Star of TVB golden era passes away at 88

Veteran Cantonese opera singer and TVB actress Lee Heung-kum has died at the age of 88 after suffering from a stroke and dementia in recent years.

One of her best friends, fellow Cantonese opera singer and actress Tam Sin-hung, said Lee passed away at around 1pm yesterday after her family rushed her to Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

Tam said she last met Lee in June, when she was in good spirits.

"Although she could not recognize us anymore, she still tried her best to look at us and tried to talk to us," Tam said.

Veteran TVB actress Susanna Kwan Kuk-ying, who Lee considered a daughter, said: "I am deeply saddened after learning the news I would like to extend my most sincere condolences to her family."

Lee's health deteriorated rapidly last month and her family was already mentally prepared for her passing.

TVB released a statement later in the afternoon, saying that an executive, Virginia Lok Yee-ling, has expressed the TV station's deepest condolences to her family and will try their best to provide assistance.

The station also credited Lee's contributions during her years with TVB.

"Lee joined TVB in 1972 and her performance in one of our longest running variety shows, Enjoy Yourself Tonight, was extremely popular and brought a lot of joy to our audiences," it wrote.

"She also took part in filming dozens of drama series with us and her superb acting skills in the drama Moonlight Resonance in 2008 impressed audiences and earned [her] a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011," it added.

Lee entered the industry when she was 16 after joining a Cantonese opera troupe in Macau. She was spotted by veteran opera actor Chan Kam-tong and quickly became the fourth lead actress in the troupe.

In the 1960s, she gained fame and popularity playing villainesses in movies.

She then worked with Tam Ping-man, who turned out to be one of her best working partners and started to film comedies, through which Lee got her first leading roles in films.

In the 1970s, she joined TVB and became a mainstay of the longest running variety show, Enjoy Yourself Tonight, which ran for 27 years until 1994.

She also took on roles as a loving mother instead of just villain roles in drama series with the TV station and garnered a lot of accolades for those parts as well.

In 1989, Lee emigrated to Australia and had been in semi-retirement ever since. She would only travel back to Hong Kong a few times a year for projects.

She was rumored to have suffered from Parkinson's disease in March, 2011, but she later clarified that it was untrue.

Lee was briefly married to Cantonese opera star Siu Chung-kwan, who died in 2005 and with whom she had a daughter. After divorcing in 1957, her ex-husband and daughter left for Canada.