Sun Daolin

Biography

Sun Daolin (original name Sun Yiliang) was born on December 18, 1921, in Beijing into an intellectual family from Jiashan, Zhejiang. His father, Sun Wenyao, was a railway engineer who graduated from the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium. Sun studied philosophy at Yenching University in Beijing, where he became involved in theatrical activities encouraged by his friend Huang Zongjiang, performing in plays such as "Thunderstorm" and "Love, Life, and Death." He was arrested by the Japanese army for participating in anti-Japanese plays during World War II. He began his career as a professional stage actor in 1943 under his stage name "Sun Daolin." After graduating in 1947, he moved to Shanghai in 1948 to begin his film career, gaining fame through the film "Crows and Sparrows." He acted in nearly 30 films and television series over half a century, becoming especially renowned for his role in "Early Spring February." He also provided dubbing for over twenty foreign films. He directed the film "Zhan Tianyou" in the late 1990s. He co-hosted the CCTV New Year's Gala in 1988. He passed away on December 28, 2007, in Shanghai at the age of 86.