Leonard Ho (1925 – 16 February 1998), born in Hong Kong to a Guangdong family, was a film producer and one of the founders of Golden Harvest. He studied journalism at Fudan University in Shanghai and in the 1950s was head of the reporting desk at the Hong Kong Times. When Raymond Chow joined Shaw Brothers (Hong Kong) Ltd as publicity director in 1958, he recruited Ho as deputy publicity director, and Ho assisted Chow there for years. In 1970 Ho left Shaw Brothers with Chow and Leung Fung to found Golden Harvest, becoming one of its three founding directors and taking charge of production. In 1971 the company signed Bruce Lee, whose 'The Big Boss' broke Hong Kong box-office records with takings of more than HK$3 million, and Golden Harvest grew into an entertainment group spanning production, distribution and cinemas. He brought John Woo in as the studio's resident director in 1974 and later groomed Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan into its production mainstays, also helping to develop the Hui Brothers, Maggie Cheung and Anita Mui. In the 1980s the films of Hung's Bo Ho Films and Chan's Golden Way Films all carried Ho's name as producer, and he produced such titles as 'Project A' (1983), 'Police Story' (1985) and 'Miracles' (1989). Over 28 years at Golden Harvest he was involved in producing more than a hundred films; the company adopted American-style independent production and profit-sharing backed by bank financing, and between 1985 and 1990 averaged 25 to 30 films a year, becoming one of the world's largest Chinese-language studios. He was also the godfather of the singer Anita Mui. When Golden Harvest Entertainment listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 1994, he became vice-chairman of the group. He died of a heart attack in Hong Kong on 16 February 1998.
As Golden Harvest's long-serving head of production, Leonard Ho groomed John Woo, Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan, supplying the creative core of Hong Kong action and comedy. Under him the company built a large production and distribution network and became a studio able to rival Shaw Brothers.
Achievements
- 1970 · Left Shaw Brothers with Raymond Chow and Leung Fung to co-found Golden Harvest, taking charge of production.
- 1974 · Brought John Woo in as Golden Harvest's resident director and later groomed Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan.
- 1994 · Became vice-chairman of the Golden Harvest Entertainment group after its Hong Kong listing.