James Tien (actor)

For other people of the same name, see James Tien (disambiguation).

James Tien
Tien in The Chase.
Chinese name	田俊 (Traditional)
Chinese name	田俊 (Simplified)
Pinyin	Tián Jùn (Mandarin)
Jyutping	Tin4 Zeon3 (Cantonese)
Born	May 28, 1942 (1942-05-28) (age 69) Guangdong, China
Other name(s)	Paul Tien
Occupation	actor
Years active	1968 - 1996

James Tien Chun (Chinese: 田俊) (born May 28, 1942) is a Hong Kong actor from Guangdong, China. He appeared in almost 70 films, primarily in Hong Kong action cinema, including roles in the films of martial arts stars including Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung. He often played villains or supporting roles. He retired from the Hong Kong film industry in 2000.

History

Born in Chao'an County, Guangdong, James Tien moved with his family to Hong Kong in 1958.^[1] He became a student of the Fu Sheng Opera School in Taipei, Taiwan, along with Angela Mao and Philip Kwok.^[2]

His acting career began in the late 1960s, when he joined Shaw Brothers Studio. His first significant acting role was in the 1969 film Raw Courage, directed by Lo Wei. After appearing in a number of further Shaw Brothers films, he moved to Golden Harvest, where he played Bruce Lee's cousin in The Big Boss (1971). This was followed by a role in Lee's next film, Fist of Fury. He was originally intended to co-star in Game of Death, but his role became minor following Bruce Lee's death in 1973.

In 1976, Tien starred in John Woo's Hand of Death, a film that also featured early acting roles for the "Three Brothers", Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao. A year later, he appeared in Hung's directorial debut, The Iron-Fisted Monk. From there, he went on to take roles in many more of the three brothers' films for Golden Harvest, often playing bullies or villains. He played roles alongside Jackie Chan in Spiritual Kung Fu (1978), The Fearless Hyena (1979) and Dragon Fist (1979). Appearances with Yuen Biao include The Prodigal Son (1982), Rosa (1986) and Righting Wrongs (1986), and he appeared in Sammo Hung films such as Millionaire's Express (1986) Eastern Condors (1986) and The Gambling Ghost (1991). Tien also had roles in most of the handful of films that starred all three together, including Winners and Sinners (1983), My Lucky Stars (1985) and Dragons Forever (1988).

Late in his career, he appeared with Andy Lau in Lee Rock and Lee Rock 2 (both 1991). His last acting role to date was in the final Lucky Stars film, How to Meet the Lucky Stars (1996), after which he retired.

References

1. ^ "田俊". Baike Badu. http://baike.baidu.com/view/1478883.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 
2. ^ "A Chat with Robert Tai". KFC Cinema. http://www.kfccinema.com/features/interviews/roberttai/roberttai.html. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 

External links

• James Tien at the Internet Movie Database
• HK Cinemagic entry

Persondata
Name	Tien, James
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1942-05-28
Place of birth	Guangdong, China
Date of death
Place of death