Ying Li Li

Biography

Ying Li Li was a Hong Kong Cantonese film actress in the 1950s and an informal disciple of actress Hong Xian Nu. Born in the 1930s, her ancestral home was Xinhui in Guangdong, and she was the tenth among her siblings, earning her the nickname "Tenth Sister." She began her artistic career at age 14 when she entered the theatrical world with her older sister Ying Li Ming, and by age 15 she had become the third leading actress in her troupe. She formed a sisterhood bond with eight other supporting actresses and called themselves "The Nine Ladies." In 1956 she joined the Xian Feng Ming theatrical troupe, participating in their productions from the first season of "Dream of the Red Chamber" through the seventh season of "Western Mansion Dream." She married Ren Pei, brother of actor Ren Jianhui, in the early 1950s, and they divorced in 1959. She later emigrated with her children to Calgary, Canada, where she passed away in late 2011.