Celebs’ children in the spotlight
The month of October saw many celebrity offspring making the headlines – for good, bad or ugly reasons.
The Good
Jane Li, 19
Daughter of China-born action star Jet Li and former actress Nina Li THIS overachiever has so much going for her. She is studying at Harvard University and has done an internship at the United Nations.
And late last month, it was reported that she received a coveted invitation to Le Bal des Debutantes, billed as the most high-profile debutante ball in the world. It is slated to take place on Nov 30 in Paris and about 20 young women are invited.
The beauty with brains also helps run her father’s charity, One Foundation, whose areas of focus include disaster relief and children’s welfare.
Her accomplishments go further back. By age six, she had won two national dance championships.
At seven, she made her debut in show business at Heavenly King Andy Lau’s concert at the Hong Kong Coliseum in 2007, where they performed a Latin dance.
Ronan Farrow, 31
Son of American actress Mia Farrow and American filmmaker Woody Allen
THE Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist and author’s non-fiction book, Catch And Kill: Lies, Spies, And A Conspiracy To Protect Predators, was
released last month.
In it, Farrow recounts the challenges and resistance he encountered while pursuing the story of alleged sexual abuse by former film producer Harvey Weinstein.
It helped spark 2017’s #Metoo movement, which saw many women make sexual assault or harassment allegations against powerful men.
For his reporting in The New Yorker, Farrow was included in Time’s list of The Most Influential People of 2018. The New Yorker and The New York Times jointly won last year’s Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.
The Bad
Cameron Ely, 30
Son of American actor Ron Ely
ELY was suspected by the authorities to have stabbed his mother, Valerie Lundeen Ely, 62, on Oct 15. She was found dead with multiple stab wounds in their California home, following a 911 call reporting a family disturbance.
He was found outside the house, according to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office. He apparently told the deputies he had a gun and motioned with his hands as if he were drawing out a weapon. In response, the deputies opened fire, fatally wounding him. His motive is unknown.
Reports say Ely was a former football quarterback who graduated from Harvard University with a psychology degree in 2012.
His father, Ron Ely, is known for playing the title character in the American television series Tarzan (1966 to 1968) and hosting the Miss America pageant in the 1980s. On Oct 15, the 81-year-old was also found at home and was taken to an area hospital for evaluation.
Max Lee, 25
Son of Taiwanese actor Lee Hsingwen
REPORTS say Lee has been charged with indecent conduct and unlawful entry, after he spent a night in an Ikea store in Taipei after it had closed on Oct 28.
He walked on table-tops, slept on display beds, stripped naked while he feigned taking a shower, and pretended to masturbate while seated before a computer.
He uploaded a video about his experience in the store on Youtube, but has since taken it down.
The Ugly
Li Yan, 13
Daughter of Chinese singer Faye Wong and Chinese actor Li Yapeng IT is this schoolgirl’s art, and not her appearance or actions, that some say is ugly.
One of her artworks, titled Panda And Bamboo, was reportedly auctioned at about 900,000 yuan (RM532,000), with proceeds going to the Smile Angel Foundation founded by her parents to help children with cleft lips.
Netizens criticised Li’s artwork, calling it “simple” and “having no value”, as well as making comments such as “I don’t understand how this is art”.
Cameron Douglas, 40
Son of American actor Michael Douglas
ON Oct 22, the actor’s tell-all book, Long Way Home, was released. In it, he writes about being a drug addict, thief and convicted drug dealer. He was arrested in 2009 and released from prison in 2016.
Douglas told The Independent newspaper in a recent article: “All those years that the book is based on, all the pain and destruction that a lot of my behaviour caused, is done. I can’t go back and undo that.” – The Straits Times/asia News Network