Shanghai’s Celebrities.docVIP

Shanghai’s Celebrities 　　One of the key factors that lead to Shanghai’s rapid development is the city’s prominent social environment where the economic prosperity and tolerance of cultural diversity brings out the best in each other. Such an atmosphere has attracted and produced many influential figures in fields of politics, economy, culture, art, science and sports, whose stories continue to define history. They include founder of the Communist Party of China(CPC) Chen Duxiu, the great Peking Opera artist Mei Lanfang, the Nobel Prize in Physics laureate Tsung-Dao Lee, former Chinese state leaders Jiang Zemin and Zhu Rongji, the basketball player Yao Ming, and the best-selling author Han Han. 　　 　　Xu Ruiheng (alias Rongcun, 1822-1873) was the first Chinese person to participate in the World Expo and win awards. He was among the first batch of businessmen that came to Shanghai after it was opened to trade. In 1851 when he was informed that the World Expo would be held in the U.K., he brought his silk products to the Expo where the products won gold and silver awards. 　　 　　Li Hongzhang (1823-1901) was a leading statesman of the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and one of the initiators of the Self-Strengthening Movement. Beginning in the 1870s he set up many enterprises in various fields under the concept of “government-supervised merchant undertakings.” These were profit-oriented enterprises, which were operated by merchants but controlled and directed by government officials. In this way Li helped to cultivate the first batch of national capitalists in modern China. 　　 　　Chen Duxiu (1879-1942) was co-founder of the CPC. In 1915 he started a monthly periodical in Shanghai entitled The Youth Magazine, which mainly advocated democracy, science and new literature. He was a leading figure in the anti-feudal May Fourth New Cultural Movement. In 1920 in Shanghai he advocated the founding of the CPC. In July 1921 the first National Congress of the CPC was held, whe