Amy Yip

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Amy Yip
葉子楣
Xie Zi Mei .png
Yip in 2023 at a charity event in Hong Kong
Born (1966-07-10) 10 July 1966 (age 57)
Hong Kong
Occupation(s)actress, model, entrepreneur
Years active1984–1997
PartnerSammy Lui (1992–2018)
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 葉子楣
Simplified Chinese 叶子楣

Amy Yip (born 10 July 1966) is a Hong Kong actress, model and entrepreneur. She was one of the leading sex symbols of Hong Kong Cinema in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Yip is best known for her lead roles in popular Category III films such as Erotic Ghost Story (1990), Sex and Zen (1991), and Robotrix (1991). Among these, Sex and Zen is the highest grossing Category III movie in Hong Kong box office history.

Contents

Career

Born in Hong Kong on 10 July 1966, she has family roots in Taishan, Guangdong. Yip first came to notice by appearing in various television series in the mid-1980s. The 1990 film Erotic Ghost Story proved to be a breakthrough role and she became one of the most popular actresses in Hong Kong and many other parts of Asia in the early 1990s. She had large, full breasts which made her much in demand for nude scenes. However she refused to appear fully naked on film. [1] : 36  Her efforts to avoid fully exposing her breasts on screen through clever use of camera angles, whereby the side of her breast is seen, became known as the "Yip tease". However, in Erotic Ghost Story for example, she did show her buttocks in one scene.

She retired from acting in 1997. She expressed regret that, given the nature of her films, there were not many memorable roles during her acting career. The only exceptional movie for her was the 1991 movie Queen of the Underworld in which she portrayed Sister Har, a woman who climbed from the lowest depths of society to become the celebrated queen of nightlife in 1960s and 1970s Hong Kong.

Personal life

In 1990, a Hong Kong man was sent to prison and charged for stealing money. This man said he stole money in order to sustain Amy Yip's luxurious lifestyle. However, Amy Yip said she had only met the man few times and the man was not a close friend.

Yip's long term boyfriend was the orthopedics surgeon Dr. Sammy Sek Chiu Lui (呂錫照); the pair met in 1992. [2] Numerous rumours have surfaced over the years about Yip marrying Lui, and being pregnant. In an interview in early 2006 with an East Weekly reporter, who spotted Yip walking her dog at Repulse Bay, however, she said she was in a steady relationship with her boyfriend of more than 15 years and had no intention of getting married or having children. She added she had food and beverage businesses set up in Hong Kong and Macau that kept her busy and occupied.

When asked if she would consider a comeback into the film business, Yip flatly rejected the idea, saying that she was very happy with her carefree lifestyle and had no desire of returning to filming long hours and traveling intensively for movies and record publicity. She also said that she is content with not showing her breasts to make a living.

In May 2018 an English language book detailing her career in movies and television was released. [3] Her boyfriend Lui died of a heart attack while flying to the United States in November 2018. [2]

Filmography

Film

YearTitle
1988Who is The Craftiest 奸人本色
1988Heart to Hearts 三人世界
1988China Heat 霸王花之中華警花
1989The Inspector Wears Skirts 2 神勇飛虎霸王花
1989 Miracles 奇蹟
1989Mr. Sunshine 开心巨无霸
1989Lost Souls 富貴開心鬼
1989Ghost Fever 鬼媾人
1990Jail House Eros 監獄不設防
1990 Erotic Ghost Story 聊齋艷譚
1990 Look Out, Officer! 師兄撞鬼
1990Doctor's Heart 救命宣言
1990My Neighbours are Phantoms 嘩鬼住正隔籬
1990Mortuary Blues 屍家重地
1990Raid On Royal Casino Marine 霸王花第三集皇家賭船
1990 She Shoots Straight 皇家女將
1990Legend of the Dragon 龍的傳人
1990Ghostly Vixen 天師捉姦
1990To Spy with Love 小心間諜
1991The Blue Jean Monster 著牛仔褲的鍾馗
1991Queen of the Underworld 夜生活女王霞姐傳奇
1991 Magnificent Scoundrels 情聖
1991 Great Pretenders 千王
1991 Robotrix 女機械人
1991Lethal Contact 龍貓燒鬚
1991Erotic Ghost Story 2 聊齋艷譚續集五通神
1991Easy Money 老表發錢寒
1991Vampire Kids 殭屍福星仔
1991 To Be Number One 跛豪
1991 Sex and Zen 玉蒲團之偷情寶鑑
1992China Dolls 妓女警察
1992 The Prince of Temple Street 廟街十二少
1992Requital 五湖四海
1992Stooges in Hong Kong 不文騷
1994Underground Judgement 地下裁決

Cultural influence

One of the nicknames for her, boba (which means "champion of breasts"[ dubious – discuss ]), [4] was adopted as the name of the tapioca pearls in Taiwanese bubble tea during the 1980s. [5]

Nam Kee Pau, a baozi chain in Singapore, sells a large-sized steamed bun named Amy Yip Big Pau. [6]

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References

  1. ↑ Dannen, Fredric; Long, Barry (1997). Hong Kong Babylon: An Insider's Guide to the Hollywood of the East . New York City: Hyperion. ISBN   0-7868-6267-X . Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  2. 1 2 張哲鳴 (2 June 2020). "【幕後祕辛】葉子楣來台拍片堅上牛郎店 「波霸找鴨」真相曝光" [[Secrets from behind the scenes]: Amy Yip came to Taiwan to film Requital; the truth about "boba" is revealed]. Apple Daily. Archived from the original on 25 May 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  3. ↑ Gower, Chaz (22 May 2018). The Movies of Amy Yip. Self. ISBN   978-1982967079. Archived from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  4. ↑ Hiufu Wong, Maggie (30 April 2020). "The rise of bubble tea, one of Taiwan's most beloved beverages". CNN. Archived from the original on 31 March 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  5. ↑ Nguyen-Okwu, Leslie (16 March 2019). "Boba Explained: A Taxonomy of Taipei's Bubble Tea". eater.com. Eater. Archived from the original on 5 May 2020. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
  6. ↑ Auto, Hermes (2 February 2019). "Teck Kee Tanglin Pau closes, but here are 7 other bao shops to get your fix | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
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