Nguyen Ngoc Ngan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nguyen Ngoc Ngan (born on May 4, 1946) is a Vietnamese Canadian writer and essayist.
He was born in Son Tay, Vietnam.
Nguyen is one of the two hosts of Paris by Night and translated the series. He is the co-author of Ballad Of Mulan and The Blind Man and the Cripple - Orchard Village.
He was born on May 4, 1946 in Son Tay, North Vietnam. His brother is singer Ngoc Trong who, in recent years, has become quite popular in the Vietnamese music industry abroad. The Nguyen family migrated to South Vietnam when the country was divided in 1954. Mr. Ngan went to Nguyen Ba Tong and Chu Van An high school. He later attended Van Khoa university. After he graduated, Ngan was employed as an educator for the military. In 1975, Ngan stayed behind and was incarcerated until 1978. After his release, he escaped the country by boat to Malaysia. In 1979, Mr. Ngan resettled in Vancouver, British Columbia, but moved to Prince Rupert isle in 1980 where he found a job until he once again moved to Toronto in 1985 where he still resides today.
Nguyen Ngoc Ngan began writing in 1979 while he was still in the refugee camp in Malaysia. His first novel was "The Women Left Behind" completed while he was still in Malaysia. However, his first published work was "The Will Of Heaven", written in English and published by E.P. Dutton, New York in 1980. To date, Ngan has written 25 novels and short stories, all of which are considered to be best sellers in the Vietnamese literary market. Many of the titles have been reprinted several times.
Ngan's work can be described as commentaries. He often pokes fun at life, using simple language to describe the day-to-day activities of his characters. He pays special attention to the details in the spoken language and often uses the charm of a dialogue to paint emotions.
In 1992, through a chance meeting, To Van Lai, president of Thuy Nga Productions, invited Ngan to join Thuy Nga as the master of ceremony (MC) for one of their Paris by Night videos. Ngan's charm, his wit and knowledge of Vietnamese culture, and his timing and style of delivery became an instant hit. In fact, like many of the singers and performers that he introduces, Ngan himself has quite a following.
In 1995, Thuy Nga Productions suggested that he reads for a series of audio books which were beginning to become more popular in the Vietnamese community abroad. He obliged and often read with Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen, Ai Van, Mai Phuong, Hong Dao, and Thanh Lan. To date, he has read 60 novels and short stories of all genres. These tapes are often sold out to the surprise of the producers. In the United States, where people often have to commute a long distance to work, the tapes often are a nice break for many in place of music. In companies where there are many Vietnamese employees, these tapes are often the topics of discussions during break and lunch time.
Today, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan often travels to many destinations throughout the world to host music shows and make public appearances. With his many careers, Mr. Ngan still finds time to pursue his first love of writing. His last novel, "Sunshine Passing the Old Street", published by Van Khoa in 1996 is being printed for the third time. He is working on another novel titled, "Xom Dao" to be published some time this year by Tan Van in Japan. His fans can contact him by writing to:
Nguyen Ngoc Ngan 428 Queen's Drive North York, Ontario Canada
