Kieu Chinh facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kieu Chinh
Chinh in 2014
Born	Nguyễn Thị Kiều Chinh (1937-09-03) September 3, 1937 (age 87) Hanoi, Tonkin, French Indochina
Nationality	American
Occupation	Actress producer
Years active	1957–present
Spouse(s)	Nguyễn Năng Tế ​ ​ (m. 1955; div. 1980)​
Children	3

Kieu Chinh (Vietnamese: Kiều Chinh; born September 3, 1937) is a famous Vietnamese-American actress and producer. She is also known for her work helping others, as a speaker, and for her charity efforts.

Early Life and Challenges

Kieu Chinh was born on September 3, 1937, in Hanoi, which was then part of French Indochina. Her full name is Nguyen Thị Kieu Chinh.

When she was six years old, during World War II, a sad event happened. Her mother and baby brother died when their hospital was bombed. This bombing was aimed at Japanese troops in Hanoi. Even with this tragedy, her family was quite well-off because her father was a government official.

After World War II, Vietnam was divided into two parts: North (Communist) and South (National). Kieu Chinh's older brother joined the Resistance Forces in the North. Her father told her to fly to the South, hoping to find her brother later and meet her in Saigon. Sadly, Kieu Chinh never saw her father again. Years later, in 1995, she learned he had been held in a "re-education camp" (a prison for political enemies) for over six years. After his release, he died without a home or money.

Kieu Chinh was then adopted by a friend of her father's. This friend arranged for her to marry his son, Nguyễn Năng Tế, in 1956. This marriage had a big impact on her future career.

A Career in Film

Starting in South Vietnam (1955–1975)

Kieu Chinh's acting career began in an interesting way. In 1956, a famous director, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, wanted her for a movie called The Quiet American. However, her family did not want her to act. She had to turn down the role. News spread quickly in Saigon about the "Vietnamese unknown girl" who said no to a Hollywood director!

Because of this news, a politician named Bùi Diễm invited Kieu Chinh to star in his new film studio's first movie. Her family agreed to this role because she would play a Buddhist nun. So, Kieu Chinh started her acting journey in South Vietnam with The Bells of Thiên Mụ Temple (Hồi Chuông Thiên Mụ) in 1957.

Over her more than sixty-year career, Kieu Chinh has won many awards, including an Emmy Award in 1996. She acted in many films, like Operation C.I.A. (1965) and The Joy Luck Club (1993). She also helped start the Vietnam Children's Fund.

In the 1960s, she appeared in American movies like A Yank in Viet-Nam (1964) and Operation C.I.A. (1965), where she acted with Burt Reynolds. Kieu Chinh also produced a war movie called Faceless Lover (or Warrior, Who Are You) in 1971. This film was later shown in the U.S. at the 2003 Vietnamese International Film Festival.

Around 1970, filmmaker Hoàng Vĩnh Lộc suggested to Kieu Chinh that they make a different kind of war film. Other studios in Saigon were afraid to make it because of censorship and because people didn't like war movies. But Kieu Chinh said, "We should try doing it!" They decided to create their own small studio, Giao Chỉ Films Studio, to make the movie.

Getting permission for Faceless Lover was hard because it was a private film. Kieu Chinh had to ask many government ministries for approval. Finally, filming began in the summer of 1971. The movie was first shown at the Rex Movie Theatre, the biggest theater in South Vietnam. It was also shown at the Asian Film Festival in Taipei.

The release of Faceless Lover was delayed for over a year. The government thought it was an "anti-war" film and might stop young people from joining the army. At a special screening for government officials, Kieu Chinh bravely spoke up. When one minister called it a "dirty war," she asked, "Minister, please tell me now: What war is not a 'dirty war'?" After a vote, the film was finally allowed to be shown.

Faceless Lover was the first Vietnamese film to be shown at the Rex Movie Theatre, which usually showed big American movies. Kieu Chinh convinced the theater owner to show it. To make sure people came, Giao Chỉ Films offered free tickets to military members and their families. The movie was a huge success, with full theaters! It made a lot of money and allowed the director to make two more films.

Sadly, the original film copy was lost after the Fall of Saigon in 1975. But luckily, Kieu Chinh had a copy and re-released it in California years later. The film won awards at the Asian International Film Festival in 1971, including Best War Film and Best Leading Actress for Kieu Chinh.

In April 1975, Kieu Chinh was filming in Singapore when she realized North Vietnam was about to take over Saigon. She tried to return home but had to leave South Vietnam again. Her diplomatic passport was no longer valid, and she was refused entry to many countries. Eventually, she was allowed into Canada. She had to work on a chicken farm to make a living. She reached out to actor friends like Glenn Ford and Burt Reynolds, but they couldn't help. Finally, Tippi Hedren helped her get a ticket and a visa to the U.S. William Holden also supported her. Kieu Chinh started acting again in the U.S. Her first role was in a 1977 episode of M*A*S*H, which was based on her life story.

Later Career (1976 to Present)

Kieu Chinh lived in Canada with her children for some years. After her divorce, she moved to California. There, she started Giao Chỉ Film Production to share Vietnamese culture and art. She worked with many artists and re-released her films Faceless Lover and Love Storm.

She continued to act in many movies and TV shows, including The Children of An Lac (1980), Hamburger Hill (1987), and Riot (1997). From 1989 to 1991, she had a regular role on the TV show China Beach.

One of her most famous roles was Suyuan in the 1993 film The Joy Luck Club. In 2005, she starred in Journey from the Fall, a movie about a Vietnamese family's journey after the fall of Saigon. This film showed their experiences in re-education camps, as "boat people" (refugees fleeing by sea), and their struggles to settle in the U.S.

In 2016, Kieu Chinh returned to Vietnam to open the 50th school built by the Vietnam Children's Fund in Hanoi. In 2021, she released her life story in a book called Kieu Chinh An Artist in Exile.

Helping Others

Kieu Chinh has done a lot of charity work. In the 1980s, when many Vietnamese people were fleeing their country by boat, she helped raise awareness. She asked the U.S. government to help the "Vietnamese boat people" who were stranded at sea or in refugee camps.

In 1993, Kieu Chinh and journalist Terry A. Anderson started the Vietnam Children's Fund. This group builds elementary schools in Vietnam. These schools are a way to remember the families and children who suffered during the long wars. The first school was in Quảng Trị and was named after an American veteran, Lewis Burwell Puller Jr.. By 2016, the organization had built its 50th school.

Personal Life and Beliefs

Kieu Chinh grew up attending a Christian school, even though her family was Buddhist. When she married, she became a Buddhist. Both religions have been important in her life. In 2014 and 2016, she met the 14th Dalai Lama, a very important Buddhist leader.

Kieu Chinh and her husband, Nang Te Nguyen, had three children. They divorced in 1980.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and Recognition

Kieu Chinh has received many honors for her acting and her humanitarian work. The United States Congress named her "Refugee of the Year" in 1990. She also received the "Warrior Woman Award" from the Asian Pacific Women’s Network. She was the only Vietnamese person asked to speak at the 10th anniversary of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, DC.

At the 2003 Vietnamese International Film Festival, Kieu Chinh received a Lifetime Achievement Award. In the same year, she won a Special Acting Award at the Women's International Film Festival in Turin, Italy. Three years later, the San Diego Asian Film Festival also gave her a Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2015, the Festival of Globe (FOGsv) in San Francisco honored her for her contributions to film.

A documentary about her life, Kieu Chinh: A Journey Home, won an Emmy Awards in 1996. In 2009, State Senator Lou Correa honored her as "Woman of the Year" for her film work and community service. In 2021, she received a Humanitarian Award at the Asian World Film Festival.

See also

• La Thoại Tân
• Phạm Duy
• Thẩm Thúy Hằng