LATHROP – Megan Cai’s curious question to her mother, Angela, just came out of the blue.
“Are we related to anyone famous?” she casually asked her mother one day.
It was one of those things that children normally wonder about when they are growing up and start becoming aware of the facts of life.
Roughly two-and-a-half years and more than 6,000 miles later across the Pacific by plane, car and on foot from Lathrop to Beijing, China, and surrounding regions, the 17-year-old Lathrop High School junior got the answer to her innocent question and more – much, much more.
As it turned out, a brother of Megan Cai’s grandfather on her mother’s side – Angela’s uncle – was, and still is, a giant not only in the Chinese film industry but in the international cinematic world as well. Google the name Cai Chuseng (the first word, pronounced T-S-A-I, is the family name) and you’ll see why.
Among many other things, he was the first Chinese filmmaker to win an international award, given at the Moscow International Film Festival for “Song of the Fishermen” (1934), a box office smash hit in Shanghai where it was shown for 87 days.
Born to Cantonese parents in Shanghai, Cai Chuseng grew up in Chaoyang, Shantou, Guangdong and eventually rose to become an influential film director of the pre-Communist era in China. For his progressive work in the film industry, he fell victim to the persecutions of the Cultural Revolution and died at age 62 on July 15, 1968.
In 1992, Hong Kong director Stanley Kwan’s movie, Centre Stage, featured the life of Ruan Lingyu, one of China’s most prominent film stars of the 1930s and his controversial romance with the famous director Cai Chuseng. Both were married to different people at the time of their affair. The silent actress’ death by suicide at age 24 made her a movie icon. According to various reports, three women diehard fans who were at the actress’s three-mile funeral procession committed suicide. Actress Maggie Cheung who played the role of the tragic actress, later won Best Acress at the Berlin Festival for that portrayal. Cai Chuseng was portrayed by another famous Hong Kong actor, Tony Leung Ka Fai. The ill-fated romance of Cai Chuseng and Ruan Lingyu has been translated into many languages throughout the world and can be easily found on the Internet.
On the anniversary of Cai Chuseng’s 100th birthday, the Chinese government published the film director’s seven-volume diary. Another book titled “Cai Chuseng Centennial” was also published, along with his scrap book containing his personal filmography, among other things. Included in the centennial book was a copy of a tribute written by Deng Yingchao, the wife of Zhou Enlai, the first Premier of the People’s Republic of China. The written tribute is inscribed on a bronze statue of the film director at a Chinese park.
Angela and Megan Cai have copies of all these books, as well as DVDs of many of Cai Chuseng’s films given to them by relatives in China.
Cai Chuseng’s ashes is at China’s National Cemetery, a place reserved for Chinese patriots with highest honors.
Angela Cai said China pays tribute to her uncle “from time to time in various functions.” The most recent one, she said, was at the 2009 film expo in Shanghai.
Digging family roots
in China online
After Megan learned about her mother’s famous uncle, she took it upon herself to find out more about him. Her diligent search is a story by itself.
Angela Cai, who was born in Hong Kong and graduated from the University of Hawaii where she received her bachelor’s degree in accounting, knew about a famous uncle from her family’s stories but never realized the extent of his life’s accomplishments. It was her daughter who eventually shed light on the accomplishments of the kin she hardly knew.
Megan started her research by going on Wikipedia and Google. Then she contacted various universities in the United States online – University of Southern California, University of California in Los Angeles, as well as universities in China.
“They were very nice but they really did not know how to help her,” Angela said.
Megan’s “big break” came when she “found the chief librarian, Mr. Jin” of Shantou University in southern China, who said he knew her famous grand-uncle and “kind of knew how to locate his relatives.”
The reason Megan contacted Shantou University “was because they are one of the universities in China that has my uncle’s archives, and this university is in my father’s hometown,” Angela Cai said.
“(Mr. Jin) asked Megan to send him a letter so that he could give it to my relatives,” she said.
It was easier said than done. All of Angela’s relatives have long ago scattered in various places, and the village chief (from the Cais’ old home) that Mr. Jin contacted was “skeptical and very unwilling to help” in the research.
In fact, said Angela, “Mr. Jin told Megan to just give up trying because he did not think it was going anywhere.”
Disappointed and disheartened, Angela and her daughter came to the sad conclusion that they probably would never hear or get an answer from Mr. Jin and the Cai relatives that he was trying to contact.
But four months later, they heard from the chief librarian. It also helped that Angela’s relatives in China found a 1984 letter that her father, Cai Lusheng, who was 12 years the junior of his famous filmmaker brother, sent to relatives in China with the names of his children plus other details about the family. (Angela’s family was living in San Jose at that time.) They matched the information provided by Megan and her mother in the letter they sent to Mr. Jin to give to their Chinese relatives.
What followed was a year-long communication via e-mails, letters and telephone calls between the Cais in Lathrop and their scattered relatives in China. Finally, in June of 2009, both mother and daughter made a month-long visit to China to meet their relatives for the first time.
“We were very nervous because we never knew them,” said a smiling Angela. Their anxiety was unnecessary.
“At Beijing Airport, we saw many relatives holding signs with my name to greet us. We bonded instantly. My cousins can still remember some Cantonese, but their children cannot. Surprisingly, there were no language barriers at all,” she said.
Angela found she has three cousins in Beijing, one cousin in Shanghai, and another cousin in Panyu.
“We had to travel all over China to see all of them,” she said.
Because her father was 12 years younger than his filmmaker brother, Angela’s cousins were much older, ranging in age from 68 to 82. A cousin from an older uncle was 88 years old.
“I am the youngest of my generation. My cousins are very old so we could not all meet at one place,” said Angela. So she and her daughter made the trips to visit these relatives at their homes.
Among the cousins they met was Cai Xiao Yun, a university professor who was instrumental in publishing Cai Chuseng’s centennial book, and who is married to another high-ranking professor in China, Gai Ting.
“It was an emotional ride for both Megan and me. It was really a memorable trip. We also went to my father’s hometown, Shantou,” recalled Angela.
They also visited the house that was built by Angela’s grandparents which is now the Shenxianli Museum for her filmmaker uncle. The museum is a certified historical attraction.
Angela and Megan Cai said their Chinese relatives were all happy to see them.
“They loved us so much,” Angela said.
“I was just in shock; just unbelievable to me,” said Megan who is very much in awe of her grand-uncle’s accomplishments.
“He was very famous, but he was very selfless, too. He raised a lot of money (for many causes) and never took a cent for himself,” Angela said.
“He’s just an amazing man,” Megan said. “If you take a film course here (in the United States), you have to study him. I even found a biography of him written in Spanish. There’s also a fan club for him in Russia. He has fan clubs in Czechoslovakia, Russia, and other countries.”
She said she found the fan clubs on Facebook.
“Definitely, he’s an inspiration to me. I just hope I can be a little bit as successful as him,” said Megan who, with a cumulative GPA of 4.15, currently ranks at the top of her class.
Both mother and daughter continue to stay in touch with their long-lost relatives in China.
“They check up on us once in a while” via e-mail, Angela said.
“Are we related to anyone famous?” she casually asked her mother one day.
It was one of those things that children normally wonder about when they are growing up and start becoming aware of the facts of life.
Roughly two-and-a-half years and more than 6,000 miles later across the Pacific by plane, car and on foot from Lathrop to Beijing, China, and surrounding regions, the 17-year-old Lathrop High School junior got the answer to her innocent question and more – much, much more.
As it turned out, a brother of Megan Cai’s grandfather on her mother’s side – Angela’s uncle – was, and still is, a giant not only in the Chinese film industry but in the international cinematic world as well. Google the name Cai Chuseng (the first word, pronounced T-S-A-I, is the family name) and you’ll see why.
Among many other things, he was the first Chinese filmmaker to win an international award, given at the Moscow International Film Festival for “Song of the Fishermen” (1934), a box office smash hit in Shanghai where it was shown for 87 days.
Born to Cantonese parents in Shanghai, Cai Chuseng grew up in Chaoyang, Shantou, Guangdong and eventually rose to become an influential film director of the pre-Communist era in China. For his progressive work in the film industry, he fell victim to the persecutions of the Cultural Revolution and died at age 62 on July 15, 1968.
In 1992, Hong Kong director Stanley Kwan’s movie, Centre Stage, featured the life of Ruan Lingyu, one of China’s most prominent film stars of the 1930s and his controversial romance with the famous director Cai Chuseng. Both were married to different people at the time of their affair. The silent actress’ death by suicide at age 24 made her a movie icon. According to various reports, three women diehard fans who were at the actress’s three-mile funeral procession committed suicide. Actress Maggie Cheung who played the role of the tragic actress, later won Best Acress at the Berlin Festival for that portrayal. Cai Chuseng was portrayed by another famous Hong Kong actor, Tony Leung Ka Fai. The ill-fated romance of Cai Chuseng and Ruan Lingyu has been translated into many languages throughout the world and can be easily found on the Internet.
On the anniversary of Cai Chuseng’s 100th birthday, the Chinese government published the film director’s seven-volume diary. Another book titled “Cai Chuseng Centennial” was also published, along with his scrap book containing his personal filmography, among other things. Included in the centennial book was a copy of a tribute written by Deng Yingchao, the wife of Zhou Enlai, the first Premier of the People’s Republic of China. The written tribute is inscribed on a bronze statue of the film director at a Chinese park.
Angela and Megan Cai have copies of all these books, as well as DVDs of many of Cai Chuseng’s films given to them by relatives in China.
Cai Chuseng’s ashes is at China’s National Cemetery, a place reserved for Chinese patriots with highest honors.
Angela Cai said China pays tribute to her uncle “from time to time in various functions.” The most recent one, she said, was at the 2009 film expo in Shanghai.
Digging family roots
in China online
After Megan learned about her mother’s famous uncle, she took it upon herself to find out more about him. Her diligent search is a story by itself.
Angela Cai, who was born in Hong Kong and graduated from the University of Hawaii where she received her bachelor’s degree in accounting, knew about a famous uncle from her family’s stories but never realized the extent of his life’s accomplishments. It was her daughter who eventually shed light on the accomplishments of the kin she hardly knew.
Megan started her research by going on Wikipedia and Google. Then she contacted various universities in the United States online – University of Southern California, University of California in Los Angeles, as well as universities in China.
“They were very nice but they really did not know how to help her,” Angela said.
Megan’s “big break” came when she “found the chief librarian, Mr. Jin” of Shantou University in southern China, who said he knew her famous grand-uncle and “kind of knew how to locate his relatives.”
The reason Megan contacted Shantou University “was because they are one of the universities in China that has my uncle’s archives, and this university is in my father’s hometown,” Angela Cai said.
“(Mr. Jin) asked Megan to send him a letter so that he could give it to my relatives,” she said.
It was easier said than done. All of Angela’s relatives have long ago scattered in various places, and the village chief (from the Cais’ old home) that Mr. Jin contacted was “skeptical and very unwilling to help” in the research.
In fact, said Angela, “Mr. Jin told Megan to just give up trying because he did not think it was going anywhere.”
Disappointed and disheartened, Angela and her daughter came to the sad conclusion that they probably would never hear or get an answer from Mr. Jin and the Cai relatives that he was trying to contact.
But four months later, they heard from the chief librarian. It also helped that Angela’s relatives in China found a 1984 letter that her father, Cai Lusheng, who was 12 years the junior of his famous filmmaker brother, sent to relatives in China with the names of his children plus other details about the family. (Angela’s family was living in San Jose at that time.) They matched the information provided by Megan and her mother in the letter they sent to Mr. Jin to give to their Chinese relatives.
What followed was a year-long communication via e-mails, letters and telephone calls between the Cais in Lathrop and their scattered relatives in China. Finally, in June of 2009, both mother and daughter made a month-long visit to China to meet their relatives for the first time.
“We were very nervous because we never knew them,” said a smiling Angela. Their anxiety was unnecessary.
“At Beijing Airport, we saw many relatives holding signs with my name to greet us. We bonded instantly. My cousins can still remember some Cantonese, but their children cannot. Surprisingly, there were no language barriers at all,” she said.
Angela found she has three cousins in Beijing, one cousin in Shanghai, and another cousin in Panyu.
“We had to travel all over China to see all of them,” she said.
Because her father was 12 years younger than his filmmaker brother, Angela’s cousins were much older, ranging in age from 68 to 82. A cousin from an older uncle was 88 years old.
“I am the youngest of my generation. My cousins are very old so we could not all meet at one place,” said Angela. So she and her daughter made the trips to visit these relatives at their homes.
Among the cousins they met was Cai Xiao Yun, a university professor who was instrumental in publishing Cai Chuseng’s centennial book, and who is married to another high-ranking professor in China, Gai Ting.
“It was an emotional ride for both Megan and me. It was really a memorable trip. We also went to my father’s hometown, Shantou,” recalled Angela.
They also visited the house that was built by Angela’s grandparents which is now the Shenxianli Museum for her filmmaker uncle. The museum is a certified historical attraction.
Angela and Megan Cai said their Chinese relatives were all happy to see them.
“They loved us so much,” Angela said.
“I was just in shock; just unbelievable to me,” said Megan who is very much in awe of her grand-uncle’s accomplishments.
“He was very famous, but he was very selfless, too. He raised a lot of money (for many causes) and never took a cent for himself,” Angela said.
“He’s just an amazing man,” Megan said. “If you take a film course here (in the United States), you have to study him. I even found a biography of him written in Spanish. There’s also a fan club for him in Russia. He has fan clubs in Czechoslovakia, Russia, and other countries.”
She said she found the fan clubs on Facebook.
“Definitely, he’s an inspiration to me. I just hope I can be a little bit as successful as him,” said Megan who, with a cumulative GPA of 4.15, currently ranks at the top of her class.
Both mother and daughter continue to stay in touch with their long-lost relatives in China.
“They check up on us once in a while” via e-mail, Angela said.
