SILF2011Shanghailanders
SHANGHAILANDERS AND SHANGHAINESE
Where They Live, Worked and Played
2011-03-13, 11am, Glamour Bar
Tess Johnston
Gao'an Lu
As you enter on the left, lovely villas
South-facing balconies on N side of street
Garages/shops on south side
No 24 wonderful gate guard, a little villa in terrible condition
Roof support are art nouveau, unique in SH
Look at it through the eyes of love :)
Yu Yaching had a street named for himself, former Tibet Rd
Profile in Fortune magazine - "old-school... remains at heart a chinese peasant"
[Magnificent quotes, see book for whole thing]
Try to get in! See if it looks like the pics in the book
Right opposite of St Nicholas cathedral
Duncan Hewitt
An honor to work with Tess on this book
Hongqiao Lu - grabbed my attention on trip to Gubei Carrefour!
A bucolic rural area for hunting, golfing, zoo
Shanghai's last old cemetary, still existing
Song Qingling mausoleum
Most graves are not original but commemorative
Meihuacun: Home of TV Song (Song Meiling, etc)
Parkway Health Center (Song Ailing)
One of last surving compounds, Grenada Estate, spanish-style
Victor Sassoon, greatest Hongqiao resident; women and horses.
Hami Lu/Rubicon Rd corner: Rubicon Garden home
Eves, privately owned, 200 sq meter baronial hall for parties (Eves curry)
"Flight from taxation not quite sporting"
Billy and Gladis Hawkings
The limit, most western house on Hongqiao
"can't have this sort of thing going on"
House is gone now
Lisa Movius
Huashan Rd, Anfu Lu, Wulumuqi Lu
Theater and film scenes, SH Dramatic Arts Center, and SH Film Academy
Zhenliu/Brookside apartments
Famous writers/directors/actors/critics lived there, some still today
Used to be a swimming pool in the basement
Yuejuyuan/Opera house
Since the late 40s
Sun Daolin 50s/60s film heartthrob
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Daolin
Crows and Sparrows was breakthrough hit, film of new China
China's ideal man, but remained single into his late 30s
His wife Wang Wenjuan survived him
Performed into the 80s and 90s
Also directed films Thunderstorm, and Stepmother
Bill Savadove
Amherst Avenue, Columbia Circle (Xinhua Rd)
AKA "The Badlands", under control of Japanese/CN puppet govt
Gambling, crime, vice
Neighborhood featured was residential, toned down a bit
Eclectic architecture, compact walk
Plum Well Villas
British, Spanish styles
Building representing Chinese templte
Right next to SH film art center
Used by puppet mayor of SH in 40s
US Southern plantation-style house, built by Missourian
Now on grounds of PLA hospital
Former home of JG Ballard ("Empire of the Sun")
Savadove's great/grandparents owned a house on this road
Vacated in 1941 after being kidnapped by gangsters, family fled SH
Grandfather asked Bill not to look for the house when he returned
"unwanted memories"
"watch out for the Shanghai girls"(!)
Most famous residents: Ballard family
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jg_ballard
Textile company, privileged life under Japanese guard
Renovated house not as pleasing as old: balcony/patio gone
[Photos of the new house]
Sue Ann Tay
Tilanqiao - former Jewish Ghetto and (current) huge street market
Less experience than other writers with SH history
First exposed to markets, dongqian process
Zhoushan/Zhongshan Lu(?)/formerly Chusan Rd(?)
Third wave of Jewish immigrants at the height of WWII
Less well-off than previous immigrants
Literature of how lively this area was
Hongqiao/Tilanqiao preservation areas, different levels, not adhered to
Beautiful buildings, friendly residents
Look for: stars of David, railings, doorways
Ohel Moshe synagogue and museum has plenty of history
The walk swings from the past, to the present... local neighborhoods
Barbers, small factories, sweetshops, cafes/restaurants are being relived by Chinese immigrants, without understanding the areas history
"什么都是犹太人！" and there were Indians too!
The Shanghai resident perspective is a bit spotty
A lot of migrant workers in the area, some tension in the area
All families from Shandong sell same thing in same area
Not too visible from just walking, watching
Wm Patrick Cranley
The Bund
There is so much info about the Bund, how to compact it for a walking tour? Also, ignore Pudong?
Studier, 2nd generation buildings -- has changed over time, mostly disappeared
Old British consulate, recently renovated, not open to public
Now a party place for govt officials
1910-1925 most surviving buildings built then
So much social history besides architecture
Used to be able to park on street, go out on piers
Jardines building
Condordia/German Club, torn down in 1935, survived a long time
Replaced by Bank of China, 4th generation building
Peace Hotel/nee Cathay Hotel, Sassoon property
Renovation... no comment!
1865 buliding with Art Deco facade from 1930s
German original, Japanese facade
Building is no longer standing for Peninsula Hotel construction
Won't find this in Peninsula promo materials
Chen Yi - general, first mayor of new SH, purged in GPCR
Obviously rehabilitated, in 1990s
Before, statue of Harry Parks, irishman, inspector general of China Imperial Customs
Steam+Sail boat photo
The Bund has so many "layers" of history, very rich
Contemporary history of the Bund is also of interest
Michelle Garneau (M on the Bund founder)
Q. Where Columbia Circle?
A. Lane 329, 211
Q. Difference in writing between now and then?
A. Now must be PC. Amazing amount of material published contemporarily, wealth of undiscovered material. "The Fall of Shanghai", lots of mistakes, but still. SH Arhives, an SH library. Lots of stuff written currently is good, foreigners behaving badly.
Q. History of 1 on the Bund?
A. Was an office building, Baine Bld or Asiatic Petrolium Building, being renovated to be called Harmony 1/ 和谐一号, state project, no more info. Plot of land has history in the book, American in 1840s called Mr Fog. Rumor that it will be turned into a high-end shopping arcade.
Q. "Shanghailanders", who were they? Stateless, or everybody?
A. It was pre-refugee, nothing to do with refugees.
Q. What was cut from the book that you really wanted to include?
A. First of all, some authors! Tess limited it to 6. Next book will be by Tess alone.
Q. Why 2 houses so close together...missed?
A. Don't really know, style is similar but scale is different. Gardens used to exist, road was smaller. (Hongqiao Rd). Gardens have been chopped off, possible that Rubicon Garden used to be a lot bigger. Theory: Rubicon house is much more like a home, Eves has 8-meter high ceilings, no real bedrooms that could be Victor's sanctuary. Rubicon Grand Suite could be where he actually slept. Eves didn't have bedrooms so nobody would stay over! Why is Rubicon so derelict now? Question that deserves an answer.
Q. Bund defined by Huangpu and Suzhou Creek. Water management? Geographical evolution?
A. Landfillig defined the bund. "Bund" refers to putting piles into the riverside so boats can come up to the bank. Garden Bridge area was largely filled in (landfill), 1870s and 80s. Promenade widened.
Q. Jewish area, asker lives in an old Sassoon home. Where is Jewish cemetary?
A. Don't really know, refer to the museum. Hongkou was only one group of Jews, they were really all over.