France Nuyen

France Nuyen:  Eurasian French-Vietnamese
 Hollywood Film and Television Actress

France Nuyen (1939-     ) was born to a French mother and Vietnamese father in Marseilles, France.  France Nuyen started out as a model when she was discovered by Life Magazine photographer Philippe Halsman in 1955.  Three years later, she would began her career as a film actress when she landed the role of Liat in South Pacific.  The success from her film debut made her a Hollywood star and earned her a nomination for a Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year.  That same year, France Nuyen would also play the lead role in the theatrical production of The World According to Suzie Wong.  She was originally cast for the film adaptation with the same name, but instead the role went to another Eurasian actress, Nancy Kwan.  It has been reported that the main reason for the sudden casting change had to do with France Nuyen's unexpected weight gain brought on by her break-up with actor Marlon Brando right before principal shooting for the film version of Suzie Wong was to begin.

France Nuyen has been married twice.  Her first marriage was to Dr. Thomas Gaspar Morell (1963-1966) that produced a daughter, Fleur.  Nuyen would later marry actor Robert Culp in 1967.  However, that marriage also ended in divorce in 1970.

France Nuyen as Liat in South Pacific (1958)

Throughout the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, France Nuyen starred in many movies and made numerous television appearances on television shows.  Her most notable television appearances included episodes of Hawaii Five-O and as Elaan of Troyus on a memorable episode of Star Trek.  In the 1980s, France Nuyen joined the cast of St. Elsewhere and remained on the series until its cancellation in 1988.  Among her most famous films include Satan Never Sleeps (1962), A Girl Named Tamiko (1962), Battle for the Planet of Apes (1973), China Cry (1990) and The Joy Luck Club (1993), in which she had co-starred alongside another fellow Vietnamese film actress, Kieu Chinh. 

A truly multi-faceted woman of many diverse talents, France Nuyen is also an accomplished scholar.  In 1986, she earned her master's degree in clinical psychology.  France Nuyen was honored with a Woman of the Year award in 1989 for her psychological work.  Now in her seventies, France Nuyen still maintains an active career as a Hollywood actress in films and television.

France Nuyen as Elaan of Troyus in Star Trek

Link(s):

20 International Celebrities You Didn't Know Are Vietnamese
50 Most Beautiful Vietnamese Women of All Time