Raymond Chow Man-wai, originally Chow Ding-sun, was born in Hong Kong in 1927 with roots in Taipu, Guangdong. Sent to Shanghai at thirteen, he studied journalism at St. John's University and met the press figure Ng Ka-tong. Back in Hong Kong in 1949, he joined the English-language Tiger Standard as a proofreader and political reporter through Ng's introduction, one of the few journalists fluent in Shanghainese, Mandarin and English. In 1951 he joined the United States Information Service, running Voice of America broadcasts, and in 1958, again through Ng, became publicity chief at Shaw Brothers (Hong Kong) Ltd., rising to deputy general manager and production head as a trusted aide to Run Run Shaw. In 1970 he left with Ho Kwan-chang and Leung Fung to co-found Golden Harvest, becoming its managing director and moving into the former Cathay Yonghua studio in 1972. He pioneered profit-sharing with directors and stars, reshaping film production, and brought Bruce Lee back from America for The Big Boss (1971) and Fist of Fury (1972), both record-breakers, then co-produced Enter the Dragon (1973) with Warner Bros. He set up a Hollywood office in 1975, producing The Amsterdam Kill (1978), Battle Creek Brawl (1980) and The Cannonball Run (1981), and his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) was a global hit. He produced or presented hundreds of films. Golden Harvest listed in 1994; he sold it to Orange Sky in 2007 and retired. He died on 30 October 2018.
After founding Golden Harvest, Chow introduced profit-sharing, independent production and satellite distribution, letting directors and stars share in the rewards and reshaping how Hong Kong films were made. He launched figures such as Bruce Lee, Michael Hui, Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan, taking local action cinema to the world market and partnering early with Hollywood. Golden Harvest's distribution, processing, cinema and home-video businesses once reached across the globe. He is regarded as one of Hong Kong cinema's founding fathers alongside Run Run Shaw.
Achievements
- 1970 · Left Shaw Brothers to co-found Golden Harvest with Ho Kwan-chang and Leung Fung, breaking Shaw's near-monopoly.
- 1971 · Brought Bruce Lee to star in The Big Boss (1971), setting a Hong Kong box-office record and taking Golden Harvest international.
- 1998 · Received the Gold Bauhinia Star from the HKSAR government for his contribution to the film industry.