Helen Li Mei in the U.S.A.

Was Helen Li Mei deported from the United States in the wake of the Jantzen Swimsuit Affair? Did she immediately return to Hong Kong in defeat and shame? I don't think so... not our proud Helen!

Instead of being paraded around in a swimsuit, here's how Helen spent her four-month stay in the U.S.A.


Although she was dissed by Jantzen upon her arrival in the States, at least Helen got a little bit of aloha when she touched down in Hawaii on her way to New York.


In New York, Helen made personal appearances during screenings of A Girl Named Hong Hong (1956), a film that she financed and produced herself.


Here she is, signing photos for her young fans.


Hailed by Chinese Americans as the "most patriotic Chinese actress", Helen celebrated Double Ten Day in New York Chinatown.


She was even interviewed on WOR Radio. I'd love to hear this!


No visit to the Big Apple would be complete without meeting the mayor. Here she is with Mayor Robert F. Wagner, Jr.


Helen was given a tour of the United Nations Headquarters by Dr. T. F. Tsiang (on her right), the Republic of China's chief delegate to the U.N., and Dr. Victor Hu (on her left), the delegation secretary. Check out that cheongsam!


She also dined with Dr. George Yeh, the Republic of China's Ambassador to the U.S. Are you surprised? Well, Helen did major in political science before she became a movie star.


Here she is on the steps of the Capitol.


Helen visited with fellow Hong Kong actresses Siu Yin Fei (second from left, front row) and Pearl Au Kar-wai (second from left, back row), who were in New York at the time.


She also met Broadway's "Suzie Wong", France Nuyen. Was it cordial cattiness or sisterly love?


Anthony Quinn asked Helen to play the leading role in a film that he was planning on directing. Look at the camera, Tony!


Out on the West Coast, Helen visited the Twentieth Century-Fox studios. Is that Danny Kaye who is the object of her admiring gaze?


Finally, here she is in San Francisco, standing in front of the Golden Gate Bridge.

This wasn't Helen's only trip to the United States. After she retired from show business in 1967, she married Chinese American Robert Ruan, a CIA officer she met in Taiwan, and moved to his hometown of Portland, Oregon, where she lived until her death in 1994.