[The following is a translation, slightly amended, from "Movie News" 电影新闻, no.245, May 16, 1942. No author is credited. Added editorial notes, enclosed in brackets like these, are meant to clarify and expand on the article when it was thought clarification might be useful.]
Readers whose memories are not too faulty might still remember Ding Ziming, that excellent tragedienne of the 1920s. In a career that began 17 years ago, Ding Ziming's outstanding performances in a succession of widely acclaimed tragic roles elevated her standing in the movie world to no less than that which Chen Yunchang 陈云裳 [aka Nancy Chan] enjoys today, and yet in a few short years she disappeared from the screen, quickly forgotten.
[left, Ding Ziming around 1930]
During the time her reputation was so great, Ding Ziming was pursued by a great many men, from inside and outside film circles. One of these was Wan Laitian 万籁天, a film personality whose star glittered as brightly as hers for a time. [Wan had directed and co-starred with her in 1926's "Disaster for Younger Sister" 难为了妹妹 , which he also scripted, and again in 1931's "Striving" 努力; they also acted together in that same year's "Heartaches" 心痛.]
But as ardently as Wan wooed her, Ding did not return his love, and after repeated rejections he at last took poison in a suicide attempt, which convinced the lady that he must truly love her, and she accepted his suit. His feelings for her must have been genuine, because in their pre-nuptial negotiations, he acceeded to two of her demands, nontraditional though they were: that it would be understood he was marrying into her family, rather than she marrying into his; and related to this, he would take her birth surname so that any children they might have would be surnamed Ding. Her reason for this last request is that she had no siblings, and wanted to honor her father by carrying on his name.
At first, the relationship was a loving and harmonious one, and they soon had a baby boy. But before long the couple began to argue, and after one particularly acrimonious confrontation, Wan Laitian walked out of their home and took up a somewhat nomadic theatrical existence, drifting from place to place in China: to Guangzhou, then Hong Kong, and at last Sichuan, while Ding Ziming remained at home in Shanghai, living on her savings.
[right, Wan Laitian]
After Wan's ramblings took him to Sichuan, he taught for a while at a drama school in Chengdu, where he became acquainted with Huang Hou, daughter of a wealthy Sichuan family and, with her two sisters, an ardent film fan. Subsequently, she bankrolled the organization of a film studio, the Datong (Great Unity) Film Company of Chengdu. The studio's maiden (and only) effort was 1935's "Emeishan Xia" 峨嵋山下《Beneath Mount Emei》, directed by Wan Laitian and scripted by Huang Hou. She and Wan acted the leads, with her sisters in supporting roles. But because of governmental interference, the film was never completed, although Wan was able to spirit the completed footage out of Chengdu to Shanghai, and that film reportedly still exists. After Wan Laitian returned to Shanghai, he naturally sought out Ding Ziming, who as it happened was ill at the time and hospitalized. The couple had now been separated for several years, and her feelings had obviously cooled: although Wan called every day at the hospital to inquire about her condition, Ding left strict orders that he was not to be allowed in to see her, saying she would meet with him in time. But when she was discharged from the hospital, the first person she saw was a lawyer, who assisted her in drafting a letter demanding Wan release her from the marriage. When he received the letter, Wan was heartbroken, and entreated Ding to give him a second chance. But she was adamant, insisting on divorce, and at last Wan had no choice but to agree, and sign the release. Ding Ziming was awarded custody of their son.
After the divorce, Ding Ziming continued living in retirement, supporting herself and her son on her savings. She never married again, or acted again [except for a 1953 bit part, really a cameo]. Wan Laitian resumed his film career.
[Editor's note: Wan acted in two more movies, then returned to drama education, becoming a teacher and administrator at acting schools in Sichuan and Liaoning. He died in 1977.]
