Childhood years He was born Lam Gun-bo (林根寶) on 27 December 1952 in the year of the Dragon, in Hong Kong. His family originated from
Shanghai, in the
People's Republic of China. Both of his parents made a living by doing catering services. Lam was the third child of six children. His family was poor, and his parents weren't educated. Lam attended Shun Yi Association Elementary School in Hong Kong, but eventually dropped out after 2 years. His father sent him to Chun Chau Drama Society to learn the
Peking Opera style under the guidance of Madame
Fan Fok-fa. Due to his slender and fragile body structure, Lam specialized in female roles and often performed stunt-doubling for actresses. However, he was reported as a mischievous and disobedient child. Thus, after half a year of training, Madame sent him on stage to express himself and control his drive. Lam's first show was called "White Beach", but his Beijing Opera career only lasted for 5 years. He realized that there was not much demand for opera styles anymore. Through a friend's introduction, Lam joined the film industry.
Early life At age 17, Lam became a stuntman and martial arts coach at the
Shaw Brothers Studio. Due to his slender build, he was often called upon to substitute female actors. He received HK$60 a day, HK$20 of which went to his master, and another HK$20 he took home to his parents. Lam used the remaining money to treat his brothers to snacks. Lam once mentioned those were his happiest days in his life. There was a story that Lam challenged
Bruce Lee in a hotel room because he didn't believe Lee was as strong as the rumors said. Lam put a pillow over his chest and stomach, then Bruce struck the pillow and sent him flying across the room.
Bruce Lee was so impressed that he hired Lam as his personal assistant. Lam was 19 at the time. Lam started to work as an co-action choreographer, and personal assistant to Bruce Lee on Lee's movies including
The Big Boss,
Fist of Fury,
Enter the Dragon,
Way of the Dragon, and
Game of Death. In his youth, Lam seemed to have quite a temper and always got into fights. During the filming of
The Big Boss, Lam was arrested for fighting, and Lee had to bail him out of jail. Despite having little education, Lam impressed Lee with interesting philosophical discussions. Although they hardly talked about their relationship, Lee liked good conversations, and this self-willed young man soon became Lee's favorite. When Lee died, Lam was devastated. He later joined Hung's stuntman association (known as the
Hung Kar Pan).
1980s Lam worked behind the camera as assistant director and became
Sammo Hung's right-hand man of the stunt team. His talent as an actor and martial artist was revealed in
The Magnificent Butcher. Lam played the fan-wielding assassin who fought against
Yuen Biao. In 1982, Lam won the
Hong Kong Film Award for Best Action Director, in the film
Prodigal Son. Lam played the strict kung fu master
Leung Yee-tai. He also played a frail, elderly
Taoist priest in
The Dead and the Deadly (1983). Lam's star did not rise until 1985, with the release of
Mr. Vampire, the movie that fueled the
hopping vampire genre. Lam was nominated for Best Actor for his role as the Taoist priest. The character was an engaging mixture of naivety and stoic authority, and became a favorite for audiences. Lam was to reprise this role many times throughout his career. In the following years, Lam starred as the Taoist Priest in countless sequels and spin-offs of Mr. Vampire such as
Mr. Vampire II (1986),
Mr. Vampire III (1987),
Vampire Vs. Vampire (1989),
Magic Cop (1990),
Encounters of the Spooky Kind II (1990) He also appeared in different movie genres such as
The Return of Pom Pom (1984),
School on Fire (1988),
Painted Faces (1988), and
Her Vengeance (1988). In 1989, Lam directed his first movie
Vampire Vs. Vampire. The movie starred him as the usual One Eyebrow Priest,
Chin Siu Ho and
Liu Fong as his naughty disciples. Due to the production cost going over budget, he didn't take his director's fee. The movie showed light of his moving-making style which was prone to realistic fights and dark humor.
1990s The success of
Mr. Vampire eventually became burdensome on Lam, who found himself typecast in the role. As the Hong Kong movie industry began to experience a decline, quality roles for Lam also began to dry. However, he continued to take on his usual role as the Taoist priest as well as supporting roles in low budget movies. In 1990, Lam became the film producer for
Magic Cop (1990). He starred in and action directed the movie. Some of his other ghost movies during these years are
Crazy Safari (1991),
An Eternal Combat (1991),
The Ultimate Vampire (1991)
Spiritual Trinity (1991),
Mad Mad Ghost (1992),
Banana Spirit (1992). Again, his serious acting side can be seen in
Pom Pom and Hot Hot (1992), ''
Lover's Tear'' (1992). In 1995, although the film market was in depression,
ATV offered Lam the starring role in a television series called
Vampire Expert (殭屍道長). He was hired with a million HK dollars salary to work in the series. It was a far cry from his time as HK$60 a day stuntman. The series was a success and revived Lam's career. The story followed Mo Siu Fong (Lam Ching Ying) who destroyed ghosts and saved the day. During the filming, Lam developed a relationship with his co-star
Kingdom Yuen. In the series, Yuen played a female priest who fell in love with Mo Siu Fong (Lam Ching Ying). At the end of the filming, they were actually in love. The second series was filmed and aired in 1996. The series starred Lam Ching Ying again as the humble priest,
Mang Hoi,
Frankie Lam and
Annie Man as his disciples. Like the first series, the second series received high ratings and support from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Soon after that, Lam signed for another TV series called
Coincidentally (情定阴阳界). The series borrowed the cast of
Vampire Expert and had Lam in a supporting role. Lam played a priest who tried to prevent a man from becoming a cruel spirit. However, this series didn't mark the end of his career. Lam's last role was in
A Monk at Thirty (一枝花和尚). In 1996, production on the third series of
Vampire Expert began. The production was halted due to Lam's health condition. ==Family==