Kwan was born in
Guangzhou,
China in 1905. He was the second child in the family. His father died of a disease at a young age. To supplement his family's income, as a boy, Kwan worked as a cowherd. When he was 12, he began work in construction. At the age of 13, he worked as a waiter in a restaurant in
Singapore before joining a
Cantonese opera troupe under Cheng Hsin-pei. In 1928 at the age of 23, he married Chan Yat-chor (), the daughter of the actor known only by his nickname of "Bind-Legged Champ" (), and they had a son David Kwan Hon-chuen (). His film debut was in
The Singing Lovers (aka
Romance of the Songsters), made in the US for the Grandview Studios and only the second Cantonese-language
talkie ever made. His first starring roles came two years later in
Song of the Yesterday (aka ''Yesterday's Song
) and Song of Sadness'' (both 1935). Kwan's first martial arts film was
Knight of the Whip (1936). The first film in which he starred as
Wong Fei-hung was the
Story of Huang Feihong part 1 (1949) directed by
Wu Pang and produced by the Yong Yao Film Company. The film included
Shih Kien as the villain and Li Lan, the very first winner of the
Miss Hong Kong Pageant, and the first of many winners who would become famous actresses in
Hong Kong). This partnership was a huge success and spawned many sequels, exploring many ideas and situations used in later action films. In 1956, a total of 25
Wong Fei-hung films were released. Kwan worked on films with two of the students of
Lam Sai-wing (himself a student of the real Wong Fei-hung). First, Leong Wing-hang, who worked as action director on Wong Fei-hung films as well as other Kwan vehicles including ''The Five Heroes' Deadly Spears'' (1951). Later he worked with Lau Cham, father of
Lau Kar-leung and
Lau Kar-wing. The Wong Fei-hung sequence of films ended in 1970 and Kwan went into semi-retirement. During this period, Kwan opened a
martial arts school and a number of herbal centres, whose branded soup and an ointment for bruises were well known in Hong Kong. In 1974,
Golden Harvest revived the role, pairing Kwan with
Sammo Hung in
The Skyhawk. Other films followed in which Kwan played his most familiar role –
Magnificent Butcher (1979),
Magnificent Kick (1980), and
Dreadnaught (1981).
TVB also aired a 13-part television series featuring Kwan as Wong Fei-hung in 1976. By this time, he was in his 70s and although he was doubled for the more athletic scenes, he still demonstrated remarkable fitness and suppleness. Kwan received an honorary
MBE for his charitable work and contribution to the entertainment industry, in 1984. On 5 November 1984, Kwan married his second wife Kwan Yut-chur in
Reno,
Nevada, whom he first met whilst travelling in the US, whilst raising money for the Chinese war effort. To the Chinese, Kwan embodied
Confucian virtues and patriarchal authority, and he is thought to have modelled his speeches on those of
Sun Yat-sen. Kwan appeared in cameo roles in
The Family Strikes Back and
Aces Go Places 4 (both 1986). His final film appearance was in the 1994 family comedy film ''
It's a Wonderful Life!'', at the age of 89, some 61 years after his acting career began. He died on the day after his 91st birthday of
pancreatic cancer. In Bey Logan's audio commentary for the film
The Magnificent Butcher, he states that though there is a grave marker to Kwan Tak-hing in
Kowloon territory, his ashes were already taken to
San Francisco to rest with those of his second wife. ==Action style==