Kim Chan

Kim Chan (born Kim Shung Chan; ; December 28, 1917 – October 5, 2008) was a Chinese–American actor and producer. He was most notable for his roles as Lo Si, a.k.a. The Ancient, in '' Kung Fu: The Legend Continues'' and Mr. Kim in ''The Fifth Element''.

Early life, family and education

Kim Shung Chan was born in Shanghai, to a family originally from Taishan, Guangdong. Together with his father and two sisters, Chan immigrated to the United States in 1928, first living in Rhode Island before settling in the Bronx in New York City in 1938. Chan's father, Sou Chan, ran the House of Chan restaurant in Manhattan, where Chan worked as a ''maître d. Having held a life-long fascination with the film industry, he left this position in the 1940s to pursue an acting career, which led to his father cutting off ties with him. Although Chan was happy with the higher wages for work as an extra, he had frequent financial difficulties and was homeless for two years. He primarily worked as a construction worker during this time.

Chan never married, but had romantic relationships with non-Chinese women. He had no biological children, but had an adoptive son, Michael Chandler.

Career

Chan was a familiar character actor, especially when he was elderly. An early role that brought him notice was in the Martin Scorsese classic '' The King of Comedy'' with Robert De Niro and Jerry Lewis, in which he played Lewis' butler.

He played the character Lo Si a.k.a. The Ancient in 52 episodes of '' Kung Fu: The Legend Continues'' from 1993 thru 1997. He also played the villainous monk Ping Hai on the TV series. The series was a revised version of the original 1973 classic, Kung Fu with both series starring David Carradine. He played the recurring villain The Eggman in four episodes of the science fiction TV series '' Now and Again''. He appeared in many guest roles in series, including '' Mad About You'' (1998), '' Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' (2002), and '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' (2004).

Other film roles include Uncle Benny Chan in ''Lethal Weapon 4''(1998), the father of Chon Wang (Jackie Chan) in '' Shanghai Knights'' (2003), Mr. Kim in ''The Fifth Element'' (1997), Fuji in '' Who's the Man?'' (1993), Benny Wong in '' The Corruptor''(1999), The Master in '' Zen Noir'' (2004), and a cameo appearance as a waiter in '' Private Parts'' (1997). He was also a producer on ''Zen Noir''.

Death

Chan died on October 5, 2008 in Brooklyn, after being hospitalized for respiratory disease. His age at death is most commonly reported as 90, although he had reportedly told Linda Wang that he was 93 shortly before he died. His niece Judy Gee also claimed that he was likely 93 or 94 years old.

He was featured in a photography exhibit when he was in his 90s. In October 2009, a year after his death, Chan appeared on the cover of the journal ''The Gerontologist'' beside his photography portrait.

Honors and awards

In November 1999, the Screen Actors Guild presented Chan with an award for lifetime achievement. He received another award for lifetime achievement in August 2004 at the Rhode Island International Film Festival.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

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Kim Chan's obituary


The Low Rent Kim Chan Fan Club
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Chan, Kim
1917 births
2008 deaths
American male film actors
Chinese emigrants to the United States
Male actors from Shanghai
Chinese male film actors
20th-century American male actors