Irene Tsu (; born November 4, 1945)Cf. Lisanti & Paul (2002), p.293 is a Chinese American actress who made her debut in the film adaptation of ''

Flower Drum Song ''Flower Drum Song'' was the eighth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on the 1957 novel, '' The Flower Drum Song'', by Chinese-American author C. Y. Lee. It premiered on Broadway in 1958 and was then performed in the ...

'' in

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba (Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 (K ...

, and has had many subsequent roles in TV and films. She was featured playing the wiki wiki girl in the ''

Wiki wiki dollar A wiki wiki dollar was a giveaway promotion in the United States from the Chevron Corporation, Chevron gasoline company during the 1960s. The advertising campaign featured a wiki wiki girl, played by dancer Irene Tsu, dressed in a grass skirt and ...

'' advertising campaign for

Chevron Corporation Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation. The second-largest direct descendant of Standard Oil, and originally known as the Standard Oil Company of California (shortened to Socal or CalSo), it is headquartered in S ...

in the 1960s. She speaks English and three

varieties of Chinese Chinese, also known as Sinitic, is a branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family consisting of hundreds of local varieties, many of which are not mutually intelligible. Variation is particularly strong in the more mountainous southeast of mai ...

Early life and career

Tsu was born in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...

, China to Z.M. and Dulcie Lynn Tsu. Her father was a banker and her mother a painter. After political changes in China in the 1940s, the family left for Taiwan, then Hong Kong. Her father remained behind in Taiwan while in 1957 she and the rest of her immediate family (sister and mother) emigrated to

Larchmont, New York Larchmont is a village located within the Town of Mamaroneck in Westchester County, New York, approximately northeast of Midtown Manhattan. The population of the village was 5,864 at the 2010 census. In February 2019, Bloomberg ranked Lar ...

, a suburb of New York City, where her aunt lived. Irene attended Mamaroneck Elementary School in

Mamaroneck, New York Mamaroneck ( ) is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 31,758 at the 2020 United States census over 29,156 at the 2010 census. There are two villages contained within the town: Larchmont and the Village of M ...

and studied ballet. In the late 1950s. she auditioned for a dancing job in Broadway's ''

''. A staff member of the producer

David Merrick David Merrick (born David Lee Margoulis; November 27, 1911 – April 25, 2000) was an American theatrical producer who won a number of Tony Awards. Life and career Born David Lee Margulois to Jewish parents in St. Louis, Missouri, Merrick gra ...

's office saw the performance and auditioned her for the Broadway musical "

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. ...

" and Tsu got a part. Later Irene auditioned for choreographer

Hermes Pan Hermes Pan (born Hermes Joseph Panagiotopoulos, December 10, 1909 – September 19, 1990) was an American dancer and choreographer, principally remembered as Fred Astaire's choreographic collaborator on the famous 1930s movie musicals starring A ...

in the upcoming film adaptation of the musical ''Flower Drum Song''."Profile: Irene Tsu"
''Glamor Girls of the Silver Screen'', website The choreographer brought Irene to Hollywood and she was a teenage dancer in the film

(1961), directed by

Henry Koster Henry Koster (born Hermann Kosterlitz, May 1, 1905 – September 21, 1988) was a German-born film director. He was the husband of actress Peggy Moran. Early life Koster was born to Jewish parents in Berlin, Germany. He was introduced to ci ...

. He gave her her first speaking role as a teenage prostitute in his next film, '' Take Her, She's Mine'' (1963) starring

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality ...

and

Sandra Dee Sandra Dee (born Alexandra Zuck; April 23, 1942 – February 20, 2005) was an American actress. Dee began her career as a child model, working first in commercials, and then film in her teenage years. Best known for her portrayal of ingén ...

, which started her acting career. She studied acting with Ned Maderino,

Lee Strasberg Lee Strasberg (born Israel Strassberg; November 17, 1901 – February 17, 1982) was an American theatre director, actor and acting teacher. He co-founded, with theatre directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931 ...

and Peggy Feury and attended

Los Angeles City College Los Angeles City College (LACC) is a public community college in East Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard on the former campu ...

,"Actress Irene Tsu, an LACC Alum, Talks to LACC Cinema Students About her Film Career"
''Los Angeles City College News'', December 1, 2006

UCLA Film School The UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television (UCLA TFT), is one of the 12 schools within the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) located in Los Angeles, California. Its creation was groundbreaking in that it was the first time a leadi ...

, and

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public university in Los Angeles, California. It is part of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degrees, 122 master's degrees, ...

.Realtor: Irene Tsu
- webpage In 1961, Tsu entered the

Miss Chinatown USA The Miss Chinatown USA pageant, based on Chinese communities within the U.S., greets delegates around the country. The pageant has been an annual Lunar New Year event since 1958. The winners of this pageant represent the Chinese community and a ...

beauty pageant on behalf of New York and won first place. On November 21, 1963, the evening before President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, Tsu's only appearance on ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a c ...

'' was aired on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

, as she played the role of defendant Juli Eng in "The Case of the Floating Stones." She made guest appearances on most of the other popular '60s-70s television shows such as ''

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 a ...

'', ''

The Man From U.N.C.L.E. ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' is an American spy fiction television series produced by MGM Television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who wo ...

'', ''

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' is a 1961 American science fiction disaster film, produced and directed by Irwin Allen, and starring Walter Pidgeon and Robert Sterling. The supporting cast includes Peter Lorre, Joan Fontaine, Barbara Eden, M ...

'', ''

Family Affair ''Family Affair'' is an American sitcom starring Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966, to March 4, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Keith) as he attempte ...

'', '' Mission: Impossible'', " Wonder Woman" and ''

The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western, espionage, and science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 1969. Two satirical comedy television film sequels w ...

''. She was tested for, but didn't get the female lead of ''

The Sand Pebbles ''The Sand Pebbles'' is a 1962 novel by American author Richard McKenna about a Yangtze River gunboat and its crew in 1926. It was the winner of the 1963 Harper Prize for fiction. The book was initially serialized in the ''Saturday Evening Po ...

''. In the 1960s, Tsu met

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

, Florida where she was filming the "Chevron Island" commercials and Sinatra was filming ''

Tony Rome ''Tony Rome'' is a 1967 American neo-noir mystery crime thriller film directed by Gordon Douglas and starring Frank Sinatra in the title role, alongside Jill St. John, Sue Lyon and Gena Rowlands. It was adapted from Marvin H. Albert's novel '' ...

''. They dated for over two years. Tsu later married director Ivan Nagy in 1971.Cf. Lisanti & Paul (2002), p.295

Later career

From 1978 until 1989, Tsu was Chief Operating Officer and head designer for her own leisure apparel company, The IT Company/Irene Tsu Designs. Since 1990 Irene has been a realtor for

Coldwell Banker Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC is an American real estate franchise owned by Anywhere Real Estate, with headquarters in Madison, New Jersey. It was founded in 1906 in San Francisco, and has approximately 3000 offices in 49 countries and territor ...

Beverly Hills, California 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. B ...

. She is a single mother to her daughter, Yasmine, and a yoga practitioner for more than 25 years. Irene studied for many years directly with yoga master Bikram Choudhury and is featured in both of his books Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class. She taught at Bikram Yoga College in

Encinitas, California Encinitas (Spanish language, Spanish for "Small Oaks") is a beach city in the North County (San Diego area), North County area of San Diego County, California. Located within Southern California, it is approximately north of San Diego, between ...

. She teaches weekly yoga classes at the Bikram HQ in Los Angeles and for the Beverly Hills Department of Parks. In addition to these new ventures, Tsu has continued to act in TV and film roles over the years, although after she adopted her niece from China as her daughter, she concentrated primarily on being a mother.Cf. Lisanti (2001), p.167

Selected filmography

Film

*''

'' (1961) as Dancer (uncredited) *''

The Horizontal Lieutenant ''The Horizontal Lieutenant'' is a 1962 American romantic comedy war film, based on the 1961 novel ''The Bottletop Affair'' by Gordon Cotler who was a Japanese interpreter for US Army Intelligence during World War II. It is a military comedy abou ...

'' (1962) as Oriental Spy (uncredited) *''

Under the Yum Yum Tree ''Under the Yum Yum Tree'' is a 1963 American sex comedy film directed by David Swift and starring Jack Lemmon, Carol Lynley, Dean Jones, and Edie Adams, with Imogene Coca, Paul Lynde, and Robert Lansing in supporting roles. The film received ...

'' (1963) as Suzy (uncredited) *'' Take Her, She's Mine'' (1963) as Miss Wu *''

John Goldfarb, Please Come Home! ''John Goldfarb, Please Come Home!'' is a 1965 American comedy film based on the novel by William Peter Blatty published in 1963. The film was directed by J. Lee Thompson. The film was shot in the Mojave Desert. In the film, an American militar ...

'' (1965) as Harem Girl (uncredited) *''

The Sword of Ali Baba ''The Sword of Ali Baba'' is a 1965 American adventure film from Universal Pictures, directed by Virgil W. Vogel and written by Edmund Hartmann and Oscar Brodney. The film stars Peter Mann, Jocelyn Lane, Frank McGrath, Gavin MacLeod, Frank Pu ...

'' (1965) as Nalu *''

How to Stuff a Wild Bikini ''How to Stuff a Wild Bikini'' is a 1965 Pathécolor beach party film from American International Pictures. The sixth entry in a seven-film series, the movie features Mickey Rooney, Annette Funicello, Dwayne Hickman, Brian Donlevy, and Beverly ...

'' (1965) as Native Girl *'' Seven Women'' (1966) as Chinese Girl *''

Women of the Prehistoric Planet ''Women of the Prehistoric Planet'' is a 1966 independently made American science fiction/action film directed by Arthur C. Pierce, with Wendell Corey receiving the top billing among the cast. Plot A spacefaring crew from an advanced civiliz ...

'' (1966) as Linda *''

Paradise, Hawaiian Style ''Paradise, Hawaiian Style'' is a 1966 American musical comedy film starring Elvis Presley. It was the third and final motion picture that Presley filmed in Hawaii. The film reached #40 on the ''Variety'' weekly box office chart, earning $2.5 mill ...

'' (1966) as Pua *''

Caprice Caprice, from the Italian ''capriccio'', may refer to: Art and entertainment * ''Caprice'' (1913 film), a film starring Mary Pickford * ''Caprices'' (film), a 1942 French comedy film * ''Caprice'' (1967 film), a film starring Richard Harris ...

'' (1967) as Su Ling *''

Island of the Lost ''Island of the Lost'' is a 1967 American adventure film directed by John Florea and starring Richard Greene, Luke Halpin and Irene Tsu.Halliwell p.525 It was shot on location in The Bahamas and Palm Beach Gardens in Florida. Plot An anthropol ...

'' (1967) as Judy Hawllani *''

The Green Berets The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service headgear, are a special operations force of the United States Army. The Green Berets are geared towards nine doctrinal mis ...

'' (1968) as Lin *''

The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go ''The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go'' is a 1970 British thriller film directed by Burgess Meredith. It was shot in Hong Kong and Toronto, Canada. Plot summary An American army deserter, James Joyce fanatic and aspiring writer named Nero Finni ...

'' (1970) as Tah-Ling *''

Stand Up and Be Counted ''Stand Up and Be Counted'' is a 1972 American comedy film directed by Jackie Cooper and starring Jacqueline Bisset and Stella Stevens. It features the recording of "I Am Woman" (1971) by Helen Reddy. Plot Cast * Jacqueline Bisset - Sheila ...

'' (1972) (uncredited) *'' Three the Hard Way'' (1974) as Empress *''

Airport 1975 ''Airport 1975'' (also known as ''Airport '75'') is a 1974 American air disaster film and the first sequel to the successful 1970 film ''Airport''. It was directed by Jack Smight, produced by William Frye, executive produced by Jennings Lang, a ...

'' (1974) as Carol *''

Judge Dee and the Monastery Murders ''The Haunted Monastery'' is a '' gong'an'' detective novel written by Robert van Gulik and set in Imperial China (roughly speaking the Tang Dynasty). It is a fiction based on the real character of Judge Dee (Di Renjie), a magistrate and statesma ...

'' (1974, TV Movie) as Celestial Image *''

Paper Tiger "Paper tiger" is a literal English translation of the Chinese phrase ''zhǐlǎohǔ'' ( zh, s=纸老虎, t=紙老虎). The term refers to something or someone that claims or appears to be powerful or threatening, but is actually ineffectual and ...

'' (1975) as Talah *''

Deadly Hero ''Deadly Hero'' is a 1975 American neo noir thriller film starring Don Murray, Diahn Williams, James Earl Jones, Lilia Skala and Treat Williams (in his film debut). It was directed by Ivan Nagy from a screenplay by George Wislocki and Don Peter ...

'' (1975) *'' Hot Potato'' (1976) as Detective Sgt. Pam Varaje *''Damien's Island'' (1976) as Momi *'' Down and Out in Beverly Hills'' (1986) as Sheila Waltzberg *''

Steele Justice ''Steele Justice'' is a 1987 film written and directed by Robert Boris and starring Martin Kove, Sela Ward, and Bernie Casey. Taglines "When the police needed someone to stop the Vietnamese Mafia, there was only one choice..." "You don't recru ...

'' (1987) as Xua Chan *''A Girl to Kill For'' (1990) as The Counselor *'' Unbecoming Age'' (1992) as R.J *'' Mr. Jones'' (1993) as Mrs. Chang *''

Snapdragon ''Antirrhinum'' is a genus of plants commonly known as dragon flowers, snapdragons and dog flower because of the flowers' fancied resemblance to the face of a dragon that opens and closes its mouth when laterally squeezed. They are native to r ...

'' (1993) as Hua *'' Comrades: Almost a Love Story'' (1996) as Aunt Rosie *''

Golden Chicken ''Golden Chicken'' (金雞 ''gam1 gai1'') is a 2002 Hong Kong comedy-drama film directed by Samson Chiu starring Sandra Ng and involving cameo appearances from Andy Lau and Eric Tsang. It was followed by two sequels: ''Golden Chicken 2'' in 200 ...

'' (2002) as Kam's Aunt *''

The Heart Specialist ''The Heart Specialist'' is a 2006 American romantic comedy-drama film written, produced and directed by Dennis Cooper, and starring Wood Harris, Zoe Saldana, Brian J. White and Mýa. Originally released under the title ''Ways of the Flesh'', th ...

'' (2006) as Mrs. Olson *''Alibi'' (2007) as Chu Fan

Television

*''

'' TV series, episode: The Case of the Floating Stones (21 November 1963) as Juli Eng *''

My Favorite Martian ''My Favorite Martian'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 29, 1963, to May 1, 1966, for 107 episodes. The show stars Ray Walston as "Uncle Martin" (the Martian) and Bill Bixby as Tim O'Hara. The first two seasons, totalin ...

'' TV series, Season 2 Episode 9 - Double Trouble (1964) as Leilani *''

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' is an American spy fiction television series produced by MGM Television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who wo ...

'' TV series, episode: The Hong Kong Shilling Affair (15 March 1965) as Jasmine *''

'' TV series, episode: A Cup of Kindness (22 September 1965) *''

'' TV series, episode: The Peacemaker (November 21, 1965) as Su Yin *''

My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seasons. ''My Three Sons'' chronicl ...

'', TV series, episode: Robbie and the Slave Girl (20 January 1966) as Terry *''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' TV series, episode: The Five Daughters Affair: Part II (7 April 1967) - Reikko *''

'' TV series, episode: The Night of the Samurai (13 October 1967) - Reiko O'Hara *''

'' TV series, episode: Eastward Ho (1970) - Ming Lee *'' Mission: Impossible'' TV series, episode: Double Dead (12 February 1972) as Penyo *''

Hawaii Five-O Hawaii Five-O or Hawaii Five-0 may refer to: * ''Hawaii Five-0'' (2010 TV series), an American action police procedural television series * ''Hawaii Five-O'' (1968 TV series), an American police procedural drama series produced by CBS Productio ...

'' TV series, episode: Engaged to Be Buried (27 February 1973) as Alia *'' Future Cop'' TV series (1977) as Doctor Tingley *''

The Rockford Files ''The Rockford Files'' is an American detective drama television series starring James Garner that aired on the NBC network from September 13, 1974 to January 10, 1980, and remains in syndication. Garner portrays Los Angeles private investigator ...

'', TV series, episode: Irving the Explainer (18 November 1977) as Daphne Ishawaharda *''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

'', TV series, episode: The Man Who Made Volcanoes (18 November 1977) as Mei Ling *''

Trapper John, M.D. ''Trapper John, M.D.'' is an American medical drama television series and spin-off of the film ''M*A*S*H'' (1970). Pernell Roberts portrayed the title character, a lovable surgeon who became a mentor and father figure in San Francisco, Californ ...

'', TV series, episode: Heart and Seoul (28 January 1986) as Dr. Julie Lok *'' Noble House'' (1988) all four episodes *''Tell Me No Secrets'', (1997) TV movie *'' Star Trek: Voyager'', TV series, episode: Author, Author (April 18, 2001) as Mary Kim *''

Cold Case A cold case is a crime, or a suspected crime, that has not yet been fully resolved and is not the subject of a current criminal investigation, but for which new information could emerge from new witness testimony, re-examined archives, new or re ...

'', TV series, episode: Chinatown (22 November 2009) as Da Chun Lu *'' Law & Order: LA'' TV series, episode: Angel's Knoll (25 May 2011) as Christina Yu

Notes

References

Sources

* Lisanti, Tom
''Fantasy femmes of sixties cinema: interviews with 20 actresses from biker, beach, and Elvis movies"
McFarland Publishing, 2001. Cf
pp.158-169
for entry on Irene Tsu. * Lisanti, Tom; Paul, Louis
''Film fatales: women in espionage films and television, 1962-1973''
McFarland Publishing, 2002. Se
pp.293-295
for the entry on Irene Tsu.

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tsu, Irene 1944 births Living people Chinese emigrants to the United States Actresses from San Francisco American television actresses Los Angeles City College alumni American film actresses 20th-century American actresses People from Mamaroneck, New York Actresses from New York (state) Actresses from Shanghai Chinese Civil War refugees Chinese film actresses Chinese television actresses 20th-century Chinese actresses 21st-century American women

Early life and career

Later career

Selected filmography

Film

Television

Notes

References

Sources

Further reading

External links