This attractive stage-trained performer appeared in a number of off-Broadway shows before making her breakthrough performance in "The Joy Luck Club" as part of a strong ensemble of Asian actresses. Wen (whose name means enlightenment) began her professional career in the Playwrights Horizon presentation of "Tiny Mommy". She went on to appear for three seasons as Lien Hughes in the on-going daytime serial "As the World Turns". In her second feature, "Street Fighter" (1994), Wen appeared as a kick-boxing TV reporter opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia. She had a recurring role as an ambitious third-year med student during the freshman year of the NBC medical drama "ER" (1995). Wen was subsequently cast as a regular on the sitcom "The Single Guy" (NBC, 1995-97) as Trudy, the caustic owner of a SoHo art gallery. When the series ended, she headed to Broadway where she debuted in David Henry Hwang's "Golden Child" (1998). That same year, Wen also provided the speaking voice for the Disney animated heroine "Mulan".
- Also Credited As:
Ming Na, Ming Wen, Ming-Na
- Born:
November 20, 1967 in Macao, China
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Job Titles:
Actor, Model, Clerk
Family
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Daughter: Michaela Zee. born in November 2000
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Half-brother: Jonathan Wen. older
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Half-brother: Leong Wen. older
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Mother: Linchan Yee.
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Son: Cooper Dominic Zee. born October 12, 2005; father, Eric Zee
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Step-father: Soo Lim Yee. owned and operated Chinatown Inn in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; died c. October 1995
Education
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Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, drama, BFA
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Mount Lebanon High School, Mount Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Milestones
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1988 Appeared as Lien Hughes in the daytime soap, As the World Turns ; first Asian actor in a contract role on a soap
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1992 Feature acting debut, Rain Without Thunder
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1993 Breakthrough feature, The Joy Luck Club
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1993 TV movie debut, Blind Spot
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1995 Appeared in recurring role of med student Deb Chen on NBC drama ER
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1998 Broadway debut as co-star of Golden Child , written by David Henry Hwang
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1998 Voiced the title character in Disney s animated Mulan
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2000 Rejoined ER reprising her role as Jing-Mei (Deb) Chen; signed to remain with show through the 2002-2003 season
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2001 Provided voice for the leading character of Dr. Aki Ross in the CGI animated feature Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within
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Appeared in regional productions while attending college
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Cast as regular on the sitcom on The Single Guy (NBC)
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Lived in Hong Kong
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Moved to Pittsburgh with family
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Moved to Queens, New York at age five with her mother and older brother
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Off-Broadway debut, Tiny Mommy
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Returned to New York upon graduation