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Chinese Veteran Actor Li Ding

On many Chinese screens, you can see such an old man. He's bald, rather tall, and a little plump. He dresses casually, and walks leisurely, sometimes with a birdcage. More often than not he has a cunning smile, with an arch glance, and many teasing ideas. The character must love wine, Chinese chess, and life itself.

Many people can tell the name of the actor is Li Ding. Some call him "Your Majesty of the Sixth Prince", which is one of the most successful roles he played in a popular TV series more than ten years ago. Others affectionately call him Lao Ye Zi, which means Gramps in English, because he reminds them of their own grandpa.

Li Ding owed his success to his fancy for acting from his early years.

"As a schoolboy I was fond of watching movies. When I was younger, I liked going to theatres. So gradually I like acting, too. But apart from fancy, one must learn affluent knowledge to be a good actor, which I didn't manage to do. Recalling the past old days, this is my biggest regret."

Li Ding was born in 1927 in east China's Shandong Province. He started his stage career in 1946, not long after World War II. He organized volunteer students to act in plays, dramas, even operas. But without professional training, Li Ding was bound to make many mistakes, especially when it came to opera.

He laughed at himself.