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Asmahan was an Arab Druze singer and actress of Syrian origins who lived in Egypt. Having immigrated to Egypt in childhood, her family knew the composer Dawood Hosni, and she sang the compositions of Mohamed El Qasabgi and Zakariyya Ahmad. She also sang the compositions of Mohammed Abdel Wahab and her brother Farid al-Atrash, a then rising star musician in his own right.<br/><br/> Hers was the only female voice in Arab music to pose serious competition to that of Umm Kulthum, who is considered to be one of the Arab world's most distinguished singers of the 20th century. Her mysterious death in an automobile accident shocked the public. Journalists spread gossip about her turbulent personal life and an alleged espionage role in World War II.
Remarkable for their military prowess, their receptivity to Christianity, and their intricate all-embracing kinship network, the Kachins are a hardy mountain people living in the remote hills of northern Burma and on the peripheries of India and China.<br/><br/> 'Kachin' is actually a Burmese word that does not exist in any of the local dialects. Each Kachin tribe has a different name for themselves and their neighbours, but no word to describe the whole group. There are the Jinghpaw (known as Jingpo in China and Singpho in India), the Maru, the Lashi, the Atsi (or Szi), the Lisu and the Rawang—but those represent linguistic groups rather than actual nationalities. Far more important bonds are formed by an intricate system of clans, which cuts across tribal barriers.<br/><br/> Every 'Kachin' belongs to one of five original families: Marip, Maran, Lahpai, N'Hkum and Lattaw. These clans are related in an all-embracing kinship network of extreme complexity. In practice, however, this system binds together the Kachins into a remarkably tight-knit society.
Asmahan was an Arab Druze singer and actress of Syrian origins who lived in Egypt. Having immigrated to Egypt in childhood, her family knew the composer Dawood Hosni, and she sang the compositions of Mohamed El Qasabgi and Zakariyya Ahmad. She also sang the compositions of Mohammed Abdel Wahab and her brother Farid al-Atrash, a then rising star musician in his own right.<br/><br/> Hers was the only female voice in Arab music to pose serious competition to that of Umm Kulthum, who is considered to be one of the Arab world's most distinguished singers of the 20th century. Her mysterious death in an automobile accident shocked the public. Journalists spread gossip about her turbulent personal life and an alleged espionage role in World War II.
Umm Kulthum, born Fatimah Ibrahim as-Sayyid al-Biltagi, on December 30, and who died February 3, 1975, was an internationally famous Egyptian singer, songwriter, and film actress of the 1920s to the 1970s.<br/><br/> Four decades after her death in 1975, she is still widely regarded as perhaps the greatest Arabic singer ever.
The Tashrih al-aqvam ('An Account of Origins and Occupations of Some of the Sects, Castes, and Tribes of India') was completed in 1825. The text, a summary of the Vedas and Shastras, translated into Persian by Colonel James Skinner (1778–1841), is a survey of both Hindu and Muslim occupational groups and religious mendicants in the Delhi region and begins with an account of the house of Timur down to Akbar II (r. 1806–37).<br/><br/> Skinner commissioned Delhi artists to illustrate the album, the chief of them being Ghulam Ali Khan. The artist accompanied Skinner on his travels, and the watercolor portraits are probably all studies from life.
Umm Kulthum, born Fatimah Ibrahim as-Sayyid al-Biltagi, on December 30, and who died February 3, 1975, was an internationally famous Egyptian singer, songwriter, and film actress of the 1920s to the 1970s.<br/><br/> Four decades after her death in 1975, she is still widely regarded as perhaps the greatest Arabic singer ever.
Istanbul's Hagia Sophia (Greek) or Ayasofya (Turkish) was originally constructed as a main Eastern Orthodox church and served in this role from 537 CE until the fall of Constantinople in 1453 (except between 1204 and 1261 when it was converted by the Fourth Crusaders to a Roman Catholic cathedral).<br/><br/> When the Ottoman Turks under Mehmed II conquered Constantinople, the Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque and Christian relics and art were either removed or plastered over. It remained a mosque for almost 500 years, before being converted into a museum between 1931 and 1935.<br/><br/> Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and influenced the design of numerous mosques in what is now Istanbul.
Asmahan was an Arab Druze singer and actress of Syrian origins who lived in Egypt. Having immigrated to Egypt in childhood, her family knew the composer Dawood Hosni, and she sang the compositions of Mohamed El Qasabgi and Zakariyya Ahmad. She also sang the compositions of Mohammed Abdel Wahab and her brother Farid al-Atrash, a then rising star musician in his own right.<br/><br/> Hers was the only female voice in Arab music to pose serious competition to that of Umm Kulthum, who is considered to be one of the Arab world's most distinguished singers of the 20th century. Her mysterious death in an automobile accident shocked the public. Journalists spread gossip about her turbulent personal life and an alleged espionage role in World War II.
Zhouzhuang is one of the most famous water townships in China and dates back to the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BCE - 476 BCE). Most of the ancient own seen today was in fact built during either during the Ming or Qing periods.
Zhouzhuang is one of the most famous water townships in China and dates back to the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BCE - 476 BCE). Most of the ancient own seen today was in fact built during either during the Ming or Qing periods.
Nanning was originally founded during the Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368), although there was a county seat here called Jinxing as far back as 318 CE.<br/><br/> Opened to foreign trade by the Chinese in 1907, Nanning grew rapidly. From 1912 to 1936 it was the provincial capital of Guangxi, replacing Guilin.<br/><br/> Due to its proximity to the Vietnamese border Nanning became a major centre for supplying Ho Chi Minh's North Vietnam during the Second Indochina War (Vietnam War).
Bedouin (from the Arabic badawī بَدَوِي, pl. badw بَدْو or badawiyyūn بَدَوِيُّون) are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arabian ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes, or clans, known in Arabic as ʿašāʾir (عَشَائِر).The term 'Bedouin' derives from a plural form of the Arabic word badawī, as it is pronounced in colloquial dialects. The Arabic term badawī (بدوي) derives from the word bādiyah (بَادِية), which means semiarid desert (as opposed to ṣaḥarāʾ صَحَرَاء, which means desert).<br/><br/> Starting in the late nineteenth century, many Bedouin under British rule began to transit to a seminomadic life. In the 1950s and 1960s, large numbers of Bedouin throughout Midwest Asia started to leave the traditional, nomadic life to settle in the cities of Midwest Asia, especially as hot ranges have shrunk and populations have grown. For example, in Syria the Bedouin way of life effectively ended during a severe drought from 1958 to 1961, which forced many Bedouin to abandon herding for standard jobs. Similarly, governmental policies in Egypt and Israel, oil production in the Persian Gulf, as well as a desire for improved standards of living, effectively led most Bedouin to become settled citizens of various nations, rather than stateless nomadic herders.
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919) was an American statesman, author, explorer, soldier, naturalist, and reformer who served as the 26th President of the United States from 1901 to 1909.<br/><br/> As a leader of the Republican Party during this time, he became a driving force for the Progressive Era in the United States in the early 20th century.
Yoshiko made her debut as an actress and singer in the 1938 film Honeymoon Express. She was billed as Li Xianglan, pronounced Ri Kōran in Japanese. The adoption of a Chinese stage name was prompted by the Film company's economic and political motives—a Manchurian girl who had command over both the Japanese and Chinese languages was sought after. From this she rose to be a star and Japan-Manchuria Goodwill Ambassadress. Though in her subsequent films she was almost exclusively billed as Li Xianglan; she indeed appeared in a few as "Yamaguchi Yoshiko." Many of her films bore some degree of promotion of the Japanese national policy (in particular pertaining to the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere ideology).<br/><br/> At the end of World War II, she was arrested by Chinese government for treason and collaboration with the Japanese. However, she was cleared of all charges, and possibly the death penalty, since she was not a Chinese national, and thus the Chinese government could not try her for treason. And before long in 1946, she settled in Japan and launched a new acting career there under the name Yoshiko Yamaguchi.<br/><br/> In 1974, she was elected to the House of Councillors (the upper House of the Japanese parliament), where she served for 18 years (three terms).
Yao Lee (姚莉), also known as Yiu Lei and Miss Hue Lee, was a Chinese singer from the 1930s to the 1970s. By the 1940s, she became one of the seven great singing stars.<br/><br/> Born in Shanghai, Yao began performing with a radio appearance there in 1935 at the age of 13. She was signed to Pathe Records. Yao was known as 'the Silver Voice' (銀嗓子) alluding to fellow Shanghai singer Zhou Xuan, who was known as 'the Golden Voice' (金嗓子).<br/><br/> Following the Communist seizure of power in China in 1949, popular music was considered ideologically suspect and Yao fled to Hong Kong in 1950 to continue her singing career there. She stopped singing in 1967 with the death of her brother, but took an executive position with EMI Music Hong Kong in 1969.<br/><br/> In 1970, she returned to performing and traveled to Taiwan to perform there for the first time and sought unsuccessfully to sign Teresa Teng to EMI for the Hong Kong market. She retired officially in 1975.
Yao Lee (姚莉), also known as Yiu Lei and Miss Hue Lee, was a Chinese singer from the 1930s to the 1970s. By the 1940s, she became one of the seven great singing stars.<br/><br/> Born in Shanghai, Yao began performing with a radio appearance there in 1935 at the age of 13. She was signed to Pathe Records. Yao was known as 'the Silver Voice' (銀嗓子) alluding to fellow Shanghai singer Zhou Xuan, who was known as 'the Golden Voice' (金嗓子).<br/><br/> Following the Communist seizure of power in China in 1949, popular music was considered ideologically suspect and Yao fled to Hong Kong in 1950 to continue her singing career there. She stopped singing in 1967 with the death of her brother, but took an executive position with EMI Music Hong Kong in 1969.<br/><br/> In 1970, she returned to performing and traveled to Taiwan to perform there for the first time and sought unsuccessfully to sign Teresa Teng to EMI for the Hong Kong market. She retired officially in 1975.
Yu So Chow (Chinese: 于素秋; pinyin: Yú Sù Qiū; Yale Cantonese: yū sou chāu) is a Chinese actress born in Beijing on July 9, 1930 to a Peking opera family. She is the daughter of late Master Yu Jim Yuen who ran the China Drama Academy, a Peking Opera School in Hong Kong, and teacher of many well-known actors.<br/><br/> She started her acting career in 1948 and made over 240 films in the wuxia, kung fu, action, detective and Cantonese opera genres. Her films were successful at the box-office and she was one of the most popular superstars of the 1960s in Asia and Hong Kong.
Wu was born to an intellectual family with her father a chemical engineer and mother a doctor. She enjoyed singing to radio tunes at an early age. She originally wanted to go to the Shanghai Academy of Music, but her parents opposed the idea and claimed that the music industry was for individuals with no real ambition. She later began singing for radio stations at night, particularly for the children's programs.<br/><br/> Wu had a soft singing voice that made her a success. She continued to sing without her family knowing so and used the stage name 'Wu Yingyin'. In 1945 she became a nightclub singer and garnered acclaim for her performances. Most of her vocal techniques were self-taught. At the age of 24, she participated in a nightclub competition. Winning the crown, she was discovered and immediately signed to a contract with Pathé Records (China) record company. Her first record (我想忘了你 'I Want to Forget You) became a hit. In total, Pathé Records produced 30 albums for her. She was affectionately nicknamed 鼻音歌后 ('Queen of the Nasal Voice').<br/><br/> She relocated to Hong Kong in 1957 where she continued her singing career. She returned to China for recordings in 1983 in Guangzhou. In July 1984, she moved from Hong Kong to Pasadena, California. At the age of 80, she was still singing in overseas Chinese neighborhood community events for charitable causes. At the time, she was regarded as one of the world's oldest active singers.<br/><br/> She would also sing in Singapore, and on January 3, 2003 she was invited to perform at the Shanghai Grand Theatre. Wu died in Los Angeles on 17 December 2009.
Li was born Qian Zhenzhen in Beijing, 1915. Her father, Qian Zhuangfei, was an important figure among the early heroes of the Communist Party. In 1927 she moved to Shanghai, where her father encouraged her to join the China National Song & Dance Troupe, later renamed Bright Moon Song and Dance Troupe. Li Jinhui, later known as the Father of Chinese popular music, was the conductor of the troupe and adopted her as his god-daughter, and she adopted his surname.<br/><br/> The troupe were very popular in 1920s Shanghai. Li Lili, Wang Renmei, Xue Lingxian and Hu Jia were known as the Four Divas. The troupe joined the Lianhua Film Company in 1931, and disbanded the troupe the next year. Li became an actress, and starred in Sun Yu's 1932 Loving Blood of the Volcano. Set in the South Seas with plenty of dancing, this allowed Li to play to her strengths. She and Wang Renmei then acted together in Poetry Written on the Banana Leaf.<br/><br/> After war with Japan broke out in 1937, she joined the China Film Studio in Chongqing. There she met and married Luo Jingyu, a section head, who became head of the studio. In 1939 she filmed Cai Chusheng's Orphan Island Paradise in Hong Kong; it was another hit. Back in Chongqing, she starred in another hit film Storm on the Border, for which she was highly praised.<br/><br/> Li travelled to the United States in 1946, studying acting at Catholic University in Washington, language and singing in New York, and make-up at the University of California. She also observed filmmaking at Hollywood. She returned to China, and to acting at the Beijing Film Studio. In 1955, she studied at Beijing Film Academy, and later taught in the acting department. Her son, Luo Dan, married the daughter of Marshal Ye Jianying; Ye became China's head of state in the late 1970s.<br/><br/> During the Cultural Revolution, Li and her husband were denounced and tortured on the orders of Mao's wife Jiang Qing. Li had acted with her, and outshone her, in films such as Blood on Wolf Mountain. Li later told her family that she refused to denounce anyone. Luo, however, was killed.<br/><br/> In 1991, she was given the 'Special Honour Award' by the Chinese Academy of Motion Picture Arts. By the end of her life, Li Lili was the last living Chinese movie star from the silent era. She died of a heart attack in Xuanwu Hospital, Beijing on August 7, 2005, aged 90.
At a young age Bai joined the Bright Moonlight Song and Dance Troupe, where she entered the Shanghai entertainment industry. She used the stage name (白虹), which translates as 'White Rainbow'.<br/><br/> By the 1930s, she was a popular icon, known for her mastery of language and clarity in expressing lyrics, which helped her gain many fans. In the 1930s, she was recognized as one of the three great 'mandopop' singers with Zhou Xuan and Gong Qiuxia.<br/><br/> Her career peaked in the 1940s, when her music style changed more to uptempo jazz. She was married to the composer Li Jin Guang(黎锦光), though they later separated in a divorce in the 1950s. She stayed in China after 1949 and continued making films. During the Cultural Revolution her past association with the old Shanghai days caught up to her, and she was subjected to persecution and abuse. In 1992, she died at the age of 73.
Zhou was born Su Pu (蘇璞), but was separated from her natural parents at a young age and raised by adoptive parents. She spent her entire life searching for her biological parents but her parentage was never established until after her death.<br/><br/> According to later family research, a relative who was an opium addict took her at the age of 3 to another city and sold her to a family named Wang, who named her Wang Xiaohong. She was later adopted by a family named Zhou, changing her name to Zhou Xiaohong.<br/><br/> At the age of 13 she took Zhou Xuan as her stage name, 'Xuan' (璇) meaning 'beautiful jade' in Chinese. Zhou started acting in 1935, but she achieved stardom in 1937 in Street Angel, when director Yuan Muzhi cast her as one of the leads as a singing girl.<br/><br/> 'Golden Voice' (金嗓子) was Zhou's nickname to commend her singing talents after a singing competition in Shanghai, where she came in second. Zhou rapidly became the most famous and marketable popular singer in the gramophone era up to her death, singing many famous tunes from her own movies. Her light but eminently musical voice captured the hearts of millions of Chinese of her time.<br/><br/> After introducing 'Shanghai Nights' (夜上海) in 1949, Zhou returned to Shanghai. She spent the next few years in and out of mental institutions owing to frequent breakdowns. Through the years, Zhou led a complicated and unhappy life marked by her failed marriages, illegitimate children, and suicide attempts. In 1957 she died in Shanghai in a mental asylum at the age of 39 during an Anti-Rightist Movement.
Zhou was born Su Pu (蘇璞), but was separated from her natural parents at a young age and raised by adoptive parents. She spent her entire life searching for her biological parents but her parentage was never established until after her death.<br/><br/> According to later family research, a relative who was an opium addict took her at the age of 3 to another city and sold her to a family named Wang, who named her Wang Xiaohong. She was later adopted by a family named Zhou, changing her name to Zhou Xiaohong.<br/><br/> At the age of 13 she took Zhou Xuan as her stage name, 'Xuan' (璇) meaning 'beautiful jade' in Chinese. Zhou started acting in 1935, but she achieved stardom in 1937 in Street Angel, when director Yuan Muzhi cast her as one of the leads as a singing girl.<br/><br/> 'Golden Voice' (金嗓子) was Zhou's nickname to commend her singing talents after a singing competition in Shanghai, where she came in second. Zhou rapidly became the most famous and marketable popular singer in the gramophone era up to her death, singing many famous tunes from her own movies. Her light but eminently musical voice captured the hearts of millions of Chinese of her time.<br/><br/> After introducing 'Shanghai Nights' (夜上海) in 1949, Zhou returned to Shanghai. She spent the next few years in and out of mental institutions owing to frequent breakdowns. Through the years, Zhou led a complicated and unhappy life marked by her failed marriages, illegitimate children, and suicide attempts. In 1957 she died in Shanghai in a mental asylum at the age of 39 during an Anti-Rightist Movement.
The Tacuinum (sometimes Taccuinum) Sanitatis is a medieval handbook on health and wellbeing, based on the Taqwim al‑sihha تقويم الصحة ('Maintenance of Health'), an eleventh-century Arab medical treatise by Ibn Butlan of Baghdad.<br/><br/> Ibn Butlân was a Christian physician born in Baghdad and who died in 1068. He sets forth the six elements necessary to maintain daily health: food and drink, air and the environment, activity and rest, sleep and wakefulness, secretions and excretions of humours, changes or states of mind (happiness, anger, shame, etc). According to Ibn Butlân, illnesses are the result of changes in the balance of some of these elements, therefore he recommended a life in harmony with nature in order to maintain or recover one’s health.<br/><br/> Ibn Butlân also teaches us to enjoy each season of the year, the consequences of each type of climate, wind and snow. He points out the importance of spiritual wellbeing and mentions, for example, the benefits of listening to music, dancing or having a pleasant conversation.<br/><br/> Aimed at a cultured lay audience, the text exists in several variant Latin versions, the manuscripts of which are characteristically profusely illustrated. The short paragraphs of the treatise were freely translated into Latin in mid-thirteenth-century Palermo or Naples, continuing an Italo-Norman tradition as one of the prime sites for peaceable inter-cultural contact between the Islamic and European worlds.<br/><br/> Four handsomely illustrated complete late fourteenth-century manuscripts of the Taccuinum, all produced in Lombardy, survive, in Vienna, Paris, Liège and Rome, as well as scattered illustrations from others, as well as fifteenth-century codices.
Vietnam has a long tradition of music and theatre that combines indigenous and foreign influences. The earliest known instruments are the frog drums of the Dong Son Period from around 250BC. This was followed by a millennium of immersion in Chinese cultural traditions which remains very apparent.<br/><br/> In 981, after the reassertion of national independence, King Le Dai Hanh invaded neighbouring Champa and carried the royal court dancers and musicians back to his capital. Consequently traditional Vietnamese music is considered to blend Dong Son techniques with those of China as well as, through the Hinduised Kingdom of Champa, Indian musical forms. It is based a five-tone scale in contrast to the eight-tone scale generally used in the West.
Vietnam has a long tradition of music and theatre that combines indigenous and foreign influences. The earliest known instruments are the frog drums of the Dong Son Period from around 250BC. This was followed by a millennium of immersion in Chinese cultural traditions which remains very apparent.<br/><br/> In 981, after the reassertion of national independence, King Le Dai Hanh invaded neighbouring Champa and carried the royal court dancers and musicians back to his capital. Consequently traditional Vietnamese music is considered to blend Dong Son techniques with those of China as well as, through the Hinduised Kingdom of Champa, Indian musical forms. It is based a five-tone scale in contrast to the eight-tone scale generally used in the West.
Vietnam has a long tradition of music and theatre that combines indigenous and foreign influences. The earliest known instruments are the frog drums of the Dong Son Period from around 250BC. This was followed by a millennium of immersion in Chinese cultural traditions which remains very apparent.<br/><br/> In 981, after the reassertion of national independence, King Le Dai Hanh invaded neighbouring Champa and carried the royal court dancers and musicians back to his capital. Consequently traditional Vietnamese music is considered to blend Dong Son techniques with those of China as well as, through the Hinduised Kingdom of Champa, Indian musical forms. It is based a five-tone scale in contrast to the eight-tone scale generally used in the West.
Vietnam has a long tradition of music and theatre that combines indigenous and foreign influences. The earliest known instruments are the frog drums of the Dong Son Period from around 250BC. This was followed by a millennium of immersion in Chinese cultural traditions which remains very apparent.<br/><br/> In 981, after the reassertion of national independence, King Le Dai Hanh invaded neighbouring Champa and carried the royal court dancers and musicians back to his capital. Consequently traditional Vietnamese music is considered to blend Dong Son techniques with those of China as well as, through the Hinduised Kingdom of Champa, Indian musical forms. It is based a five-tone scale in contrast to the eight-tone scale generally used in the West.
Yoshiko made her debut as an actress and singer in the 1938 film Honeymoon Express. She was billed as Li Xianglan, pronounced Ri Kōran in Japanese. The adoption of a Chinese stage name was prompted by the Film company's economic and political motives—a Manchurian girl who had command over both the Japanese and Chinese languages was sought after. From this she rose to be a star and Japan-Manchuria Goodwill Ambassadress. Though in her subsequent films she was almost exclusively billed as Li Xianglan; she indeed appeared in a few as 'Yamaguchi Yoshiko.' Many of her films bore some degree of promotion of the Japanese national policy (in particular pertaining to the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere ideology).<br/><br/> At the end of World War II, she was arrested by Chinese government for treason and collaboration with the Japanese. However, she was cleared of all charges, and possibly the death penalty, since she was not a Chinese national, and thus the Chinese government could not try her for treason. And before long in 1946, she settled in Japan and launched a new acting career there under the name Yoshiko Yamaguchi.<br/><br/> In 1974, she was elected to the House of Councillors (the upper House of the Japanese parliament), where she served for 18 years (three terms).
Yoshiko made her debut as an actress and singer in the 1938 film Honeymoon Express. She was billed as Li Xianglan, pronounced Ri Kōran in Japanese. The adoption of a Chinese stage name was prompted by the Film company's economic and political motives—a Manchurian girl who had command over both the Japanese and Chinese languages was sought after. From this she rose to be a star and Japan-Manchuria Goodwill Ambassadress. Though in her subsequent films she was almost exclusively billed as Li Xianglan; she indeed appeared in a few as 'Yamaguchi Yoshiko.' Many of her films bore some degree of promotion of the Japanese national policy (in particular pertaining to the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere ideology).<br/><br/> At the end of World War II, she was arrested by Chinese government for treason and collaboration with the Japanese. However, she was cleared of all charges, and possibly the death penalty, since she was not a Chinese national, and thus the Chinese government could not try her for treason. And before long in 1946, she settled in Japan and launched a new acting career there under the name Yoshiko Yamaguchi.<br/><br/> In 1974, she was elected to the House of Councillors (the upper House of the Japanese parliament), where she served for 18 years (three terms).
Meng Xiaodong was born in Shanghai in 1907 and by the age of 13 was already singing Peking Opera at the Da Shijie 'Great World' Entertainment Complex. During the course of her professional career she sang all over China, always returning to Shanghai. In Chinese opera, she always played bearded men.<br/><br/> In 1925, Shanghai-born 18 year-old Meng Xiaodong met Mei Lanfang for the first time while performing on stage together during a minister's birthday party in Beijing. Over a year later, she married Mei and became his third wife. They had a daughter together just before their marriage ended in 1931. Reportedly, they never spoke to each other again. In a strange twist of fate, Meng Xiaodong later became the concubine and then fifth wife of Shanghai gangster, Green Gang leader and right wing politician Du Yuesheng ('Big Ears Du').<br/><br/> Meng Xiaodong moved to Taiwan in the 1960s, died in 1977, and is buried in the Buddhist cemetery at Jinglu Temple at Shanjia, Shulin in Taipei County.
Meng Xiaodong was born in Shanghai in 1907 and by the age of 13 was already singing Peking Opera at the Da Shijie 'Great World' Entertainment Complex. During the course of her professional career she sang all over China, always returning to Shanghai. In Chinese opera, she always played bearded men.<br/><br/> In 1925, Shanghai-born 18 year-old Meng Xiaodong met Mei Lanfang for the first time while performing on stage together during a minister's birthday party in Beijing. Over a year later, she married Mei and became his third wife. They had a daughter together just before their marriage ended in 1931. Reportedly, they never spoke to each other again. In a strange twist of fate, Meng Xiaodong later became the concubine and then fifth wife of Shanghai gangster, Green Gang leader and right wing politician Du Yuesheng ('Big Ears Du').<br/><br/> Meng Xiaodong moved to Taiwan in the 1960s, died in 1977, and is buried in the Buddhist cemetery at Jinglu Temple at Shanjia, Shulin in Taipei County.
Meng Xiaodong was born in Shanghai in 1907 and by the age of 13 was already singing Peking Opera at the Da Shijie 'Great World' Entertainment Complex. During the course of her professional career she sang all over China, always returning to Shanghai. In Chinese opera, she always played bearded men.<br/><br/> In 1925, Shanghai-born 18 year-old Meng Xiaodong met Mei Lanfang for the first time while performing on stage together during a minister's birthday party in Beijing. Over a year later, she married Mei and became his third wife. They had a daughter together just before their marriage ended in 1931. Reportedly, they never spoke to each other again. In a strange twist of fate, Meng Xiaodong later became the concubine and then fifth wife of Shanghai gangster, Green Gang leader and right wing politician Du Yuesheng ('Big Ears Du').<br/><br/> Meng Xiaodong moved to Taiwan in the 1960s, died in 1977, and is buried in the Buddhist cemetery at Jinglu Temple at Shanjia, Shulin in Taipei County.
Meng Xiaodong was born in Shanghai in 1907 and by the age of 13 was already singing Peking Opera at the Da Shijie 'Great World' Entertainment Complex. During the course of her professional career she sang all over China, always returning to Shanghai. In Chinese opera, she always played bearded men.<br/><br/> In 1925, Shanghai-born 18 year-old Meng Xiaodong met Mei Lanfang for the first time while performing on stage together during a minister's birthday party in Beijing. Over a year later, she married Mei and became his third wife. They had a daughter together just before their marriage ended in 1931. Reportedly, they never spoke to each other again. In a strange twist of fate, Meng Xiaodong later became the concubine and then fifth wife of Shanghai gangster, Green Gang leader and right wing politician Du Yuesheng ('Big Ears Du').<br/><br/> Meng Xiaodong moved to Taiwan in the 1960s, died in 1977, and is buried in the Buddhist cemetery at Jinglu Temple at Shanjia, Shulin in Taipei County.
Singer Corporation is a manufacturer of sewing machines, first established as I.M. Singer & Co. in 1851 by Isaac Merritt Singer with New York lawyer Edward Clark. It was renamed Singer Manufacturing Company in 1865, then The Singer Company in 1963. It is currently based in La Vergne, Tennessee near Nashville. Its first large factory for mass production was built in Elizabeth, New Jersey in 1863.
Vietnam's independence was gradually eroded by France in a series of military conquests from 1859 until 1885 when the entire country became part of French Indochina. Significant political and cultural changes were placed on the Vietnamese people, including the propagation of Roman Catholicism. When Emperor Thanh Thai, who was opposed to French colonial rule, was exiled in 1907, the French decided to pass the throne to his son who was only seven years old, because they thought someone so young would be easily influenced and controlled. The boy emperor, Duy Tan, ruled as emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty from 1907 to 1916 before fleeing from Hue to resist the French.
Illustration by the Austrian artist Friedrich Schiff, who lived in Shanghai during the 1930s and 1940s. His images exemplify the 'anything goes' atmosphere and indulgence amidst poverty that characterised Old Shanghai and which would soon be brought to an abrupt end by Japanese invasion (1937) and Communist revolution (1949).
Meng Xiaodong was born in Shanghai in 1907 and by the age of 13 was already singing Peking Opera at the Da Shijie 'Great World' Entertainment Complex. During the course of her professional career she sang all over China, always returning to Shanghai. In Chinese opera, she always played bearded men.<br/><br/> In 1925, Shanghai-born 18 year-old Meng Xiaodong met Mei Lanfang for the first time while performing on stage together during a minister's birthday party in Beijing. Over a year later, she married Mei and became his third wife. They had a daughter together just before their marriage ended in 1931. Reportedly, they never spoke to each other again. In a strange twist of fate, Meng Xiaodong later became the concubine and then fifth wife of Shanghai gangster, Green Gang leader and right wing politician Du Yuesheng ('Big Ears Du').<br/><br/> Meng Xiaodong moved to Taiwan in the 1960s, died in 1977, and is buried in the Buddhist cemetery at Jinglu Temple at Shanjia, Shulin in Taipei County.
Bai Guang (birth name Chinese: 史永芬; pinyin: Shǐ Yǒngfēn; 1921, Beiping, now Beijing, China – August 27, 1999 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) was a famous movie star and singer. Her stage name was (白光), which means 'white light'. In an age and culture where light, higher voices were usually favored, she had a slightly deep and hoarse voice, which helped her become a big star in Shanghai. People called her the 'Queen of the Low Voice' (低音歌后).<br/><br/> Bai's big screen career started in 1943. She was known for playing seductive roles due to her flirtatious image on screen and has also played villains at times. She lent a more dramatic tone or sexy attitude to her songs. Some of her hits include 'Autumn Evening' (秋夜), 'Without You' (如果沒有你), 'The Pretender' (假正經), 'Revisiting Old Dreams' (魂縈舊夢), and 'Waiting For You' (等著你回來).<br/><br/> After the Communist takeover in 1949, Bai moved to Hong Kong. In 1969 she resettled in Malaysia. On August 27, 1999 she died in Kuala Lumpur at the age of 78.