Lucille Soong
Lucille Soong | |
|---|---|
 Soong in 2016 | |
| Born | September 5, 1935 |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1959–present |
| Lucille Soong | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 宋靜秀[1] | ||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 宋静秀 | ||||||
| |||||||
Lucille Soong (born September 5, 1935) is a Chinese-American actress. She is best known for her main role as Jenny Huang in the television series Fresh Off the Boat (2015–2020). She has acted and appeared in films and TV series since 1959, and is the author of the autobiography Wild Orchid: From Beijing to La-La Land.
Early life
[edit]She was born to a wealthy family in China on September 5, 1935, and grew up in Beijing. She and her family suffered under political campaigns after the Chinese Communist Revolution, and she moved to Hong Kong at age 21 to escape.[2]
Career
[edit]In Hong Kong she was discovered by director Lewis Gilbert and made her first uncredited screen appearance in his 1959 film Ferry to Hong Kong. After moving to London in the 1960s she went on to have single-episode roles in British film and TV series Ghost Squad, Crane, Emergency-Ward 10 and The Champions and others.[3]
In 1969, she starred in the soap opera Coronation Street, playing the role of Billy Walker's short-term girlfriend in 5 episodes. In the show, her character suffered abuse from his mother Annie Walker, and she soon broke up with him.
After moving to Hollywood in Los Angeles, she had minor roles in films The Joy Luck Club (1993) and The Corruptor (1999). For major role, she portrayed Pei-Pei's mom in the 2003 remake of Freaky Friday; starred as hairdresser Ming in Nora's Hair Salon (2004) and Nora's Hair Salon 2: A Cut Above (2008); and played Nhung Chan in Nine Dead (2009).[4]
Her television credits in the United States included a recurring role in 7 episodes of the ABC prime time soap Desperate Housewives, portraying Gabrielle Solis' former maid, Yao Lin. She has also appeared on Dharma & Greg (3 episodes), Passions (4 episodes), Huff, All About the Andersons, According to Jim and others.
Soong starred on the ABC show Fresh Off the Boat. She recurred in the first season, and was promoted to main cast for subsequent seasons. She portrayed Grandma Jenny Huang, grandmother of the Huang family.[5]
Her autobiography, Wild Orchid: From Beijing to La-La Land, was published by Dorrance Publishing Co. on May 1, 2024.[2]
Filmography
[edit]Films
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Ferry to Hong Kong | The Bride | Uncredited |
| 1963 | 55 Days at Peking | Concubine | Uncredited |
| 1964 | French Dressing | Starlet | Major |
| 1965 | Genghis Khan | Concubine | |
| 1965 | The Knack ...and How to Get It | Girl in Sauna | Uncredited |
| 1965 | Darling | Allie | Uncredited |
| 1965 | Marco the Magnificent | Princess Bride | Uncredited |
| 1965 | Three Weeks of Love | Girl in Hong Kong | |
| 1966 | The Brides of Fu Manchu | Ling / Bride | Uncredited |
| 1967 | The Mini-Affair | Lucille | Major |
| 1969 | The File of the Golden Goose | Girl in Bath | Uncredited |
| 1970 | One More Time | Kim Lee | Major |
| 1993 | The Joy Luck Club | Popo | |
| 1999 | The Corruptor | Elderly Immigrant | |
| 1999 | The Debtors | Chinese Restaurant Owner | |
| 1999 | My American Vacation | Friend of Grandma | |
| 2003 | Freaky Friday | Pei-Pei's Mom | Major |
| 2004 | Employee of the Month | Old Korean Lady | Uncredited |
| 2004 | Nora's Hair Salon | Ming | Major |
| 2005 | Sky High | Cook | |
| 2005 | Just like Heaven | Chinese Exorcist | |
| 2006 | Mission: Impossible III | Shanghai Woman | Uncredited |
| 2007 | Nancy Drew | Waitress | |
| 2008 | Nora's Hair Salon 2: A Cut Above | Ming | Major |
| 2009 | Nine Dead | Nhung Chan | Major |
| 2021 | Raya and the Last Dragon | Dang Hu (voice) | |
| 2025 | Freakier Friday | Pei-Pei's Mom | Major; Post-production |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | Ghost Squad | Hotel Barmaid | Episode: "Sabotage" |
| 1963 | Man of the World | Nurse | Episode: "The Enemy" |
| 1964 | Crane | Yasuma | Episode: "Man Without a Past" |
| 1964 | Sergeant Cork | Lotus Feng / Waitress | Episode: "The Case of the Dutiful Murderer" Episode: "The Case of the Medicine Man" |
| 1965 | The Avengers | Miss Smith, Tusamo's Secretary | Episode: "The Cybernauts" |
| 1966 | Adam Adamant Lives! | Suzu | Episode: "More Deadly Than the Sword" |
| 1967 | Emergency – Ward 10 | Blind Patient | Episode: "There's None So Blind" Episode: "Second Sight" |
| 1967–1970 | The Troubleshooters | Su Lan / Hostess / Suzie | 3 episodes |
| 1967 | The Prisoner | Flower Girl | Episode: "A. B. and C." |
| 1968 | Hugh and I Spy | Miss Lee | Episode: "Yellow Peril" |
| 1969 | Coronation Street | Jasmine Choong | 5 episodes |
| 1969 | The Champions | Tsaiyoko Naga | Episode: "The Gun-Runners" |
| 1971 | Shirley's World | Tourist Guide | Episode: "A Mother's Touch" |
| 1994 | Vanishing Son | Ling | TV movie |
| 1996 | Yesterday's Target | Dr. Kang | TV movie |
| 1997 | Fired Up | Mrs. Kim | Episode: "The Rules" |
| 1997–2001 | Dharma & Greg | Mrs. Wong / Chinese Grandmother / Mrs. Kwan | 3 episodes |
| 1998 | Maggie | Cat Lady | Episode: "Just Shoot Him" |
| 1999 | Ryan Caulfield: Year One | Store Owner | Episode: "Po-Piggity and Other Racial Slurs" |
| 2000 | Strong Medicine | Mrs. Lum | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2000 | JAG | Older Vietnamese woman | Episode: "A Separate Peace: Part 1" |
| 2000 | The Michael Richards Show | Woman #1 | Episode: "USA Toy" |
| 2001 | Chasing Destiny | Hostess | TV movie |
| 2001 | Passions | Sally Chin | 4 episodes |
| 2003 | All About the Andersons | Mrs. Chong | Episode: "Everyone Plays" |
| 2004–2009 | Desperate Housewives | Yao Lin | Recurring 7 episodes (Season 1, 5) |
| 2004 | Huff | Xui Shi | Episode: "That Fucking Cabin" Episode: "Flashpants" |
| 2005 | According to Jim | Manicurist | Episode: "The Race" |
| 2006 | The King of Queens | Lily | Episode: "Apartment Complex" |
| 2007 | Bones | Mai Zhang | Episode: "The Boneless Bride in the River" |
| 2008 | The Sarah Silverman Program | Mrs. Xiongnu | Episode: "The Mongolian Beef" |
| 2009 | United States of Tara | Korean Grandmother | Episode: "Inspiration" |
| 2009 | Without a Trace | Mrs. Deng | Episode: "Devotion" |
| 2010 | Dark Blue | Mrs. Chin | Episode: "Urban Garden" |
| 2010 | The League | Security Line Woman | Episode: "Vegas Draft" |
| 2010 | How to Be a Better American | Estelle | TV movie |
| 2013 | Holding Patterns | Asian Woman | TV movie |
| 2013 | Heebie Jeebies | Zu Mu | TV movie |
| 2015–2020 | Fresh Off the Boat | Grandma Huang | Recurring (Season 1) Main Cast (Season 2–6) |
References
[edit]- ^ "Fresh off The Boat to premieres on ABC". United Daily News (in Chinese). 6 December 2014.
- ^ a b Soong, Lucille (2024). Wild Orchid: From Beijing to La-La Land. Dorrance Publishing Co. ISBN 979-8890270900.
- ^ "Lucille Soong on becoming an accidental actor". CAA Media. 16 October 2017.
- ^ "Lucille Soong's profile". Rotten Tomatoes.
- ^ "What Fresh Off the Boat does with its Mandarin speaker that The Cloverfield Paradox couldn't". The Verge. 8 February 2018.
External links
[edit]| Authority control databases: National |
|---|
