LiLei and Han MeiMei were the two main characters from a series of middle-school English textbooks used by Mainland Chinese students in the early 80s. I’ve unearthed a small wave of nostalgia about them online, including speculations on their love triangle with Englishman Jim Green and an annotated cast of characters.
Then some artists converted retro nostalgia into modern art, kitsch and a roadshow:
Interestingly enough, they also gave named them 李磊 and 韩美美 as they described in one of their first blog posts:
"他们没有中文名，我就先这样叫他们。试试看反响如何？大家有新意见么？ (They don’t have Chinese names, let’s call them this for now and see what the reaction is? What do you think?)"
Via Bigik.cn.
I remember those books…They tought me how to reply to “How are you?” —it’s always, always, the classical phrase “I’m fine, thank you. And you?” we loved it, for they make you seem smart to English speakers, we hated it, because the answer to the reply may be long and confusing…and we wouldn’t know what to do and say next…hahahaha
I miss Li lei and Han Meimei, I think besides Jim Green, there are also the twins: Lily and Lucy…