RIP Jimmy Wang Yu

[Exhibitman]

Jimmy Wang Yu, best known for martial arts blockbusters One-Armed Swordsman and The Chinese Boxer, died on Tuesday at a Taipei hospital, Deadline reports. He was 79.
Jimmy was born in Shanghai, China in 1943. He later moved to Hong Kong and landed a successful career in acting after joining the Hong-Kong-based Shaw Brothers Studio in 1963.

He quickly rose to fame after starring in One-Armed Swordsman, where he was able to showcase his talents in martial arts. The film broke the local million-dollar box-office record in Hong Kong.

His role in the action film drew attention from the industry and subsequently opened doors for other martial artists to step foot into the entertainment business. Jimmy went on to star in over 40 movies, including The Man From Hong Kong (1975) and Master of the Flying Guillotine (1976).

Jimmy also reprised his role in the One-Armed Swordsman sequels — Return Of The One-Armed Swordsman and The New One-Armed Swordsman — released in 1969 and 1971, respectively. He once earned the title of the highest-paid martial arts film actor before Bruce Lee came onto the scene.

Jimmy was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2019 Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan to recognize his contribution to the industry.

After learning about his death, fellow martial arts star Jackie Chan paid tribute to Jimmy via Facebook: "The contributions you've made to kung fu movies, and the support and wisdom you've given to the younger generations will always be remembered in the industry," he wrote. "And your movies will always remain in the hearts of your fans. We will miss you!"

I'm gonna watch Master of the Flying Guillotine (MOTFG) again this weekend. If you haven't seen it, you should. It is a trip. Per Wikipedia:

Elvis Mitchell of The New York Times called it "near-great" and "a venerable example of the kung fu genre". Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times wrote, "Master of the Flying Guillotine has been called the Holy Grail of the Hong Kong martial arts movies of the '70s, and now that it has been lovingly restored and given a regular theatrical release, it's easy to see why." Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club called it "a delirious kung-fu saga" that is "wild even by the genre's lenient standards". Rabin concludes, "Goofy Z-movie fun of the highest order, Master Of The Flying Guillotine needs to be seen to be believed, and even then defies belief." Quentin Tarantino has cited the film as "one of my favorite movies of all time."

Here is Jimmy in an early card from Hong Kong:



Publicity photo as the one-armed boxer: