Truong Ngoc Anh

Truong Ngoc Anh (1976-    ) is a beautiful Vietnamese actress, fashion model, film producer and entrepreneur.

Born on November 12, 1976 in Hanoi, Truong Ngoc Anh began her modeling and acting careers while still a teenager.  She attended college at Ho Chi Minh City Open University and spent a semester studying abroad in Singapore.  In 1992, she was cast in the role of Diễm in Em Còn Nhớ Hay Em Đã Quên, a feature film starring the late actor Le Cong Tuan Anh that was based on the songs written and composed by Trinh Cong Son.  Impressed with her acting skills, her costar Le Cong Tuan Anh would suggest to director/actor Phuoc Sang to cast her in the lead role in her next feature film, Em và Michael Jackson (1994) which costarred Huynh Anh Tuan, Phuong Thao and Ngoc Giau.  Her other feature films include the comedy, Khi đàn ông có bầu (2005) with an all-star cast including Nguyen Phi Hung, Tan Beo, Hong Nga, comedic actress Hong Van, Phuong Thanh and Thuy Nga, Áo Lụa Hà Đông (The White Silk Dress) (2006) costarring Quoc Khanh, Kim Thu and Tu Trinh, for which she was awarded a Mai Vang, the Vietnamese equivalent to an Oscar, for Best Actress, Saigon Eclipse (2007) directed by Othello Khanh costarring Dustin Nguyen, Johnny Tri Nguyen and Nhu Quynh, Ngọc Viễn Đông (Pearls of the Far East) (2011) costarring Ngo Thanh Van, Kieu Chinh and Diem My, Hương Ga (2014) costarring Chi Bao and Binh Minh, I Am Wanted (2015) costarring Kim Ly and Truy Sát (2016).  On the small screen, Truong Ngoc Anh has found major success starring in various television mini-series such as Giã Từ Dĩ Vãng (1997), Đồng Tiền Xương Máu (1999), Giao Thời (2000), Lục Vân Tiên (2003), as Emperor Bao Dai's mistress, Lý Lệ Hằng, in Ngọn Nến Hoàng Cung (2004) with Huynh Anh Tuan and legendary singer Hong Van, Công Ty Thời Trang (2005) and Phát Tài (2008) with Nguyen Chanh Tin and Thai Hoa. As for her modeling career achievements, Truong Ngoc Anh has been given recognition with such accolades as winning Most Photogenic at the International Model Search of Asia in 1995 and the Miss International Model pageant held in Cairo, Egypt in 1998.


In addition to her earnings as one of Vietnam's highest paid actresses and fashion models, Truong Ngoc Anh is also an extremely successful businesswoman. A conglomerate, she is the owner and CEO of Anh Viet, a lucrative advertising company based in Vietnam, Java, an Italian fine-dining bistro located in Ho Chi Minh City and a food packaging company which exports wheat flour products manufactured in Vietnam to the foreign markets. Truong Ngoc Anh is one of the wealthiest entertainers in Vietnam today.

 Divorced since April of 2014 from her nine-year marriage to fellow actor Tran Bao Son, she is a mother to a daughter, Tran Bao Tien, born in 2008. She currently lives in a mansion in Ho Chi Minh City which she had reportedly purchased for $1 million USD.

Link(s):

Vietnamese Celebrity Homes Part 2
30 Sexiest Vietnamese Celebs of 2016
Another 50 Most Beautiful Vietnamese Women of All Time

Next Featured 10 Celebrities of Vietnam Today

Here are the next ten celebrities of Vietnam today to be featured.

Truong Ngoc Anh:  Actress and Model

Nam Cuong:  Singer and Actor

Ninh Duong Lan Ngoc:  Actress

Yen Trang:  Singer and Actress

Tam Tit:  Singer, Model and Actress

Cao Thai Son:  Singer

Minh Hang:  Singer and Actress

Kathy Uyen:  Actress

Hieu Hien:  Comedic Actor 

Nhu Quynh:  Veteran Cinema of Hanoi Actress

Angela Melini

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Châu Belle Dinh

Châu Belle Dinh (1977-    ) is a French film actor, stunt performer and martial artist of Vietnamese descent.  He is on of nine original founding members of Yamakasi, a group dedicated to practicing the art of Parkour, the training discipline created by David Belle in France using movement which developed from military obstacle course training.  The Yamakasi had gained much notoriety from the films, Yamakasi - Les Samourais des Temps Modernes (2001) and Les Fils du Vent (2004).

Born on September 8, 1977 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Châu Belle Dinh and his two brothers, Williams and Phung, were raised primarily in France.  In 2001, he starred alongside six of his fellow co-founding members of Yamakasi, Williams Belle, his brother, Yann H'Nautra, Laurent Premontesi, Charles Perriére, Guylain N'Guba Buyeke, Malik Diouf in the film, Yamakasi - Les Samourais des Temps Modernes, in which the screenplay had been written by Luc Besson, former husband of Vietnamese-French actress Maiwenn, based on their group's philosophy and directed by Airel Zeitoun.  The film was a major box office success all over Europe, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan.  The following year, he worked as stunt performer along with fellow Yamakasi members and was stunts coordinator for another film written by Luc Besson, Taxi 2.  In 2004, Châu Belle Dinh starred in Les Fils du Vent (The Great Challenge), which would be the second film featuring the Yamakasi and directed by Julien Seri.

His other acting credits on the silver screen without the participation of the Yamakasi include starring roles in L'Éveil du moine (A Monk's Awakenings) (2005), a short film which featured Tran Ngoc Kim and Der Ruf der Geckos (2007), a film written and directed by up and coming German-Vietnamese filmmaker Van Phuong La.  

Châu Belle Dinh along with three other Yamakasi original members founded the ADD Academy in Paris, France in 2005 which offers classes teaching both adults and youths the art of movement.  He is also the co-founder of Majestic Force, an independent film production company.

Link(s):

ADD Academy à Paris (Official Website)

Mylène Dinh-Robic

Mylène Dinh-Robic (1979-    ) is a famous Canadian actress of television and film.  

Born on April 17, 1989 to a Québécois father and a Vietnamese mother in Montréal, Mylène Dinh-Robic grew up speaking both French and English fluently.  After high school, she attended Concordia University in Montréal and earned a bachelor's degree in communications.  In 2005, she first rose to prominence with a recurring role as Rita Mah on the popular Canadian television series, Da Vinci's City Hall.  Mylène Dinh-Robic also starred as Dr. Olivia Fawcett in the first three seasons of another popular Canadian television series, The Listener, from 2009 until 2012.  Most recently, she had a recurring role as Beatrice Hamelin in the Bravo's Montreal police drama series, 19-2.  Mylène Dinh-Robic has also costarred in numerous Canadian television movies such as A Trick of the MInd (2006), Four Extraordinary Women (2006), Judicial Indiscretion (2007), The Unquiet (2008), Exploding Sun (2013), Still Life:  A Three Pines Mystery (2013) and House of Versace (2013).  On the silver screen, she has had supporting roles in Canadian films such as Mount Pleasant (2006) and the French-language film, Lac Mystère (2013).  


Link(s):

30 Sexiest Vietnamese Celebs of 2016

External Link(s):

• Mylène Dinh-Robic Official Website
• Mylène Dinh-Robic Facebook Page
• Mylène Dinh-Robic on Twitter 
• Mylène Dinh-Robic YouTube Channel

Chris Minh Doky

Chris Minh Doky (1969-    ) is a famous Danish jazz bassist.  He is of Vietnamese and Danish descent.  His older brother is accomplished pianist, Niels Lan Doky.







In 1989, Chris Minh Doky released his debut album, Appreciation.  Among his other studio albums include The Sequel (1990), Letters (1991), Minh (1998), Doky Brothers (1995), Doky Brothers 2 (1996), Listen Up! (2000), Chris Minh Doky (2002), Cinematique (2003), Nomad Diaries (2006) and Scenes from a Dream! (2010).  As one of the most successful bassists of his generation, he has worked with some of the top jazz musicians and vocalists in the world such as Mike Stern, Michael Brecker, Al Jarreau, Gino Vannelli, Lalah Hathaway, Ryuichi Sakamoto and David Sanborn.

Chris Minh Doky and his wife, Tania, who is a lady-in-waiting to Denmark's Crown Princess Mary, currently live in New York.

Link(s):

Chris Minh Doky Official Website

Hoang-Kim Cung

Hoang-Kim Cung (1991-    ) is a Vietnamese-American television reporter, fashion blogger and former titleholder of Miss Nebraska USA 2015.

The only member in her family to have been born in the United States, Hoang-Kim Cung is the youngest out of three children.  She majored in broadcast journalism at the University of Texas in Dallas.  While in college, she began her career as a field reporter and news anchor for Texas Newswatch and also hosted Good Morning TX.  In 2013, Hoang-Kim Cung was crowned National American Miss.  Two years later, she won the Miss Nebraska USA beauty pageant.  At the time of her winning the state beauty pageant, Hoang-Kim Cung was working as a field reporter and fill-in anchor for NBC Nebraska, an NBC affiliate in the Lincoln, Hastings and Kearney market area.  She is the third Vietnamese-American to have won a state beauty pageant after Elyzabeth Pham, Miss Wisonsin 1999, and Michelle Banzer, Miss Kentucky 2007.

Hoang-Kim Cung currently works as a television reporter for a local station in Norfolk, Virginia.  She is also a fashion blogger and author of ColorandChic.com.  She speaks fluent English and Vietnamese.

Link(s):

30 Most Beautiful Viet Celebs of 2015

External Link(s):

ColorandChic.com
Hoang-Kim Cung on YouTube
Hoang-Kim Cung on Twitter

Khanh Mai (Tai Phong)

Khanh Mai (1946-    ) is a French musician of Vietnamese origin and co-founder of the French progressive rock group, Tai Phong.

Both Khanh Mai and his younger brother, Tai Sinh, were born in Vietnam.  Their father was a politician who had appointed by the president of South Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem, to serve as minister of the interior.  Khanh Mai and Tai Sinh were brought up and educated primarily in France.  Both brothers had learned to play the piano at an early age.  In their teen years, Khanh Mai took up playing guitar while Tai Sinh took up playing bass.  In the 1960s, they formed their first group, The Monsoons, which began to receive a following of fans as they played primarily for gigs held at the beach.  For four consecutive years, The Monsoons entered and won the Ile de France rock music festival of bands championship.  However, due to pressure from their family, the two brothers abandoned their musical dreams temporarily and returned to their studies in Great Britain.  Soon after, Khanh Mai and Tai Sinh returned to playing music for live crowds at the local pubs and subways of London.

In 1972, Khanh Mai and Tai Sinh along with three other musicians formed the group, Tai Phong.  The lineup of bandmembers for Tai Phong consisted of the two brothers, lead vocalist Jean-Jacques Goldman, keyboardist Jean-Alain Gardet and drummer Stéphan Caussarieu.  In 1975 after signing with Warner Music Group, Tai Phong released their self-titled debut album.  The album's first single Sister Jane, was written and composed by Khanh Mai.  The single was an instant success making the top 20 Hit Parade France charts and selling 200,000 units.  On this album, one other song, Out of the Night, was also written by Khanh Mai.  Their debut album earned critical praise and sold a total of 50,000 units.  Tai Phong recorded two more studio albums, Windows (1976) and Last Flight (1979).  Out of these albums came other singles such as Games and Last Flight, also written and composed by Khanh Mai.

Tai Phong Bandmembers in 1975

Personnel changes through the years eventually led to the breakup of Tai Phong.  In 1978, both Tai Sinh and Jean-Alain Gardet left the group.  The following year, Tai Phong would also see the departure of lead singer Jean-Jacques Goldman who was then briefly replaced by Welsh singer Michael Jones.  After the release of their third and final album for the Warner Music Group label in 1979, Tai Phong disbanded.  In 1986, Tai Phong released the single, I'm Your Son, written by Stéphan Caussarieu.  The song, Broken Dreams, written and composed by Khanh Mai was featured on the flip side of the single record.

Tai Phong Bandmembers Now:  (Standing from left to right)
 Keyboardist Bastien Mcone, Romuald Cabardos,
 Lead Vocalist Aina Quach, Bassist Claude Thill
 (Sitting from left to right)  Guitarist and Founder Khanh Mai
and Guitarist Davy.

In the year 2000, Stéphan Caussarieu and Khanh Mai regrouped with a new lead vocalist, Hervé Acosta.  Tai Phong released their fourth studio album, Sun.  Once again, Stéphan Caussarieu would exit the group shortly along with their new lead vocalist.  In 2013, Tai Phong released their last studio album to date, Return of the Samourai.  All songs on this album were written and composed by Khanh Mai.  With a new lineup of bandmembers including Aina Quach, a talented, multi-lingual lead female vocalist of Vietnamese, Belgian and Malagasy descent, Khanh Mai was able to enjoy a continuation of success as founder and original member of Tai Phong.  After a triumphant tour of Japan, a live album was released entitled simply as Live in Japan in 2016.

Link(s):

Tai Phong Official Website

Céline Galipeau

Céline Galipeau (1957-    ) is one of the most respected news anchors in the history of Canadian French language television broadcasting.  Since the end of 2008, she has been the weekday news anchor for Le Téléjournal, the flagship newscast of the Radio-Canada television network.

Her father was Canadian diplomat and acclaimed journalist Georges Galipeau who had worked as a foreign correspondent in Saigon during the First Indochina War.  Céline Galipeau is of Québecois and Vietnamese descent.  Her mother, Lang Ngoc Thi Pham, was a Vietnamese refugee from the First Indochina War who worked as a nurse.  Born in 1957 in Longueuil, Québec, Céline Galipeau is the eldest of three daughters.  Due to her father's profession, she was raised in several different countries other than Canada including Togo, Senegal, Lebanon, Syria, Palestine and Jordan.

In 1976, Céline Galipeau enrolled at Birzeit University in Palestine as a political science major.  The following year, she attended Al-Ahliyya Amman University in Amman, Jordan and studied English literature.  She returned to Québec in 1978 and obtained her bachelor's degree in sociology and political science from McGill University in Montréal two years later.  In 1983, she completed her graduate studies at McGill University earning her master's degree in sociology and political science.

During her first year at the beginning of her career as a journalist, Céline Galipeau primarily worked for private radio and television networks.  In 1985, she relocated to Toronto where she would find work as a field reporter for CBC and Radio-Canada.  Two years later, she relocated again to Montreal where she would take on the position as anchorwoman of the television newscast program, Montreal Ce Soir.  She would return to Toronto in 1989 as a national reporter.  From 1992 until 2003, Céline Galipeau successfully followed in her father's footsteps and became a foreign correspondent stationed in several major global cities such as London, Moscow, Paris and Beijing.  Her insightful coverage of Boris Yeltsin and the war in Chechnya while stationed in Moscow would earn her tremendous critical praise, as well as a Gemini Award, the Canadian equivalence to an Emmy.

The passing of her father in 2002 prompted her decision to return to Canada the following year.  In 2003, Céline Galipeau became the weekend news anchor for Montreal's Le Téléjournal.  In 2008, she replaced Bernard Jerome as the weekday news anchor for Le Téléjournal making her the first female to hold the position as primary news anchor of Radio-Canada's flagship newscast.

Known for her stand on women's rights and humanitarian issues, Céline Galipeau has been honored with numerous accolades throughout her career.  Among such awards include the Amnesty International Award (1995), the Claire L'Heureux-Dubé Award (2004) and the Raymond-Charette Award (2006).  She was named to the National Order of Québec on June of 2009 and then to the Order of Canada on June of 2013.

Niels Lan Doky

Niels Lan Doky (1963-    ) is an internationally renowned jazz pianist of Danish and Vietnamese descent.

Born on October 3, 1963 in Copenhagen, Denmark to a Vietnamese father and a Danish mother, he was heavily influenced by music through his parents.  His father worked primarily as a physician, but was also a classically trained guitarist, while his mother was a singer.  Through his father, he first learned how to play the guitar as a child.  Niels Lan Doky started playing the piano at the age of 11.  At the age of 15, he started working with acclaimed American jazz musician Thad Jones touring extensively across Europe.  After graduating from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts in the early 1980s, Niels Lan Doky landed his first recording contract with Storyville Records in 1986 with the help of late Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen.  That same year, he released his critically acclaimed debut album, Here or There.  Niels Lan Doky has since recorded for many other major jazz labels such as Verve, Milestone, Blue Stone, Columbia and Keystone/Video Arts Music releasing a total of 37 albums.  He has worked with some of the biggest names in jazz music including Gino Vannelli, John Scofield, Pat Metheny, Joe Henderson, Mike Brecker, Dave Sanborn, Ray Brown, Woody Shaw, Charlie Haden and John McLaughlin.  He and his younger brother, bass guitarist Chris Minh Doky, have formed their own jazz group, The Doky Brothers, which have performed at many recitals for audiences all over Europe, North America, Europe, Australia and Asia.  In 1999, he released the studio album, Asian Session, which featured the guest vocals of Vietnamese pop singer Thanh Lam.  On December of 2000, Niels Lan Doky performed with Gino Vannelli on an internationally televised live concert show for Pope John Paul II.

In addition to his successful career as a jazz musician, Niels Lan Doky has also ventured into the film industry as a director.  In 2004, he made his directorial film debut with the feature length documentary, Between a Smile and a Tear, which highlighted the lives of several accomplished jazz musicians and how they had been influenced by the Montmartre era.  At present Niels Lan Doky is wrapping up production for his next feature length documentary, Dreaming with Open Eyes, which will feature other world renowned musicians/vocalists such as David Sanborn, Randy Brecker, Terri Lyne Carrington, Gino Vannelli and Lisa Nilsson.

Hailed as Denmark's most successful jazz musician, Niels Lan Doky has been honored with numerous awards throughout his career which include the Oscar Peterson Jazz Masters Award (1983), the Boston Jazz Society Achievement Award (1983), the Count Basie Award (1984) and the Ben Webster Award (2008).  Three of his albums, Casa Dolce Casa (2002), Spain (2003) and Scandinavian Reminiscence (2005), have won the Gold Disc - Seal of Approval award from Swing Journal, Japan.  In 2001, Niels Lan Doky was honored with an award of recognition from his Royal Highness, Prince Henrik of Denmark, for his outstanding achievements as a jazz musician.  On April 16, 2010, Niels Lan Doky was knighted by Her Majesty, Queen Margrethe II, on the occasion of her 70th birthday.

When not on tour, Niels Lan Doky currently divides his time between residences in Paris, France and his native Copenhagen, Denmark.

Link(s):

Niels Lan Doky Official Website

Julie de Bona

Julie de Bona (1980-    ) is a beautiful French actress of cinema, television and theater.

Born to an Italian computer engineer father and a Vietnamese seamstress mother on December 7, 1980 in Paris, France, Julie de Bona was raised in a working class household.  During her senior year in high school, she would earn impressively high marks on her baccalaureate exam and was accepted into the Université de Montpellier, School of Medicine where she would spend her entire freshman year as a biochemistry major.  After attending several dramatic live productions at playhouse theaters during her summer sabbatical before entering her sophomore year in college, Julie de Bona shifted majors to theatrical arts at the Montpellier Conservatory.

In 2001, Julie de Bona first rose to prominence with a recurring role as Eloise in the French television series, La Vie Devant Nous.  She has also had recurring roles in other French television series such as the role of Christine in Une Famille Formidable and as Wanda in La Smala S'en Mêle.  In 2012, Julie de Bona was cast as the lead actress in the short-lived French television series, Talons Aiguilles et Bottes de Paille.  She has also starred in several well-received French television mini-series such as La Légende des Trois Clefs (2008) and Le Secret d'Élise (2015) which costarred fellow French-Vietnamese actors Marc Hoang and Valentin Ngo.  Among her television movies include Au Bas de l'échelle (2010), L'Amour en Jeu (2011), La Vallée des Mensonges (2014), Un Parfum de Sang (2015) and Qui Sème L'amour (2016).  

On the big screen, Julie de Bona has had supporting roles in a handful of French films including Je Déteste les Enfants des Autres (2007), Cyprien (2008), Camping 2 (2010), Beur sur la Ville (2011) which costarred fellow French-Vietnamese actor Steve Tran, Né Quelque Part (2013) and Maintenant ou Jamais (2014).  

Her younger sister is illustrator Olivia de Bona.  

Link(s):

30 Sexiest Vietnamese Celebs of 2016


External Link(s):

Julie de Bona Website
Julie de Bona on Twitter

Tommy Pham

Tommy Pham (1988-    ) is an American professional baseball player of Vietnamese and African-American descent.

Born on March 8, 1988 in Las Vegas, Nevada, Tommy Pham and his sister were brought up by his mother in a single parent household.  While attending Durango High School in Spring Valley, Nevada he excelled in sports and played in varsity baseball as an infielder and pitcher with a throwing rate of 93 miles per hour and a batting average of 0.633.  During his senior year, he was given recognition by the Reno Gazette-Journal as the Class 4A All-State Player of the Year.  The following year, Tommy Pham relocated to Southern California where he would attend Cal State Fullerton and embark on his brief career in college baseball.  Later that same year, he was picked by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2006 Major League Baseball Draft and was offered a contract signing bonus which totaled $325,000 USD.  On September 9, 2014, Tommy Pham made his Major League Baseball debut with the St. Louis Cardinals as pitcher and outfielder.

Since turning professional, Tommy Pham has had to face a series of challenges resulting from physical injuries which have included a broken wrist, a torn ligament, a couple of torn labrums and a serious quadriceps injury that had placed him on the disabled list of players for a total of two months during his second season playing for the St. Louis Cardinals in major league baseball.  In addition to such physical injuries, he also suffers from karatoconus, a rare, degenerative eye disorder which requires him to rely on the usage of contact lenses in order to correct his vision while playing professional baseball.

From 2006 until 2014, Tommy Pham played professional baseball in the minor leagues for such teams affiliated with the St. Louis Cardinals like the Johnson City Cardinals, the Batavia Muckdogs, the Quad Cities River Bandits out of Davenport, Iowa, the Memphis Cardinals, the Palm Beach Cardinals and the Memphis Redbirds.  In 2015, Tommy Pham was named best defensive outfielder by the Baseball America Pacific Coast League.  He currently earns an impressive annual salary of $500,000 USD.

Tommy Pham is the third American athlete of Vietnamese descent to play in major league baseball following Danny Graves and Jim Parque.