Jack Neo

Name	Jack Neo
Tradchinesename	梁智強
Simpchinesename	梁智强
Pinyinchinesename	Liáng Zhìqiáng
Birthname	Neo Chee-Keong
Origin	Singapore
Birthdate	January 24, 1960
Occupation	Filmmaker Actor Host
Spouse	Irene Kng (second marriage)

Jack Neo Chee-Keong (; born 24 January 1960), PBM, credited as Jack Neo on screen, is a Singaporean film and television actor, host and director. He is best known for his cross-dressing roles, as Liang Po-Po (literally: Granny Liang) in the 1999 film and as Liang Ximei in the late 1990s TV show Comedy Night.

Biography

Early life

Neo found his calling when at the age of 14, he wrote and acted in a comedy skit for Tanjong Katong Secondary School.

Career

Neo started his career on television in 1980 and has become one of the most successful and recognizable celebrities in MediaCorp for his comedic cross-dressing roles on film and television. Neo started directing features in That One Not Enough (1999) and he set up his own artiste management company, J Team Productions, whose members include comedians Mark Lee, Henry Thia and Johny Cheng.

Neo's films satirize several aspects about Singapore in comical ways, including societal issues such as negligent parenting and school corporal punishment, and foreign issues such as the water disputes between Singapore and Malaysia. Apart from his film and TV career, Neo has also recorded and produced a number of albums.

Neo received the Best Director Award at the Silver Screen Awards in 1998 for his short film and was also awarded with the Lifetime Achievement Award in the following year in recognition of his contributions to Singapore's media industry. In 2004, Neo became the first filmmaker in Singapore to be honoured with the Public Service Award. He also received the Cultural Medallion on 21 October 2005 together with musician Dick Lee.

In 2008, Neo and Mark Lee bought the Singapore master franchise rights for Old Town White Coffee, a coffee retail concept from Ipoh, Malaysia. Their first store at Big Splash opened on 30 March in that year.

Personal life

Neo married Irene Kng in 1988 and they have four children.

Extramarital Affair Scandal

In March 2010, a two-year-long extramarital affair between Neo and freelance model Wendy Chong was publicized and Neo admitted to the affair. Chong, who played a minor role in Neo's 2008 film Money No Enough 2, claimed that Neo initiated the affair. Neo attempted to break the affair but Chong threatened to hurt herself and the exposé caused shock-waves amongst the conservative entertainment circle of Singapore.

On 9 March 2010, additional reports were released about Neo having or attempting extramarital affairs with up to 11 women. He tried to accost actress-host Foyce Le Xuan and French student Maelle Meurzec, both unsuccessfully.. On 11 March, Neo and Kng held a five-minute press conference, in which Neo admitted his mistake and asked the media to let him off. After that, Kng reiterated her love for Neo and also requested for the media to spare her.

The Neo family has since moved out of their house and into a condo at a unspecified location, leaving their maid to care for their house.

Neo went on 97.2 FM a few weeks later to promote his latest movie, Being Human, and apologized for his actions.

Filmography

{|class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;" |- !style="background-color: #B0C4DE;"|Year !style="background-color: #B0C4DE;"|Title !style="background-color: #B0C4DE;"|Role !style="background-color: #B0C4DE;"|Notes |- |1997 || 12 Storeys || Ah Gu || |- |rowspan="2" |1998 || Money No Enough || Chew Wah-Keong || writer, actor |- |Hitman in the City || || writer, director, occasional narrator |- |rowspan="2" | 1999 ||That One Not Enough || || writer, director |- | || Liang Popo || writer, actor |- |2002 || I Not Stupid || Mr Liu || writer, director, actor |- |2003 || Homerun || || writer, director |- |2004 || The Best Bet || || writer, director |- |rowspan="2" | 2005 || I Do I Do || || director |- |One More Chance || || writer, director |- |2006 || I Not Stupid Too || Mr Yeo || writer, director, actor |- |2007 || Just Follow Law || || writer, director |- |rowspan="2" | 2008 || Ah Long Pte Ltd || || writer, director, actor |- |Money No Enough 2 || Yang Baoqiang || writer, director, actor |- |rowspan="2" | 2009 || Love Matters || || writer, director |- |Where Got Ghost? || || director, actor |- |2010 || Being Human || || director |- |}

References

External links

J Team Productions

Jack Neo's Blog

Category:Living people Category:1960 births Category:Singaporean people of Chinese descent Category:Singaporean people of Hokkien descent Category:Singaporean Charismatics Category:Singaporean television personalities Category:Singaporean film actors Category:Singaporean film directors Category:People awarded the Cultural Medallion