Kung Fu film star Jackie Chan Monday admitted that he acted in a porn movie 31 years ago, responding to a report revealed by Hong Kong media, Information Times reported Tuesday.

"I had to do anything I could to make a living 31 years ago, but I don’t think it’s a big deal, even Marlon Brando used to be exposed in his movies," Chan said. "The porn movie at that time was more conservative than the current films," he said.

Hong Kong netizens tipped local media that Chan was in the porn movie "All in the Family" in 1975, with a porn movie star who was famous at that time.

The Hong Kong made movie, directed by Zhu Mu, was defined as a comedy. Dean Shek, Tien Chun, and Sammo Hung were also co-stars.

Photo: ifensi.com

The folks at Sanrio are hosting an incredible event in Hong Kong called Hello Kitty Black Wonder which is also advertised here in Sanriotown.

The general mission is to rescue Hello Kitty and Daniel in a series of clues and games that herald a little bit of Alternate Reality Gaming. It is actually like a theme park really but in a gothic, dark sort of halloween way.

The video above I got from Sanriotown, some slideshows of the event.

The Graphics and design is funky, some pictures from Apple Daily.

Here’s poor Daniel in Jail, you have to go rescue him! Looks sort of cowboy western like.

Special items are also on sale and looks like they are selling quickly!

Kowk Chun-wai changed his plea yesterday and admitted publishing 84 pictures of female stars in sex acts with entertainer Edison Chen Koon-hei by posting hyperlinks to them.

He was warned he would probably go to jail.

Kwok Chun-wai, 24, is one of three people charged in relation to the celebrity nude pictures scandal that gripped the city early this year.

With the support of his parents and friends, Kwok appeared calm when he pleaded guilty in Kowloon City Court to three counts of publishing an obscene article by posting the internet links on January 29 and February 6.

He originally denied the charges in another court on June 3.

Principal Magistrate Andrew Ma Hon-cheung said he would likely impose a jail sentence, noting the offences were serious and had occurred on several occasions.

They can attract a maximum fine of HK$1 million and up to three years’ jail. Kwok was remanded to July 24 for sentencing, pending a background report.

The court was told Kwok had first downloaded the celebrity sex pictures from the internet and saved them to a file storage server, http://w13.easy-share.com, and later posted 25 hyperlinks on the Hong Kong-based adult discussion forum http://new-3lunch.net to direct Net users to the site and allow them to download the images.

Prosecutor Hayson Tse Ka-sze said that of all the posted hyperlinks, police found that only five led to celebrity sex pictures, Of the pictures, 84 ruled obscene by the Obscene Articles Tribunal on April 23 were cited in the charges. Some of the images showed oral sex.

Police arrested Kwok on February 10 at his Ngau Tau Kok home.

Barrister Ody Lai said her client had not realised the seriousness of his actions. What had motivated his offence was the community interest that had already been sparked [many similar pictures had already been posted on the internet] and a statement relating to them published in a Chinese newspaper by the Emperor Entertainment Group on January 28.

The group claimed the pictures were fake, the court heard.

The court was told Kwok was a hard-working employee with a good work record who had started a logistics degree at Caritas Francis Hsu College in January.

He was very remorseful over what he had done, Ms Lai said.

The celebrity sex photos sparked a huge controversy in February when hundreds of explicit pictures of Edison Chen and female celebrities were distributed by e-mail and messaging systems.

The photographs were of Chen with purportedly Canto-pop star Gillian Chung Yan-tung, actress Cecilia Cheung Pak-chi, former actress Bobo Chan Man-woon, model-actress Rachel Ngan Wing-sze, former singer Candice Chan Si-wai, 2001 Miss Chinese International contestant Mandy Chen Yu-ju and Vincy Yeung Wing-ching, niece of entertainment tycoon Albert Yeung Sau-shing.

Gillian Chung and Edison Chen have since made public apologies in relation to the pictures.

Chen is expected to return to the city in October for the trial of the remaining two people charged over the incident.

The first man arrested in relation to the scandal, Chung Yik-tin, was freed on February 15 after charges against him were withdrawn.

Or perhaps they do not want to understand us, from this post I saw this:

Sushipanda said that over half of my Chinese-Chinese friends on MSN have put the badge on their contact names, in defiance of all the anti-China bullying that they’re undoubtedly reading about in the Chinese newspapers, watching on the Chinese news, and scouring over on the hundreds of blogs and BBS’s peppering China’s cyberscape and devoted to propping up this country’s national pride.

TC suggested that outsiders are suggesting that the news in China is being censored and that Chinese citizens aren’t getting a balanced view of the reality of the international protests. But whatever the cause, this is a significant showing of Chinese nationalistic behavior, and a sign that they are paying attention to the outside world.

What is surprising is that the West and the western media appears to insist that things are bad in China, the Olympics is China’s call to the new century, about improvement, about progress, and about some pride. The only perception the West leaves us with is that you wish to deny this moment of glory to us, why would you do that? When South Korea had their Olympics from a corrupt and military state was there this protest? Infact you were all hailing the progress and hoping South Korea will improve after this, which it did, so why do you want to spoil it for China? Are you envious, jealous or feel that we do not deserve our entry into the word? Do you think us foolish or ignorant of the meaning of “freedom” or “democracy”?

Do not raise your false torch for your so called chaotic and revolutionary freedom that will bring misery and war. You claim the name of Tibet for an Olympic Boycott but the Da Lai Lama himself does not agree or advocate it.

There is much China needs to improve upon, nobody will disagree with you here. There is no question that human rights can be better, that poverty is a problem, that education is a problem, that censorship is a problem, but if you think boycott, revolution and drastic change is the answer, as your violent protests seem to indicate then you will have learnt nothing of China’s true bloodshed in its many revolutions.

She has starred in dozens of films and been photographed thousands of times for hundreds of magazines, but it’s still easy to miss Maggie Cheung Man-yuk in a crowd. The cafe in the Mandarin Oriental hotel is buzzing with the Friday evening mix of tai-tais, tycoons and investment bankers sipping Veuve Clicquot, and no one notices when the actress quietly slips into the room and cosies up in a booth at the back.

Cheung is beaming. Having been away from the big screen for four years - her last role was the troubled single mother and recovering junkie she portrayed in Clean - she seems carefree, stripped down to her real self. She is wearing a simple Balenciaga sweater, skinny trousers, boots from her favourite store, Top Shop, and a distressed leather Luella bag ("It came with some strings but I cut them off," she whispers, as if divulging a secret. "I love it because it will age well.") Cheung is here to talk about, among other things, her latest role - not in a film but as one of the stars in Lane Crawford’s Transitions fashion campaign, which debuts next month. In one of the two images featuring Cheung, shot by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, the actress is pictured wearing an Alexander McQueen hourglass dress that cages her body, transforming it into a dramatic silhouette. The image is erotic - Newton-esque in its depiction of the female form - and completely incongruous with the good-girl persona she portrays for brands such as Ebel and Oil of Olay.

"Wow," she exclaims, looking at the images with a naughty look in her eye. "This is going to be great!" Acting is what Cheung is best known for but fashion has long been an interest. From designing for jewellery brand Qeelin to being photographed by Patrick Demarchelier and serving as a muse for designers such as Nicolas Ghesquiere at Balenciaga, Cheung has become one of the industry’s leading style icons. An attempt five years ago to come up with some ideas for local clothing chain Izzue wasn’t such a success, however, and she’s vowed she’ll "never do it again. It took too much time and work, and fashion design doesn’t interest me.

"It’s a big bonus that I am a fashion icon but I still think [fashion] is a superficial thing," she says. "Yes, it’s a beautiful thing and I appreciate it very much … so I let myself gravitate towards it … but it’s not something I like to do all the time. It doesn’t … affect what I really am."

At 43, Cheung has changed significantly from when she starred in her first feature film, almost 23 years ago. Born in Hong Kong, she moved to Kent, in England, when she was eight, and stayed there until the early 80s, when she returned to Asia to start modelling. After finishing as first runner-up at the Miss Hong Kong Pageant in 1983 (she was a semi-finalist at the Miss World pageant that year), she secured a contract with Shaw Brothers Studios and starred in popular comedy Police Story (1985) with Jackie Chan. In 1988, she landed a role in As Tears Go By, directed by Wong Kar-wai, a man who would be key to her career. Successes followed, and so did awards - as well as numerous Hong Kong honours, Cheung picked up best actress accolades from the Berlin and Cannes film festivals and five Golden Horse Awards over the next two decades.

Such praise, however, was not enough to keep Cheung on the silver screen. After completing Clean, the actress drifted away from cinema, leaving critics to presume she has retired from the business altogether.

"No, I’m not retired; I am letting it be," she explains in a soft English accent. "I’m not looking to do another film but I am not saying yes to much else either. The only thing that could draw me back to getting up at 5.30am, being on the set at 6am, and doing hair and make-up for five hours, is something very special. It became the same cycle for every film; I don’t need that cycle any more.

"I am at such a nice time in my life and I don’t want to end that for something that I don’t 100 per cent love. You have to defend a film that you have done no matter what - professionally and personally. I’d like to speak about my next project with passion, but I just feel that it’s not going to happen. I have done 75 films and that makes me think that it’s OK not to do 76. If I do choose another movie, I’d like to walk on set and say, `Wow! I love being here’, instead of thinking, `Why am I giving up my life to be here on this bloody mountain in the middle of nowhere?’

"When you take on a part, it’s actually quite a beautiful process," says Cheung, who has earned a reputation for playing "heavy" roles. "Just to understand another woman … to imagine what it can be. I don’t live the parts but I analyse them until I really understand who they are and I try to imagine them physically.

"But now [that I’ve stopped] I am much lighter as a person. It’s amazing to be able to live as you wish. You are able to plan your day yourself and do whatever you want. Right now I don’t feel like being stuck or committed to anything full time. Even my relationship - it’s still part-time, as I travel and work."

Cheung’s wanderlust may have stemmed from her childhood desire to be an air stewardess, she jokes, and she still makes frequent trips to Paris, where she once shared a home with ex-husband and Clean director Olivier Assayas. More recently, though, she has been spending a significant amount of time at her home in Beijing, where she enjoys the anonymity.

"I feel so sad about what the Hong Kong press have become. Even though people [in Beijing] still recognise me, and do or don’t like me, the way they behave is purer. Hong Kong people have become more critical because of the media," which have been known to camp outside Cheung’s Repulse Bay home.

"It’s a bad education for the heart, the soul and what you want for others and what is important: the value of life. It’s f**ked up. The media are f**king Hong Kong up and I am angry about that.

"In Beijing I feel that with anyone I am in touch with, whether they know who I am or not, they are genuine and not judging me on how I look. I don’t always want to be alert and on my guard."

She may not feel charitable towards the Hong Kong media, but Cheung has begun working with Oil of Olay and Audi (she represents both brands in China) on projects aimed at educating mainland youths.

"China is growing so fast but if the education of the next generation is not up to it, it can backfire for the country," she says. "Now I can do something for society. I always wanted to but have been so busy up to now. I am not a great saint who is giving up all her time to charity; it’s something I am serious about and that I really want to do. Apart from the charity work, I’m still out there looking for fulfilling projects.

"I like to do things properly. What I have in my hands now makes me busy and I just don’t want to overload myself. I want to be happy and lighthearted."

On the creative front, Cheung is devoting time to music, her enthusiasm ignited by a brief stint on the microphone in Clean.

"It’s not that I want to become a singer, but I am working with … music. I walk into the studio and hang out, make up songs and write some lyrics. I do some tunes on the computer with my own programming. I’m in love with that side of it," she says.

"If I keep on doing it, it might become something big. Music took me away from cinema. I feel my disposition is more inclined towards music now than to acting. Some actors are addicted to acting but I don’t feel that way. But if I don’t do anything musical for a while, I miss it and I want to be back in the studio." And that "part-time" relationship? Having split up with Qeelin founder Guillaume Brochard, she is reportedly dating German architect Ole Scheeren (she neither confirms nor denies this).

"I am willing to go where love is. I didn’t know that before, that I was like that," she says. "But I realise that’s always been the case. I am a true romantic at heart and I think that is the most important thing. Love is what drives me.

"But having a family is something I don’t see. I don’t think I will manage to have kids. I might adopt. I love children but I don’t want to [give birth]. I decided [that] when I was watching the news during 9/11. When I saw those planes crash into the buildings I said to myself that I didn’t want to bring anyone into this suffering. That moment clarified it for me. And along the way, watching my friends have kids, I have just realised it’s not for me. It’s a lot of work, a lot of heart. I believe two people should just be together and be happy to enjoy each other."

With no family and, possibly, no films ahead, what does the future hold for Miss Photogenic 1983?

"I think I will probably continue having three or four homes in places I like, and travel from home to home. I may even consider settling down in England, as that’s the one place I feel most comfortable. That would be an ideal life for me, as long as I have the person I love with me - unless he takes me somewhere else that I love, that is."

Interview by Harilela

This is very sad news, that something like the Flu can still do this, I wonder if they did a thorough inspection of the surrounding of what caused this.

Four reports of flu outbreaks involving 88 people in kindergartens and primary schools in Yuen Long, Tuen Mun and Yau Tong were announced last night. Most of the patients, aged from three to 42, had recovered, the Centre for Health Protection said.

Legislator for the medical sector Kwok Ka-ki said the Hospital Authority should be better prepared for flu outbreaks. "Faced with demands in admission, hospitals should try to scale down other services and provide additional beds for paediatric and medical patients who are most affected by flu outbreaks," he said.

The tragedy-struck Ho family had happier news yesterday with the birth of a baby, four days after their three-year-old daughter died of flu.

The baby came into the world yesterday morning at Tuen Mun Hospital, where Ho Po-yi died on Saturday. The child’s death sparked allegations by the family that doctors had been remiss in not admitting her earlier.

On what should have been a joyful occasion, the children’s father and grandfather were unsmiling as they went to the hospital yesterday, not even willing to disclose the sex of the new child, Mrs Ho’s fourth.

Also in the hospital is another daughter, Ho Yuen-yi, six, suffering from the same H3 flu strain that struck Po-yi.

Yuen-yi was confirmed yesterday to be ill with the H3N2 substrain, known as Brisbane flu after the Australian city where it first emerged, but the exact substrain that infected her sister had not been established last night.

Secretary for Food and Health York Chow Yat-ngok said the authority was very concerned by the sisters’ case. Dr Chow said he hoped the coroner’s court would be able to provide a clear account of the medical procedures involved and what had happened. He said the case was rare, as flu did not normally kill so quickly.

Po-yi died on Saturday afternoon after she was admitted to the hospital, a few hours after being sent home from the emergency room with a high fever.

Her sister, under treatment with the flu drug Tamiflu, is also having psychological counselling to help her deal with the tragedy.

"Yuen-yi is now stable, and she has started to eat again," grandfather Ho Kwai-ming said.

"Doctors say she may be discharged within two days. We are glad."

He did not answer when asked whether Yuen-yi had taken in the news of the death of her sister, but said he was still angry with the hospital. Mr Ho wondered whether mistakes had been made.

Beleaguered actor-singer Edison Chen Koon-hei returned to Hong Kong yesterday and apologised unreservedly for his involvement in the nude pictures controversy, saying he would quit the local entertainment scene indefinitely.

He admitted for the first time he had taken pictures of female celebrities engaging in sex acts with him. His lawyers issued a statement warning that further publication of the images would be a breach of copyright, a move that could foreshadow legal  action.

It is interesting to see how legal action against proprietary images is being used, since they were "stolen" and published without consent, does this mean we will be seeing multi million dollar lawsuits headed towards media outlets that published these photos?

"I would like to say sorry to all the people of Hong Kong. I give my apologies sincerely to you all unreservedly and with my heart," the Canadian-born Chen, 27, told a packed press conference at the Hong Kong International Trade and Exhibition Centre in Kowloon Bay. "I hope you all will accept my apology. Give me a chance."

He added: "I admit that most of the photos being circulated on the internet were taken by me. But these photos were very private, and have not been shown to people and were never intended to be shown to anyone. These photos were stolen from me illegally and distributed without my consent."

Chen said he would leave the local entertainment industry after fulfilling current commitments. His  lawyers released a statement saying Chen was the owner of the photographs and images "featuring himself and his lady friends in intimate circumstances", in an attempt to stop the pictures being circulated on the internet or published in the press.

The statement said that downloading the photographs was an act of copyright infringement and the  reproduction and dissemination of the photographs to the public was an "even more serious act of copyright infringement".

The photographs, featuring Chen and seven female celebrities including Gillian Chung Yan-tung of girl duo Twins, actress Cecilia Cheung Pak-chi and his current girlfriend Vincy Yeung Wing-ching, niece of Emperor Group tycoon Albert Yeung Sau-shing, have been circulated globally since the scandal broke nearly four weeks ago.

During his seven-minute speech, Chen repeatedly apologised to the  female stars who had been  embroiled in the scandal.

"I would like to apologise to all the ladies and to all their families for any harm or hurt that they have been  feeling. I’m sorry," he said calmly. He added: "I know young people in Hong Kong look up to many figures in our society. And in this regard, I failed as a role model. I will wholeheartedly fulfil all the commitments that I have to date but after that I have decided to step away from the Hong Kong entertainment industry."

Albert Yeung said last night Chen had spoken well and was "very sincere". "I think we should give him a chance." On Chen’s decision to quit local showbusiness he said: "It’s a pity, but this is his personal decision."

Gary Chan Chi-kwong, director of East Asia Music, said the company supported Chen’s decision.

Defending his decision to disappear after the scandal broke, Chen said: "I have never escaped from my responsibility … I have been assisting the police since the first day the photos were published, and I will continue to assist them."

Chen said he would dedicate his time to charity in the next few months and hoped his predicament would be a lesson for the wider  community.

After the press conference, police went to Chen’s home in Magazine Gap Road to continue their investigation and search for evidence.

"We have collected evidence including some computer-related items and a computer," said Chief Inspector Kenny Wong Tak-cheung from the Commercial Crime Bureau.

Apple Daily and The Sun continued to have Edison Chen on the front page.  Apple Daily said that Edison Chen has backed off on his plan to return to Hong Kong, while The Sun went further by saying that he threatened to slash his wrists in order to force his girlfriend Vincy Yeung into marrying him. I suppose if I was Edison I might not want to come back either but now he might be branded a coward together with everything else people are calling him these days.

In the meantime

The first man arrested over the celebrity sex-photos scandal was freed yesterday when the charge against him was abruptly withdrawn after he had spent two weeks behind bars. Amid a storm of criticism over police handling of the case, Chung Yik-tin, 29, walked out of Tuen Mun Court disguised in a surgical mask and hat after the Department of Justice withdrew a charge against him of publishing an obscene article. On Thursday the Obscene Articles Tribunal, in response to an application by a newspaper, ruled that photographs circulating on the internet of a woman, allegedly Canto-pop star Gillian Chung Yan-tung, naked and spread-legged on a bed with singer-actor Edison Chen Koon-hei, were indecent but not obscene. Its ruling is an interim one. “After a thorough review we found the possibility is low that the tribunal will make a [final] classification of the photo as obscene. For justice to be seen to be done, we’ve decided to withdraw the charge,” senior government counsel Hayson Tse Ka-sze told the court.

A good article on globalvoices today. The most striking comment being that even possession of the photos were illegal by a Police commissioner who clearly did not know better. A major protest was out on the streets to protest the obscene photo case and relevant arrest.

There is now even a facebook group calling for Edison Chen’s arrest.

Depending on the source, anywhere from 250-500 people were marching on the street, a sample from hkdigit.

More than 250 Hong Kong people included members of the League of Social Democrats(Organizers Article23.net said more than 500 people attended) marched from Victoria Park to the Wan Chai Police headquarters to protest against the police’s handling of the obscene photo case involving local pop and film stars including Edison Chen Kwoon-hei(陳冠希), Gillian Chung Yan-tung (鍾欣桐), Bobo Chan Man-woon (陳文媛) and Cecilia Cheung Pak-zhi (張栢芝), implicated Edison’s current girlfriend Vincy Yeung (楊永晴). They accused the police of selective prosecution.

For more information on this there is even a Wikipedia entry.

There are several events of hypocrisy, starting from the lie that the pictures were fabricated, to the innocent and quick arrests of people and the police threatening to jail people simply for possession. I guess being a celebrity gives you some extra benefits in Hong Kong society?

Gillian Chung makes a public appearance after the Edison Chen scandal, here a brief sample from the article.

Gillian Chung began by saying Happy New Year to those present. She said that this incident has caused great distress and hurt to herself and those around her. She admitted to being very naïve and very stupid before, but she has now grown up. She expressed her gratitude towards the company, her family and her friends for their concern and support. She apologized for the effect of the affair on society at large. In the future, she will continue to work hard and live actively. Finally, she thanked the media for their concern and the fans who never abandoned her.

The Internet forum response has been quite negative. Throughout her statement, there was no description of what the affair was about. The netizens did not take kindly towards her description of being “very naïve, very stupid.” People pointed to the KY jelly in the background of one of her photographs and asked: “If she had been ‘very naïve, very stupid’ at the time when she was using KY jelly in a hotel room, then what is she doing now that she has grown up?”

Why is the Internet forum public so hostile towards Gillian Chung this time? When photographs of her changing in the dressing room appeared in EasyFinder magazine in August 2006, the public was overwhelmingly on her side. But the tide appeared to have swung the other way around. One reason was that her company Emperor Entertainment Group had claimed initially that the photographs were computer modifications. When more photographs appeared, EEG went silent and refused to comment on the grounds that there was an ongoing police investigation. Even at today’s press conference, EEG stated that the company and all its artistes will decline comment in the future in the interest of not causing more social harm. The Internet forum users consider Gillian Chung and EEG evasive.

The whole video of the interview is here: