The Public Television Service (PTS) yesterday began broadcasting three programs to commemorate the late Taiwanese singer-entertainer Frankie Gao (高凌風).
The programs feature a concert in Taipei by the singer, a PTS show in which Gao talked about his life and career, and a PTS recording of his music performances.
The concert was broadcast yesterday and will be broadcast again on Saturday; the interview will be broadcast on Sunday and the music performance today, tomorrow and on Saturday, PTS said.
Photo: CNA
Gao died of leukemia on Monday at the age of 63. He passed away at a hospital in New Taipei City (新北市)with his family at his bedside.
Dubbed the “Frog Prince” (青蛙王子), the singer was known for his flamboyant attire and energetic dance moves in the 1970s and 1980s. His hit songs included Burn, Phoenix, Burn (燃燒吧!火鳥) and Fire in the Winter (冬天裡的一把火).
Gao achieved local fame in the 1970s and became a household name in Taiwan after singing the theme song of the popular film Girlfriend (女朋友).
Gao turned to business in the 1980s at the height of his career, but the club that he opened was later forced to close down after a government crackdown on the sex industry.
He was also the target of a gangster shooting in the 1980s.
The controversial entertainer suffered a low period in his career that picked up again with his appearances on parody shows on TV from 2001, in which he impersonated well-known public figures.
In recent years, his appearances in the media were often related to quarrels with his ex-wife Chin Yu-chuang (金友莊), from whom he had a bitter divorce. Chin was Gao’s third wife.
Gao had been scheduled to hold a concert on March 8 to celebrate 40 years in the entertainment business.
Singer and former legislator Yu Tian (余天), a close friend of Gao, has expressed hope that a memorial concert will take place instead.
“How can someone so cocky be gone?” Yu said tearfully late on Monday night.
Taiwanese comedian Chu Ko Liang (豬哥亮) was also choked up, saying: “I respect him, he was brave... I am really sad,” after learning about the death of his long-time friend.
Chinese actress Zhao Wei (趙薇) and Taiwanese actress and TV hostess Lily Tien (田麗) were also among the celebrities who took to the Internet to mourn the death of the entertainer.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is pushing for residents of Kinmen and Lienchiang counties to acquire Chinese ID cards in a bid to “blur national identities,” a source said. The efforts are part of China’s promotion of a “Kinmen-Xiamen twin-city living sphere, including a cross-strait integration pilot zone in China’s Fujian Province,” the source said. “The CCP is already treating residents of these outlying islands as Chinese citizens. It has also intensified its ‘united front’ efforts and infiltration of those islands,” the source said. “There is increasing evidence of espionage in Kinmen, particularly of Taiwanese military personnel being recruited by the
ENTERTAINERS IN CHINA: Taiwanese generally back the government being firm on infiltration and ‘united front’ work,’ the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association said Most people support the government probing Taiwanese entertainers for allegedly “amplifying” the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda, a survey conducted by the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association showed on Friday. Public support stood at 56.4 percent for action by the Mainland Affairs Council and the Ministry of Culture to enhance scrutiny on Taiwanese performers and artists who have developed careers in China while allegedly adhering to the narrative of Beijing’s propaganda that denigrates or harms Taiwanese sovereignty, the poll showed. Thirty-three percent did not support the action, it showed. The poll showed that 51.5 percent of respondents supported the government’s investigation into Taiwanese who have
South Korean K-pop girl group Blackpink are to make Kaohsiung the first stop on their Asia tour when they perform at Kaohsiung National Stadium on Oct. 18 and 19, the event organizer said yesterday. The upcoming performances will also make Blackpink the first girl group ever to perform twice at the stadium. It will be the group’s third visit to Taiwan to stage a concert. The last time Blackpink held a concert in the city was in March 2023. Their first concert in Taiwan was on March 3, 2019, at NTSU Arena (Linkou Arena). The group’s 2022-2023 “Born Pink” tour set a
A Philippine official has denied allegations of mistreatment of crew members during Philippine authorities’ boarding of a Taiwanese fishing vessel on Monday. Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) spokesman Nazario Briguera on Friday said that BFAR law enforcement officers “observed the proper boarding protocols” when they boarded the Taiwanese vessel Sheng Yu Feng (昇漁豐號) and towed it to Basco Port in the Philippines. Briguera’s comments came a day after the Taiwanese captain of the Sheng Yu Feng, Chen Tsung-tun (陳宗頓), held a news conference in Pingtung County and accused the Philippine authorities of mistreatment during the boarding of
RSS