Loke Wan Tho
- Loke Yew (father)
- Lim Cheng Kim (mother)
Loke Wan Tho | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 陸運濤 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 陆运涛 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Tan Sri Loke Wan Tho (simplified Chinese: 陆运涛; traditional Chinese: 陸運濤; pinyin: Lù Yùntáo; Jyutping: Luk6 Wan6 Tou4; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Lio̍k Ūn-tô; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: Lu̍k Yun-thàu; 14 June 1915 – 20 June 1964) was a Malaysian-Singaporean business magnate, ornithologist, and photographer. He was the founder of Cathay Organisation in Singapore and Malaysia, and Motion Picture and General Investments Limited (MP&GI) in Hong Kong.
Early life and education
Born in Kuala Lumpur on 14 June 1915, Loke Wan Tho was the ninth child of Loke Yew, an ethnic Chinese businessman of Cantonese descent, and his wife of mixed Hokkien-Hakka ancestry named Loke Cheng Kim.
Loke was only 2 years old when his father died. His early education was at Victoria Institution, Kuala Lumpur, a school set up by the British for Chinese boys which counted his father as one of its founders.
In 1929, due to his delicate health, Loke with his two younger sisters was taken by his mother to Chillon College in Montreux, Switzerland. He was the Swiss County (Vaud) long jump champion in 1932. Loke then went to King's College, Cambridge where he obtained an Honour's degree in English Literature and History in 1936. For a brief period after that, he was at the London School of Economics. Loke returned to Malaya just before the outbreak of the Second World War.
Biography
In February 1942, Loke boarded a ship, Nora Moller, to leave Malaya to escape the Japanese but the ship was sunk by a Japanese aircraft in the Strait of Bangka. He was rescued from the sea, temporarily blinded and severely burned. Later he was hospitalised in Batavia (Jakarta) and then evacuated to India. He survived his injuries and after arrivingl in Bombay, he was introduced to the Indian ornithologist Dr. Salim Ali, who eventually became a lifetime friend and a frequent companion on many major expeditions. Loke credited Salim who inspired his passion and wrote in his book A Company of Birds : "Under the guidance of an expert (Salim Ali) my interest in birds which hitherto had been but of a dilettante kind blossomed into a deeper passion." Later in 2014, Bombay Natural History Society, Mumbai published a coffee table book on Lokes collection of beautiful bird photographs as "Loke Wan Tho’s Birds" as a tribute to the man. A huge collection of his bird photographs is kept in the library of the Bombay Natural History Society at Mumbai.
Business career
Although Loke had inherited a vast fortune of tin mines, plantations and properties from his father, he went on to grow the company which his mother had formed together with him in 1935 called Associated Theatres Ltd. The Pavilion Cinema in Kuala Lumpur and the Cathay Cinema in Singapore were built. Partnerships were forged with Ho Ah Loke and others to form the Cathay cinema circuit that counted 80 cinemas at its peak. Associated Theatres Ltd later changed its name to Cathay Organisation in 1959.
By 1953 Loke and Ho had started production of Malay films at the Cathay Keris Studios which were purpose built. Many classic films have come from these studios located out in East Coast Road Singapore – Pontianak, Orang Minyak, Bawang Puteh Bawang Merah, Hang Tuah, Hang Jebat and many more.
Loke also bought over an existing film studio in Hong Kong in 1955 and started to produce a library of Chinese films to supply to his chain of cinemas which stretched from Singapore, Malaya and Borneo to Bangkok. The films were also distributed to the region and Cathay stars like Ge Lan, You Min, Lin Dai and Yeh Fung became household names in Indochina, Thailand, Burma, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Sarawak, Borneo and of course Singapore and Malaya.
The Cathay Organisation, of which Loke was its chairman, not only owned and operated cinemas and film studios, produced Malay and Chinese films but also owned and operated hotels and restaurants in Singapore (The Cathay Hotel and Ocean Park Hotel and their attendant restaurants) and Fiji (The Grand Pacific Hotel Suva and The Cathay Hotel Lautoka). He also had interests in rubber, palm oil and coconut plantations in Malaysia.
From the end of the war Loke had become increasingly caught up in the business world. Besides his own companies, he was Chairman of Malayan Airways Ltd, Singapore Telephone Board, Malayan Banking and was on the board of directors of numerous companies including Wearne Brothers, Sime Darby, Kwong Yik Bank, Great Eastern Life, H A O'Connors Ltd, Straits Steamship Co Ltd and Rediffusion (Singapore) Ltd.
In his lifetime Loke was honoured by the state of Kelantan in Malaysia from whom he received his Datoship, Cambodia, Japan and Malaya. Always the philanthropist he supported many charities, associations and educational institutions.
Personal life
In September 1963, Loke married his third wife, Mavis Chew in London.
On 20 June 1964, Loke and his wife were killed in the crash of Civil Air Transport Flight B-908, along with his chief executives, leaving Taichung after attending the 11th Asian Film Festival.[1][2][3]
Honour
Honour of Malaya
- Malaya :
- Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (PMN) – Tan Sri (1961)[4]
Memorials
- Loke Wan Tho Photography Exhibit is housed on 3rd floor of Singapore Photography Society
- Loke Wan Tho Library in Singapore Jurong Bird Park
- Wan Tho Avenue in Potong Pasir, Singapore
- Loke Wan Tho Star, No. 38 Avenue of Stars, Hong Kong
- Museum open to the public housed on 2nd floor of The Cathay
Publications
- A Company of Birds. Michael Joseph, London 1959
- Angkor, by Malcolm MacDonald and Loke Wan Tho, Jonathan Cape, London, 1958,59,60.
Text by Malcolm MacDonald, with chapters including "The History of Khmers"。"The Ruins of Khmers"。 111 Black and White Plates of Angkor Wat, taken by Loke Wan Tho and M.MacDonald。
References
- ^ "Villagers see blast as 57 die in crash". The Montreal Gazette. 22 June 1964. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
- ^ Lam, Agnes. "A Day and Eternity: Film Stars, Magnates and the Press". Hong Kong Film Archive. Archived from the original on 16 May 2005. Retrieved 22 April 2008.
- ^ Hendrix, Grady (9 October 2007). "Cathay's Song". New York: New York Sun. Archived from the original on 4 March 2008. Retrieved 25 March 2008.
- ^ "Semakan Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Tahun 1961" (PDF).
External links
- Loke Wan Tho at IMDb
- Black Naped Tern, photograph by Loke Wan Tho
- Cinema Magnate, Ornithologist, Philanthropist
- Cathay Organisation
- Victoria Institution
- Loke Wan Tho map collection at the National Library of Australia
- v
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- 1958: Abdul Aziz Abdul Majid
- 1958: Abdul Wahab Toh Muda Abdul Aziz
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- 1959: Omar Yoke Lin Ong
- 1959: Suleiman Abdul Rahman
- 1959: V. T. Sambanthan
- 1961: Sheikh Ahmad Mohd Hashim
- 1961: Lee Tiang Keng
- 1961: Loke Wan Tho
- 1961: Mohamed Din Ahmad
- 1961: Nik Mustapha Fadzil
- 1961: Sardon Jubir
- 1961: Tengku Indra Putra
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- 1976: Mohammed Hanif Omar
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- 1985: Aishah Ghani
- 1985: Sallehuddin Mohamed
- 1986: Abdul Hamid Omar
- 1986: Khir Johari
- 1987: Mohd Ghazali Che Mat
- 1988: Hashim Mohd Ali
- 1988: Senu Abdul Rahman
- 1989: Abang Ahmad Urai
- 1989: Chan Siang Sun
- 1990: Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid
- 1990: Bahaman Samsudin
- 1990: Hashim Yeop Abdullah Sani
- 1990: Lee San Choon
- 1991: Tengku Ahmad Rithaudeen
- 1992: Abu Talib Othman
- 1992: Asri Muda
- 1992: Mohammed Jemuri Serjan
- 1992: Yaacob Mat Zain
- 1993: Abdul Rahman Abdul Hamid
- 1994: Borhan Ahmad
- 1994: Gunn Chit Tuan
- 1994: Musa Hitam
- 1994: Sulaiman Ninam Shah
- 1995: Abdul Rahim Mohd Noor
- 1995: Ismail Omar
- 1997: Abdul Halim Ali
- 1999: Lamin Mohd Yunus
- 1999: Mohtar Abdullah
- 2001: Mohd Zahidi Zainuddin
- 2001: Norian Mai
- 2001: Samsudin Osman
- 2004: Mohd Bakri Omar
- 2005: Abdul Gani Patail
- 2005: Mohd Anwar Mohd Nor
- 2007: Abdul Aziz Zainal
- 2007: Mohd Sidek Hassan
- 2007: Musa Hassan
- 2008: Rafidah Aziz
- 2009: Alauddin Mohd Sheriff
- 2009: Ong Ka Ting
- 2009: Syed Hamid Albar
- 2010: Azizan Ariffin
- 2010: Ismail Adam
- 2010: Joseph Pairin Kitingan
- 2011: Ismail Omar
- 2011: Harris Salleh
- 2012: Md Raus Sharif
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- 2013: Ali Hamsa
- 2013: Yek Min Ek
- 2013: Lim Kok Wing
- 2014: Khalid Abu Bakar
- 2016: Mohamed Apandi Ali
- 2017: Mohamad Fuzi Harun
- 2017: Raja Mohamed Affandi
- 2017: Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin
- 2019: Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat
- 2019: Ismail Bakar
- 2019: Zulkifli Zainal Abidin
- 2020: Mohd Zuki Ali
- 2020: Idrus Harun
- 2020: Affendi Buang
- 2020: Abdul Hamid Bador
- 2021: Abang Abdul Rahman Johari Abang Openg
- 2021: Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani
Commanders
- 1958: A.H.P. Humphrey
- 1958: Abdul Hamid Jumat
- 1958: David Watherston
- 1958: F.H. Brooke
- 1958: James Beveridge Thomson
- 1958: James Cassels
- 1958: O.A. Spencer
- 1958: T.V.A. Brodie
- 1959: W.L.R. Carbonell
- 1959: Lord Ogmore
- 1959: Prijono
- 1961: Claude Fenner
- 1961: Douglas Waring
- 1961: H.A. Campbell
- 1961: John Hay
- 1961: Rodney Moore
- 1961: W.H. Wilcock
- 1962: Alexander Oppenheim
- 1962: L.C. Hoffman
- 1962: Luang Suranarong
- 1962: Stanley Edward Jewkes
- 1962: Syed Esa Almenoar
- 1963: Geofroy Tory
- 1963: George L. P. Weaver
- 1963: John Galvin
- 1963: Charles Bennett
- 1963: C.M. Sheridan
- 1963: Ngo Hou
- 1963: Samdech Penn Nouth
- 1963: Son Sann
- 1964: Dawee Chullasapya
- 1964: Kalya Israsena
- 1964: Peekdhip Malakul
- 1964: Nai Phairot Jayanama
- 1964: Presert Rujirawongse
- 1964: Swaeng Senanarong
- 1964: Nai Thitinant Na Ranong
- 1965: Abdel-Aziz El-Sayed
- 1965: Abdel-Maguid Farid
- 1965: Abdel-Monein Hassan Tawfik
- 1965: Abdul Wahab Al-Majali
- 1965: Ahmad Abdu El-Sharabassi
- 1965: Akef Al-Fayez
- 1965: Daoud Abu Ghazaleh
- 1965: Dhogan Hindawi
- 1965: El-Sayed Mohamed Youssef
- 1965: Habis Al-Majali
- 1965: Hazem Nuseibeh
- 1965: Mahmoud Fawzi
- 1965: Mahmoud Riad
- 1965: Mohamed Abdel Khalek Hassouna
- 1965: Mohamed Rashad Hassan
- 1965: Ngo Trong Anh
- 1965: Nguyễn Chánh Thi
- 1965: Nour-Eddine Tarraf
- 1965: Ra'ad bin Zeid
- 1965: S.F. Owens
- 1965: Saad Jumaa
- 1965: Sa`id Al-Mufti
- 1965: Salah El-Shahed
- 1965: Shawkat Sati
- 1965: Varyl Begg
- 1965: W.T. Philips
- 1965: Walter Colyear Walker
- 1966: Tran Kim Phuong
- 1967: John Grandy
- 1968: Philip Ernest Housden Pike
- 1971: Nai Puang Suwanrath
- 1972: John Baines Johnston
- 1972: Surakij Mayalarp
- 1977: Sumitro Djojohadikusumo
- 1979: Charoen Pongpanich
- 1979: Eikichi Hara
- 1979: Kōnosuke Matsushita
- 1979: Mohammad Jusuf
- 1979: Prem Tinsulanonda
- 1979: Sheikh Hassan Abdullah Al-Shaikh
- 1979: Yudhisthira Svasti
- 1981: Mohamed Al-Hamad Al-Subaili
- 1982: Abdul Muhsin bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
- 1982: Alsayed Ahmed Abdul Wahab
- 1982: Badr bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
- 1982: Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
- 1982: Saud bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
- 1982: Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
- 1983: Leonardus Benjamin Moerdani
- 1983: Siddhi Savetsila
- 1983: Takeo Aritta
- 1984: Arthit Kamlang-ek
- 1984: Poniman
- 1986: Jürgen Warnke
- 1988: Chavalit Yongchaiyudh
- 1988: Try Sutrisno
- 1989: Etienne F. Glichitch
- 1989: Pengiran Ibnu Ba'asith Pengiran Apong
- 1991: Tadashi Kuranari
- 1993: Pao Sarasin
- 1994: Domingo Cavallo
- 1994: Masami Ishii
- 1999: Wiranto
- 2000: Datuk N Siva subramaniam
- 2007: Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Madani
- 2010: Yōhei Sasakawa