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Today, 08 November 2009

› Bok player ratings

Yesterday, 07 November 2009

› Malema’s life in danger

› Leicester sting Bok Bs

› Eskom chair faces the axe

› Nedbank, ANCYL make up

› Hofmeyr addresses Joost

by Marisa Dean

From ice-queen lawyer in the hit series "Ally McBeal" to crime-fighting beauty in "Charlie’s Angels", sexy Lucy Liu is making her mark as one of Hollywood’s glittering stars.

Long before Liu hit celebrity status as Ling Woo in "Ally McBeal", she was the sweet, accordion-playing daughter of immigrants who gave up successful careers in China to pursue the American Dream in Queens, New York.

Liu’s formative years were spent toiling away at the prestigious Stuyvesant High School and New York University, and then completing a degree in Asian languages and Culture at the University of Michigan. And as if this didn’t keep her busy, she also found time to work on her photographic skills, and study dance, voice and drama.

Having dabbled in theatre in her final year at university, Liu ambitiously pursued an acting career in Hollywood. She worked three jobs – as a secretary, a fitness instructor and a hostess at a steak house – to pay for extra acting lessons. Gradually the hard work paid off and she landed small roles on popular tv shows like "Beverly Hills 90210", "LA Law", "Coach", "ER", "Home Improvement" and "The X-Files".

Regular appearances on TV kept Liu on her feet until her big break in 1998, when she auditioned for the role of Nelle Porter on David E. Kelly’s award-winning "Ally McBeal". Although she didn’t land the role, writer-producer Kelly was so impressed that he created the character Ling Woo and offered Liu a single guest appearance that was later extended to a permanent cast position.

Liu’s introduction to the big-screen was not quite as successful as her exploits on television. In 1999 she starred in three box office flops: "Payback" with Mel Gibson, indie flick "The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human", and opposite Woody Harrelson and Antonio Banderas in "Play it to the Bone".

Liu managed to redeem her flagging reputation with an Emmy nomination for Best Supporting Actress in 1999. More recently, she shared the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series and earned an inaugural Ammy Award, which honors Asian-American actors and filmmakers.

Liu’s recent efforts on the big-screen have also met with success. Playing a Chinese princess in Jackie Chan’s action/comedy Shanghai Noon (2000), and a kick-ass crime fighter alongside Cameron Diaz and Drew Barrymore in "Charlie’s Angels" has firmly established Liu as a versatile actress.

At 5-foot 1-inch, this petite actress is finally living her own American Dream as a dazzling star with a bright future in Tinsel Town.