The cartoonist Louie Yu Tin (1926–2008) was famous for his creation of the character Wong Lung Woo, which in reverse – Woo Lung Wong – means an ‘addlebrained person’ in Cantonese. Describing what happened to the protagonist in post-war Guangzhou, Louie’s cartoon series featuring ‘addlebrained Wong’ highlighted social injustice, government corruption and the hardships of the ‘little man’ and enjoyed huge popularity in Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macau during the 1940s and 1950s, so much so that it was later made into a movie. A versatile artist, Louie also drew other types of cartoons and wrote fiction and film reviews.

When Louie passed away in 2008, his family generously donated most of his works to the Hong Kong Heritage Museum. The museum presented an exhibition entitled ‘Woo Lung Wong: Exhibition of Cartoonist Louie Yu Tin’s Collection’ between February and June 2012. Showcasing his original cartoon drawings, his publications, manuscripts of his novels, film-related material and much more, this exhibition not only provides an insight into Louie’s drawing and writing styles, but also highlight the trend towards social commentary on topical issues in cartoons that enjoyed great popularity in the mid-20th century.

This collection showcases the contents of the aforesaid exhibition provided by the Hong Kong Heritage Museum. The public can appreciate Louie’s mastery with his pen and spot on observation through his lively characters and their day-to-day dialogues. The ordinary city life depicted by Louie not only records the features of the society of the time, but also reflects the social values and outlines an impression of the era.