Introducing Two New Pinterest Boards: Cai Luong and Cinema of Vietnam

Viet Celeb would like to cordially invite you to check out our two newest boards on Pinterest:  Cai Luong and Cinema of Vietnam.

Cai Luong Pinterest Board:  Honoring Veteran Actors and Actresses of Vietnamese Folk Opera Known as Cai Luong such as Thanh Nga, Huu Phuoc, Hung Cuong, Thanh Duoc, Ut Bach Lan, Phung Ha, Bach Tuyet, Thanh Sang, Huong Lan, Vu Linh, Mong Tuyen, Le Thuy, Cam Tien, etc.

Cinema of Vietnam Pinterest Board:  Honoring Cinema of Vietnam Actors, Actresses and Directors such as Tran Anh Hung, Kieu Chinh, La Thoai Tan, Tham Thuy Hang, Kim Cuong, Le Quynh, Ngo Thanh Van, Tang Thanh Ha, Binh Minh, Dustin Nguyen, Linh Dan Pham, Thanh Lan, Kim Vui, Johnny Tri Nguyen, etc.  

Ray Lui

Ray Lui (1956-    ) is a famous actor of Hong Kong television and films.

Born on December 22, 1956 in Hai Phong, Vietnam, Ray Lui is the third eldest in a family of five children.  He is of Hoa descent.  Due to the Vietnam War, Ray Lui and his family moved to Hong Kong in 1967.  His breakthrough role was in the 1980 TVB-produced Hong Kong television series, The Bund, as Ting Lik costarring Chow Yun-Fat and Angie Chiu.  He would reprise his role in The Bund II (1980) and The Bund III (1980-1981).  Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Ray Lui would be one of the most popular heartthrobs of Hong Kong cinema and television.  He has starred in many other Hong Kong television series including The Old Miao Myth (1983), The Rough Ride (1985), The Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain (1985), Twilight of a Nation (1988), Book and Sword, Gratitude and Revenge (2002), Seven Swordsmen (2006), Born Rich (2009), All Men Are Brothers (2011), The Han Triumph (2011) and Legend of Yuan Empire Founder (2012).  Ray Lui has also starred in many Hong Kong-produced films including Health Warning (1983), Walk on Fire (1988), To Be Number One (1991), The Great Conqueror's Concubine (1994), The Suspect (1998), Flash Point (2007), Death and Glory in Changde (2010), The Founding of a Party (2011), 7 Assassins (2013) and Firestorm (2013).  To his Vietnamese fans, he is known as Lu Luong Vy.

Yang Xiaojuan and Ray Lui

Ray Lui has been married three times.  His first marriage was to Hong Kong actress Kathy Chow in 1988 which lasted only five months.  His second marriage was to actress Cally Kwong in 1996 which lasted only six months.  Since 2001, Ray Lui has been married to actress Yang Xiaojuan.  The two are proud parents of a son, Lui Sin-yeung.

Link(s):

20 International Celebrities You Didn't Know Are Vietnamese 
20 Most Handsome Vietnamese Men of All Time

Tiny Yong

Tiny Yong (1944-    ) is a famous French-language pop singer from the yé-yé era and actress.

She was born on February 8, 1944 as Ton Nu Thi Thien Huong in Phnom Penh, Cambodia to Vietnamese parents.  Her father was a prominent doctor.  While she was a young child, her parents returned to Vietnam and lived in Da Lat for  several years before relocating to Saigon.  While in Saigon, she studied English, Spanish and French.  At the age of 14, her family left Vietnam to resettle in Paris, France where her father would resume work as a physician and her mother would open a Vietnamese restaurant.  That same year, she became an acting student of French actress Solange Sicard and made her stage debut in the Albert Camus play, Les Justes.  In 1961, she made her film debut in La Jeu de la Vérité, costarring with Jean Servais and Paul Meurisse.  Tiny Yong is an anglicized version of her Vietnamese name, Thien Huong.

(From Left to Right) Tiny Yong, Jeanne Valérie, Daliah Lavi,
Perrette Pradier, Nadia Gray and Francoise Prévost in La Jeu de la Vérité (1961)

Tiny Yong began her professional singing career in 1960 at the Table du Mandarin cabaret in Paris.  This was the same venue that launched the career of another legendary Vietnamese chanteuse by the name of Bach Yen.  Upon being discovered by singer and record producer, Henri Salvador, she recorded her first hit single, Tai Toi Petite Folie, released in 1963.  Tiny Yong became one of the most popular guest performers on the show, Salut les Copains, from 1963 to 1965 and was voted as one of five most admired singers in France along with Sylvie Vartan, Sheila, Francoise Hardy and Petula Clark.  Among her most popular hit songs include Le Sauvage, Le Roi de Monteurs, a duet with Henri Salvador, and 8 Jours par Semaine, a French version of a classic of The Beatles, Eight Days a Week.  

In 1967, Tiny Yong returned to Saigon for three years on an invitation to perform at the prestigious Tu Do cabaret.  During this period in Vietnam, Tiny Yong recorded Biet Ly written by Dzoan Mau for Jo Marcel's record label.  She also appeared on national television and recorded a duet of Chieu Mua Bien Gioi with legendary comedian/singer Tran Van Trach.

Upon returning to Paris in 1970, Tiny Yong got married and became a restaurateur.  She is a mother of a grown daughter.

Another Ten in a Row

In the next ten days, Viet Celeb will be featuring 10 international celebrities of Vietnamese descent.  This is the third in our Ten in a Row series.

World Celebs of Viet Descent:

Tiny Yong:  Ye-Ye Era French Pop Singer of Vietnamese Origin

Ray Lui:  Hong Kong Television and Film Actor Originally from Vietnam 

Pauline Chan:  Australian Actress and Filmmaker Born in Vietnam of Hoa Descent 

Chris Tianssen:  International Male Model of French and Vietnamese Descent 

Isild Le Besco:  French Actress and Filmmaker
 of French, Breton, Vietnamese and Algerian Descent 

Maiwenn:  French Actress, Director and Screenwriter
 of French, Breton, Vietnamese and Algerian Descent 

Jay Manalo:  Pinoy Cinema Actor of Filipino and Vietnamese Descent

Sher'e Thu Thuy:  1980s Italo Disco/Euro New Wave Singer

Le Ly Hayslip:  Founder of East Meets West Foundation and Author of  When Heaven and Earth Changed Places (1989) and Child of War, Woman of Peace (1993)

Nick Ut:  Pulitzer Prize Winning Photographer 

Tran Thu Ha

Tran Thu Ha (1977-    ), also known as Ha Tran, is a famous Vietnamese singer/songwriter and one of four officially honored divas in Vietnamese popular music along with Thanh Lam, My Linh and Hong Nhung.

Born in Hanoi on August 26, 1977, Tran Thu Ha grew up in a musical family.  Her father is the renowned opera singer, Tran Hieu.  And her mother was a music teacher who also had become the dean of the voice department at the prestigious Hanoi Conservatory of Music.  Her older brother is accomplished painter and dean of fine arts department at Hanoi College of Arts, Tran Vu Hoang.  At the age of 14, Tran Thu Ha lost her mother to cancer.  In 2000, she graduated from the Hanoi Conservatory of Music with a bachelor's degree in voice.

After entering and winning several singing contests, Tran Thu Ha finally turned professional in 1998 when she signed with Hang Phim Tre music production label.  In that same year, Hang Phim Tre released a duet album she had recorded with Bang Kieu, Dong Song Lo Dang.   Her debut solo studio album, Em Ve Tinh Khoi (Purity), would also be released later that year.  Both albums had sold exceptionally well which solidified Tran Thu Ha's name in Vietnam's pop music scene.

For the next several years, Tran Thu Ha's career would rise at the rate of a speeding bullet taking her all the way to the top.  To her millions of fans throughout Vietnam and abroad, her name then became closely associated with many of her recorded hit songs such as Cho Doi Chut On written by Trinh Cong Son, Loi Ru Cho Con written by Xuan Phuong, Dau Pho Em Qua written by Nguyen Binh, Em Ve Toc Xanh written by Quoc Bao, and Toc Gio Thoi Bay written by her uncle, Tran Tien. She would record two more successful solo studio albums during this period while still residing in Vietnam, Bai Tinh Cho Giai Nhan (2000) and Nhat Thuc (2002). She had also collaborated on on a project along with two other fellow singers, Hong Nhung and Thu Phuong.  Tran Thu Ha had also scored for herself another handful of hits to add to her already mounting list of signature songs with her recordings of theme tracks to Vietnamese television drama/mini-series like Giot Nuoc Mat Giua Hai The Ky, Thien Duong Tren Cao and Loi Chua Noi.  In the early 2000s, Tran Thu Ha was officially chosen as one of four female singers to be given the honorary title as Diva of the pop music industry of Vietnam.


In 2004, Tran Thu Ha married an American citizen of Vietnamese origin and relocated to the United States to be with her husband.  Since then, she has made many appearances on Thuy Nga's Paris By Night video series.  Among her most memorable appearances on Paris By Night include her solo performances of Co Don written by Nguyen Anh 9, Ngoc Lan written by Duong Thieu Tuoc and several duets with other artists like Bang Kieu, Khanh Ly and Bach Yen.

Tran Thu Ha has recorded solo studio albums for various music production labels such as Hang Phim Tre, Phuong Nam Film and Thuy Nga Paris.  In 2008, she formed her own music production label which has since released three of her solo studio albums:  Tran Tien (2008), Vi Sinh (2010) and Mam Hat (2011).

On December of 2011, Tran Thu Ha gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Nala Yen Doan.

Link(s):

Ha Tran Productions Official Website

Thu Phuong

Thu Phuong (1972-    ) is a famous Vietnamese singer originally from Hai Phong, Vietnam.

Born on October 9, 1972, Nguyen Thi Thu Phuong was the middle child in a family of three.  From early on, her father took notice of her keen interest in singing and enrolled her in music classes from the age of seven.  When she was just 12 years old, Thu Phuong made her debut appearance on stage with a solo performance of Chi Co Mot Tren Doi, a song written by Truong Quang Luc.  After completion of junior high school, she enrolled at the prestigious Hai Phong Performing Arts Academy (Cung Van Hoa Huu Nghi Viet Tiep).  In 1985, Thu Phuong would be one of a handful of students selected by Hai Phong Performing Arts Academy's faculty staff to study abroad in Moscow, Russia for an entire semester.

At the age of 14, Thu Phuong was accepted as a singer with the Hanoi youth singing troupe, Nha Hat Tuoi Tre.  This would prompt her family to relocate to Hanoi where she would continue with her studies at the Conservatory of Hanoi, graduating in the year of 1990.  During her tenure as a troupe singer for Nha Hat Tuoi Tre, Thu Phuong and a few of her friends formed a pop music group called Tay Ho.   Among the other members of Tay Ho included a young drummer by the name of Quang Huy, who would later become known as Huy MC.  In 1991, Thu Phuong along with members of Tay Ho went on a successful concert tour of Southeast Asia which included shows in Thailand, Laos and China.  This would mark her first time performing for overseas audiences.  Two years later, she and Huy MC married.

Thu Phuong's professional singing career really began to take flight in 1995 when she won first prize at the annual Vietnamese national music festival, Lien Hoan Nhac Nhe Viet Nam Toan Quoc, held in Hanoi.  Together with Huy MC, the two often were often billed as a duo act in live performances and on audio recordings.  Among their most popular songs recorded together included Loi Cua Gio, written by Duy Thai, Tinh Hong, written by Quoc Vuong, and a Vietnamese version of a popular Diana Ross hit song, When You Tell Me That You Love Me.  As a solo artist, her star shined even brighter.  During the second half of the 1990s decade, Thu Phuong gained national fame after scoring a string of monster hit singles recorded under the Ben Thanh Audio record label.  To her many fans in Vietnam, her name was linked to songs such as Shalala, Hoa Tim Ngay Xua, Dong Song Lo Dang, Co Phai Em Mua Thu Hanoi and Khi Xua Ta Be (Bang Bang), a song originally made famous internationally by American singer Cher and a French version by French singer Sheila in the 1960s, but first became popular as a signature song for singer Thanh Lan back in the early 1970s when she had recorded her version in both French and Vietnamese lyrics that were written by the late Pham Duy .  Thu Phuong enjoyed further success when she teamed up with pop male artist Lam Truong to record duets of Trai Tim Tim Khong Ngu Yen and Thoi Anh Hay Ve for the Hang Phim Tre label .  Both the audio recordings and music videos made for these two duet songs would become bestsellers in the year of 1998.

With a fan base that spanned beyond Vietnam to overseas Vietnamese communities across the globe, Thu Phuong began to perform extensively abroad in the early 2000s.  In 2001, she performed in the United States for the first time on a successful concert tour together with fellow singers Phuong Thanh, Lam Truong and her then husband, Huy MC.  During the North American leg of a world concert tour in 2003, Thu Phuong and Huy MC shocked many of their fans in Vietnam with their decision to reside in the United States permanently.  By remaining overseas beyond the designated expiration date on their visas, the pair were in violation of Vietnamese laws for international travel.  The following year, Thu Phuong along with another fellow singer Bang Kieu publicly stated their discontent with the limited freedoms for performing artists in Vietnam,  As a result of such actions, they were banned from working in the music industry in Vietnam.   For the next five years, Thu Phuong would be restricted from partaking on live performances, audio recordings, television appearances or magazine interviews to be conducted in Vietnam.  Whether or not she was permitted to travel to Vietnam during this time was unclear.  The only remaining privilege she clearly had as a citizen of Vietnam then was the usage of her Vietnamese passport for international travels.  As a mother being apart from her two small children who were still in Vietnam and cared for by Thu Phuong's parents, this was undoubtedly an extremely difficult period in her life.  Finally in 2008, Thu Phuong was granted clearance by the Ministry of Information and Communications Department of Vietnam to legally work as a performance artist in Vietnam again.  That same year, she would make her first return to Vietnam to perform at the Duyen Dang Viet Nam 19 Festival held at the Hoa Binh music venue in Ho Chi Minh City.  Thu Phuong has since made several more triumphant returns to her homeland performing at sold out concerts in various cities such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Haiphong and Da Nang.  In 2015, Thu Phuong was among the panel of judges on Vietnam's popular television show, Giong Hat Viet, which airs on channel VTV3.  This had marked her first national television appearance in Vietnam in more than 13 years.

In 2004, Thu Phuong made her debut appearance on Thuy Nga's Paris By Night on volume 77 performing a medley of Cho Toi Lai Tu Dau, written by Tran Quang Loc, and Que Huong, Tuoi Tho Toi, written by Tu Huy.  Thu Phuong has since appeared on a dozen other volumes of the Paris By Night series.  Among her most memorable performances on Paris By Night have included her solo performances of Huong Ve Hanoi, written by Hoang Duong, Da Khuc Tinh Nhan, written by Le Uyen Phuong, Bai Tho Khong Doan Ket, written by Lam Phuong, Nhung Ngay Tho Mong, written by Hoang Thi Tho, Tinh Ho and Ngin Trung Xa Cach, both written by Pham Duy, and a duet performance with singer The Son of a medley of two songs written by Tran Quang Nam, 10 Nam Tinh Cu and 20 Nam Tinh Cu.  Three of Thu Phuong's solo studio albums, Cau Chuyen Tinh Toi (2008), Ha Noi & Toi (2012) and Bien, Noi Nho... va Em (2013) were distributed by Thuy Nga Paris.

Thu Phuong was married to singer Huy MC from 1993 until 2007.  That marriage had produced two children.  After 14 years of marriage, Thu Phuong and Huy MC divorced.  It has been reported that the cause of their divorce was Huy MC's infidelity with singer/actress Ho Ngoc Ha.  After her divorce with Huy MC, Thu Phuong met and became romantically involved with Clarence Dung Taylor, a show promoter of African-American and Vietnamese descent who was once engaged to Amerasian pop singer Lilian.  In 2008, Clarence Dung Taylor traveled to Vietnam to bring back with him both of Thu Phuong's children from her first marriage.  In 2010, Clarence Dung Taylor helped sponsor both of Thu Phuong's parents to the United States.  The couple married in 2012 and together have two more children.

Link(s):

Thu Phuong Facebook Page

Nguyen Ngoc Ngan

Nguyen Ngoc Ngan (1945-    ) is an overseas Vietnamese author and host of the popular Paris By Night music video series produced by Thuy Nga Paris.

Born on March 9, 1945 in Hanoi, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan grew up primarily in South Vietnam.  In 1954, his family relocated to Cu Chi, South Vietnam where they lived for three years before resettling in Saigon.  Nguyen Ngoc Ngan attended Nguyen Ba Tong and Chu Vuong An High Schools in Saigon and graduated from the University of Saigon, School of Literature.  During his college years, he had once enrolled for a semester at the Conservatory of Saigon (Quoc Gia Am Nhac) to study theatrical arts.  After graduating from college, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan became a teacher at several public schools in Saigon until he was drafted for military service in 1970.  For four years, he was stationed at Cai Be, South Vietnam.  After the Fall of Saigon, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan was sent to reeducation camp for three years.  Upon his release in 1978, he along with his wife and son fled from Vietnam by boat.  Unfortunately, tragedy would strike before the boat landed in Malaysia.  Both his wife and son drowned after the boat had flipped over due to the heavy storm and extreme massive waves out at sea.  For the next year, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan lived at a refugee camp in Khota Bharu, Malaysia before immigrating to Canada where he first resettled in Prince Rupert, British Colombia.  Since 1985, he has maintained permanent residence in Toronto, Ontario.

Nguyen Ngoc Ngan and Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen, hosts of Paris By Night

Nguyen Ngoc Ngan began his lengthy association with Thuy Nga Paris as host of volume 17 of the popular live show music video series, Paris By Night, in 1992.  He would later be teamed up with co-host Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen.  The chemistry between the two of them was so widely embraced by viewer audiences that the executives at Thuy Nga Paris decided to make them permanent hosts of the Paris By Night series.  It is only fair to say that the massive popularity of Paris By Night with Vietnamese audiences worldwide through the years has largely been due to the two hosts of the series, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan and Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen.

In addition to serving as host of Paris By Night, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan has lent his voice as narrator in a a series of audio books produced by Thuy Nga Paris.  Among other narrators he has worked with on these audio books include his longtime co-host Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen, singers Ai Van and Thanh Lan, actress Mai Phuong, and comedians Hong Dao, Quang Minh and Chi Tai.  Nguyen Ngoc Ngan has co-authored the following books, Ballad of Mulan and The Blind Man and the Cripple - Orchard Village.  

Since 1982, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan has been happily married to Tran Ngoc Diep.  The couple are proud parents of a grown son.  Nguyen Ngoc Ngan has a younger brother, Nguyen Ngoc Trong, who is a famous Vietnamese songwriter and singer mostly known for the song, Buon Vuong Mau Ao.  

Link(s):

Nguyen Ngoc Ngan Facebook Page