Bao Guo'an (born 4 June 1946) is a Chinese actor and professor in the
Central Academy of Drama. Best known for his role as Cao Cao in the
1994 television series Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Bao won two Best
Actor awards at the 1995 Golden Eagle Awards and Flying Apsaras
Awards. Bao was also a delegate in the National People's Congress and
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in 2003.Bao has
been fascinated with acting and drama since he was a child. He
attended a primary school in Tianjin where most of his schoolmates
were from affluent backgrounds while he was not from a wealthy family.
On weekends, his schoolmates watched movies at the cinemas. Bao did
not join them initially but he did so later when he felt left out, and
became addicted to movies. At the time, Tianjin's cinemas were divided
into three classes (A, B and C), with A screening the latest movies
but having the priciest tickets. Bao could only afford to watch movies
in the B and C class theatres, but he saved the allowance his parents
gave him for buying snacks, and spent it at the cinema every weekend.
Bao recalled watching many Soviet films at that time, including
Chapaev and Lenin in 1918, and he especially enjoyed movies about
heroes.In 1960, at the age of 13, Bao gained an opportunity to appear
on screen. Around the time, a performing arts group in Tianjin was
making a film about a young revolutionary martyr, Liu Wenxue
(刘文å¦), and Bao was chosen as an actor. In 1964, when the Fourth
Agricultural Division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction
Corps (XPCC) came to Tianjin to recruit cadres, Bao insisted that they
let him join their performing arts group. Bao recalled his experience
in the XPCC: "Even though I spent only five years in the Fourth
Agricultural Division, I learnt a lot of things. Without this
experience, I would not have been able to enter the Central Academy of
Drama. Life in the military helped me develop the qualities of
diligence, perseverance and courage. They have a great impact on
shaping my character and personal beliefs, and on my acting career."
Five years later, in 1969, Bao was transferred to another group in
Zhumadian, Henan, where he worked as an actor and director.In 1978,
Bao was accepted into the Central Academy of Drama and, due to
excellent performance, was asked to remain and teach there after his
graduation. Around the time, the Pearl River Film Company (ç
江ç"µå½±åˆ¶ç‰‡å…¬å ¸) was holding auditions in Beijing for the film
The Mountain Below is Home (山下是故乡). By chance, Bao was
acting in a stage play in Beijing when he was noticed by the director
Liu Hongming (刘洪é") and was selected to play the lead character
"Chang Mao". Although Bao has been watching movies since childhood, he
had no clue to the process behind acting in a film. He requested to be
given a chance to personally experience rural life so that he can
prepare better for his role. A month before shooting began, the
producers sent Bao to the countryside in You County, Hunan, where he
lived among villagers and did menial labour. Bao recalled that when he
returned home after working on the film for more than half a year, his
appearance had changed so much that his son could not recognise him.
Central Academy of Drama. Best known for his role as Cao Cao in the
1994 television series Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Bao won two Best
Actor awards at the 1995 Golden Eagle Awards and Flying Apsaras
Awards. Bao was also a delegate in the National People's Congress and
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in 2003.Bao has
been fascinated with acting and drama since he was a child. He
attended a primary school in Tianjin where most of his schoolmates
were from affluent backgrounds while he was not from a wealthy family.
On weekends, his schoolmates watched movies at the cinemas. Bao did
not join them initially but he did so later when he felt left out, and
became addicted to movies. At the time, Tianjin's cinemas were divided
into three classes (A, B and C), with A screening the latest movies
but having the priciest tickets. Bao could only afford to watch movies
in the B and C class theatres, but he saved the allowance his parents
gave him for buying snacks, and spent it at the cinema every weekend.
Bao recalled watching many Soviet films at that time, including
Chapaev and Lenin in 1918, and he especially enjoyed movies about
heroes.In 1960, at the age of 13, Bao gained an opportunity to appear
on screen. Around the time, a performing arts group in Tianjin was
making a film about a young revolutionary martyr, Liu Wenxue
(刘文å¦), and Bao was chosen as an actor. In 1964, when the Fourth
Agricultural Division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction
Corps (XPCC) came to Tianjin to recruit cadres, Bao insisted that they
let him join their performing arts group. Bao recalled his experience
in the XPCC: "Even though I spent only five years in the Fourth
Agricultural Division, I learnt a lot of things. Without this
experience, I would not have been able to enter the Central Academy of
Drama. Life in the military helped me develop the qualities of
diligence, perseverance and courage. They have a great impact on
shaping my character and personal beliefs, and on my acting career."
Five years later, in 1969, Bao was transferred to another group in
Zhumadian, Henan, where he worked as an actor and director.In 1978,
Bao was accepted into the Central Academy of Drama and, due to
excellent performance, was asked to remain and teach there after his
graduation. Around the time, the Pearl River Film Company (ç
江ç"µå½±åˆ¶ç‰‡å…¬å ¸) was holding auditions in Beijing for the film
The Mountain Below is Home (山下是故乡). By chance, Bao was
acting in a stage play in Beijing when he was noticed by the director
Liu Hongming (刘洪é") and was selected to play the lead character
"Chang Mao". Although Bao has been watching movies since childhood, he
had no clue to the process behind acting in a film. He requested to be
given a chance to personally experience rural life so that he can
prepare better for his role. A month before shooting began, the
producers sent Bao to the countryside in You County, Hunan, where he
lived among villagers and did menial labour. Bao recalled that when he
returned home after working on the film for more than half a year, his
appearance had changed so much that his son could not recognise him.
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