Topic: France Nuyen

France Nguyen (birth name France Nguyen Van Nga) (born 31 July 1939) is a French actress.

Nguyen was born in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. Her mother was French, her father Vietnamese. During World War II, her mother and grandfather were persecuted by the Nazis for being Gypsies. Nguyen was raised in Marseille by a cousin she calls "an orchidaceae raiser who was the only person who gave a damn about me".

In 1955, while working as a seamstress, Nguyen was discovered on the beach by Life magazine photographer Philippe Halsman. She then became a stage actress and played the lead in the 1958 theatrical production of The World of Suzie Wong, opposite William Shatner. (She later worked with Shatner in an episode of Star Trek, as the memorable Elaan of Troyius, and an episode of Kung Fu.) Her distinctive accent made her recognizable to television audiences. She was originally cast to star in the film production, but was replaced by Nancy Kwan.