FORMER beauty queen and actress Pauline Chan Po-lin seems to be on a fast road to destruction. After creating headlines for unruly and erratic behaviour in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore, Chan has got herself into more trouble - this time in London. The actress was arrested on November 30 after getting into a brawl with some youths at a pub in Earl's Walk. According to Chan's mother, she had a bit too much to drink and got into an argument. In the fight that broke out, one girl was shoved to the ground and hit over the head.
Chan suffered superficial injuries although she ended up with a swollen face. Police arrested her for drunken and disorderly behaviour and also for assaulting police officers. She was held overnight at the women's Holloway Prison and charged in court the next day. Although she is out on bail, Chan will most likely have to remain in England until her hearing on December 21.
But someone has held out a helping hand in her time of need: Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-hsien has offered Chan a part in his coming millennium movie - on condition she slims down and cleans up her act.
Musical encouragement JACKY Cheung Hok-yau has obviously been highly encouraged by the success of his first - indeed, Hong Kong's first - all-original Canto-pop musical Snow.Wolf.Lake. Since it first opened two years ago, many others have tried to follow his formula - not the least of which was Sam Hui's musical and one more based on the life of the late songbird Teresa Teng. Unfortunately, none have been able to match the success of Snow.Wolf.Lake. Little wonder then that Cheung is working on the script for another musical which he hopes to stage at the end of 2000.
The Canto-pop crooner has not revealed what the story will be but everyone is hoping for an improvement on the run-of-the-mill plot of its precursor. Cheung seems to have accumulated some marketing savvy from his experience, though. Snow.Wolf.Lake was written only in Cantonese which made it difficult to take on the road. The new musical, reveals the singer, will be written in both Cantonese and Mandarin which makes it likely that he will take it to Southeast Asia, Taiwan and even the United States.
Sparkling new career ALTHOUGH singer Cally Kwong Mei-wan has not officially announced her 'retirement' from showbiz, she looks set to turn her back on her singing career and make a fresh start in a new profession. The former Miss Hong Kong runner-up has just signed a purchaser's agreement for a $7.55 million, 1,280 sq ft office in Admiralty which will serve as the studio and office for her new gem business. Kwong is currently studying for her Gemology Institute of America qualification and has another two examinations to pass before she can graduate in March. Although the pass rate is low, Ad-lib has found out that Kwong has consistently been among the top students, which surely bodes well for her. While many are expecting her to only cater to clients of friends in the showbiz industry, Kwong says she would be most happy to meet new customers. Besides sourcing her own gems overseas, Kwong will offer design services.