Sai Gwa Pau

Biography

Sai Gwa Pau, born Lam Gan on October 7, 1918, in Guangzhou, worked as a bookstore clerk, hospital worker, and newspaper proofreader after finishing primary school. He came to Hong Kong alone at age eighteen, working as a school servant at Lam Fan Middle School in Kowloon City, where he was introduced to Cantonese film veteran Wong Cho Shan, which led him to join the Nanyang Tianyi Film Company (predecessor of Shaw Brothers) as a props manager until the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong. After the war, he returned to Nanyang Tianyi, transitioned to makeup, then to wardrobe management. After nearly twenty years of behind-the-scenes work, Sai Gwa Pau first appeared on screen as an extra in the film "Tong Bing Bu Xiang Lian". Finding that special-paid acting earned more than his regular salary, he decided to become a full-time special-paid actor. His stage name "Sai Gwa Pau" was given by fellow actor Kao Lu Chuen, inspired by his buck teeth. He is best known for playing "Ah So", Wong Fei-hung's disciple, in the Wong Fei-hung film series, appearing in nearly eighty such films, and overall acted in over 750 films, often portraying grassroots, simple citizens with a stuttering comedic style that endeared him to audiences. As Cantonese cinema declined, he toured Malaysia twice in 1966 with Tang Na and toured Singapore and Malaysia with a troupe in 1977. In his later years, he suffered from diabetes and passed away in Hong Kong on March 12, 2001, at age 83. He had two daughters, and his funeral was held at the World Funeral Home with Protestant Christian rites.