This week’s gossip begins with celebrity drug trouble, and ends with one angry mother.
Veteran actors Coco Sun (孫興) and Mok Siu-chung (莫少聰) of Hong Kong made headlines after they were arrested in Beijing last month on suspicion of possessing and consuming illegal substances. On April 15, the police collared Sun for allegedly having marijuana and ketamine in his apartment. The 47-year-old actor soon admitted that he has used various kinds of drugs for the past five years to give himself “energy” as his two failed marriages have exhausted him.
Mok was arrested on the same day for marijuana use. The 50-year-old actor said he only smoked a joint that a friend gave him at a party out of politeness, adding that it was his first time. According to some media reports, the bust was a setup intended to teach the lothario a lesson.
Photo: Taipei Times
The arrests sent the Chinese showbiz world into a frenzy, according to Chinese media. It is reported that Sun, who could face life imprisonment, turned stool pigeon and named other celebrity druggies and his dealers — including a “heavyweight star” — in the hope of receiving a lighter punishment. Many stars and celebrities have reportedly fled China’s capital. For the record, Sun says he didn’t snitch.
Mok was released on Saturday after a 14-day stint in the Chaoyang District Detention Center. As for Sun, Chinese media speculate that the most credible scenario is one year in rehab.
Meanwhile, back in Taiwan, Chinese restaurateur Zhang Lan (張蘭) came face-to-face with local media still upset about how they were treated during the March 22 wedding of her son, Wang Xiaofei (汪小菲), and Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛, aka Big S). Zhang was in town over the weekend for a business meeting. Though gossip hounds have put her under a microscope, the 54-year-old businesswoman started off the trip coming across as self-assured and talked confidently.
On Friday last week, Zhang revealed her plan to open five to 10 restaurants in Taiwan in the next three years. “I will bring the best Chinese cuisine to improve Taiwanese people’s palate,” she said. And after an earthquake on Saturday, the entrepreneur was quoted as saying: “I like earthquakes. I bring earthquakes because I am full of energy.”
But the attention seemed to get too much by Sunday, when local media reported that a journalist asked why Wang only gave part of the wedding money he and Big S received to charity, after the couple had promised to donate it all. “I think you are very unkind … I am an entrepreneur, not your prey,” Zhang was quoted as screaming. “I am pissed off!”
Last week saw the appearance of another odious screed full of lies from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Ambassador to Australia, Xiao Qian (肖千), in the Financial Review, a major Australian paper. Xiao’s piece was presented without challenge or caveat. His “Seven truths on why Taiwan always will be China’s” presented a “greatest hits” of the litany of PRC falsehoods. This includes: Taiwan’s indigenous peoples were descended from the people of China 30,000 years ago; a “Chinese” imperial government administrated Taiwan in the 14th century; Koxinga, also known as Cheng Cheng-kung (鄭成功), “recovered” Taiwan for China; the Qing owned
In Taiwan’s politics the party chair is an extremely influential position. Typically this person is the presumed presidential candidate or serving president. In the last presidential election, two of the three candidates were also leaders of their party. Only one party chair race had been planned for this year, but with the Jan. 1 resignation by the currently indicted Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) two parties are now in play. If a challenger to acting Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) appears we will examine that race in more depth. Currently their election is set for Feb. 15. EXTREMELY
Jan. 20 to Jan. 26 Taipei was in a jubilant, patriotic mood on the morning of Jan. 25, 1954. Flags hung outside shops and residences, people chanted anti-communist slogans and rousing music blared from loudspeakers. The occasion was the arrival of about 14,000 Chinese prisoners from the Korean War, who had elected to head to Taiwan instead of being repatriated to China. The majority landed in Keelung over three days and were paraded through the capital to great fanfare. Air Force planes dropped colorful flyers, one of which read, “You’re back, you’re finally back. You finally overcame the evil communist bandits and
They increasingly own everything from access to space to how we get news on Earth and now outgoing President Joe Biden warns America’s new breed of Donald Trump-allied oligarchs could gobble up US democracy itself. Biden used his farewell speech to the nation to deliver a shockingly dark message: that a nation which has always revered its entrepreneurs may now be at their mercy. “An oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms,” Biden said. He named no names, but his targets were clear: men like Elon Musk
RSS