Memorial Hall of Shangguan Yunzhu

Memorial Hall of Shangguan Yunzhu

Memorial Hall of Shangguan Yunzhu

In 1937 (the 26th year of the Republic of China), her family moved to Shanghai to escape the war. Wei Junluo initially worked as a cashier at the He Brothers Photography Studio. In 1940 (the 29th year of the Republic of China), she enrolled in Huaguang Drama School to study stage acting, then joined the training class of Xinhua Film Company, adopting the stage name Shangguan Yunzhu (given to her by the famous director Bu Wancang). In 1941 (the 30th year of the Republic of China), she began her acting career, achieving success in her first stage play, Thunderstorm, where she played the maid Sifeng. She later entered the film industry, starring in iconic films such as Paradise Spring Dream, The Spring River Flows East, Lights of Ten Thousand Homes, Women Side by Side, Hope in the World, Crows and Sparrows, Fragrance Drifting Ten Thousand Miles, The Dead Tree Meets Spring, Blood Stele, Early Spring in February, and Stage Sisters. In 1952, during the first national outstanding film competition, Crows and Sparrows won the gold award, and she was personally received by Mao Zedong and others. During the Cultural Revolution, she suffered persecution and, unable to endure the torment, jumped to her death from a building at 3 a.m. on November 23, 1968.

Shangguan Yunzhu’s father was Wei Yaqiao and her mother was surnamed Jin. In 1936, Wei Junluo dropped out of school and married Zhang Dayan, the second son of a wealthy local family (whose elder brother was Zhang Dalie), and had a son named Zhang Qijian. After divorcing in 1943, Shangguan Yunzhu successively married Yao Ke (with whom she had a daughter, Yao Yao), Cheng Shuyao (with whom she had a son, Wei Ran), and He Lu.

Chen Fuguan authored the long-form documentary literature Shangguan Yunzhu.

In the 1940s, Shangguan Yunzhu starred in films such as National Beauty and Fragrance and The Phantom Thief. She also participated in films like Children of Troubled Times. Starting in 1954, she became an actress at the Shanghai Film Studio. After the founding of New China, she appeared in films such as Storm Over the South Island and Today I Rest.

The Memorial Hall of Shangguan Yunzhu is located at No. 142, North Old Street, Changjing Town. Facing south with its back to the north, it features a shop in the front and residential quarters in the back, and has a history of about 400 years (the original house was purchased by the Wei family from the Wang family). The structure is a brick-and-wood building with a floor plan of three bays, three sections and two stories, covering a total area of 350 square meters, situated in the middle section of the old street. Shangguan Yunzhu’s father was a private tutor and ran a small shop, while her mother supported the family by weaving and selling cloth. Due to poor management by her father, the family fell into poverty and sold the shop to move to Shanghai for a living. After the liberation, during the land reform in 1952, the government confiscated the eastern two rooms of the Wei family from south to north across three sections, with ownership transferred to the local housing authority. These rooms were rented to the Changjing Supply and Marketing Cooperative for commercial use until the early 1990s. The western room remained the private property of Wei Qiuyue of the Wei family. As the Wei family often lived elsewhere, the house was managed by the Changjing Housing Management Office and rented to the Changjing Supply and Marketing Cooperative.

Considering the value of the house, the Changjing Town Party Committee and government decided to fully utilize the former residence of the Wei family. A joint meeting was held by the town Party Committee, which resolved to purchase the house from the Jiangyin Housing Management Department and the Wei family’s private property, restore and renovate it, and initiate the restoration of Shangguan Yunzhu’s former residence. Construction began in April, renovation was completed in October, exhibition preparation started in November, and the Memorial Hall of Shangguan Yunzhu was fully arranged by April 30, 2007, officially opening on November 9. At the opening ceremony, leaders from Jiangyin City including Zhu Manyang, Xu Dongqing, and Chen Nan, Wu Yigong—Vice Chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and Chairman of the China Film Association, renowned film actresses Qin Yi and Liu Zifeng, famous playwright Huang Zongjiang, and other veteran film artists, along with representatives of Shangguan Yunzhu’s family, attended the inauguration. Renowned directors Xie Jin and Wong Kar-wai sent flower baskets to celebrate the opening.

The current layout consists of three exhibition halls and two zones: the Memorial Hall (first hall on the ground floor) featuring a preface and Shangguan Yunzhu’s biography; the Film and Television Hall (middle hall on the ground floor); the Exhibition Hall divided into three parts—the first being Artistic Journey and Screen Image (middle of the ground floor, middle of the second floor, front west of the second floor), the second being Beyond the Screen (front middle of the second floor), and the third being Remembrance and Reflection (front east of the second floor); the original study and living area of Shangguan Yunzhu (rear of the second floor); and the office and sanitation area of the memorial hall (second hall on the ground floor).

At Shangguan Yunzhu’s former residence, inscriptions left by her colleagues in the Shanghai film industry are preserved. These include Wu Yigong’s “Pearl of the South, Shangguan Yunzhu—two pearls shining in shared glory,” Xie Jin’s “Beautiful Changjing nurtured Shangguan Yunzhu,” Zhong Xinghuo’s “How can one not remember Changjing?”, and Qin Yi’s “Deep bonds with Changjing,” among other treasured calligraphy works.

Since the opening of the Memorial Hall of Shangguan Yunzhu over a year ago, visitors have come in an endless stream from all over, including primary and secondary school students, citizens, arts professionals, writers, teachers, businesspeople, corporate employees, and Changjing natives residing elsewhere. Many visitors caught a glimpse of the legendary star’s charm, left with fond impressions of Changjing, received patriotic education, and remembered the life motto: work diligently and live with integrity.

Changjing Town: Once known as Dongshuncheng, Changjing is a historic ancient town in the south of the Yangtze River, rich in culture and talent, and an important birthplace of Wu culture. It is said to have a history of over 7,000 years, 5,000 years of civilization, and 2,500 years of recorded history. The town covers an area of 54 square kilometers, with a registered population of 56,000, and administers 12 administrative villages and one community residents' committee.

Changjing Town is under the jurisdiction of Jiangyin City, Jiangsu Province, located at the geometric center of the Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou economic zone in the Yangtze River Delta. It borders the Yangtze River to the north and Taihu Lake to the south, enjoying a highly advantageous geographical position. The area experiences distinct seasons, … More details about Changjing Town++