Photographer Nguyen Hai Dong, who has lived in the alley for more than 10 years, said 4 nymph The people who used to live in this alley all had successful and famous careers in the entertainment industry in the past, namely: Miss Ao Dai Vietnam 1989 Kieu Khanh, Miss Ho Chi Minh City 1989 Ly Thu Thao, famous model La Kim Phung and movie actress Mong Van.
Kieu Khanh’s full name is Do Thi Kieu Khanh, crowned Miss Ao Dai City in 1989. She was the first Miss of Ho Chi Minh City after the reunification. Kieu Khanh is one of the 1990s beauty loved. She is 1m64 tall with pure beauty and a personality-filled short haircut, creating a strong impression on the public.
There is a famous story about the beauty queen that is still told today: 100,000 postcards printed with Kieu Khanh’s image, published by the National Culture Publishing House, were sold out immediately after the contest. After 2 years of being crowned, Kieu Khanh suddenly went abroad to reunite with her family, and since then, the Vietnamese entertainment industry has been missing a “country-topping” beauty.
Since settling in the US in 2001, Kieu Khanh has been almost in hiding. In early 2024, she returned to Vietnam to visit relatives and friends and reunited and chatted with “calendar queen” Diem My. The current beauty of Miss Ao Dai is still as beautiful as ever and still looks very youthful. She shared that although she is not as active in the arts as before, she still focuses on maintaining her beauty and always appears with a neat image.
She is currently single and focuses on her business, occasionally accepting to be an MC for some TV channels in the US. When she has free time, the beauty likes to meet friends and contemporary artists.
Ly Thu Thao is considered the first and only Miss Vietnam contest organized by the Ho Chi Minh City Youth Union in 1989 and is also the beauty who held the crown the longest in this contest. Ly Thu Thao’s beauty at that time was praised as “the beauty of heaven and earth” and her modern fashion sense made her very sought after by photographers and directors.
Ly Thu Thao quickly became a sought-after name on the catwalk, in movies, and in calendars. She and other movie stars such as Ly Hung, Diem Huong, Viet Trinh, etc. created a wave of famous young stars in the 1990s. Ly Thu Thao is considered the first and only Miss Vietnam contest organized by the Ho Chi Minh City Youth Union.
In 1999, due to many scandals, rumors and unable to bear the pressure of fame, Ly Thu Thao decided to get married, withdraw from the entertainment industry and settle abroad. Since then, the public has not seen any information or images of the beauty.
It was not until 2014 that she unexpectedly returned to Vietnam to be a judge in the 2014 Miss Ho Chi Minh City Photo Contest. This was the first time after 25 years of being crowned that the public learned about her life in the West. The beauty has a happy life with her husband and son in Minnesota (USA). After that return to her homeland, the public has had no further opportunity to learn more about her.
La Kim Phung in the 90s was a strange phenomenon in showbiz. In 1988, she first appeared on a calendar photo and immediately attracted attention because of her unique, unconventional beauty, different from the famous beauties of the same period such as: Viet Trinh, Diem My 6x, Thanh Xuan…
At that time, she was considered the top model in the fashion industry, with a very high salary for photoshoots and was continuously voted by the audience as the Impressive Model. Even people in the profession called her the first supermodel of Vietnam.
Kim Phung also participated in many famous movies such as Bitter Love, Wildflowers… co-starring with Le Cong Tuan Anh, Ly Hung…
After several years of active activities, La Kim Phung gradually withdrew from the spotlight to switch to business. Since 2000, the supermodel decided to retire. Not only is she beautiful, she is also intelligent, fluent in 4 foreign languages: English, French, Spanish, and Chinese. Thanks to that, she later developed her business both domestically and internationally.
Although she does not appear in many entertainment events, La Kim Phung still maintains a close relationship with veteran artists such as MC Thanh Bach and singer Phuong Thanh. When her friends need her, she still comes to support them and maintains the principle of keeping her private life private.
Mong Van was born in 1969 in Hue, with part royal blood. When she turned 20, she entered the Miss Tien Phong Newspaper contest (the predecessor of today’s Miss Vietnam contest) and made it to the final round. Mong Van has a proud, sexy beauty, especially her captivating eyes and seductive curved lips that make many people fall in love.
In the late 80s and early 90s, Mong Van was one of the actresses loved by the audience. She made an impression through films such as Tinh Khuc 68, Bong Hong Dau Te, Thang Long De Nhat Kiem, Tay Son Hiep Khach, Kieu Nguyet Nga, Nhung De Con Lac Loi, Nguoi Khong Mang Ho, Nha Lan Tim, Song Tinh….
After that, beauty of Hue married a businessman from Hong Kong (China) and had 3 children. However, the marriage did not last long. In 2017, Mong Van shared for the first time that she had divorced and taken her 3 children back to Vietnam to live for a long time, becoming a single mother, raising 3 children by herself since that day.
In middle age, Mong Van is still praised for her charming and ageless beauty. The former calendar beauty also has skin that is much younger than her real age. Whether in her youth or in her old age, Mong Van’s charming elegance remains unchanged.