The recent wave of Omicron infections in China has caused numerous deaths, many of whom were renowned artists, actors, opera singers, film directors, and writers and had ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Actor Who Played Mao Zedong Dies
Actor Zhang Mu, 92, who played Mao Zedong in many CCP films, died in Beijing on Christmas Day. Zhang was the director of the China Opera and Dance Drama Theatre Opera troop and a calligrapher.Zhang was born in 1930 and joined the CCP revolutionary force in northeastern China at the age of 16. When he was 21, he joined the CCP’s southern art troop as an opera singer. He had roles in many CCP propaganda films, including the notorious “Peasant Takes a Wife” about two young people in the countryside disobeying the old traditions; and “The White-Haired Girl,” which was an adaptation of a folk story about a white-haired fairy turning into a peasant girl filled with hatred toward a landlord. In 1963, Zhang was transferred to China Opera and Dance Drama Theatre in Beijing and played Mao Zedong in the opera “Wei Baqun,” depicting a bloodthirsty Red Army general.
