Nguyễn Ngọc Ngạn is a Vietnamese-Canadian writer and essayist.

He was born in Sơn Tây

Son Tay

Sơn Tây is an urban district and city in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. It was the capital of Son Tay province before merging with Ha Dong province in 1965...

, Vietnam

Vietnam

Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...

, but his family moved to South Vietnam when the Geneva Accords

Geneva Conference (1954)

The Geneva Conference was a conference which took place in Geneva, Switzerland, whose purpose was to attempt to find a way to unify Korea and discuss the possibility of restoring peace in Indochina...

 divided the country in 1945. After university and service in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam

Army of the Republic of Vietnam

The Army of the Republic of Viet Nam , sometimes parsimoniously referred to as the South Vietnamese Army , was the land-based military forces of the Republic of Vietnam , which existed from October 26, 1955 until the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975...

, Ngan was imprisoned by the victorious communists after the fall of Saigon

Fall of Saigon

The Fall of Saigon was the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by the People's Army of Vietnam and the National Liberation Front on April 30, 1975...

 in 1975 and did forced labor in a re-education camp until 1978, an experience described in his autobiography, The Will Of Heaven. After his release, he escaped by boat to Malaysia in 1979; during the closing stages of the journey, storms hit the boat and knocked it over within sight of land. Ngan's wife and child drowned and he was pulled unconscious from the water. He was then sponsored by the Canadian government and brought to Vancouver

Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

, in 1980 moving to Prince Rupert, British Columbia

Prince Rupert, British Columbia

Prince Rupert is a port city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is the land, air, and water transportation hub of British Columbia's North Coast, and home to some 12,815 people .-History:...

 and in 1985 to Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

.

Ngạn is well known for his role as one of the two hosts of Paris By Night

Paris by Night

Paris By Night is a popular Vietnamese language musical variety show, produced by an Overseas Vietnamese company Thúy Nga and hosted by Nguyễn Ngọc Ngạn and Nguyễn Cao Kỳ Duyên, featuring musical performances by modern pop stars, traditional folk songs, one-act plays, and sketch comedy...

. He is the co-author of Ballad Of Mulan and The Blind Man and the Cripple - Orchard Village.

Sources

• Nguyễn Ngọc Ngạn with E.E. Richey, The Will of Heaven: A Story of One Vietnamese and the End of His World, Dutton, 1982: ISBN 0525030611