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Magazine: China Times Weekly (Taiwan)

February 1995, Double Issue 884/885.

Translated by: Webmistress of Collecting Vivian

In this type of weather, if someone tried to force you to show up in a swimsuit, would you do it?

I believe the answer for most people would be NO.  "No way, no way!"

Even though no one would try it, the model Vivian Hsu did it.  For "beauty" she made the ultimate "sacrifice," without force or bribe.  Like a flower, Vivian Hsu wore a thin bikini swimsuit and sometimes sat by a swimming pool, sometimes swam in the water.

As long as the photographer's camera clicked, she got no rest.  Not even a temperature of zero degree Celsius could move her.

Is Vivian Hsu superman?  She's not afraid of cold?

"Who says I'm not afraid of cold?  I'm freezing!"  Vivian Hsu said loudly, "Korea is too cold!  I will never have a marriage where I need to live in Korea."

After her trip to Korea, Vivian said, "I still like Taiwan better."

After bikini photos in the swimming pool, the team went on the mountaintops.

Korean mountaintops in December are covered with snow, so wherever you look you see a beautiful silver world.  Vivian Hsu shouted excitedly and ran straight off the car to start a snowball fight.  "This is the first time I've ever played with snow!"

Vivian Hsu began her career as a singer.  When she first entered the entertainment business, she was a member of Shou Nu Duey (Girl Group).  Unfortunately, after singing for 2 or 3 years, nothing much happened.  As a result, not many people knew whom she was.  Only until she did a photobook called "Angel" did she receive fame and became a household name.

"A photobook," Vivian Hsu said, "when I first heard it I was really shocked.  I thought, for me to take nude pictures, that's impossible."

Famous photographer behind camera, nude angel famous as the sky.

Vivian Hsu said she struggled for 2 months before she agreed.  "The biggest factor to my agreement lied in the fact that Chen Wen Bin was the photographer."

"He told me that people asked him to work on photobooks before, but he refused because he didn't think the timing was right.  Now he felt it's time and he wanted me to not worry at all, because hurting me would be hurting him."

"I thought, my career reached no height, why not try something new as a challenge."

When the photobook reached the market, it immediately sold more than one hundred thousand copies and Vivian Hsu was a winner both in terms of money and fame.

She not only acted in films like "Angel Heart" and "Shoulin Poppy," she even got an offer to work in Japan.

"They invested one billion yens on me," Vivian Hsu felt herself to be a very lucky girl!  "Because a lot of people wanted to work in Japan but can't even go!"

Vivian Hsu's Japanese agency is SKY.  Other Chinese entertainers under the same agency included Joey Wong, Yea Yun Yi, Vivian Chow, and Maggie Cheung.

"This was also the first time a Japanese company invested this much money on a foreigner," Vivian Hsu said happily, "they are very kind to me!"

In December of last year, Vivian already started her first phase in Japan.  Her first assignment was to face the Japanese media.

"I'd see reporters from more than a dozen places per day.  One magazine let me be on its cover twice in one month!"

Anada is kawaii, career goes smoothly in Japan.

Vivian Hsu is the type that Japanese people like.  Most people think that she looks rather like a Japanese girl and feel close to her, sometimes people compliment her as "kawaii" (cute).  Vivian Hsu said she'd hear that word more than ten times per day.

She hasn't been in Japan for more than a few days before Vivian Hsu got quite a bit of popularity.  Now when she walks on the street, many younger students recognize her and ask her for autographs and photos.  Some even ask for a hug.  "I'm really happy that I'm already known."

Right now working in Japan is the center of Vivian Hsu's career.  "I have confidence but also lots of pressure."  Vivian Hsu wanted to be like Judy Ong, a star that every Japanese family knows.  "First I need to try hard and learn Japanese."  Vivian Hsu said that learning Japanese was her first priority.

Her Japanese agency told her that a while back Joey Wong was very popular in Japan, but because she refused to learn Japanese her popularity in Japan has dropped dramatically.

After hearing this, Vivian Hsu told herself that she must always remember this lesson.

Currently Vivian Hsu is studying Japanese all the time.  Although she has only stayed in Japan a little while, she can already understand simple greetings.

"My biggest dream is to be an international star."  It appears that Vivian Hsu's dream is within reach.