Khánh Ngọc (1936-2021) was a legendary Vietnamese film actress and singer.
At the age of 12, Khanh Ngoc became a protegée of Duong Thieu Tuoc and Minh Trang, the husband and wife team of musical mentors and hosts of a popular music program on Radio France-Vietnam National Broadcasting Network ( Đài Phát Thanh Pháp Á) in Saigon. Like many young Vietnamese singers of the day, she began performing weekly at various cinema theaters in Saigon like Nam Viet, Nam Quang, Van Cam and Dai Nam as part of the live entertainment for the audience right before the movie presentation. According to Khanh Ngoc's recollections, the very first song she had ever performed on stage in front of a live audience was Tieng Hat Lenh Denh written by Tu Phap. In 1949, while at the age of 13, Khanh Ngoc was hired on as a professional singer for Radio France-Vietnam National Broadcasting Network. She then became acquainted with a music singing group called Thang Long which originated in Hanoi and was comprised of 4 siblings, Hoai Trung, Thai Hang, Hoai Bac, also known as Pham Dinh Chuong, and Thai Thanh. Khanh Ngoc would occasionally perform as a guest singer for Thang Long. As her popularity grew, she was invited to perform in various cities all over Vietnam. In 1953, Khanh Ngoc married Pham Dinh Chuong.
During a casting call in 1955 for a film called, Anh Sang Mien Nam, a joint Vietnamese-Filipino production, Khanh Ngoc was selected by Filipino film actor/director Gerardo de Leon for the lead role. The following year, she would win the Philippines Film Festival Award for best actress. Khanh Ngoc followed up the success of Anh Sang Mien Nam with another film, Dat Lanh, starring actor Le Quynh in 1956. Her final Vietnamese film was Rang Buoc, released in 1959 by Alpha Film Studios.
Riding high as one of South Vietnam's most popular and beautiful film actresses with three blockbuster feature films under her belt along with an equally successful singing career, Khanh Ngoc's world came to a shattering halt plagued with scandal and negative press from the collapse of her marriage to Pham Dinh Chuong after an alleged extra-marital affair she had had with composer Pham Duy. Following her divorce, in 1961 she decided to leave it all behind to start a new life in the United States. She enrolled at Pasadena Theater College and found herself an agent shortly thereafter. In 1963, Khanh Ngoc was cast in the Hollywood feature film, Operation Bikini, which starred Tab Hunter, Frankie Avalon and Scott Brady. Unfortunately, her acting career in Hollywood films did not sustain the longevity as it did back in her native Vietnam. During the 1970s and 1980s, Khanh Ngoc resumed her singing career and traveled across the United States performing for overseas Vietnamese audiences in various cities.
By the late 1980s, Khanh Ngoc had settled into retirement life. She resided in Los Angeles, California with her second husband whom she had married ever since resettling in the United States back in the 1960s.and had become a mother to three grown sons. Khanh Ngoc passed away on May 14, 2021 at the age of 85.
During a casting call in 1955 for a film called, Anh Sang Mien Nam, a joint Vietnamese-Filipino production, Khanh Ngoc was selected by Filipino film actor/director Gerardo de Leon for the lead role. The following year, she would win the Philippines Film Festival Award for best actress. Khanh Ngoc followed up the success of Anh Sang Mien Nam with another film, Dat Lanh, starring actor Le Quynh in 1956. Her final Vietnamese film was Rang Buoc, released in 1959 by Alpha Film Studios.
By the late 1980s, Khanh Ngoc had settled into retirement life. She resided in Los Angeles, California with her second husband whom she had married ever since resettling in the United States back in the 1960s.and had become a mother to three grown sons. Khanh Ngoc passed away on May 14, 2021 at the age of 85.
It is believed that the popular ballad, Nua Hon Thuong Dau, written by her former late husband, Pham Dinh Chuong, and covered by many Vietnamese singers such as Thai Thanh, Julie Quang and Khanh Ha, was loosely based on their failed marriage.
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