Career
Chew started his career in showbiz after winning Star Search in 1990, a bi-annual nationwide talent search. Since then, he has never failed to make it to the Top 10 Most Popular Male Artistes in the Star Awards, an award ceremony for TV personalities, since its inception in 1994. In 2004, Chew was awarded the All Time Favourite Artiste Award with Li Nanxing and Zoe Tay.
He first earned his acting nomination for his role as Hong San in the 1995 epic The Teochew Family, which he's still known to audiences in China. This was also evident when he bagged the Best Actor Award in Star Awards 2000 in Hainan Kopi Tales. His popularity has also spread across the causeway as he was voted the Most Popular MediaCorp Male Artiste in Malaysia. He made his first crossover to English sitcom in Mr. Kiasu. During the late 1990s to early 2000s, he was best known for his role as Jacky Chang aka Ah Bee, a salesman with a penchant for grabbing 'lobangs' (good opportunities that cannot be missed) in the popular Channel 8 sitcom Don't Worry, Be Happy, which spanned for six seasons. Chew initially dropped out from the role of Ah Bee after the 3rd season due to fear of being typecast, and also because he wanted to focus more on drama and variety shows. He eventually reprised the role for the latter half of the 6th (and final) season for Don't Worry Be Happy, and appeared in a spinoff series Lobang King focusing on Ah Bee and his new league of friends.
Chew is known for his versatility and ability to portray different characters that leave a lasting impression. At the 25th anniversary special in 2007, his character Ah Bee was named as one of the most memorable TV roles and his role as the villain Li Kechun in The Reunion was voted the Top 10 most memorable villains. In 2009 he won the Best Supporting Actor award, despite the nominations being dominated by cast of the popular blockbuster series The Little Nyonya, for his portrayal of a promising young doctor driven to vice and insanity by unfortunate circumstances in The Golden Path.
Now a well-known household name, Chew has gone from acting in drama series to hosting shows and large-scale events including overseas collaborations with Taiwan and China. He was nominated for the Best Info-Ed Host Award at the Star Awards 2010 for co-hosting Food Hometown.
Chew's contract with MediaCorp was set to expire in October 2010. Due to his illness, Chew initially did not expect his contract to be renewed. However, reports surfaced in November 2010 that Chew's contract was renewed for a further two years, with particular emphasis on hosting and new artiste training duties. He made his acting comeback in the 30th anniversary drama special Joys of Life.
Before the contract extension, Chew was planning to enter the restaurant business before his contract renewal, which would have been Chew's second foray into the eatery business.
Read more about this topic: Chew Chor Meng
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