A native to Baxian of Hebei province, Sai Ke, originally named Chen Bingjun, published various works with his pen name Chen Ningqiu on Matutinal Light of Harbin in 1942. He had been a member of early China’s new literary circle as a young poet as early as 1920s, and joined the Southland Drama Club led by Tian Han in Shanghai in 1927. He acted in the Back from South that received a great popularity later, which symbolized the beginning of his acting career in drama. Then he worked for Shanghai Star Company as an actor, and as a leader and director in New Land Drama Club and Roaring Lion Drama Club independently, which made a contribution to the development of the early movie and drama art. He even translated Golgi’s Night Inn and other songs’ lyrics of Soviet Union and invent some Anti-Japanese dramas such as Thirty Millions of Vagabonds and The Iron Stream. At the same time, as an important lyricist of salvation chanson and a pioneer for New Music Movement, he created lyrics of some famous Anti-Japanese such as A Military Song for Saving the Nation, Heat in the Heart and The Vanguard of Anti-Japanese. After 1935, He organized and participated in the No. 1 Acting Team for National Salvation, China Lyricists Association, The National Anti-Japanese Association of the Drama Circle and Northeast Battlefield Service Group. In 1938, he was assigned to Yan’an Lu Xun Academy of Arts as a professor, directing the drama Before and After the Sep 18th Incident in 1931 and The Imperial Envoy, then worked as president of Yan’an Youth Article Drama Theater, committeeman of Shensi-Kansu-Ningsia Border Region and commissioner of Cultural Commission of Shensi-Kansu-Ningsia Border Region Government. He also participated in the creation of great works such as the Chorus for the Great Production, etc, of which the song Thorn of the Wild Jujube cooperated with Xian Xinghai was popular at that time. He served as a series of posts after the Anti-Japanese War in 1945 to 1949, such as director of Literary Federation of Jehol Province, director of Jiamusi Branch of the National Cultural Association, vice-superintendent of education of Liaobei Province doubled as vice-dean of Liaobei College, dean for Northeast Lu Xun Academy of Literature and Art and dean for Northeast People’s Art Troupe. After 1953, he worked for the Central Experimental Opera Troupe(China Opera and Dance Drama Theater) as the consultant. His life was full of twists and turns, but he persisted in his belief toward the brightness and truth all the time, and ultimately became a proletarian artist owing to his strong passion toward his motherland and the people with his art as the fighting weapon. On Nov 18,1988, he died of illness at the age of 82 in Beijing.

Magnum Opus:Purple Song (poem collection), Thirty Million of Refugees (drama scenario )