Thanh Lan (born 1 March 1948) is a popular Vietnamese American singer and actress. She was unable to leave Vietnam at the Fall of Saigon in 1975. In 1994 during a sponsored series of concerts in the United States, Vietnamese protesters accused her of colluding with the Hanoi government and being a communist sympathizer.[1] Although she had been a beloved singer during the 1970s, in the US she became the subject of forceful protests and even death threats.[2] She canceled all but one of her concerts, gave interviews pleading her case, and finally prevailed in her quest for asylum.[3]
Biography
Phạm Thái Thanh Lan was born on 1 March 1948 in Vinh town, Nghệ An, a province of the State of Vietnam (now Vinh city, Nghệ An province, Vietnam). Her saint's name is Catherine (which she would later use when registering for her first visa in the United States), but she is known by her stage name, Thanh Lan. Although both of Lan's parents were from Nghệ An, known as a "throat-clear voice area" (the equivalent of received pronunciation in Britain or "standard" Italian or French), she lived in a Northern community in her childhood. This gave her a distinctive singing voice, and her Vietnamese accent is between that of Hanoi (nasal) and Saigon (tongue).[4]
As a high school student, Lan attended the prestigious Lycée Marie Curie.[5] She studied piano at Saint Paul's school, run by the Sisters of Christian Charity, and she remains Roman Catholic. She later studied with Trần Anh Đào (composer Thẩm Oánh's wife), and musician Nghiêm Phú Phi. She majored in French literature at Saigon University, and from childhood she spoke French, Vietnamese, and English. She audited classes in tranh, traditional, and reformed music at the Vietnam National Academy of Music.
With Vietnamese children's band.
On the poster for "Students Singing."
Behind composer Lê Văn Thiện.
While in her school years she joined a Vietnamese children's band (ban Việt Nhi) in order to perform in the VTVN and Vũ-đức-Duy drama bands (ban kịch Vũ Đức Duy) on the Vietnam Television Network. She also sang with the Seagull band (ban Hải Âu), and the Life Source band (ca đoàn Nguồn Sống).
1970–1975: Career and fame
In the early 1970s, Lan took part in the Young Music Festival.[6] She became known for her interpretations of French popular music.[7] She also translated English-language songs into Vietnamese. Such music in its original language, especially French, was considered highbrow, and more for world travelers and academics than common people. Part of her goal in translating into Vietnamese was to make both the words and music and their specific cultural meanings accessible to a much wider audience.[8]
In 1970, Lan starred as a main character in the coming-of-age movie Students Singing. It was produced by Alpha Films, owned by her maternal uncle Thái Thúc Nha. He was a famous filmmaker in Asia during the 1960-70s, and also president of Vietnam Cinema Society (Tổng-trưởng Hiệp-hội Điện-ảnh Việtnam), which launched and hosted the Vietnam Film Day.[9] "Students Singing" included a nude scene that generated controversy in the Southern press, with several tabloids calling Lan a "sexy bomb," or using the highly euphemistic term "princess of gifted arts."[10] Film critics were more positive, however, and she received the Promising Actress prize at National Award of Literature and Arts ceremony.[11] She often collaborated with Nhật Trường.
In 1974, Japanese director Norio Osada[12] traveled to Saigon to make the film Number Ten Blues with stars from both Japan and Vietnam. Lan suggested that Osada add a main female character and cast her, because she had been well-known in Tokyo since 1971. She had become even more famous throughout Japan after 1973, when she performed at the Yamaha Music Festival. The film was completed in March 1975 even as the political situation in South Vietnam deteriorated around them. At the Fall of Saigon in April, Lan became stranded during the panic and confusion that concluded the Vietnam War, and she was unable to escape.[13]
The Japanese filmmakers worried when Lan went missing, and even wondered if she had died. They left the film unreleased when the studio disbanded. Later, however, the director was able to release it with the title Goodbye Saigon, to memorialize that historic event.
During a "campaign to proscribe corrupt cultural products" under the new regime, Lan was censored for ten years. The censors particularly blocked her the film Students Singing, about South Vietnamese soldiers, but also for pretty much all of her discography. Her name disappeared from official mentions in Vietnamese literature and the arts during these years.
During the Renovation period, Lan performed some songs which the censorship offices accepted. She returned as one of the golden voices on the HTV channel. Though she only starred in a few films, for example, Cards on the Table (with Nguyễn Chánh Tín) and Behind a Fate (with Trần Quang), most were extremely popular. Northern young audiences particularly admired her character Thùy Dung in Cards on the Table.[10] However, her principal work was as a voice actor and vocalist. During the 1980s her Northern sound became quite popular on Vietnamese television and in movies. Her talent was even praised by some Soviet filmmakers.
From 1991 to 1993, Lan focused on the development of her music. She cooperated with many studios for recordings, and she organized two live shows: Thanh Lan's Singing (1991) and Thanh Lan's Music Night (1992).
In 1993, Thanh Lan planned a tour across the United States. Because she had been unable to leave Vietnam at the fall of Saigon in 1975, this later drew the suspicion of some of her fans that she might be cooperating with the state. During a Congressionally-sponsored series of concerts in the United States in 1994 on a three-month visa, she initially planned a tour, and she registered at the USCIS office as "Catherine Pham," her saint's name at birth (加大肋納•范). However, she soon became the target of protestors who claimed she was a tool of the Hanoi government.[14][15] Lan's only scheduled performance after the cancellations was in San Jose, and protesters turned out in force. "We are against the Hanoi propaganda scheme. Thanh Lan is only a tool. She would be welcomed back if she shows remorse for what she did and cancels the concert."[16] During radio interviews in San Jose pleading her case, her goal was convince the protestors that she was not an agent of the communist party.[17] She attempted to describe how much she had suffered, but she allegedly made a misstep in the eyes of many former fans when she said that Vietnam paid her well. Despite the controversy, however, she was successful in her quest for asylum, and this calmed much of the rage.[18] Protestors were later re-angered in part by President Bill Clinton's decision to end the trade embargo with Vietnam, but these demonstrations were quieter, and Lan was no longer a target because of her asylum status.[19] Composer Trúc Hồ from Asia Entertainment offered her a contract, and she remained in the United States permanently.
1994-2013: Life in the United States
Initially, Lan collaborated with singer Ngọc Lan and some French-speaking amateur vocalists to perform French songs. After Ngọc Lan's death there was also a decline in interest surrounding pop française, so she collaborated again with Trần Thiện Thanh, focusing on songs of soldiers.
Scene of the soldiers coming to combat about March 1975 what makes me always thrilled although I watched the movie oftentimes. They [were] real warriors and also really into the battle, but nowadays no ones can answer that how was their fates after the fall...
— Thanh Lan
About 2012, an old Number Ten Blues tape was found and restored by NHK's experts. After looking for more information from Vietnamese people who lived in Japan, NHK sent staff to California. They showed Lan the restored version's DVD and invited her to attend the 2013 Fukuoka International Film Festival. In this event, she received the Audience Award for Number Ten Blues and Goodbye Saigon.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lan often could not fly to shows. However, she did return to Saigon to guest star on the Vietnamese TV show "Happy Memories, Season 2," a program on channel VTV3.[20]
Personal life
Lan entered a brief marriage at 19. Her husband - Mr. Dũng - was a man from the Long Biên district of Hanoi whose family had settled in Dalat after Operation Passage to Freedom. After an amicable divorce, Thanh Lan and her ex-husband remain close friends.
Book
Tumultuous Life (Bão tố cuộc đời) in Englist & Vietnamese (Garden Grove, California: Tự-Lực Bookstore & Xpress Print, 2022).[21] In 2003 Lan told MC Jimmy Nhựt Hà from the popular channel Jimmy TV that she had begun writing her memoirs. In August 2022, she published Tumultuous Life. She primarily wrote in English, which she had spoken since childhood, and then translated her words to Vietnamese.
Albums
Records
Việt Nam, Sóng Nhạc, Nhạc Ngày Xanh, Sơn Ca, Shotguns, Phạm Mạnh Cương, Diễm Ca, Nghệ thuật - Tâm Anh, Thương Ca, Nhã Ca, Premier, Continental, Trường Sơn,...
Nhạc trẻ 6 - Thanh Lan
Phạm Mạnh Cương 25 - Thanh Lan
The best of Thanh Lan
Tiếng hát xôn xao mộng tình đầu
Tà áo Văn Quân
Paris By Night
NB
Song
With
Program
Year
1
Tình (Văn Phụng)
solo
Paris By Night 27
1994
2
Yêu Thầm (Lam Phương)
Paris By Night 28
3
Dấu Vết Tình Yêu (Ngô Thụy Miên)
Paris By Night 29
4
T'aimer
Franck Olivier
5
LK Hai Sắc Hoa Ti-gôn
Thái Châu
Paris By Night 32
1995
6
Con Quỳ Lạy Chúa Trên Trời (Phạm Duy, Nhất Tuấn)
solo
Paris By Night 34
7
Giàn thiên lý đã xa (LV: Phạm Duy)
Paris By Night 36
1996
8
LK Trả Lại Em Yêu, Kỷ Vật Cho Em (Phạm Duy)
Joseph Hiếu
Paris By Night 37
9
Ru Đêm (Thanh Lan)
solo
Paris By Night 40
1997
10
Điệu Buồn Dang Dở (Hoàng Thi Thơ)
Paris By Night 41
11
Chiếc Bóng Bên Đường (Phạm Duy)
Paris By Night 43
1998
12
LK Nhạc Pháp: Histoire D'un Amour, Et Pourtant, J'entends Siffler Le Train (500 Miles), Je Sais, Mal, Si L'amour Existe Encore, Main Dans La Main
Elvis Phương
Paris By Night 50
1999
Asia
NB
Song
With
Program
Year
1
Tình Trong Phút Giây (Ngọc Trọng)
solo
ASIA 4
1994
2
Một Ngày Vui Mùa Đông (Lê Uyên Phương)
ASIA 6
3
Huế Xưa (Anh Bằng)
ASIA 10
1995
4
Có Những Niềm Riêng (Lê Tín Hương)
ASIA 11
1996
5
LK Nhạc Pháp
Jo Marcel, Julie
ASIA 12
6
Chiều Winnipeg (Trần Chí Phúc)
solo
ASIA 14
1997
7
Nếu Vắng Anh (Anh Bằng)
ASIA 15
8
Đêm Khuya Trên Đường Canita (Trần Văn Trạch)
ASIA 18
1998
9
Thu Vàng (Cung Tiến)
ASIA 20
10
Người Ở Lại Charlie (Trần Thiện Thanh)
Duy Quang
ASIA 21
11
Que Sera Sera
solo
ASIA 22
12
Ngày Xưa Hoàng Thị (Phạm Duy)
ASIA 23
13
Bài Luân Vũ Mùa Mưa (LV:Trường Kỳ)
Elvis Phương
ASIA 26
1999
14
Hoa Soan Bên Thềm Cũ (Tuấn Khanh)
solo
ASIA 27
15
Tưởng Như Còn Người Yêu (Phạm Duy)
ASIA 29
2000
16
Biệt Khúc Cho Tình Nhân (Trầm Tử Thiêng)
ASIA 30
17
Hội Trùng Dương (Phạm Đình Chương)
Thanh Tuyền, Hoàng Oanh
ASIA 31
18
Nhân Chứng
solo
ASIA 32
2001
19
Trầu Cau (Phan Huỳnh Điểu)
ASIA 33
20
Hòn Vọng Phu (Lê Thương)
Hoàng Oanh, Duy Quang
ASIA 34
21
Vắng Bóng Người Yêu (LV: Phạm Duy)
solo
ASIA 35
22
Hai Hàng Cây So Đũa (Nguyên Huy, Trọng Minh)
ASIA 36
2002
23
LK Tình Yêu Và Tuổi Trẻ
Duy Quang
ASIA 37
24
Mẹ Việt Nam Ơi! Chúng Con Vẫn Còn Đây (Việt Dzũng, Nguyệt Ánh)
Lê Uyên
ASIA 38
25
Mưa Ngâu (Thanh Tùng)
Dạ Nhật Yến
ASIA 48
2005
26
Anh Không Chết Đâu Anh (Trần Thiện Thanh)
solo
ASIA 50
2006
27
LK Em Đi Rồi, Cho Em Quên Tuổi Ngọc (Lam Phương)
Diễm Liên
ASIA 51
28
LK Đêm Nguyện Cầu, Nó, Một Ông Già (Lê Minh Bằng)
Trung Chỉnh, Chế Linh
ASIA 52
29
LK Mộng Sầu, Hối Tiếc (Trầm Tử Thiêng)
Anh Khoa
ASIA 54
2007
30
LK Tình Yêu Ôi Tình Yêu, Búp bê không tình yêu
Doanh Doanh
ASIA 55
31
LK Thôi, Ảo Ảnh (Y Vân)
Tuấn Vũ
ASIA 56
32
Người Chết Trở Về (Trần Thiện Thanh)
Nhật Trường
ASIA 58
2008
33
LK Delilah, Je Sais, Mùa Tình Yêu, Một Thời Để Yêu
Paolo
ASIA 59
34
Khúc Hát Thanh Xuân (LV: Phạm Duy)
Ngọc Hạ
ASIA 60
35
Bà Mẹ Trị Thiên (Trần Thiện Thanh)
Vũ Khanh
ASIA 61
2009
36
LK Trả Lại Em Yêu, Em Hiền Như Masour (Phạm Duy)
ASIA 65
2010
37
Kỷ Vật Cho Em (Phạm Duy)
ASIA 66
38
Nụ Tầm Xuân (Phạm Duy)
ASIA 67
39
Con Đường Tình Ta Đi (Phạm Duy)
ASIA 68
2011
40
LK Nhạc Pháp: Maman (LV: Thanh Lan), La Vie, C'est Une Histoire D'Amour (LV: Lê Hựu Hà), Elle (LV: Duy Quang)
Sỹ Đan, Vũ Tuấn Đức
ASIA 71
2012
41
Lòng mẹ (Y Vân)
Lê Anh Quân
ASIA 72
2013
42
LK Nghẹn Ngào (Lam Phương), Anh Biết Em Đi Chẳng Trở Về (Anh Bằng, Thái Can)
Anh Khoa
ASIA 77
2015
43
Tuổi Biết Buồn (Phạm Duy, Ngọc Chánh)
solo
ASIA 78
2016
44
Xóm Đêm (Phạm Đình Chương)
ASIA 82
2018
45
Giáng Sinh Phận Người (Lê Đức Long)
Loan Châu
ASIA Christmas Special 2020
2020
Stage
Những người không chịu chết
Mắc lưới
Chiếc độc bình Khang Hy
Người viễn khách thứ mười
Chuyến tàu mang tên dục vọng (A Streetcar Named Desire)
^Do, Hien Duc (1999). The Vietnamese Americans. Los Angeles, California: ABC-CLIO. p. 113. ISBN9780313033568.
^Tepper, Steven J. (2011). Not Here, Not Now, Not That! Protest Over Art and Culture in America. Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press. p. 203. ISBN9780226792873.
^Valverde, Kieu-Linh Caroline (2012). Transnationalizing Viet Nam: Community, Culture, and Politics in the Diaspora. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Temple University Press. p. 14.
^"Women of Vietnam". Vietnam Magazine. 4–5: 7. 1971.
^Arnold, Michael (October 2019). "Coming Home Again". Oi. In 1974 Thanh Lan was at the height of her career in Saigon, now 45 years later she returns to the city to relive her glory days.
^"Vietnamese Singer Cancels Show After Protest," The Associated Press, 31 January 1994
^Valverde, Kieu-Linh Caroline (2012). Transnationalizing Viet Nam: Community, Culture, and Politics in the Diaspora. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Temple University Press. p. 14.
