Lucille Soong facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lucille Soong
Soong in 2016
Born	(1935-09-05) September 5, 1935 (age 89) Tianjin, China
Other names	Song Jingxiu (birth name) Soong Ling (stage name)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1959–present

Lucille Soong (born September 5, 1935) is a talented Chinese-American actress. She is most famous for playing Jenny Huang in the TV show Fresh Off the Boat (2015–2020). Lucille has been acting in movies and TV shows since 1959. She also wrote a book about her life called Wild Orchid: From Beijing to La-La Land.

Early Life in China

Lucille Soong was born into a rich family in Tianjin, China. When she was young, her family faced tough times because of big political changes in China. At 21, she moved to Hong Kong. This happened during a short time when it was easier to cross the border.

Becoming an Actress

In Hong Kong, Lucille was discovered by Shaw Brothers Studio while she was shopping. They saw her talent and classic Chinese beauty. They offered her an acting contract. But Lucille convinced them to let her go from the contract. She had met producers for a British movie called Ferry to Hong Kong (1959). Even though her part was not listed in the credits, it helped her get more international roles. One of these was an American-Japanese movie filmed in 1959. It was released later as Three Weeks of Love.

In 1962, Lucille moved to England. Before that, she lived in Jamaica for a few months. In London, she took modeling classes. She also started meeting film producers and directors. After only two months, an agent saw her and asked her to be in the movie 55 Days at Peking. This movie was filmed in Madrid, Spain.

Lucille Soong in Look magazine, January 29, 1963. She was modeling clothes on the set of 55 Days at Peking.

In 55 Days at Peking, Lucille played a lady-in-waiting. Her role did not have any speaking lines. To promote the movie, she appeared in Look magazine. She modeled clothes from Hong Kong on the movie set. She also won a beauty contest for Chinese women in Spain. It was called "Señorita Oriente."

Back in London in 1963, she became the first Chinese model in the English Models Directory. She continued to work as both a model and an actress. She got small roles in British movies like Darling. She also appeared in international films such as Marco the Magnificent and Genghis Khan. Her modeling jobs took her to places like Greece and the Canary Islands. Later, she had bigger roles in movies like The Mini-Affair and One More Time.

Lucille was also in many British TV shows. These included single episodes of The Avengers and The Prisoner. In 1969, she had a repeating role in the TV show Coronation Street. She played Jasmine Chong, a rich young woman from Singapore. She appeared in five episodes. From 1962 to 1973, she acted in 27 movies and TV shows while living in London. Sometimes she used the stage name "Soong Ling." But over time, she was more often known as "Lucille Soong."

Moving to Hollywood

In 1973, Lucille moved to the United States. She worked hard to get into acting in Hollywood. It took her 19 years to join the Screen Actors Guild. This is a group for actors. During this time, she used money from her properties in London. She also opened a clothing store and worked as a real estate agent. She even became a sculptor, making art that was shown and sold. In her last six years before her big break, she found an agent and studied acting.

Her American acting career started with a small part in a commercial in 1991. Then, she got the role of Popo in the 1993 movie The Joy Luck Club. She felt she needed more training to play an older woman. So, she worked with three acting coaches. This led to her playing more older female characters.

For a few years, it was hard for her to get roles. Casting directors expected older Asian immigrant women to look a certain way. Lucille changed her hair, makeup, and clothes to fit these expectations. Soon, she got a funny role in the movie Nora's Hair Salon.

This was a big step for her. She found her place in comedy. She appeared in popular TV shows like Dharma & Greg and The King of Queens. She was also in the 2003 movie Freaky Friday. She also acted in the action movie Mission Impossible III (2006). She had a repeating role in the TV drama Huff. People started recognizing her in public and asking for autographs. This grew even more when she played Yao Lin in Desperate Housewives.

Lucille continued to work steadily. She played Ming again in Nora's Hair Salon 2: A Cut Above (2008). She also appeared in Nine Dead (2009) and other shows. Her most famous role came when she was cast as Grandma Huang in Fresh Off The Boat. This show ran from 2015 to 2020. It allowed her to play a funny, sarcastic grandmother.

In 2024, she was in the Hallmark TV show Holidazed. It was also announced that she would be in Freakier Friday in 2025. She will play her role from the first Freaky Friday movie. Her autobiography, Wild Orchid: From Beijing to La-La Land, was published on May 1, 2024.

Filmography

Films

Television

See also

In Spanish: Lucille Soong para niños