Veteran actor Tam Ping-man, who is also known as the "king of voice-overs" in Hong Kong for providing the Cantonese dub in several movies, died at 86 on Saturday (Sept 5).
Tam, who had just renewed his contract with Hong Kong broadcaster TVB in May, was diagnosed with late-stage lung cancer in June.
His daughter, actress-singer Tam Suk Ying, told the Hong Kong media that he was sent to hospital after he had breathing difficulties on Friday night and died at about 11am on Saturday.
She said she was mentally unprepared for his death as she thought he could survive for one or two more years. She added that he was still mentally alert and had plans to complete more work.
Tam began his career as a voice actor in the 1950s. He was the voice of American actor Marlon Brando in the movie The Godfather (1972) and Charlie Townsend in the American television series Charlie's Angels (1976 to 1981).
He then moved to the big screen and acted in his first movie A New, Improved Lady in 1964. His debut performance earned rave reviews and he quit doing voice-overs to concentrate on acting.
Tam, who was invited to act in dozens of movies after that, formed the company Lee Pictures with his frequent acting partner, actress Lee Heung Kam, in 1970. He later formed his own Tam Pictures.
He also launched more than 30 gramophone records. His famous songs include Old Loves Like A Dream, which was sung later by singer Hacken Lee; and Can You Come Back, sung together with Lee Heung Kam.
Tam joined TVB in 1968 as an actor and voice actor and was a mentor when TVB set up a voice-acting training class in 1975. He joined Asia Television in 1991 before returning to TVB eight years later.
He is known for acting in movies such as Lucky Seven (1970) and Country Man And The Scavenger (1976), as well as TV serials such as The Good, The Bad And The Ugly (1979) and Yesterday's Glitter (1980).
Tam, who won TVB's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014, has not appeared much in public in recent years due to poor health and a reduced workload. He last appeared on TVB variety show Cantopop At 50 in February, where he was in a wheelchair and accompanied by his daughter.
He is survived by his daughter and a son. – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
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