China Chow aka China biography

China Chow, born in London, currently divides her time between New York City and Los Angeles. She is the child of late model/designer Tina Chow (who died to AIDS in 1992) and restauranteur Michael Chow (whose Mr. Chow restaurants are the talk of the town in London, Manhattan, and Beverly Hills), and has a younger brother. The first college graduate in her family, China graduated from Scripps College, majoring in psychology. She spent several years as a model, following in her mother's footsteps: She posed for Shiseido cosmetics in Japan, was seen on billboards for Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein, was named one of Harper's Bazaar's "It Girls" in 1996, and was named in the December 1996 edition of Vogue magazine's "The Next Best-Dressed List". Her acting debut was in 1998's "The Big Hit", co-starring Mark Wahlberg, whom she was rumored to have dated.

She is the daughter of restaurateur Michael Chow and late model/designer Tina Chow. Her father is of Chinese and Scottish descent, while her mother was of German and Japanese decent. She also has a brother who is 2 years younger. Her aunt is actress and onetime Bond girl Tsai Chin.

Before becoming an actress, China was the first college graduate in her family, majoring in psychology at Scripps College. She then spent several years following in her mother's footsteps working as a model for Shiseido cosmetics, Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein. Her modeling led to her being named one of Harper's Bazaar's "It Girls" in 1996 and appearing in the December 1996 edition of Vogue magazine's "The Next Best-Dressed List".

In 2000, Chow posed for Maxim magazine. Her B&W photo spread is featured on their Girls of Maxim gallery. She was ranked #54 on the Maxim Hot 100 Women of 2001.