world is quite optimistic about this relationship and calls them "golden boys and girls".
In 1989, the two secretly registered their marriage abroad. However, the chicken feathers after the marriage made this marriage quickly end in divorce.
Later, Zhou Haimei got together with Wu Shirong, a wealthy businessman in Hong Kong. But because she suddenly suffered from lupus erythematosus, Wu Shirong, who was considerate to her in the past, suddenly became cold, and the two gradually drifted apart.
In 2003, Zhou Haimei was introduced by a friend and got together with her architect boyfriend, who was 7 years younger. In the 13 years of love, her boyfriend has always wanted to enter into marriage, but Zhou Haimei doesn't want to get married, let alone have children.
In 2016, this relationship, which had lasted for 13 years, also came to an end. After the breakup, Zhou Haimei lived alone in Beijing, with no children and no daughters. She likes to raise dogs and grow vegetables, and her life is very comfortable.
But no one expected that the accident would come so suddenly.
Just six days before her sudden death, Zhou Haimei had just celebrated her 57th birthday. Four days ago, she also revisited the film and television roles she created with fans on social platforms.
I don't think about it, only three days have passed, and heaven and man will be separated forever.
Now looking at her last news, it is really embarrassing.
02 Wu Yaohan, 83 years old
After counting the benchmark figures of Hong Kong comedy films, Wu Yaohan is bound to be on the list.
He became famous in the early 80s of the last century, and became popular all over Hong Kong with the comedy film "Five Lucky Stars".
In the next three years, he shot 12 films, such as "Double Dragon Goes to Sea", "Lucky Stars Shine", "Rich Train" and other films, all of which were acclaimed and acclaimed.
Many of the films he and Lin Zhengying have collaborated on are also classics. He played "Wei Yixiao" in "Heaven and Dragon Slayer", which is even more popular with mainland audiences.
Even later, the Hong Kong entertainment industry gradually declined, Wu Yaohan is still active in front of the screen.
Although most of the roles are supporting roles, he is also known as the "golden supporting role" in the Hong Kong film industry with these supporting roles.
It can be said that in the past 40 years, he has handed over a perfect score and left an indelible impression in the hearts of countless audiences.
also because he likes him very much, the producer of the cartoon "Bear Infested" specially bought his portrait rights and created the role of "bald strong" based on him.
In 2022, 82-year-old Wu Yaohan starred in the movie "When the Wind Rises Again" starring Aaron Kwok. At that time, many viewers praised him for his unaged sword, and hoped to see his works on the screen again in the future.
But unexpectedly, this film became his posthumous work.
On April 9, 2023, Wu Yaohan, who had been tormented by illness for many years, passed away suddenly at the age of 83.
A month later, his family held a funeral at the funeral home, which his friend Sammo Hung attended for two days in a row.
The two have collaborated on several "Five Lucky Stars" series of movies and formed a deep friendship. has known each other for 40 years, but now it is separated by yin and yang, Sammo Hung looked at Wu Yaohan's coffin, and was distracted countless times.
But being able to see off his friends for the last time in person, Sammo Hung must not have left too many regrets.
03 Meng Hai, 65 years old
Meng Hai is also one of the "familiar faces" of Hong Kong comedy films.
He is Lin Zhengying's younger brother and one of the members of the "Hong Family Class".
He entered the drama school at the age of 7 to learn Peking Xi, and later studied under the famous Dao Ma Dan Pink Chrysanthemum, singing and playing very well. He entered the showbiz at the age of 10 and starred in the debut movie "Wind and Dust".
At the age of 14, he began to serve as a martial arts stand-in and martial arts instructor, and was selected by Bruce Lee at the age of 15, and has participated in a series of classic films such as "Unicorn Palm" and "Enter the Dragon".
But what is really well-known to the audience is the zombie series of movies he collaborated with his senior brother Lin Zhengying in his early years. In these films, he plays Lin Zhengying's apprentice "Xiaohai".
After Lin Zhengying's death, Meng Hai gradually moved from the front of the stage to the backstage, concentrating on martial arts instruction.
In terms of feelings, Meng Hai is also quite low-key. He once had a relationship with American actress Lo Flo, and it was already at the stage of talking about marriage, but because he didn't want to follow the woman to live in the United States, he chose to break up.
After breaking up with Loflo, he married an amateur wife outside the circle and gave birth to a daughter, and his life was dull and happy.
In 2022, Meng Hai went to the hospital for examination due to physical discomfort and was diagnosed with stage 4 esophageal cancer. He was rushed to the hospital, but the results did not improve.
Just two months later, he died at the age of 65.
In his last interview before his death, he also said that he hoped to have the opportunity to come back to filming, so that everyone would not trick him.
Who would have thought that this would become the biggest regret.
I hope he will get together with his senior brother Lin Zhengying in another world and go all the way!
04 Zhang Yingcai, 88 years old
Zhang Yingcai became famous in the fifties of the last century, and is a popular generation of students on the same level as Xie Xian and Lu Qi, and is also known as the "Treasure of the Shaw Brothers".
From the 50s to the 70s, he starred in nearly 200 film and television dramas. Among them, there are classic plays such as "The Legend of the Fairy Sleeve", "The Line in the Hands of the Mother", and "The Burning of Shaolin Temple".
But what is really well-known to the audience is the role of various monks or knights he played in TVB's costume dramas after the 70s.
For example, Ma Yu Daochang of the Quanzhen Sect, Duan Zhengming in Huang Rihua's version of "Tianlong Babu". In 1997, he starred in the remake of "Dragon Babu" as the "Yellow Eyebrow Monk".
For the young audience of the "post-80s", Zhang Yingcai's image of a virtuous monk has long been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Although I don't know his name, when I talk about the character, I will think of his face.
Unfortunately, on June 14, 2023, Zhang Yingcai died alone in a nursing home due to illness at the age of 88.
05 Wen Yuhong, 53 years old
On May 19, 2023, due to the recurrence of cancer, Hong Kong veteran female artist Wen Yuhong passed away at the age of 53.
In the posthumous photos exposed by her family, although she still showed a bright smile, from her sunken eyes and rugged body, it is not difficult to see that she was tormented by illness and became thinner, and she could no longer see her previous appearance.
For many viewers, the name Wen Yuhong is not familiar. But in the familiar TVB dramas, she can be seen active.
She joined Hong Kong Wireless in 1997 and officially debuted as an actor with the role of "Lu Bingbing" in "Criminal Investigation File 3".
In the same year, she successively played the role of "Mrs. Fang San" in "The Legend of Deer and Ding", made a cameo appearance as the maid of Princess Xixia in "Tianlong Babu", and played the role of Qiu Lian in "Miao Cuihua".
After the turn of the millennium, she has starred in classic dramas and movies such as "Sister Tuogun 2", "Wonderful Hands and Benevolence 3", "Forensic Pioneer 2", "Jewels", "Heart Storm", "Apostle Walker" and other classic dramas and movies, and is an indispensable "green leaf actor".
Her acting career can be regarded as smooth, but she lacks the classic role that became an instant hit.
Her physical health accounts for a large part of this regret. In 2005, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and began an 18-year journey to fight cancer.
During this period, she had to quit the showbiz and concentrate on her body. After her comeback, most of the scenes she got were supporting roles.
In 2020, Wen Yuhong revealed in an interview that she was recovering well and only needed regular check-ups and medication in the future. She is optimistic about the future and has starred in 6 works.
But what she didn't expect was that in just 3 years, her condition suddenly deteriorated, and finally she died after ineffective treatment.
06 Gu Jiahui, 92 years old
Gu Jiahui is an outstanding musician in the Hong Kong music scene, occupying half of the Hong Kong music scene, and is known as the "godfather of the Hong Kong music scene".
Born in Guangzhou in 1931, he fled to Hong Kong with his family at the age of 15. Throughout his life, he experienced war, immigration, poverty and other difficulties. But these difficulties also created his talent in music.
In the sixties of the last century, Gu Jiahui officially began his music career. He has been active in radio, record labels, and film companies, and has written many classic songs and soundtracks for singers, actors, and films.
For example, the classic soundtracks in the classic movies "Raptors Crossing the River", "The True Colors of Heroes", "Smiling Proud Rivers and Lakes", and "Thousands of Rivers, Thousands of Mountains are Always Love", almost all of them are from Gu Jiahui's hands.
Leslie Cheung's "Love of the Year", the classic songs "Iron Blood Heart" and "Always Hello in the World" are also Gu Jiahui's popular works.
Gu Jiahui has cooperated with many Hong Kong musicians in his life, but if you want to say that the best partner, it is Huang Zhan. Songs such as "Under the Lion Rock" and "Shanghai Beach" collaborated by the two are still sung in the world.
20 years ago, Gu Jiahui and Huang Zhan also held the "Hui Huang Concert", which received an extremely enthusiastic response at that time.
After Huang Zhan's death, Gu Jiahui, who was missing his best partner, had no intention of creating music.
In 2015, Gu Jiahui held his last concert, and since then he has announced his retirement from the music scene and faded out of public view.
I didn't expect to hear from him again, on January 4, 2023, he died at his home in Canada at the age of 92.
07 Zong Hua, 79 years old
Zong Hua is the former martial arts student of the Shaw Brothers.
Although he is handsome, he has not been highly praised because of the abundance of Shaw Brothers.
However, his early films, such as "The One-Armed Sword King", "The Great Warlord", "Seventy-two Tenants" and other film and television dramas, have left a deep impression on the older generation of audiences.
What made him really popular was "Meteor Butterfly Sword" directed by Chu Yuan.
The "Meng Xingsoul" he played is loved by the audience with his handsome image and withdrawn character.
Although this film is a smash hit, it is a pity that Zong Hua's acting career after him has not improved much.
After the Shaw Brothers movies gradually declined, Zong Hua also took advantage of the situation to go behind the scenes and directed a series of TV series. "Young Zhang Sanfeng", "Yang Guifei", "Xi Shi", etc., are the works directed by him.
It can be said that he has chosen the right path of transformation.
In the nineties of the last century, Zong Hua chose to retire and immigrated to the United States. In 2011, he returned to Taiwan to develop and starred in the TV series "Father and Son", "Feng Shui Family" and so on.
In April 2023, he passed away due to illness at the age of 79.
08 Kwong Yesheng, 63 years old
Kwong Ye-sang, a famous Hong Kong director and gold medal producer, occupies half of Hong Kong police films.
Hong Kong's well-known police and gangster films, such as the "Sister Tuogun" series, "Anti-Pornography Pioneer", "Anti-Black Pioneer", "Negotiator" and other dramas, are his representative works.
In addition to police and gangster films, Kwong Yesheng has also made achievements in costume comedies.
Although at that time, comedies such as "Hedong Lion's Roar" and "Drunk Golden Branch" were criticized as "fast food culture", it still became a childhood classic for a generation.
In 2013, Kwong suffered a stroke, and his left hand became dysfunctional, and he was also limited in walking on both legs. For this reason, he had to quit the showbiz and enter a sanatorium to recuperate.
In July 2023, Kwong Yesheng, who had been sick for many years, passed away at the age of 63.
09 Yu Wen, over 80 years old
Yu Wen is not only a Hong Kong actor, but also a famous martial arts instructor, a dragon and tiger martial artist, and a younger brother of Liu Jialiang.
His stage name is "Immortal", and he is generally called "Brother Immortal" in Hong Kong circles.
He has been a stand-in for Jackie Chan, and has also played important supporting roles in movies such as "One-armed Sword King", "Fang Shiyu", and "Wong Fei Hung".
In the early works, most of the audience had little impression. But his collaboration with Stephen Chow in "The King of Destruction", as well as Johnny To's "Underworld", many viewers should know.
In "The King of Destruction", he played the head of the Eagle Claw Gate and possessed a superb martial arts.
In "Underworld", he played the famous "Brother Long Gen", who is Louis Koo's boss in the play and his most out-of-the-circle role.
After that, he gradually faded out of the entertainment industry and began to become obsessed with his hobby - collecting antiques.
In 2020, Yu Wen, who has retired from filming, was invited to participate in the documentary "Dragon and Tiger Warrior" showing the 60-year history of Hong Kong action films as a Dragon and Tiger Warrior and a descendant of Hong Kong.
Famous martial arts actors such as Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Yuan Hua, and Qian Xiaohao also participated in the filming of the documentary.
But no one thought that this would be Yu Wen's last appearance.
Hong Kong's action movies and classic songs have accompanied generations through their youthful years.
With the death of well-known dragon and tiger warriors one after another, the profound imprints of youth in the memories seem to be gradually fading with them.
The audience misses not only them, but also their own youth.