Chen Yen-Yen, last of the Manchu aristocrats, entered the film industry in 1930. Many of her movies such as "Love and Obligation", "Three Modern Ladies" and "The Big Road" became classics. She was especially competent in playing the role of an attractive young girl becoming aware of her own sensuality. With such and image and a melodious voice, she became the favorite throughout the country when she was only a teenager. At 20, she became one of the famous "Top Four Starlets". She specialized in costume drama and tragedy --hence her name: the "Queen of Tragedy". She came to Hong Kong in the 1940s and changed to a more mature screen role. She won the Best Supporting Actress in the 4th and 8th Asian Film Festival with "Splendid Years of Youth" and "Yin Rong Jie" respectively. Chen joined Shaw Brothers in the 60s as a standard actress and starred in many movies. She left the industry in the 1970s and appeared in a supporting tole in TV drama in the mid 80s.
From the Celestial DVD release of "The Young Avenger"
