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Biography

P. Ramlee was born Teuku Zakaria bin Teuku Nyak Puteh.His father Teuku Nyak Puteh was a sailor 

from Aceh,and later marries Che Mah Hussain.He was born on the first day of Eid festival,which is 22

March 1929.

He attended Sekolah Melayu Kampung Jawa (English: Kampung Jawa Malay School) and Sekolah

Francis Light primary schools. Next he went to the famous Penang Free School secondary school until

the World War broke out. During the Japanese Occupation years in Malaya, he continued his studies at

the Japanese Navy Academy. When the war ended, he reconvened his studies in Penang Free School.

He was very active in sports.

Career 

His first musical instrument was ukelele. Later he turned to guitar and violin under the coach of the

Penang Free School brass band leader, Mr. Kamaruddin. He later joined the orchestras Teruna

Sekampung and then Sinaran Bintang Sore. In 1947, he won the first place in a song competition

organized by Penang Radio.

P. Ramlee's first role was in the movie Chinta 1948. In 1949 he was cast in the film. His career continued

to flourish that between the years 1948-1955, he had acted in 27 films. Seven years after his acting

career started, P. Ramlee directed his f irst film Penarek Becha. In 1957, P. Ramlee would act in the first

of his Bujang Lapok comedic films that he acted along with Aziz Sattar and S.Shamsudin, which are still

popular among the modern Malay film watchers. During his career he directed and acted in sixty-six films,

and had more than 360 songs to his credit.[1] 

He returned permanently to Kuala Lumpur after years with Shaw Brothers in Singapore; however,he

would never expect that his permanent return would mark the begin of his downfall.His final film

was Laksemana Do Re Mi in 1972 and his last song and lyrics was Air Mata di Kuala Lumpur (Tears in

Kuala Lumpur),before his death in 1973.In his last song,the lyrics depicts his crushed feeling and series

of disappointments and setbacks upon returning to Malaysia after years in Singapore.[2]

 

Family

P. Ramlee was married three times. His first marriage was to Junaidah (a divorcee and daughter of comedian and actor Daeng Harris who used to help him a lot in his early acting days) in 1950 but the

marriage ended in a divorce four years later. Junaidah bore him two children,Mohd Nasir (1953±2008)

and Arfan (1954±1998). Arfan was brought up by Junaidah after their divorce. (Agenda Daily Insight

News 18.12.2008). His second marriage was to a member of the Royal family of State of Perak, Noorizan

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Mohd. Noor in 1955 but it also ended in a divorce in 1961. His last marriage was to Salmah Ismail, who

was a very famous singer known as Saloma on 21 November 1961.

P. Ramlee brought up many children in his family. He adopted 5 children: Sazali (born 1958), Betty,

Zakiah @ Zazaloma (born 1963), Sabruddin @ Badin (1966±2007) and Salfarina @ Dian of Chinese

origin and brought up the 3 children of his spouse and ex-spouses, Addul Rahman (Junaidah's son),

Norma (Noorizan's daughter), Armalie (Saloma's son with A.R.Tompel).

Death and Legacy

On the 29th of May 1973, P. Ramlee died at the age of 44 due to a heart attack and was buried in Jalan

 Ampang Muslim Cemetery, Kuala Lumpur [3]

. His untimely death was a huge shock to the nation, and a

sense of collective guilt began to spread nationwide, as prior to his death, he had been discredited and

rejected by his own nation, citing that he was then a 'has been', and his songs and f ilm were no longer 

marketable.

In 1986 (13 years after his death), in honor of his contributions to the Malaysian entertainment industry,

the P. Ramlee Memorial was built inSetapak, Kuala Lumpur. In 1982, Jalan Parry, in the center of Kuala

Lumpur, was renamed Jalan P. Ramlee in his honor. In 1990, he was posthumously awarded the

Malaysian honorific title Tan Sri, and later in 2009, the honorific title of 'Datuk Amar' by Sarawak State

Government. The Chief Minister of Sarawak, Abdul Taib Mahmud, an avid fan of P. Ramlee, presented

the award to his adopted daughter, Dian P. Ramlee, in a ceremony honoring veteran artists in

Kuching.[4]

.On 31 October 2010, a 90-minute documentary on his life was aired on History Channel

 Asia.

[5]

 

 Awards

His award-winning films are:

Anakku Sazali (My Son Sazali): Best Male Actor,4th Asian Film Festival (Tokyo,1957)

Hang Tuah (Legend of Hang Tuah): Best Musical Score,3rd Asian Film Festival (Hong Kong 1956)

and Official screening at the 7th Berlin International Film Festival in 1957.The first and only P.Ramlee

movie to be filmed in color.

Ibu Mertuaku (My Mother in-law): Most Versatile Talent,10th Asian Film Festival (Tokyo,1963)

Madu Tiga (Three Wives): Best Comedy,11th Asian Film Festival (Taipei,1964)

Nujum Pak Belalang (Pak Belalang The Fortune Teller): Best Comedy,7th Asian Film Festival

(Tokyo,1960)

Pendekar Bujang Lapok (The Three Warrior Bachelors): Best Comedy,6th Asian Film Festival (Kuala

Lumpur,1959)

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Sumpah Orang Minyak (Curse of The Oily Man): Best Black and White Photography,5th Asian Film

Festival (Manila,1958)

While his other hononary awards are:

Ahli Mangku Negara (AMN),conferred by His Majesty Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail in 1962.

Panglima Setia Mahkota (PSM),carrying the title 'Tan Sri' by HRH Sultan Azlan Shah in 1990.

Darjah Yang Amat Mulia Bintang Kenyalang Sarawak "Datuk Amar Bintang Kenyalang

(Posthumous)" ( D.A.(P) ),carrying the title 'Datuk Amar' by the Sarawak State Government in 2009.

Hononary Doctorate in Performance Arts,2005