He speaks five languages: Mandarin, Cantonese, English, Japanese and some Korean.
His father was Chang Der Lou, a famous star of the Peking opera.
He became an actor in 1951, when the air transport company he worked for shut down. A noted Chinese actress met him, felt he had great potential as an actor and helped him get started.
Was honored in 2000 by the Hong Kong government for his lifetime achievements.
Has made Vancouver, British Columbia his residence since 1994.