Alex Man (萬梓良) is, in many ways, considered to be a method actor. Devoted to his craft, Alex researched her roles thoroughly and put himself in situations that were similar to his characters. Once, in order to shoot a drunken scene, Alex drank eight cans of beer in a row and vomited it all out. Another time, Alex painted a “blood letter” on his T-shirt and demanded TVB to reschedule the ill-handled studio shoots for his drama. Alex debuted as an actor for RTV – now known as ATV – in 1977. One of his more popular dramas with the station were Tai Chi Master <太極張三豐>, where he portrayed Zhang Sanfeng, and Dynasty <大內群英>, where he gave a memorable performance as Emperor Yongzheng. In 1982, he left RTV for TVB and starred as the first male lead in numerous famous, big-budgeted TVB productions, such as The Feud of Two Brothers <流氓大亨>, Genghis Khan <成吉思汗>, The Justice of Life <他來自江湖>, Big Family <大家族>, and The Key Man <巨人>. Well-known for his dramatic and passionate acting, Alex’s performances have been criticized by some to be over-the-top. But Alex does not mind the criticism. “That’s actually not bad. Better than being forgettable. Right now, I really want to say something truthful, and that is, I really want to thank the audience for supporting me many years, whether it is my films, my dramas, or my stage performances. Thank you for cultivating me as a performer.” Stephen Chow’s Inspiration Working on several TVB dramas together, Alex also inspired Stephen Chow (周星馳). Alex said. “When Stephen filmed [the 1987 drama] The Price of Growing Up <生命之旅> he just got out of hosting children’s programs. I told him that filming children’s programs and filming dramas were completely different and that he should be mindful and watch how his seniors do it. He was very talented and learned quickly.” Filming 1989′s The Justice of Life together brought Alex and Stephen’s friendship closer. When Alex got married in 1992 to his first wife, Tien Niu (恬妞) in a televised wedding celebration, he chose Stephen to be his Best Man. Rumors claimed they fell out after Stephen replaced Alex with Ng Man Tat in King of Comedy. But Alex clarified that it was only their schedules clashing that prevented them from working together. “My schedule was only free for a few days, so we couldn’t find a right time. I told Stephen to quickly come up with something else, so he told Tat Gor to come back. There were no misunderstandings. We’re all good friends!” The Blood Letter In 1991, while shooting for Big Family, the cast was not given enough time for studio shoots. Disgruntled at TVB’s poor handling of the drama’s shooting schedules, Alex wrote a “blood letter” with red paint on his white outfit to protest against TVB. He walked around the studios and recited a phrase from Wen Tianxiang’s (文天祥) poem, Song of Righteousness <正氣歌>. “It wasn’t really about righteousness. At the time the company gave us a very tight studio schedule, and the artistes had to shoot day and night without rest. If you’re not done with the scene in time, then you’re screwed because you wouldn’t get an extension. This was a major problem at the time.” In Alex’s blood letter, he mentioned a commander. Asked if the “commander” was TVB’s golden producer Lee Tim Sing (李添勝), who was in charge of scheduling the studio shoots at the time, Alex said, “I didn’t specify anyone. I don’t know.” Often described to be full of fire, Alex was regarded as too serious and even maniacal on the shooting set, but Alex argued, “Being serious is your basic responsibility. You’re getting money out of this. Your boss hires you so you can do your job. Do you think he hired you to fool around? Those who once took my words seriously, like Francis Ng (吳鎮宇) and Sean Lau (劉青雲) have all become film kings, haven’t they? This is not a joke! You must be serious about your work, because you are already very lucky to be able to have this job. If you’re not serious about it, where will your future go?” Creds: ihktv
