Taiwanese director dies suddenly, leaving behind wife and 20-day-old twins

Yet another Taiwanese showbiz personality has died suddenly of cardiovascular reasons.

Director-actor Ming Gin-cheng, 51, suffered cardiogenic shock at around 11pm yesterday (Feb 8) while spending time with his wife Patty Lin, who's six years younger, at a Taipei confinement centre. He was rushed to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Cardiogenic shock is a life-threatening condition in which the heart suddenly can't pump enough blood to meet the body's needs. It is most often caused by a severe heart attack. 

Tragically, Gin-cheng and Lin had welcomed their twins, a boy and a girl, only on Jan 20, after spending at least a million Taiwan dollars (S$48,314) on 10 rounds of in-vitro fertilisation.

In the comments section of his last Facebook update on Feb 3, congratulatory messages have turned to ones of sorrow.

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According to media reports, Lin has left the confinement centre to handle his funeral matters. His close friends, actors Tuo Zong-kang and Chu Chung-heng, were spotted at the hospital late last night to assist Lin.

Some of Gin-cheng's most notable works are the 2000 comedy drama Spicy Teacher which he acted in, as well as the 2004 idol drama My Secret Garden 2, which he directed.

In November 2019, Taiwanese-Canadian actor-model Godfrey Gao died of cardiac failure while filming the Chinese reality game show Chase Me. He was 35.

In September 2020, Taiwanese singer-host Alien Huang was found dead at home by his father. His cause of death was cardiovascular complications due to an aortic dissection, which led to a blockage of blood vessels. He would have turned 37 in two months.

ALSO READ: Alien Huang and Godfrey Gao gone too soon: Doctor shares 6 warning signs of 'sudden death' in young adults

kwokkarpeng@asiaone.com