Zhou Enlai (5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976), was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976. Zhou served under Mao Zedong and was instrumental in consolidating the control of the Communist Party's rise to power, forming foreign policy, and developing the Chinese economy.A skilled and able diplomat, Zhou served as the Chinese foreign minister from 1949 to 1958. Advocating peaceful coexistence with the West after the stalemated Korean War, he participated in the 1954 Geneva Conference, the 1955 Bandung Conference, and helped orchestrate Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to China. He helped devise policies regarding the bitter disputes with the U.S., Taiwan, the Soviet Union (after 1960), India and Vietnam. Zhou survived the purges of other top officials during the Cultural Revolution. With Mao dedicating most of his later years to political struggle and ideological work, Zhou was the main driving force behind the affairs of state during much of the Cultural Revolution. His attempts at mitigating the Red Guards' damage and his efforts to protect others from their wrath made him immensely popular in the Cultural Revolution's later stages. As Mao Zedong's health began to decline in 1971 and 1972, Zhou and the Gang of Four struggled internally over leadership of China. Zhou's health was also failing, however, and he died eight months before Mao on 8 January 1976. The massive public outpouring of grief in Beijing turned to anger towards the Gang of Four, leading to the Tiananmen Incident. Although succeeded by Hua Guofeng, it was Deng Xiaoping, Zhou's ally, who was able to outmaneuver the Gang of Four politically and eventually take Mao's place as Paramount leader by 1978.
He and his wife had no children, but adopted several orphans of "revolutionary martyrs," including Li Peng, who later became Premier. Zhou himself had been adopted by a wealthy Tianjin family.
Self
Title
Year
Status
Character
All Eyes and Ears
2015
Documentary
Himself
World Film Report
2008
TV Series
Himself
Archive Footage
Title
Year
Status
Character
The Seventies
2015
TV Series documentary
Himself - Chinese Premier
The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceausescu
2010
Documentary
Himself (as Ciu en Lai)
The Long March
2007
TV Movie documentary
Himself
Declassified
2006
TV Series documentary
Himself
The Doomsday Clock
2004
TV Movie
Himself
Morning Sun
2003
TV Movie documentary
Himself
The Korean War: Fire and Ice
1999
TV Mini-Series documentary
Himself (uncredited)
Cold War
1998
TV Mini-Series documentary
Himself
Inside the White House
1995
TV Movie documentary
Himself (uncredited)
Xie rou chang cheng
1995
TV Series
Himself (uncredited)
Biography
1995
TV Series documentary
Himself
The Century of Warfare
1994
TV Mini-Series documentary
Himself
China Rising: The Epic History of 20th Century China
1992
TV Mini-Series documentary
Himself (uncredited)
ABC's Wide World of Sports 30th Anniversary Special