Cross-talk performer Hou Yaowen died of a heart attack in Beijing over the weekend. Hou, son of the even more famous cross-talk master Hou Baolin, was 59. Hou’s sudden, premature death has had domestic media – both online and off – following the story to a degree that prompted entertainment journalist He Dong to mock the media circus on his blog. Here’s a translation:
…A while ago, Huang Ju died. At that time I immediately wrote something up, but as soon as I posted it on my blog, it was automatically deleted. Then I received a system email: “We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused.” I then thought that it must be great to be a comrade leader, you can die in peace, or at least the system controls by the higher-ups won’t allow the general public to mourn chaotically – at any rate you can’t say anything. Because there are norms, see….[Full Text]
Photo: Hou Yaowen (from Sina via China Daily)