Ballet gives you discipline. It keeps me disciplined; tai chi, qigong and meditation help to keep me centered. I like to keep my feet on the ground. We live such a fast, crazy life in the film business; I need time alone.

I love the climate in LA, and I have lots of friends there.

When a good job comes along, I take it. When it doesn’t, I go behind the camera. Norbert and I just finished a film called “Ray of Sunshine.” He directed and I starred.

Asian Americans are very stereotyped in Hollywood. I belong to a theatre group that helps Asians. It’s important for them to have somewhere to work at their craft.

If there were more Asians on the other side of the camera; directors, writers, executive producers, they could in turn hire more Asians. With digital coming in, it’s getting better; it’s less expensive to shoot, they can now go off and make a movie themselves.

The only way to assure that we get parts is to write them ourselves.

In the 1950s, there were very strong roles for women. Today, it’s very difficult today for women over 40 to get good roles. Films are generally not character-driven; it’s just special effects, huge explosions – macho films.

The movie industry is not glamorous, it’s a lot of hard work, and sometimes it takes hours to set up a scene. Sometimes, you have to do take after take, and it takes a lot out of you. If it works, it’s good.

I was lucky. I was in the right place at the right time, and my first film was terribly successful.

There are certain movies that stay with you - “The Wizard of Oz” was one of the first movies I saw, and I still love it. I wanted those red shoes so badly.

“Suzie Wong” was a long time ago, but people still talk about it. I still get fan letters. I guess it must have got something right if it still affects people after all these years. Its success allowed me to play a lot of roles that I would not otherwise have got, not only Asians, but non-Asian roles too. So I have a special feeling about it.

In the old days I played an Italian, a Tahitian and an American-Indian. I was David Carradine’s sister in a movie called “The McMasters.” But today I can’t play anything but Asians.

Originally, France Nguyen was meant to play [Suzie], but she was fired half way through shooting. So they started all over again, with me and a new director. It was pretty gutsy.

Really, I didn’t know what I was doing. Previously, though, I was touring with the stage show, which helped a lot.

I admire William Holden because he was such a great technical actor, and I learned a lot from him.

I was a girl playing a woman from a world I knew nothing about. If it wasn’t for William Holden and the director I don’t think it would have come off.

Suzie Wong was an innocent girl, not a down-home, earthy prostitute. She was like a fairy.

Happiness is spontaneous, and momentary. Places, things, they don’t make me happy. Only I can do that.

Other than my childhood, most of my happiest memories of Hong Kong involve eating.

It’s all changed so much - there is nothing left that I knew before. Europe really doesn’t change that much. You go there, return five years later, and everything’s pretty much the same.

When I’m not here, I miss the food, the harbor. There are a lot of things I miss about Hong Kong. You don’t see many of those huge junks of the old days.

I’ve had quite a few difficult moments in my life, but the hardest was definitely when my son died. The loss of someone you love is the hardest, and my son was a wonderful boy. When he passed away, it was a big loss... a big, big loss.

We all have regrets. You live your life, and sometimes you think you should have done this, that. My son passing away was something that was out of my control.

Norbert makes me laugh. It’s very important in a relationship that you can talk to each other, and share your passions.

Going out on a limb to test yourself - that’s what makes life interesting.