- published: 22 Oct 2015
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The Ming dynasty (Chinese: 明朝; pinyin: Míng Cháo), or the Great Ming (Chinese: 大明; pinyin: Dà Míng), also called the Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China for 276 years (1368–1644) following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming, described by some as "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history," was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic Han Chinese. Although the primary capital of Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng (who established the Shun dynasty, soon replaced by the Manchu-led Qing dynasty), regimes loyal to the Ming throne – collectively called the Southern Ming – survived until 1662.
The Hongwu Emperor (ruled 1368–98) attempted to create a society of self-sufficient rural communities ordered in a rigid, immobile system that would guarantee and support a permanent class of soldiers for his dynasty: the empire's standing army exceeded one million troops and the navy's dockyards in Nanjing were the largest in the world. He also took great care breaking the power of the court eunuchs and unrelated magnates, enfeoffing his many sons throughout China and attempting to guide these princes through the Huang Ming Zu Xun, a set of published dynastic instructions. This failed spectacularly when his teenage successor, the Jianwen Emperor, attempted to curtail his uncles' power, prompting the Jingnan Campaign, an uprising that placed the Prince of Yan upon the throne as the Yongle Emperor in 1402. The Yongle Emperor established Yan as a secondary capital and renamed it Beijing, constructed the Forbidden City, and restored the Grand Canal and the primacy of the imperial examinations in official appointments. He rewarded his eunuch supporters and employed them as a counterweight against the Confucian scholar-bureaucrats. One, Zheng He, led seven enormous voyages of exploration into the Indian Ocean as far as Arabia and the eastern coasts of Africa.
Yao Ming (born September 12, 1980) is a retired Chinese professional basketball player who played for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected to start for the Western Conference in the NBA All-Star Game eight times, and was named to the All-NBA Team five times. At the time of his final season, he was the tallest active player in the NBA, at 2.29 m (7 ft 6 in).
Yao, who was born in Shanghai, China, started playing for the Shanghai Sharks as a teenager, and played on their senior team for five years in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), winning a championship in his final year. After negotiating with the CBA and the Sharks to secure his release, Yao was selected by the Houston Rockets as the first overall pick in the 2002 NBA draft. He reached the NBA Playoffs four times, and the Rockets won a first-round series in the 2009 postseason, their first playoff series victory since 1997. In July 2011, Yao announced his retirement from professional basketball because of a series of foot and ankle injuries which forced him to miss 250 games in his last six seasons. In eight seasons with the Rockets, Yao ranks sixth among franchise leaders in total points and total rebounds, and second in total blocks.
Jay Chou ((traditional Chinese: 周杰倫; simplified Chinese: 周杰伦; pinyin: Zhōu Jiélún, born 18 January 1979) is a Taiwanese musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, director, and actor.
In 2000, Chou released his debut album, titled Jay (2000), under the record company Alfa Music. Since then his music has gained recognition throughout Asia, most notably in regions such as Taiwan, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Korea, Japan and in the Asian communities of Western countries such as the United States and Australia. He has sold more than 30 million albums and has received numerous awards for his musical work. Chou has also written songs for other artists whilst working on his albums. In 2003, he was the cover story of Time magazine (Asia version), titled New King of Asian Pop, acknowledging his influence on popular culture. He has since held six world tours, performing in cities around the world to more than 10 million people.
Chou debuted his acting career in the film Initial D (2005); followed shortly by his role as the honorable son, Prince Jai, in the multi-nominated Mandarin Chinese epic, Curse Of The Golden Flower (2006). He has since ventured into many other movie projects, becoming known to western audiences when he made his Hollywood debut in 2011 with The Green Hornet, starring alongside Seth Rogen and Christoph Waltz. Chou also manages his own record and management company JVR Music.
Actors: Ray Chao (actor), Elaine Chu (actress), Christopher Rowe (writer), Christopher Rowe (director), Christopher Rowe (producer), Sean Riggs (actor), William Spangler (actor), Benjamin Young (composer), Nicholas D. Johnson (editor), Nicholas D. Johnson (producer), Samantha La Rocco (actor), Christof Buddystarr (actor),
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Short, Thriller,Actors: Logan Cross (editor), Logan Cross (actor), Logan Cross (actor), Stephen Chang (actor), Logan Cross (producer), Logan Cross (writer), Logan Cross (director), Megan Vickers (actress),
Genres: Drama, Short,Actors: Pong Fong Wu (actor), Yu-Chieh Cheng (actor), Summer Lei (composer), Cheng-Nan Liu (editor), Cheng-Nan Liu (producer), Cheng-Nan Liu (writer), Cheng-Nan Liu (director), Kuolun Hsu (producer), Angel He (actor), Jacob Chen (writer), Mei-Nyu Gao (actor), Yui Matusmoto (actor), Pin-Lin Liu (actor), Lie Yang (actor),
Plot: This is a story about how a group of people, the furthest from being a family, come to find a new mode of family... Ming is an upcoming installation artist facing the opportunity of winning a fellowship. Brought up by his grandmother after his parents were divorced, Ming always avoids family gatherings by claiming that he is busy with work. He is always silent when his girlfriend talks about future plans of forming a family with him. He focuses all his energy on finding a light of his own. As Ming wanders among his interview, his uncle's loneliness, and the feelings of tolerance and restriction brought forth by his aunt and Si-Yu, his deep yearnings for a family is gradually awakened...
Genres: Drama, Family,Actors: Edward Shieh (producer), Edward Shieh (director), Edward Shieh (writer), Kristine Familletti (miscellaneous crew), Brooke Stone (actress), Lindsey Kraft (actress), Marcia T. Mohiuddin (producer), Dennis Chang (producer), Richard Chang (actor), Khalid Rahmaan (miscellaneous crew), Fannie Chan (actress), Olympia Lettry (actress), Steven von Kampen (composer), Maurice Abbate (editor), Adriana Biasi (actress),
Plot: Two immigrants embrace an ingenious solution while distributing restaurant menus.
Keywords: chinese-food, mexican-food, new-york-city, restaurantActors: Zorinah Juan (miscellaneous crew), Brian Delate (actor), Chemi Che-Mponda (actress), Sharon Kahn (miscellaneous crew), Sonya Joyner (actress), Bill Haney (producer), Billy Smith (actor), Billy Smith (writer), Lucia Small (producer), Thomas Olson (actor), Stephen Kyle (actor), Molly Cranna (actress), Sabrina Zanella-Foresi (editor), Cindi Alex (actress), Katie Honaker (actress),
Plot: A film about finding the path that sets you free, AMERICAN WAKE is a music-infused portrait of a fireman and a musician in search of meaning and connection. Jack Connolly has fulfilled the dream of his late father, a Boston cop, by becoming a distinguished firefighter and hero. But in the aftermath of a blaze in which he lost his oldest friend, he is struggling to make sense of life. As is Niall McKnight, a gifted young fiddle player, whose father harbors the hope that his son will accompany him back to Ireland, a homeland Niall barely remembers. For Jack and Niall to embrace the lives they want to live, and the women they are coming to love, they must choose what to keep and what to leave behind, and learn that with every leap of faith comes both sorrow and joy.
Keywords: fiddle, firefighter, immigrant, irish, irish-musicActors: Seeta Indrani (actress), Jake Bernard (editor), Duncan Duff (actor), Paul Smith (writer), Amanda Fairbank-Hynes (actress), Jasper Britton (actor), Dez McCarthy (director), Peter Cocks (writer), Lucy Raby (writer), Kelly Salmon (actress), Matt Adams (actor), Katy Landis (actress),
Genres: Comedy, Family,Actors: Pam Grier (actress), Lori Grabowski (miscellaneous crew), Joseph Merhi (producer), Master P (director), Gary Busey (actor), Master P (producer), Richard Pepin (producer), Master P (actor), Clifton Powell (actor), Jeff Fahey (actor), George Cheung (actor), Gary Daniels (actor), Frank Zagarino (actor), Jeff Clanagan (producer), Larry Manetti (actor),
Plot: A major arms deal is going down, and 3 seperate characters are desperately trying to get in on it. Each is either a true career criminal, out for personal profit or an undercover agent, intercepting to elevate a CV. Everyone is playing each other off against one another.
Keywords: action-hero, arms-deal, independent-film, undercoverActors: Michael Wong (actor), Jordan Chan (actor), Eric Tsang (producer), Tat-Ming Cheung (actor), Henry Fong (actor), Raymond Chow (producer), Takeshi Kaneshiro (actor), Josie Ho (actress), Moses Chan (actor), Maria Cordero (actress), Teddy Chan (actor), Kelly Chen (actress), Mark Lui (composer), Chi-Ngai Lee (writer), Chi-Ngai Lee (director),
Plot: Lam meets Mr. Worm, the chief of a lost-and-found company, and tasks him to find her lost lover Ted for her. Flashbacks show she was diagnosed as having leukemia. While recuperating she helps Mr. Worm solve a very hard case. Before she gets any worse, Lam decides to visit Ted's homeland in St Kilda, Scotland, to find where "the ends of the world" is. Along the way, she discovers more about herself and life than she was initially looking for.
Genres: Drama, Romance,Actors: Fui-On Shing (actor), Kent Cheng (actor), Yuet Sang Chin (director), Charles Heung (producer), Fat Chung (actor), Sandra Ng Kwan Yue (actress), Billy Lau (actor), Lung Chan (actor), Ha Huang (actor), Chau Sang Lau (actor), Pauline Wong (actress), Nina Li Chi (actress), Fook-On Shing (actor), Elvina Kong (actress), Bei-Dak Cheong (editor),
Plot: Hung Ping is a "ghostbuster", vampire buster and scientist in early 20th century China. He's a very talented wizard but there's not much call for people in his line of work. He shares his home with his extremely jealous wife, a successful and talented fortune teller, plus his dim-witted son and assistant Ming, his beautiful and talented daughter Fa, and their Ghost Servant. The story resolves around Hung Ping's efforts to capture and control "the Copper Vampire", a bloodthirsty demon on the rampage. Unfortunately, the bloodthirsty demon brings back luck to whoever holds him.
Genres: Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Horror,Actors: Tung-Shing Yee (director), Deannie Yip (actress), Tung-Shing Yee (writer), Dennis Chan (actor), Yun-Fat Chow (actor), Paul Chun (actor), Shui-Fan Fung (actor), Tony Leung Chiu Wai (actor), John Sham (actor), Bing-Chuen Cheung (actor), Season Ma (actress), Yuan-fa Tsao (actor),
Genres: Drama,