# Chen Yanyan

Chen Yanyan (Chinese: 陳燕燕; Wade–Giles: Ch'en Yen-yen; 12 January 1916 – 7 May 1999), born Chen Jianyan, was a Chinese actress and film producer in the cinema of Republic of China (1912–1949), British Hong Kong and Taiwan.

## Life

Chen was born as Chen Jianyan in Ningbo, China in 1916. Chen was obsessed with films as a young girl. When she was 14 she visited the set of "Spring Dream in the Old Capital (故都春梦)" which the Lianhua Film Company was recording in Beijing. She returned each day after attending the Sacred Heart Girls School and struck up a conversation with Cai Chusheng who was to shortly direct his own films. She was given a chance to appear in the film as a screen test by the director Sun Yu. Her appearance was not included in the film as she had been cast as a prostitute and she looked too young for that to be acceptable. However the film was successful she was offered a job but it was only with great difficulty that she persuaded her father. The film company sent around one of their actresses, Lim Cho Cho, who was known for her integrity. Her father was persuaded but he insisted that she never discussed her work at home and that she would not use the family's name.
Chen left for Shanghai with her mother as a chaperone and within three years she was an acknowledged star known as "The Swallow" with a particular appeal to college students. Chen had a very good Mandarin accent which was useful as sound appeared in Chinese movies in the 1930s.
In 1932 she starred in her first film "Nanguo zhi Chun" 南国之春 (Springtime in the South). She also co-starred in the film Three Modern Women which told of three archetypal women competing for the love of the hero. The story was well received and in particular its left-wing approach.
The 1934 film "The Great Road" is thought to have brought her star status when she played Dingxiang (Orchid). Hers is the last face to appear onscreen. This film also made a star of Li Lili and these two together with Ruan Lingyu and Wang Renmei were the female stars of the Lianhua film company.
In 1937 the war began in Shanghai and she soon married Huang Shaofen who was a cinematographer she had known for some years. They had a daughter, Wong Tin-lai (王天丽), but ended in divorce. She stayed in Shanghai and worked for the Xinhua Film Company where she again became a bankable star in their films.
In 1949 she moved and she co-founded her own company Haiyan Film Studio in Hong Kong with her second husband Wang Hao 王豪. The company made two films and the company ended at the same time as the marriage.
Chen produced two films herself, "Love Fiesta", in 1957 and in 1961 "Shark of the Pacific". She won a best supporting actress award in 1961 at the Asian Film Festival for her appearance in the 1961 film "Misfortune". In 1963 she joined the Hong Kong-based Shaw Brothers Studio and she gained more award nominations for her acting.
Chen retired from films in 1972, but she still appeared on TV. In 1991 she appeared as herself in "Center Stage" which was a film about the short life of her fellow actress Ruan Lingyu.
Chen died in 1999.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | English title | Original title | Role | Notes |
| 1930 | Dream of the Ancient Capital | 故都春夢 | | Lost |
| 1930 | Suicide Contract | 自殺合同 | | Lost |
| 1931 | Love and Duty | 戀愛與義務 | Ping'er | |
| 1931 | A Spray of Plum Blossoms | 一剪梅 | A Qiao (Lucetta) | |
| 1931 | Two Stars in the Milky Way | 銀漢雙星 | | |
| 1932 | Story of the South | 南國之春 | Li Xiaohong | |
| 1932 | Conscienceless | 人道 | | Lost |
| 1932 | Answering the Nation's Call | 共赴國難 | | Lost? |
| 1932 | Another Dream of the Ancient Capital | 續故都春夢 | | Lost |
| 1932 | Struggling | 奮鬥 | | |
| 1933 | Three Modern Women | 三個摩登女性 | Chen Ruoying | Lost |
| 1933 | New Year's Eve | 除夕 | | Lost |
| 1933 | The Light of Maternal Instinct | 母性之光 | Shao Mei | |
| 1934 | Pear Flowers in Rainstorm | 暴雨梨花 | | Lost |
| 1934 | The Iron Bird | 鐵鳥 | | Lost |
| 1934 | The Kindred Feelings | 骨肉之恩 | | Lost |
| 1934 | The Big Road | 大路 | Ding Xiang | |
| 1935 | The Evil Beauty | 蛇蠍美人 | | Lost |
| 1935 | Song of China | 天倫 | | |
| 1935 | A Fallen Goose by the Cold River | 寒江落雁 | | |
| 1936 | A Heroic Girl | 孤城烈女 | Chen Yiyi | |
| 1937 | Lianhua Symphony | 聯華交響曲 | | Segment 2: "Nightmare in Spring Chamber" (春閨斷夢) |
| 1937 | Spring Comes Everywhere | 春到人間 | | |
| 1937 | Song of a Kind Mother | 慈母曲 | | |
| 1937 | The Free World | 自由天地 | | |
| 1937 | New and Old Times | 新舊時代 | | |
| 1937 | Vistas of Art | 藝海風光 | | Part 2: "Drama Troupe" (話劇團) |
| 1938 | A Beggar Girl | 乞丐千金 | | |
| 1938 | Thunderstorm | 雷雨 | | |
| 1938 | Four Concubines | 四潘金蓮 | | |
| 1939 | A Legendary Pipa | 琵琶記 | | |
| 1939 | Regrets of Life and Death | 生死恨 | | |
| 1939 | The White Snake | 白蛇傳 | | |
| 1940 | Legend of Sui Dynasty | 隋宮春色 | | |
| 1940 | The Flower Girl | 花魁女 | | |
| 1940 | Du Shiniang | 杜十娘 | | |
| 1940 | A Ghost | 女鬼 | | |
| 1941 | Bloody Tears Behind the Iron Window | 鐵窗紅淚 | | |
| 1941 | Family | 家 | | |
| 1942 | Wedding Night | 洞房花燭夜 | | |
| 1942 | Standard Lady | 標準夫人 | | |
| 1942 | Madame Butterfly | 蝴蝶夫人 | | |
| 1942 | Compassion | 博愛 | | |
| 1942 | Youth Passes in Vain | 芳華虛度 | | |
| 1943 | Tide of Passion | 情潮 | | |
| 1943 | Distant Longing | 兩地相思 | | |
| 1947 | Wedding Candles | 龍鳳花燭 | | |
| 1947 | Unending Love | 不了情 | Yu Jiayin | |
| 1948 | Destruction | 天魔劫 | | |
| 1948 | Elusive | 神出鬼沒 | | |
| 1949 | A Lingering Dream | 巫山夢迴 | | |
| 1953 | Love Song | 戀歌 | Ge Ping | also producer |
| 1953 | The Magic World of Filmdom | 銀海千秋 | | |
| 1954 | The Beautiful Ghost of the Sea | 海角芳魂 | He Yichun | also producer |
| 1956 | The Long Lane | 長巷 | | |
| 1957 | Teenagers Folly | 錦繡前程 | Zhang Jiazhen | |
| 1957 | Love Fiesta | 春色無邊 | Does not appear | producer |
| 1960 | Nobody's Child | 苦兒流浪記 | | |
| 1960 | The Iron Hoof of Oppression | 鐵蹄下 | | |
| 1960 | Reunion | 音容劫 | | |
| 1961 | Shark of the Pacific | 大平洋之鯊 | Does not appear | co-producer |
| 1962 | 14000 Witnesses | 一萬四千個證人 | Does not appear | co-producer |
| 1963 | The Love Eterne | 梁山伯與祝英台 | Zhu Yingtai's mother | |
| 1963 | Bitter Sweet | 為誰辛苦為誰忙 | | |
| 1963 | The Lady and the Thief | 女人與小偷 | | |
| 1963 | Three Sinners | 閰惜姣 | | |
| 1964 | Between Tears and Smiles | 新啼笑姻緣 | | |
| 1964 | Lady General Hua Mu-lan | 花木蘭 | Hua Mu-lan's mother | |
| 1964 | The Crimson Palm | 血手印 | | |
| 1965 | The Butterfly Chalice | 蝴蝶盃 | | |
| 1965 | Son of Good Earth | 大地兒女 | Tian Degui's wife | |
| 1965 | The Grand Substitution | 萬古流芳 | Cheng Ying's wife | |
| 1965 | The Lotus Lamp | 寶蓮燈 | | |
| 1965 | The West Chamber | 西廂記 | Cui Yingying's mother | |
| 1966 | The Blue and the Black | 藍與黑 | Mrs. Ji | Two-part film |
| 1966 | The Joy of Spring | 歡樂青春 | | |
| 1967 | Auntie Lan | 蘭姨 | Jiang Wenlan's mother | |
| 1967 | The Goddess of Mercy | 觀世音 | | |
| 1967 | Too Late for Love | 烽火萬里情 | | |
| 1967 | Four Sisters | 黛綠年華 | | |
| 1967 | Sing High, Sing Low | 星月爭輝 | | |
| 1967 | One-Armed Swordsman | 獨臂刀 | | |
| 1967 | My Dream Boat | 船 | | |
| 1968 | Spring Blossoms | 春暖花開 | | |
| 1969 | Dead End | 死角 | Zhang Chun's mother | |
| 1969 | The Three Smiles | 三笑 | | |
| 1970 | Heads for Sale | 女俠賣人頭 | | |
| 1970 | Sons and Daughters | 千萬人家 | | |
| 1970 | Valley of the Fangs | 餓狼谷 | | |
| 1971 | It Takes a Man to Be Henpecked | 怕老婆是大丈夫 | | |
| 1972 | The Young Avenger | 小毒龍 | | |
| 1972 | Trilogy of Swordsmanship | 群英會 | | Segment 2: "The Tigress" (胭脂虎) |
| 1972 | The Merry Wife | 娃娃夫人 | | |
| 1972 | Fists of Vengeance | 鐵拳燕子飛 | | |
| 1972 | The 14 Amazons | 十四女英豪 | Geng Jinhua | |
| 1972 | Flower in the Rain | 雨中花 | Yuan Ping's mother | |
| 1973 | The Young Tiger | 小老虎 | | |
| 1974 | The Thunder Kick | 一網打盡 | | |
| 1978 | Mantis Combat | 螳螂醉虎無影腳 | | |
| 1982 | Dark Trap | 黑圈套 | | |
| 1984 | The Warmth of an Old House | 頤園飄香 | | |
| 1986 | This Love of Mine | 我的愛 | | |

### TV series

| Year | English title | Original title |
| 1982 | Journey | 旅途 |
| 1984 | Stars of Last Night | 昨夜星辰 |
| 1984 | Light Fog | 輕霧 |