This is a Chinese name; the family name is 周 (Zhou).

Zhou Xuan was a popular Chinese singer and film actress. By the 1940s, she had become one of the Seven great singing stars^[1]. She is probably the most well-known of the seven, as she had a concurrent movie career until 1953. Image File history File linksMetadata Zhouxuan. ... This article is on all of the Northern and Southwestern Chinese dialects. ... This article is about all of the Cantonese (Yue) dialects. ... is the 213th day of the year (214th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... Changzhou (Chinese: 常州) is a prefecture-level city in the Jiang Nan region of the Jiangsu province of China, population up to 4 million. ...   (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chiang-su; Postal map spelling: Kiangsu) is a province of the Peoples Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. ... is the 265th day of the year (266th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see Shanghai (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Singer (disambiguation). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Shidaiqu (Chinese:時代曲 Si Doi Kuk) is a type of Chinese folk/European jazz fusion music that originated in Shanghai, China, in the 1920s[1]. // The term (時代曲) basically means Periodic Song. When sung in Cantonese, it is referred to as (粵語時代曲). In Shanghai shidaiqu was regarded as Chinese popular music beginning in... Mandopop (traditional Chinese: ; simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ) is a colloquial abbreviation for Mandarin popular music. It is also referred to as Mandapop. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... Harry Belafonte singing, photograph by C. van Vechten Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, which is often contrasted with speech. ... Personal names in Chinese culture follow a number of conventions different from those of personal names in Western cultures. ... A Chinese surname, family name (Chinese: ; pinyin: ) or clan name (氏; pinyin: shì), is one of the hundreds or thousands of family names that have been historically used by Han Chinese and Sinicized Chinese ethnic groups in mainland China, Taiwan, and among overseas Chinese communities. ... Zhōu is the Hanyu Pinyin transliteration of the Chinese family name 周, which now ranks the 9th most common surname in Mainland China. ... This article is about motion pictures. ... Shanghai Night Essentials II (夜上海精选二) featuring 5 out of the 7 stars. ...

Biography

Zhou was born Su Pu (蘇璞) and was separated from her natural parents at a young age, and was raised by adoptive parents. She spent her entire life searching for her biological parents and her parentage was never established until after her death.^[2] At 13 she took Zhou Xuan as her stage name, 'Xuan', which means beautiful jade in Chinese.

Career

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. 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar). ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Street Angel (Simplified Chinese: , Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: Mǎlù tiānshǐ) is a Chinese black-and-white film released in 1937. ... Yuan Muzhi (simplified Chinese: 袁牧之) (born March 3, 1909, died January 30, 1978), was an actor and director of the Peoples Republic of China. ...

"Golden Voice" was Zhou's nickname to commend her singing talents after a singing competition in Shanghai, where she came in second^[1]. 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 frail but eminently musical voice captured the hearts of millions of Chinese of her time. For other uses, see Shanghai (disambiguation). ... A 12-inch record (left), a 7-inch record (right), and a CD (above) Two 7 singles (left), two colored 7 singles (middle), and two 7 singles with large spindle holes (right). ...

After introducing "Nightlife In Shanghai" (夜上海), 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.

Having made a total of 43 movies. Her favourite film was always Street Angel (馬路天使). This contained two theme songs: "Four Seasons Song" (四季歌) and "The Wandering Songstress" (天涯歌女) which enjoyed long-lasting popularity. Street Angel (Simplified Chinese: , Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: MÇŽlù tiānshǐ) is a Chinese black-and-white film released in 1937. ...

Her recordings can be found through CRC Jianian, a joint-venture between the Chinese government and American publishers.

Death

In 1957 she passed away in Shanghai in a mental asylum during the Anti-Rightist Movement^[3]. There is the possibility that the cause of death was encephalitis following a nervous breakdown at the age of only 39. Year 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see Shanghai (disambiguation). ... A psychiatric hospital (also called a mental hospital or asylum) is a hospital specializing in the treatment of persons with mental illness. ... The Anti-Rightist Movement (反右派运动) of the Peoples Republic of China in the 1950s and early 1960s consisted of a series of campaigns to purge alleged rightists within the Communist Party of China and abroad. ... Encephalitis is an acute inflammation of the brain, commonly caused by a viral infection. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Zhou Xuan survived with 2 sons, Zhou Wen^[4] and Zhou Wei, from different fathers. According to Zhou Wen's biography, the younger son, Zhou Wei, was from the father Tang Di (唐棣), while the father of Zhou Wen was unknown. Zhou Wei currently lives in Toronto as a musician in TTC subways.^[5][6] The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is a public transport authority that operates buses, streetcars, subways, and rapid transit lines in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ...

Adaptations

To this day, Zhou Xuan's songs still remain a staple in many Golden Oldies collections in Mandarin popular music. Shidaiqu (Chinese:時代曲 Si Doi Kuk) is a type of Chinese folk/European jazz fusion music that originated in Shanghai, China, in the 1920s[1]. // The term (時代曲) basically means Periodic Song. When sung in Cantonese, it is referred to as (粵語時代曲). In Shanghai shidaiqu was regarded as Chinese popular music beginning in... Mandopop (traditional Chinese: ; simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ) is a colloquial abbreviation for Mandarin popular music. It is also referred to as Mandapop. ...

There have been 2 biographies written by Zhou Xuan's surviving family members. The book My Mother Zhou Xuan (我的媽媽周璇) was written by Zhou Wei and his wife Chang Jing (常晶); while a later book, Zhou Xuan Diary (周璇日記), was written by Zhou Wen.

Biography controversy

After Zhou Wen's biography was published, Zhou Wei accused Zhou Wen for altering Zhou Xuan's diary and copying the contents in an attempt to mislead readers into distorting the image of Zhou Xuan. The rebuttal also revealed that Zhou Wen had hated Zhou Wei since their young age. Zhou Wen was sent to adoption after birth, followed by alleged dark influences. Zhou Wei then legally inherited Zhou Xuan's wealth over Zhou Wen.^[7]

TV

An adaptation of the life of Zhou Xuan was TVB's Song Bird (天涯歌女) in 1989, starring Nadia Chan as Zhou Xuan and Leon Lai as her lover. In this series, Xuan's songs were re-written in Cantonese, sung by her in solo. In duets, she sang with him in the serial while (under the limits of Crown Records) Deric Wan replaced Lai's vocals in the soundtrack album.^{[citation needed]} REDIRECT Television Broadcasts Limited ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... Nadia Chan Chung Ling (Chinese: ; pinyin: ) is a Hong Kong (HK) actress and singer. ... Leon Lai (黎明; pinyin: Lí Míng; Cantonese: lai4 ming4; born December 11, 1966) is a Chinese actor and a Cantopop singer. ... This article is on all of the Yue dialects. ... Crown Records has been the name of at least four different record labels. ... Deric Wan Deric Wan (Traditional Chinese: 溫兆倫, born 18 November 1964) is a Hong Kong celebrity who acted in many movies and TV series and released several music albums in his entire career. ...

Another adaptation, based on Zhou Wei's biography, is China serial titled Zhou Xuan (周璇), starring Cecilia Cheung. This version of the story was accused by Zhou Wei as false representation of Zhou Xuan, and damaged the reputation of Zhou family.^[8] Cecilia Cheung is a Hong Kong actress and Cantopop singer. ...

Movie Credits

• 狂歡之夜 (1935)
• Street Angel (馬路天使, 1937)
• 西廂記 (1940)
• 孟麗君 (1940)
• 夜店 (1947)
• 長相思 (1947)
• 清宮秘史 (1948)
• 花外流鶯 (1948)
• 歌女之歌 (1948)
• 莫負青春 (1949)
• 花街 (1950)

Street Angel (Simplified Chinese: , Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: Mǎlù tiānshǐ) is a Chinese black-and-white film released in 1937. ...

References

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 190th day of the year (191st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 87th day of the year (88th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Zhou Xuan at China's Movie Database
• Zhou Xuan at the Internet Movie Database
• Zhou Xuan at the Chinese Movie Database
• Zhou Xuan's recordings