Hoang Thi Tho

Hoang Thi Tho (1929-2001) was a famous Vietnamese songwriter, composer, show promoter and filmmaker.  With well over 100 published songs he had written and composed during a career that spanned 50 years, he was often credited using different aliases other than Hoang Thi Tho such as Tôn Nữ Trà Mi, Tôn Nữ Diễm Hồng, Bích Khê, Triệu Phong.

He was born on July 1, 1929 in Quang Tri, Central Vietnam.  In 1948, he graduated from Khai Dinh High School in Hue.  In the fall of 1950, Hoang Thi Tho enrolled at Dự Bị as a literature major.  Sometime toward the end of 1952, he was arrested by the French government on suspicion of being a Viet Minh during a trip visiting his family in Quang Tri.  After the Geneva Conference in 1954, he was released and moved to Saigon where he would teach French and English at a high school and also begin his career as a songwriter.  In 1957, Hoang Thi Tho began collaborating with Thống Nhất Cinema Theater in Saigon where he organized the live entertainment show nightly prior to the showing of the movie presentation.  Four years later, he formed Đoàn Văn Nghệ Việt Nam, a troupe of over 100 Vietnamese performance artists, and put together live shows for audiences all over South Vietnam.  Hoang Thi Tho even took his troupe of performers abroad to places like Laos, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, Singapore, Sénégal, France, Great Britain and the United States.  In 1967, he collaborated with the prestigious Maxim's Cabaret in Saigon and formed Đoàn Văn Nghệ Maxim with over 70 Vietnamese performance artists.  His wildly successful revue at Maxim's Cabaret featured performances of Vietnamese popular music, comedy sketches and traditional Vietnamese dancing.  As one of South Vietnam's most prolific songwriters, he scored a series of major hit songs which included Bài Thơ Cuối Cùng, Con Tim và Nước Mắt, Duyên Quê, Đám Cưới Trên Đường Quê, Đêm Cuối Cùng, Đường Xưa Lối Cũ, Gặp Nhau, Niềm Đau Của Cát, Ô Kìa Đời Bỗng Dưng Vui, Phút Đầu Tiên, Tà Áo Cưới, Thôi Chia Ly Từ Đây, Tìm Anh and Túp Lều Lý Tưởng.  His songs were recorded by many popular singers of South Vietnam such as Giao Linh, Phuong Dung, Julie Quang, Connie Kim, Khanh Ly, Hoang Oanh, Bich Loan and the CBC, Thai Thanh, Mai Le Huyen, Thanh Tuyen, Thanh Lan, Duy Khanh, Nhat Truong and Huong Lan.  Hoang Thi Tho is credited for launching the careers of singers Son Ca and Hoa Mi.  

Aside from his accomplishments as a songwriter/composer and show promoter, Hoang Thi Tho was also a successful producer of musical plays and films.  He produced a series of well-received musical plays in Saigon during the 1960s which included Từ Thức Lạc Lối Bích Đào, Dương Quý Phi, Cô Gái Điên which was later made into a musical movie and his most successful, Ả Đào Say.  In 1972, he wrote, directed and produced the musical film, Người Cô Đơn, starring Thanh Nga, Van Hung, Ngoc Duc, Tuy Hoa, Hoang Long and Kim Ngoc.  

During the Fall of Saigon, Hoang Thi Tho was traveling abroad on tour with dance choreographer Luu Hong in Japan.  Unable to return to his native Vietnam, he applied for and was granted political asylum in the United States.  Hoang Thi Tho would later find out that both his songs and songs written by legendary composer/songwirter Pham Duy had been banned by the Vietnamese government after 1975.  During the 1980s, he resumed his career as a show promoter and put together countless live shows for overseas Vietnamese audiences in the United States.  In 1994, he co-hosted Washington Night live show music video series with singer Trizzie Phuong Trinh. Hoang Thi Tho passed away on September 23, 2001 in Glendale, California.  He was 72.