筆者珍藏的小說《蘇絲黃的世界》(The World of Suzie Wong)
……Her hair was tied behind her head in a pony-tail, and she wore jeans — green knee-length denim jeans.
That’s odd, I thought. A Chinese girl in jeans. How do you explain that?……Probably some wealthy taipan’s daughter. Or a student. Or a shopgirl……(“ The World of Suzie Wong ” page.1)
英國畫家 Robert Lomax 於 1950年代來到香港,在尖沙咀乘天星小輪往港島,巧遇中國美少女,並主動上前搭訕。
“Are you sailor?” Chinese girl
“Me a sailor? Good Lord, no. ” Robert Lomax
“All right , we talk if you want. ”
……….
“Aren’t you a northerner ? ”
“Yes, Shanghai. ”
“But now you live in Hong Kong.”
“North Point…..Yes , only I like Repulse Bay better. Nicer house……My father is very rich……Number three, Conduit Road. Number four, Peak. Number Five, Happy Valley……” (page. 2~3)
……….
“What’s your name ? ”
“Wong Mee-ling.”
“Mee-ling—that’s charming.” (page. 8)
Robert 來到灣仔,長期入住了臨海濱的Nam Kok Hotel(應是六國酒店, 五十年代灣仔告士打道以北還未填海),酒店地下有一間酒吧,常有洋人水手聚集飲酒作樂,場內有吧女流連,雙方有意可上樓闢室尋歡。Robert 幾乎每天到酒吧用餐,跟吧女們都混熟了,有一天……
Just then I noticed the girl I had seen getting into the lift. She was sitting with an American sailor on the bench seat of an alcove table, she entwined his arm and took his hand……“Fifi , who’s that girl over there?” I asked. “That girl? Suzie.”……“Not really,” I said, “Only a word—I'd thought for a moment, she was a girl I’d met on the ferry.”
It was Mee-ling……Suzie was Mee-ling.
“Gwenny, what’s her real name?” I asked, though I already knew the answer.
“Suzie Wong.”
“I mean her real Chinese name.”
“Wong Mee-ling.” ( “The World of Suzie Wong” p.48~51 )
原來Robert 在渡輪上邂逅的中國美少女,自稱富家女的Suzie Wong,也是Nam Kok Hotel 酒吧吧女的其中之一,專門招待在灣仔上岸尋歡的洋人水手,她們自稱的「little dirty yum yum girl」。不過Robert 毫不介意,為了Suzie 渾身散發出天使與魔鬼的混合氣質而傾倒,展開熱烈追求繼而相戀,但Suzie 一度拒絕了Robert 的求婚,唯一障礙是Suzie 其實有一名私生子,要賺很多很多錢,將孩子撫養成人。後來一場雨災,Suzie居住的唐樓倒塌,儲存的金錢和她的孩子都被淹埋掉,Suzie 失去了所有,卻是「塞翁失馬,焉知非福」,一次災禍掃除了兩人之間的阻隔,幾經波折之後,「有情人終成眷屬」。
英國作家 Richard Mason 的愛情小說作品“The World of Suzie Wong”於1957年出版,之後一紙風行,並改編成舞台劇及於1960年拍成荷里活電影,關南施在電影《蘇絲黃的世界》中飾演的灣仔吧女形象深入民心,半世紀以來一直影響西方人士對香港的想象。可是,蘇絲黃真的是純屬虛構嗎?
《香港文壇回味錄》,作者鄭明仁 ,天地圖書出版
《香港文壇回味錄》p.193
《香港文壇回味錄》p.194
2002年 6月 16日 《明報》報導
2002年 6月 16日 《明報》報導
時移世易,物轉星移,大環境起了根本的變化,從此香江再無Suzie Wong!
文、攝:Johnny Cheung