Ma Ji born Ma Shuhuai ' onMouseout='HidePop("43089")' href="/topics/Pinyin">Pinyin

Pinyin

Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...

: Mǎ Shùhuái), was a xiangsheng

Xiangsheng

Xiangsheng , sometimes translated as crosstalk, is a traditional Chinese comedic performance in the form of a dialogue between two performers, or, much less often, a solo monologue or, even less frequently, a multi-player talk show. The language, rich in puns and allusions, is delivered in a rapid,...

 performer in China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. He was one of his generation's most popular and influential xiangsheng performer and was mentor to many later xiangsheng performers.

Biography

Ma Ji was born in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

 in 1934. After the Communists took over the mainland China, Mr Ma started to work in a book store. He joined the Central Broadcasting Recitation and Ballad Troupe as a professional xiangsheng performer in 1956. He studied under Hou Baolin and became a seventh-generation xiangsheng performer. He got his stage name Ma Ji from the film Mattie the Goose-boy

Mattie the Goose-boy (film)

Mattie the Goose-boy is a 1977 Hungarian animated film directed by Attila Dargay. It is based on the eponymous poem, written in 1804 by Mihály Fazekas.-Cast:* András Kern as Mattie the goose-boy* Péter Geszti as young Mattie the goose-boy...

, which is based on the poem of the same name

Mattie the Goose-boy

Mattie the Goose-boy, or Lúdas Matyi, is a Hungarian epic poem written by Mihály Fazekas in 1804 and first released in 1817. It is based on a folk-tale of unknown origins...

 by Mihály Fazekas

Mihály Fazekas

Mihály Fazekas was a Hungarian writer from Debrecen. He was an army private for seven years before being commissioned as a Hussar officer. As a hobby, Fazekas studied the natural sciences and wrote poetry...

.。

As a notable xiangsheng master and performer, Ma Ji created his own art style and made great contributions to China's Xiangsheng art.

Ma Ji was also a member of the 5th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference

Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference

The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference [], shortened as 人民政协, Rénmín Zhèngxié, i.e. "People's PCC"; or just 政协, Zhèngxié, i.e. "The PCC"), abbreviated CPPCC, is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China...

.

Famous works

1. "Ode to Mountain Climbers"
2. "The Portrait"
3. "Dispute of the Five Sense Organs"http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2006-12/20/content_763745.htm
4. Performed with many comedians together in “Five Officers Contend for Fame”http://www1.chinaculture.org/library/2008-01/10/content_40229.htm

Dialogues

1. Ode to Friendship
2. Storm on the State
3. Multistory Restaurant http://www1.chinaculture.org/library/2008-01/10/content_40229.htm

Monlogues

1. “The Universal Brand Cigarette” playing a cigarette salesman with a bad product and satirizing newly rich Chinese preoccupation with brand names.http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/23/obituaries/23ma.html?_r=2&oref=login&oref=slogin

External links

• XiangSheng player
• Ma Ji, Chinese comedian famed for satirical sketches, dies at 72, The Associated Press via the International Herald Tribune