Sun Chien

Member of Venom Mob. To some extent the Fifth Venom, the least interesting and accomplished of the bunch, but still pretty damned cool. Taiwanese by birth, and an expert at Tae Kwan Do, which has led some to believe erroneously that he himself was Korean. Those skills made him the best “leg man” (kickboxer) at Shaw Brothers, according to HK film expert Bey Logan.

Crippled Avengers (1978):
Plays Wu Gui, a laborer who has his legs cut off after colliding with Chang (Lu Feng) in the street and failing to apologize. He later has them replaced with iron legs.

Suen Shu-Pao

AKA Sun Su-Pei.

Life Gamble (1980):
Plays the “Silver Leopard” Cheng Zhang Po, one of the four bandits whose theft of the He Huan Jade sets the whole plot in motion.

Dick Wei

AKA Ti Wai, Tiu Lung, Tu Ji Long.
A real-life professional fighter whose principal cinematic fame came from several appearances as the villain in Jackie Chan movies, in which he always seemed to bring out Chan's best, most notably in the classic Project A. He did less important work for Shaw Brothers, but did have a few memorable roles.

Crippled Avengers (1978):
Plays the leader of the Tien Nan Tigers, who kick-start the plot by invading the home of Du Tian-Dao (Chen Kuan-Tai), murdering his wife (Helen Poon), and cutting off the arms of his son (played as an adult by Lu Feng).

Left to right: Dick Wei, Jamie Luk, Stewart Tam.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays the “Golden Hammer” Jin Ba, leader of the four bandits whose theft of the He Huan Jade sets the whole plot in motion.

Bruce Tong

AKA Tong Yim Chan.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays the “Little King Kong” Wu Hao, one of the four bandits whose theft of the He Huan Jade sets the whole plot in motion. He also shows up at Qiu Zi-Yu’s (Philip Kwok’s) smithy for no obvious reason. He is a practitioner of something very like Hard Qigong, and is able to withstand direct hits from swords and knives. However, he is vulnerable still to missiles fired by machines, as Yan Zi-Fei (Lu Feng) proves.

Lau Wai-Ling

In Life Gamble (1979):
Plays the “Golden Hairpin” Zhen Liu-Xiang, one of the four bandits whose theft of the He Huan Jade sets the whole plot in motion. She, obviously, is the one with the poisonous hairpins, which she uses to kill Xiao Chiang (Lin Chen-Chi) before being herself killed by Mo Jun-Feng (Lo Meng).

Lam Fai-Wong

AKA Lin Huei Huang.
Perhaps the greatest of the Shaw Brothers’ comedic actors. Rubber-faced, gawky, thin and clumsy-looking as a stork, lightened a lot of otherwise heavy stories.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays Cui, the master thief who has stolen Mo Jun-Feng’s (Lo Meng’s) daggers and later steals the He Huan Jade from Peng Shuang Shuang (Shirley Yu) before handing it over to Qiu Zi-Yu (Philip Kwok). Also, he discovers Master Nan’s (Li Yi-Min’s) treachery and alerts Yun Xiang (Fu Sheng), too late to save Qiu but at least in time to allow him to avenge Qiu’s murder. 

Clan of the White Lotus (1980):
Plays Nai-Cheng, cousin to Mei-Hsiao (Kara Hui), who takes her and Hung Wei-Ting (Gordon Liu) in after their home is destroyed and her husband and his fiancee are murdered. Assists, rather ineptly, in Wei-Ting’s training, and saves his life by carrying him home after a brutal beatdown from the White Lotus (Lo Lieh).
The Flag Of Iron (1980):
Plays Liang, the dirty old man who runs the local brothel. Gets captured, beaten, and used as a literal bargaining chip early in the film, but never does much else.
Shaolin Prince (1982):
Plays Wu Ming, one of the three Holy Fools (along with Ma Chao and Alan Chan) who adopt and raise Dao Xing (Ti Lung) and train him in kung fu. Sentenced to house arrest for fighting, and unable to leave his homestead until the film’s final battle.

Shirley Yu

AKA Yu Sha-Li, Tu Sha-Li, Qui Lee.
Shirley Yu has the most active mouth I’ve ever seen. It seems to jump all over her face while she talks, particularly when she’s being seductive. It doesn’t seem to be actually attached; it’s like those skits where a closeup of a mouth is superimposed onto a still photo.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays the hostess (madam?) Peng Shuang-Shuang. She kills Xiao Tang the Deadly Whip (Chiang Sheng), apparently in self-defense, but is blackmailed by the Chief Constable (Ku Feng) into assisting in his plan to infiltrate his daughter (Kara Hui) into the game in hopes of retrieving the jade. She actually succeeds in getting the jade out of the casino, but doesn’t get to keep it long.

Johnny Wang

AKA Wang Lung-Wei.
The most prolific of the Shaw Brothers’ villains, and therefore a familiar and weirdly loveable presence.
Crippled Avengers (1978):
Plays Wan, the bodyguard and major domo of Du Tian-Dao (Chen Kuan-Tai), who helps him on his campaign to cripple everyone who disrespects the family. He’s the guy with the very impressive ball-and-chain weapon.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays the crooked gambler Mao Kai-Yuan, the Golden Lion, whose casino (Lion Rock) hosts the title game. Outsmarts everyone and nearly gets away with the precious jade before being himself outsmarted by Qiu Zi-Yu (Philip Kwok).

Clan of the White Lotus (1980):
Plays Governor Kao Ting-Chun, nephew of Pai Mei (Wilson Tong), who seeks revenge against the Shaolin in general, and Hung Wei-Ting (Gordon Liu) and Wu Ah Biao (Lee King-Chu) in particular, for his uncle’s death. Also the nephew of the White Lotus (Lo Lieh), whose help he calls for, setting the plot in motion.

Lu Feng

AKA Chu Qi Xue.
One of the Venom Mob, and for whatever reason seems almost always to have played the villain, often siding alone against all four of the other Venoms. He was skilled and fearsome enough to pull it off, though.

Crippled Avengers (1978):
Plays Dao Chang, the son of Du Tian-Dao (Chen Kuan-Tai). Had his arms cut off when he was a boy by men seeking to hurt his father, but was given iron hands and the will to maim anyone who disrespects him or his father.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays the treacherous Yan Zi-Fei, whose near-fatal attack on Qiu Zi-Yu (Philip Kwok) sent the blacksmith into retirement. He gets his hand cut off, convinces Qiu to make him a new iron hand, and when he attempts to kill Qiu yet again is himself killed by a booby trap set into the machinery.

The man likes metal hands.

The Flag Of Iron (1980):
Plays Cao Feng the Iron Tiger, the senior brother in the Iron Flag Clan, who assumes control of the clan after the death of its master (Liang Yao-Wen). Turns out to have been the mastermind behind that murder (and several subsequent ones), in an attempt to seize control of the underworld. 

The Sword Stained With Royal Blood (1981):
Plays Wen Nan-Yang, one of Qing-Qing’s (Candy Wen’s) uncles and a member of the Five Element Array. When he spars with Yuan Cheng-Chih (Philip Kwok), he fights with his bare hands, but in the Array uses a halberd. He is also the one who eavesdrops on Yuan’s conversation with Wen Yi (Ching Li), and we learn in a flashback that the Golden Snake (Lung Tien-Hsiang) broke him out of jail just before he was to be executed for attempted rape, but only so that he would carry a booby-trapped chest back home with him, to annouce the Snake’s vendetta against the Wen family.

Lo Meng

AKA Turbo Law (!?!?!), Johnson Law, Ramone Law, Law Mong, Lo Mang.
Member of the Venom Mob. Big, muscular fella who typically played the tough guy in the Venom’s films. The only Venom who was a native of Hong Kong. Notably, was always costumed in outfits that showed off his sculpted physique, typically sleeveless vests without shirts, and sometimes just harnesses for his weapons, to reveal as much torso as possible.

Crippled Avengers (1978):
Plays Wei Jia-Jie, the blacksmith who has his powers of speech and hearing taken away from him by Du Tian-Dao (Chen Kuan-Tai), and subsequently loses his business when Wan (Johnny Wang) warns the townspeople that anyone who trades with Wei will suffer Du’s wrath.

Not yet crippled, not yet an avenger,

but already pissed off.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays Mo Jun-Feng, the knife-thrower whose visit to the blacksmith Qiu Zi-Yu (Philip Kwok) opens the film. His knives get stolen, broken, and replaced throughout the film, he gets seduced by Xiao Chiang (Lin Chen-Chi), avenges her death, and then dies in a duel with the film’s other knife-thrower, Yun Shiang (Fu Sheng).

Lin Chen-Chi

AKA Lam Jan Kei.
The most beautiful of the Shaw Brothers’ stars, though I know that’s in the eye of the beholder.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays Xiao Chiang, whose smile is deadlier than swords. She cuts off Yan Zi-Fei’s (Lu Feng’s) hand as an offering to the blacksmith Qiu Zi-Yu (Philip Kwok), seduces Mo Jun-Feng (Lo Meng) when her henchman Xiao Tang (Chiang Sheng) is killed, and takes out one of the bandits (Bruce Tong) in the big casino fight scene before being cut down herself by the Golden Hairpin Zhen Liu-Zhang (Lau Wai-Ling).

Li Yi-Min

AKA Lee I Min, Lee Gong, James Lee Ngai Nan, Simon Lee.
Life Gamble (1979):
Plays the aristocratic master Nan Yu from whom the He Huan Jade is stolen, kicking the whole plot into motion.

Philip Kwok

AKA Kuo Tsui, Gwok Jan Fung, Jun Kwok.
Member of the Venom Mob, and in fact seems to have been something of an unofficial leader of the group, in that he often played the hero in their movies.

Crippled Avengers (1978):
Plays Chen Shuen, the hawker of trinkets who is blinded by the iron-fisted Du Chang (Lu Feng) and later becomes the leader of the Avengers.
Life Gamble (1979):
Plays Qiu Zi-Yu, the blacksmith and retired martial arts master who is as close as anyone to being the main character in what is very much an ensemble piece.

The Flag Of Iron (1980):
Plays Luo Xin the Iron Leopard, the main hero. Member of the Iron Flag Clan. Accepts blame for the battle that killed both his own master (Liang Yao-Wen) and the master of the Eagle Clan (Chan Shen), to save his clan from legal trouble. Runs to the countryside, where he is pursued by ten assassins. Kills nine and partners with the last (Lung Tien-Hsiang) to get revenge for the death of his master.
The Sword Stained With Royal Blood (1981):
Plays Yuan Cheng-Chih, the orphan of the prince killed before the opening credits. He finds the Golden Snake’s (Lung Tien-Hsiang’s) weapons and manual, along with the treasure map which he tries to return to Wen Yi (Ching Li), and then has to defeat the Wen family and their Five Elements Array. Which, now that I think about it, is the entire plot of the movie.

Kara Hui

AKA Hui Ying Hung, Claire Wai
For my money the greatest of the Shaw Brothers’ female stars. Equally adept at comedy and drama, graceful in motion, emotive, and ferocious in a fight.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays Xiao Hong, the daughter of the Chief Constable (Ku Feng) who goes undercover at the casino to help catch the bandits. Along the way she falls for Yun Xiang (Fu Sheng), the assassin, and brings him over to the good guys’ side

Clan of the White Lotus (1980):
Plays Mei-Hsiao, wife of the heroic Wu Ah-Biao (Lee King-Chu), murdered early in the film. She trains his brother Hung Wei-Ting (Gordon Liu) to get revenge, teaching him a feminine boxing style that can combat the weightless technique of the White Lotus (Lo Lieh). 

Fu Sheng

AKA Alexander Fu Sheng, Foo Sing, Cheung Fu Sing
One of the major stars at the studio, tragically died in a car crash at the peak of his popularity in 1983. An excellent athlete, capable of playing dramatic parts, but at his best as a talented goofball.

Life Gamble (1979):
Plays Yun Shiang, the knife-throwing assassin who works for the gambler Mao (Johnny Wang), falls in love with Xiao Hong (Kara Hui), and ultimately sides with the good guys, to the point of being the one who finally defeats the villainous Nan Yu (Li Yi-Min).

Life Gamble

Chiang Sheng

AKA Kong Sang, Chao Gang Sheng, Chiu Gong Sang
A member of the Venom Mob, and my own favorite Venom. He had a baby face, was the most incredible athlete in a very athletic bunch, and brought a certain exuberance to his starring roles that made every movie a little more fun.

Crippled Avengers (1978):
Plays Wang Yi, the knight who attacks Tian Dao Mansion to stop Du Tian-Dao (Chen Kuan-Tai) maiming anyone else, and gets turned into an “idiot” for his trouble.
Life Gamble (1979):
Plays Xiao Tang, the Deadly Whip, who helps Xiao Qiang (Lin Chen-Chi) cut off Yan Zi-Fei’s (Ku Feng’s) hand before being seduced and murdered by Peng Shuang-Shuang (Shirley Yu).

Life Gamble

The Flag Of Iron (1980):
Plays Yuan Lang, the Iron Monkey. Member of the Iron Clan, friend of Luo Xin (Philip Kwok). Has never trusted Cao Feng (Lu Feng). Finds Luo and warns him about the assassins that are after him, and tells him that Cao has turned out to be corrupt and might have killed their master (Liang Yao-Wen).
The Sword Stained With Royal Blood (1981):
Plays Wen Jing, most prominent member of Qing-Qing’s (Candy Wen’s) family and the first we meet (though he’s her cousin, at that point he is claiming to be her brother). He’s a villain, but is portrayed in a not entirely unsympathetic light, in contrast with the rest of the family. Also, seems to have a crush on Qing-Qing and to be irritated by her feelings for Yuan Cheng-Chih (Philip Kwok). In combat with Yuan, both friendly sparring and as a member of the Five Elements Array, he uses a pair of hooked swords (shuang gou).

The Venom Mob

A group of five friends, actors and stuntmen all, who, after spending years in small supporting roles for the studio, became stars together in the wake of Chang Cheh’s Five Deadly Venoms. The Mob were Philip Kwok, Chiang Sheng, Lo Meng, Lu Feng, and Sun Chien, though some other actors were considered sort of honorary Venoms. Also, they frequently worked with Fu Sheng, though he was never a member of the Mob himself. Following is a list of the movies starring all or most of the Venoms that I’ve covered in this series:

Life Gamble (1979). Without Sun Chien.
The Flag Of Iron (1980). Without Sun Chien and Lo Meng.
The Sword Stained With Royal Blood (1981). Without Sun Chien and Lo Meng.

Ku Feng

AKA Chen Si Wen

Ku Feng seems to have been the Shaw Brothers’ most prolific actor, appearing in dozens (if not hundreds) of films. In fact, I’m always surprised when I watch a Shaw Brothers film for the first time and discover that he’s not in it. He’s my second most-watched actor, behind only Jackie Chan.

The One-Armed Swordsman (1967):

Plays Fang Cheng, servant of Qi Rufeng (Tien Feng). Is killed saving his master from a treacherous attack by vindictive bandits, as a result of which his son Fang Gang (Jimmy Wang Yu) is adopted and raised by the master to become the hero of the story.

Life Gamble (1979):

Plays Chief Constable Xiao, the policeman who is trying to retrieve the stolen jade.

Life Gamble

Shaolin Prince (1982):

Plays the Prime Minister, who raised the younger prince (Derek Yee) in secret, hoping that someday he would find his brother (Ti Lung) and avenge their father (Ai Fei), the rightful king.

Shaolin Intruders (1983):

Plays Chief Lu, head of the Baiyun (White Cloud) Clan, one of the Four Big Families whose leaders are being murdered by unknown assailants.