She wooed the world

THIRTY-FOUR years after her first screen kiss, the woman who wooed the world as Suzie Wong, cannot remember the moment. 'I wish I could remember the kiss. I guess I should, but I can't,' said Nancy Kwan, looking slightly bemused as she sipped iced tea, in a Hollywood hotel.

She was thinking back to 1960, when she made her debut as Hong Kong's most famous fictional character.

Even after all these years, Kwan is still best-known as Suzie, the 'tart with a heart'. 'The film had a really big impact, not just in Hong Kong, but all over the world,' she said.

'I still get quite a lot of letters about Suzie Wong yet I've done 40 or 50 other films since then.' Kwan was 19 when she was given a seven-year contract and the part of Suzie Wong, opposite William Holden, already well-known for Love is a Many Splendored Thing . Initially she lost the part to French-born Eurasian, France Nuyen, but Nuyen was sacked, along with director Jean Negulesco, during the first month's shooting in Hong Kong.

Kwan, who had auditioned while training at The Royal Ballet in London, was playing Suzie in a touring theatre company in Canada when she got a call to test for the film again in London.

'I was really excited to get the role. I guess I was lucky. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. I just remember at the time I thought 'Wow! It's a terrific role', ' she said.