Zhu Jiading
Mike Chu Ka-Ting was a prominent figure in Hong Kong's advertising industry and the husband of actress Cherie Chung. [1]
Biography
Chu went to study in the United States in his teens. Initially studying architecture in San Francisco, he later switched to art and design. In 1978, he returned to Hong Kong and joined the highly creative advertising agency Thompson Wong as associate creative director, working alongside Alan Chan and Spencer Siu to begin his advertising career.[1]
In 1983, he founded Synergie Advertising.[2]
In 1986, he won the prestigious Kam Fan advertising award for the first time.[2]
In 1988, Synergie merged with multinational ad agency The Ball Partnership for HK$40 million—a substantial sum at the time. The English name remained The Ball Partnership, while the Chinese name continued as Synergie Advertising.[2][3] In 1989, the agency was ranked second most creative globally by *Advertising Age* magazine.[4]
He won the Kam Fan award again in 1992 and 1993.[2]
Chu gradually withdrew from the ad industry in the late 1990s.[1]
It is said he received over 200 advertising awards[2] and was the creator of the famous slogan for Titoni watches: “Love is not about eternity, only about once having it.”[5][6]
Chu passed away from colorectal cancer at Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital on 24 August 2007.
Family
His father, Chu Yuk-wah, was a film producer and head of the Yong Hua Film Studio.[3] His elder brother, Chu Ka-yan, founded a billboard company in the 1990s and was the founder of Centro Digital Pictures.[3]
Chu met actress Cherie Chung in 1984 while filming an advertisement, and they later married.[6]
Legacy
Alan Chan said: “Mike had a pursuit of beauty and concept of life that local creatives lacked. This ray of sunshine, this shadow from a tree—Hong Kongers don’t see the world this way. We only see the hard surface. He saw the subtle beauty. Very sophisticated.”[1]
Notable Advertising Works
- e-Tone Finance “Swordsman” ad (starring Adam Cheng as Chor Lau-heung)
- Crocodile Garments “Lazy Summer”[1]
- Toshiba “Brothers” series[1] (featuring Paul Che and Shih Kai-keung as a thin-fat comedy duo)
- Titoni “Forever” series[1][4]
- Puma “Fly First Class”, “Red Square” campaign[1][4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9C%B1%E5%AE%B6%E9%BC%8E#cite_ref-:1_1-2
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9C%B1%E5%AE%B6%E9%BC%8E#cite_ref-:0_2-0
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9C%B1%E5%AE%B6%E9%BC%8E#cite_ref-:3_3-0
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9C%B1%E5%AE%B6%E9%BC%8E#cite_ref-:2_4-0
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9C%B1%E5%AE%B6%E9%BC%8E#cite_ref-5
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 https://www.hk01.com/%E7%9F%A5%E6%80%A7%E5%A5%B3%E7%94%9F/738317/62%E6%AD%B2%E9%8D%BE%E6%A5%9A%E7%B4%85%E4%B8%80%E4%BB%A3%E5%A5%B3%E7%A5%9E%E5%87%8D%E9%BD%A1%E7%A7%98%E8%A8%A3%E5%85%A8%E9%9D%A01%E9%BB%9E-%E7%84%A1%E6%87%BC%E8%A1%B0%E8%80%81%E7%91%95%E7%96%B5%E6%8E%A5%E5%8F%97%E5%84%AA%E9%9B%85%E8%80%81%E5%8E%BB