France Nuyen (born France Nguyễn Vân Nga on 31 July 1939) is a French actress, model, and psychological counsellor.

Early life

Nguyen was born in

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fran ...

. Her mother was French, and her father was widely reported to be Vietnamese, although she has stated that he was "probably of Chinese origin". During World War II, her mother and grandfather were persecuted by the Nazis for being

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council * Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

. Nguyen was raised in Marseille by a cousin she calls "an

Orchidaceae Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

raiser who was the only person who gave a damn about me." Having left school at the age of 11, she began studying art and became an artist's model. In 1955, while working as a seamstress, Nguyen was discovered on the beach by ''

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...

'' photographer

Philippe Halsman Philippe Halsman ( lv, Filips Halsmans, german: Philipp Halsmann; 2 May 1906 – 25 June 1979) was an American portrait photographer. He was born in Riga in the part of the Russian Empire which later became Latvia, and died in New York City. Li ...

. She was featured on the cover of 6 October 1958 issue of ''Life''.

Career

France Nuyen became a motion picture actress in 1958. In her first role, she appeared as Liat, daughter of Bloody Mary (played by Juanita Hall) in the

Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popu ...

musical ''

South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

''. Nuyen was then cast to star in the film adaptation of ''The World of Suzie Wong'', but was fired during production by producer Ray Stark and her scenes re-shot with her replacement, Nancy Kwan. In 1978 Nuyen guest-starred with

Peter Falk Peter Michael Falk (September 16, 1927 – June 23, 2011) was an American film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Lieutenant Columbo in the long-running television series '' Columbo'' (1968–1978, 1989–2003), for which h ...

and

Louis Jourdan Louis Jourdan (born Louis Robert Gendre; 19 June 1921 – 14 February 2015) was a French film and television actor. He was known for his suave roles in several Hollywood films, including Alfred Hitchcock's ''The Paradine Case'' (1947), ''Letter ...

in the ''

Columbo ''Columbo'' () is an American crime drama television series starring Peter Falk as Lieutenant Columbo, a homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. After two pilot episodes in 1968 and 1971, the show originally aired on NBC f ...

'' episode " Murder Under Glass". In 1986 she joined the cast of ''

St. Elsewhere ''St. Elsewhere'' was an American medical drama television series created by Joshua Brand and John Falsey, that originally ran on NBC from October 26, 1982, to May 25, 1988. The series stars Ed Flanders, Norman Lloyd, and William Daniels as ...

'' as Dr. Paulette Kiem, remaining until the series ended in 1988. Nuyen appeared in several films including '' The Last Time I Saw Archie'' (1961) ''

Satan Never Sleeps ''Satan Never Sleeps '' (also known as ''The Devil Never Sleeps'') is a 1962 American drama romance war film directed by Leo McCarey, his final film, in which he returns to the religious themes of his classics ''Going My Way'' (1944) and ''The Bel ...

'' (1962), '' A Girl Named Tamiko'' (1962), '' Diamond Head'' (1963), '' Dimension 5'' (1966), ''

Battle for the Planet of the Apes ''Battle for the Planet of the Apes'' is a 1973 American science fiction film directed by J. Lee Thompson. It is the fifth and final installment in the original '' Planet of the Apes'' series, produced by Arthur P. Jacobs, following '' Conquest ...

'' (1973), '' The Joy Luck Club'' (1993) and ''The American Standards'' (2008).

With William Shatner

France Nuyen worked several times with actor

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship ''Enterpri ...

. At age 19, she was cast in Shatner's 1958

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

play ''

The World of Suzie Wong ''The World of Suzie Wong'' is a 1957 novel by British writer Richard Mason. The main characters are Robert Lomax, a young British artist living in Hong Kong, and Suzie Wong, the title character, a Chinese woman who works as a prostitute. ...

''. After a dubious initial opening, the play ran for more than 500 performances and was quite financially successful. Both Nuyen and Shatner later collected notable accolades for their work on the show, at the 1959

Theatre World Awards The Theatre World Award is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or Off-Broadway. It was first awarded for the 1945–1946 theatre sea ...

. Nuyen worked again with Shatner across three US television projects, starting with " Elaan of Troyius", a 1968 third season episode of the original ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vario ...

'' in which Nuyen was the title character. She would later appear with Shatner in the 1973 made for TV movie '' The Horror at 37,000 Feet'', and afterward in a 1974 episode of the ''

Kung Fu Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (), are multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. These fighting styles are often classified according to commo ...

'' series entitled "A Small Beheading".

Personal life

From 1963 to 1966, Nuyen was married to Dr. Thomas Gaspar Morell, a psychiatrist from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, by whom she has a daughter, Fleur, who resides in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

and works as a film make-up artist. She met her second husband,

Robert Culp Robert Martin Culp (August 16, 1930 – March 24, 2010) was an American actor widely known for his work in television. Culp earned an international reputation for his role as Kelly Robinson on '' I Spy'' (1965–1968), the espionage television s ...

, while appearing in four episodes of his television series ''

I Spy I spy is a guessing game where one player (the ''spy'' or ''it'') chooses an object within sight and announces to the other players that "I spy with my little eye something beginning with...", naming the first letter of the object. Other players ...

''. They married in 1967, but divorced three years later. There were on-and-off relationships, most notably an affair with Marlon Brando in 1960. In 1986, Nuyen earned a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

clinical psychology Clinical psychology is an integration of social science, theory, and clinical knowledge for the purpose of understanding, preventing, and relieving psychologically based distress or Mental disorder, dysfunction and to promote subjective mental ...

and began a second career as a counsellor for abused women, children and women in prison. She received a Woman of the Year award in 1989 for her psychology work. In the ''Life'' cover story on Nuyen, she is quoted as saying a proverb she also repeated in character as a spy in the ''I Spy'' episode "Magic Mirror": "I am Chinese. I am a stone. I go where I am kicked." She resides in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

Filmography

Film

* ''

'' (1958) - Liat * '' In Love and War'' (1958) - Kalai Ducanne * '' The Last Time I Saw Archie'' (1961) - Cindy Hamilton * ''

'' (1962) - Siu Lan * '' A Girl Named Tamiko'' (1962) - Tamiko * '' Diamond Head'' (1962) - Mai Chen * ''Marco Polo'' (1962) * ''

Man in the Middle In cryptography and computer security, a man-in-the-middle, monster-in-the-middle, machine-in-the-middle, monkey-in-the-middle, meddler-in-the-middle, manipulator-in-the-middle (MITM), person-in-the-middle (PITM) or adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM ...

'' (1964) - Kate Davray * '' Dimension 5'' (1966) - Kitty * '' Black Water Gold'' (1970, TV Movie) - Thais * ''

One More Train to Rob ''One More Train to Rob'' is a 1971 American comedy western film directed by Andrew McLaglen, starring George Peppard, and featuring Diana Muldaur, John Vernon and France Nuyen. The shooting title for the film was ''Hark''. Plot Set in th ...

'' (1971) - Ah Toy * ''Slingshot'' (1971) * '' The Horror at 37,000 Feet'' (1973, TV Movie) - Annalik * '' The Big Game'' (1973) - Atanga * ''

'' (1973) - Alma * '' Code Name: Diamond Head'' (1977, TV Movie) - Tso-Tsing * ''

China Cry ''China Cry'' is a 1990 American biographical film set during rise of the communist state in China, based on the book by Nora Lam. It is set in the 1950s based on the true story of Sung Neng Yee. Born into a wealthy Chinese family, she is first ...

'' (1990) - Mrs. Sung * '' The Joy Luck Club'' (1993) - Ying-Ying - The Mother * '' A Passion to Kill'' (1994) - Lou Mazaud * ''Angry Cafe'' (1995) - Rosie * ''The Magic Pearl'' (1997) - (voice) * '' A Smile Like Yours'' (1997) - Dr. Chin * ''

The Battle of Shaker Heights ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

'' (2003) - Xiou-Xiou Ling * ''The American Standards'' (2008) - Dr. Pierce

Television

* ''Hong Kong'' - episode "Clear for Action" (1960) *'' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' - episode "The Cherry Blossom Affair" (1965) * ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...

'' - episode "Gunfighter, R.I.P." (1966) - as Ching Lee (S12E6) * ''

'' - episode "Honor Before Justice" (1966) - as Sarah * ''

'' - four episodes (1966-1967) * ''

'' - episode " Elaan of Troyius" (1968) * ''

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians D ...

'' (1968) * ''

Medical Center Medical center or medical centre may refer to: Medical care * A collection of medical services on the same site, such as the services of a general practitioner, pharmacist, pathology, radiology, dentist etc. * Clinic * Hospital * Academic medic ...

'' - episode "The Battle of Lili Wu" (1969) * '' Hawaii Five-O'' - episode "Highest Castle, Deepest Grave" (1971) * ''

'' - episode "A Small Beheading" (1974) * ''

The Six Million Dollar Man ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' is an American science fiction and action television series, running from 1973 to 1978, about a former astronaut, USAF Colonel Steve Austin, portrayed by Lee Majors. After a NASA test flight accident, Austin is r ...

'' - episode "The Coward" (1974) * '' Hawaii Five-O'' - episode "Small Witness, Large Crime" (S7 EP 17, 1975) * '' Code Name: Diamond Head'' (1977) * ''

Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, producing five seasons and 115 episodes. The series was created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts and was produced by ...

'' - episode "Angels in Paradise" (1977) * ''

'' - episode " Murder Under Glass" (1978) * ''

Fantasy Island ''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tattoo ...

'' - "Return to Fantasy Island" (1978) * '' Automan'' - episode "Ships in the Night" (1984) * '' Magnum, P.I.'' - episode "Torah, Torah, Torah" (1985) * ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The ser ...

'' - episode "A Death in Hong Kong" (1993) * ''

'' (1986-1988) as Dr. Paulette Kiem. * ''

The Outer Limits ''The Outer Limits'' or ''Outer Limits'' may refer to: Television * ''The Outer Limits'' (1963 TV series), a black-and-white science fiction series that aired from 1963 to 1965 * ''The Outer Limits'' (1995 TV series), a revival of the older series ...

'' - episode "Ripper" (1999) * " Tom Clancy's Op-Center" - Li Tang (1995) * ''

Knots Landing ''Knots Landing'' is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on CBS from December 27, 1979, to May 13, 1993. A spin-off of ''Dallas'', it was set in a fictitious coastal suburb of Los Angeles and initially centered on the lives of ...

'' (1990) as a doctor

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nuyen, France 1939 births Living people Actresses of Chinese descent Actresses of Vietnamese descent French film actresses French stage actresses French television actresses French people of Chinese descent French people of Vietnamese descent Actresses from Marseille 20th-century French actresses 21st-century French actresses American_television_actresses Clinical psychologists