Agnes Lum
7.3
7 votes
Astrological Zodiac sign: Taurus
Age: 57
Agnes Nalani Lum, born to a Chinese father and a mother of Hawaiian ancestry, in Honolulu, Hawaii, is a gravure idol star, singer, actress, and bikini supermodel popular in Japan in the late 1970s and early 1980s. At that time, she was nicknamed "Lum-chan" in Japan, though now that nickname can be confused with that of the fictional character Lum Invader from Urusei Yatsura.
Agnes Lum was the inspiration for the name of this character as she was extremely popular and well-known at the time the manga was first released (1977). In order to avoid confusion with Agnes Chan, another popular idol at the time, "Lum-chan" was used, though many fans called both simply "Agnes". Lum has appeared in numerous calendars, on posters, and magazine spreads, and these items regularly fetch high prices in the collectors market.
During high school, Lum worked as a model and became well-known in Hawaii. She was named Miss Hawaii USA at one point, but the title was taken away because she was too young to compete in the Miss USA contest. Lum became an overnight success in Japan after becoming the first Clarion Girl in 1975, hired to promote Clarion products in a television and print advertising campaign.
In 1976, she released her first single, titled Downtown After the Rain. That same year, she made her debut appearance on NHK's Kōhaku Uta Gassen variety show. In 1996, Lum appeared, along with her twin sons, in a television commercial for the Daihatsu Pyzar.
See also: Model, Singer, Actress, Chinese, American, Beauty Pageant Contestant, Gravure Idol, Hawaiian
