Interesting Facts about Lydia Tin Ha Sum, a Hong Kong comedian, MC, actress, and singer

Google Doodle celebrates Lydia Tin Ha Sum (沈殿霞), a Hong Kong comedian, MC, actress, and singer known for her portly figure, signature dark-rimmed glasses, and bouffant hairstyle, on July 21, 2022. Here are some interesting and fun facts about Lydia Tin Ha Sum (沈殿霞).

Here is a look at the life and work of Lydia Tin Ha Sum (沈殿霞).

Personal

• Birth name: Lydia Shum Din-ha
• Birth date: 21 July 1945
• Birthplace: Shanghai, China
• Died on: 19 February 2008 (aged 62)
• Death place: Queen Mary Hospital, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
• Burial place: Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Burnaby
• Other names:
  • Fei-fei (肥肥)
  • Happy Fruit or Happy Nut (開心果)
  • Sister Fei (肥姐)
  • Lydia Sum
• Education: Shanghai No. 3 Girls’ High School
• Occupation: MC, actress, singer
• Spouse(s): Adam Cheng
• ​Children: Joyce Cheng (daughter)
• Parents:
  • Sung Shen Gee (father)
  • Sung Tan Sun (mother)
• Family: Alfred Sung (brother)
• Awards:
  • Hong Kong Film Awards – Professional Spirit Award
  • 2008 Lifetime Achievement
  • TVB Anniversary Awards – Life Achievement Award
  • 2007 Lifetime Achievement

Who was Lydia Tin Ha Sum?

25 Interesting Facts about Lydia Tin Ha Sum

1. Lydia Shum Din-ha was born on 21 July 1945 in Shanghai to Sung Shen Gee (沈 賢 祺) and Sung Tan Sun (沈 邱 淡 素). She was warmly referred to by companions and fans as Fei-fei (肥 肥, lit. “Fat Fat” or “Fatty”) or Fei Jie (肥 姐 lit. “Fat Sister”).
2. Tenderly known as “Fei Fei” (and that signifies “Fat Fat” in Cantonese), as well as “Happy Fruit”, the Shanghai-born actress is a household name in Chinese communities around the world who brought laughter and positive energy through her shows.
3. Lydia Tin Ha Sum started her career as a teen actress working for the Shaw Brothers Studio, the biggest production organization in Hong Kong at the time.
4. Shum entered the Hong Kong entertainment industry at 13 years old in 1958. She made her film debut in 1960, joining Shaw Brothers as an actress at 15 years old.
5. Shum debuted in When the Peach Blossoms Bloom, a 1960 Mandarin comedy directed by Griffin Yueh Feng.
6. She carved out an opportunity to conform to Hong Kong as she found the local Cantonese cuisine altogether different from that of her native Shanghai.
7. While she worked at Shaw Brothers, her popularity developed and she became one of the first stakeholders in the remarkable new television broadcast station TVB.
8. In 1967, Lydia Tin Ha Sum landed her breakout role as the emcee for a famous variety show called “Enjoy Yourself Tonight.”
9. Soon after, she featured in the popular Cantonese film, “The House of 72 Tenants,” which follows the lives of residents in a run-down apartment.
10. She first sang in the Cantopop group, the Four Golden Flowers. Afterward, she played a Shanghai woman during the 1970s. She additionally sang as the partner of Roman Tam from 1971 to 1973.
11. Lydia Tin Ha Sum’s realistic depiction of working-class women struck a chord with theater-goers. The film outperformed blockbuster films, besting Hong Kong’s box office in 1973.
12. By August 1972, she was adequately respected to be one of the first Chinese to ceremonially ride through the Cross-Harbor Tunnel on its opening day.
13. Lydia Tin Ha Sum has been laid out principally as a comic and emotional entertainer yet isn’t restricted to films of those sorts.
14. Sum proceeded to play a similar role in “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World,” a four-part blockbuster comedy about a ruined family looking for riches.
15. She likewise showed up as Richard Ng’s wife in the all-star comedy Millionaire’s Express, as well as a significant role in It’s a Mad World. Her 1997 film Fitness Tour used her weight for its plot.
16. Lydia Tin Ha Sum disappeared from her film career that same year and facilitated a hosted a talk show in Hong Kong, alongside various telethons and variety shows on TVB.
17. In 1976, Shum co-directed You Are Wonderful. Shum’s last movie was In-Laws Outlaws, a 2004 Cantonese comedy movie directed by Clifton Ko Chi-Sum. Shum is credited with over 175 movies.
18. Shum featured in Singapore’s Channel 5 sitcom Living with Lydia (while credited as Lydia Sum) and Cantonese series like Slim Chances (我要Fit一Fit).
19. Her performance in Living with Lydia won her the “Best Comedy Performance by an Actress” award at the 2003 Asian Television Awards. It was likewise the first time she first had acted in an English sitcom with a multi-camera format, however, a laugh track was used.
20. Beyond Hong Kong, Lydia Tin Ha Sum likewise featured in Singapore’s English-language sitcom, “Living with Lydia,” which won her Best Comedy Performance at the Asian Television Awards in 2003.
21. Lydia Shum was the sister of fashion designer Alfred Sung. Shum married actor and singer Adam Cheng Siu-chow in January 1985 following 11 years of cohabitation.
22. Lydia Tin Ha Sum suffered from a few serious chronic ailments: cholangitis, diabetes, and hypertension.
23. Fei-fei Day was declared in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on 1 June 2008 (Shum’s Chinese lunar calendar birthday).
24. Mayor Sam Sullivan declared this memorial day in Vancouver on 26 February 2008, a week after Shum’s death.
25. On July 21, 2022, Google featured a Doodle on its homepage to celebrate Lydia Tin Ha Sum’s 77th Birthday.