Irene Tsu (born November 4, 1944, Shanghai, China) is an actress who started in the film ''

Flower Drum Song ''Flower Drum Song'' was the eighth musical theatre, 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 (author), C. Y. Lee. It premiered on Broadway the ...

'' in 1961. She was featured in an advertising campaign ( Wiki wiki dollar) in the 1960s. She speaks English and three

varieties of Chinese There are hundreds of local Chinese language varieties forming a branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages, Sino-Tibetan language family, many of which are not Mutual intelligibility, mutually intelligible. Variation is particularly strong in the m ...

Early life and career

Tsu was born in Shanghai, 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 (New York), village located within the Town (New York), Town of Mamaroneck (town), New York, Mamaroneck in Westchester County, New York. Larchmont is a suburb of New York City, located approximately northeast of Midt ...

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

Mamaroneck, New York Mamaroneck ( ), is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 31,758 at the 2020 United States census over 29,156 at the 2 ...

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 Margulois; 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 grad ...

's office saw the performance and auditioned her for the Broadway musical '' The World of Suzie Wong'' 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 musical film, movie musica ...

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 cin ...

. He gave her her first speaking role as a teenage prostitute in his next film, ''

Take Her, She's Mine ''Take Her, She's Mine'' is a 1963 American comedy film starring James Stewart and Sandra Dee and based on a 1961 Broadway comedy written by the husband-and-wife team of Henry and Phoebe Ephron. The film was directed by Henry Koster with a scre ...

'' (1963) starring

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

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 ingénues ...

, 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 acting coach and actor. He co-founded, with theatre directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931, which was hailed ...

and

Peggy Feury Peggy Feury (born Margaret Feury; June 30, 1924 – November 20, 1985) was an American actress on Broadway, in films, and on television. She became a highly regarded acting teacher in New York and then in Los Angeles. Throughout her career, she ...

and attended

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

,"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, and

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degree programs, 122 m ...

.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 four short stories, all of which involve a ...

'' was aired on

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

, 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 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents Napoleon Solo, played by Robert Vaughn, and Illya Kuryakin, p ...

'', ''

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 ...

'', ''

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 attempt ...

'', '' Mission: Impossible'',

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

'', ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...

'', and ''

The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western (genre), Western, spy film, spy, and science fiction on television, science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 19 ...

''. She was tested for, but didn't get, the female lead of '' The Sand Pebbles''. In the 1960s, Tsu met

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

in Miami, 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 married director Ivan Nagy in 1971, although they later separated.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 Tsu 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 terri ...

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...

. A long-time yoga practitioner, Tsu studied 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 for "Small Oaks") is a beach city in the North County area of San Diego County, California, United States. Located in Southern California, it is approximately north of San Diego, between Solana Beach and Carlsbad, and a ...

. She teaches weekly yoga classes at the Bikram HQ in Los Angeles and for the Beverly Hills Department of Parks. She is a single mother to her daughter, an adopted niece from China.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. The film received two Golden Globe ...

'' (1963) as Suzy (uncredited) *''

'' (1963) as Miss Wu *'' John Goldfarb, Please Come Home!'' (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 P ...

'' (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 was directed by William Asher and features Mickey Rooney, Annette Funicello, Dwayn ...

'' (1965) as Native Girl *'' Seven Women'' (1966) as Chinese Girl *'' Women of the Prehistoric Planet'' (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 mil ...

'' (1966) as Pua *'' Caprice'' (1967) as Su Ling *'' Island of the Lost'' (1967) as Judy Hawllani *'' The Green Berets'' (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 An American army deserter, fanatic and aspiring writer named Nero Finnigan, living in Hong K ...

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

Paper Tiger "Paper tiger" is a calque 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 unable to withstand ch ...

'' (1975) as Talah *'' Deadly Hero'' (1975) *'' Hot Potato'' (1976) as Detective Sgt. Pam Varaje *''Damien's Island'' (1976) as Momi *''

Down and Out in Beverly Hills ''Down and Out in Beverly Hills'' is a 1986 American comedy film co-written and directed by Paul Mazursky, based on the 1919 French play ''Boudu sauvé des eaux'', which was later adapted into the 1932 film '' Boudu sauvé des eaux'' by Jean ...

'' (1986) as Sheila Waltzberg *'' Steele Justice'' (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'' (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'' (2006) as Mrs. Olson *''Alibi'' (2007) as Chu Fan

Television

*''

'' TV series, episode: The Case of the Floating Stones (November 21, 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. ''My Favorite Martian'' was th ...

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

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

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

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

'', TV series, episode: Robbie and the Slave Girl (January 20, 1966) as Terry *''

'', episode: The Five Daughters Affair: Part II (April 7, 1967) – Reikko *''

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

'' TV series, episode: Eastward Ho (1970) – Ming Lee *''

Cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

'' TV series, episode: Bitter Legion (1972) *'' Mission: Impossible'' TV series, episode: Double Dead (February 12, 1972) as Penyo *'' Hawaii Five-O'' TV series, episode: Engaged to Be Buried (February 27, 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, aired on NBC from September 13, 1974, to January 10, 1980. Garner portrays Los Angeles private investigator Jim Rockford, with Noah Beery Jr. in th ...

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

'', TV series, episode: The Man Who Made Volcanoes (November 18, 1977) as Mei Ling *'' Trapper John, M.D.'', TV series, episode: Heart and Seoul (January 28, 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 ''Cold Case'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series. It ran on CBS from September 28, 2003, to May 2, 2010. The series revolved around a fictionalized Philadelphia Police Department division that specializes in invest ...

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