Ministry of Culture

• Chinese Name: 林青霞
• Date of Birth: Nov. 3, 1954
• Place of Birth: Chiayi (Southern Taiwan)
• Did You Know That … ?
• She portrayed a number of high-profile androgynous and male roles in wuxia films during the 1990s.

Even though she has retired from show business for over two decades, Brigitte Lin remains one of the most beloved Taiwanese actresses and a legendary beauty.

Lin was said to be spotted by a scout when she was walking down the street in Taipei after graduating from high school. Shortly after, she made her film debut in 1973 in "Outside the Window (窗外),” an adaptation from romance novelist Chiung Yao's book of the same title.

Lin became a popular star overnight both in Hong Kong and Taiwan, although her first film has never been shown in Taiwan. She went on to star in many romantic blockbusters adapted from Chiung Yao's novels in the 1970s.

In 1976, Lin was named the best actress at the Asia Pacific Film Festival for her role in "Eight Hundred Heroes (八百壯士)” as a patriotic girl scout, who risked her life sending a national flag to 800 Chinese soldiers who were fighting the Japanese troops in Shanghai during the World War II.

Despite her hugely successful career, Lin departed for the United States to resolve personal matters in 1979. She resumed acting in the 1980s and began shooting films in Hong Kong, playing different roles from her previous image of an innocent and beautiful sweetheart.

Lin reached the second peak of her career in the early 1990s. During that time, she garnered a Golden Horse Award for Best Actress in 1990 for her role in the tragic drama "Red Dust (滾滾紅塵)” as a novelist who has never reunited with her lover.

After that, Lin focused on martial arts films, many of which were adapted from martial arts novel master Jin Yong's (金庸) works. Her charismatic playing of "Invincible Asia (東方不敗),” a male cult leader who castrated himself to practice a powerful kung fu and later became an androgynous being, in the 1992 hit "The Legend of the Swordsman (笑傲江湖II東方不敗),” has achieved cult film status.

She retired after marrying Hong Kong businessman Michael Ying (邢李㷧) in 1994. In 2011, Lin published a collection of essays on her former career and life experiences. She was also appointed as a reading ambassador by the Ministry of Culture to help promote the love of reading in Taiwan.