Chiung Yao

Chen Che (Chinese: 陳喆; 20 April 1938 – 4 December 2024), better known by her pen name Chiung Yao, was a Taiwanese writer and producer. The name Chiung Yao is taken from the Classic of Poetry, where it means "splendid pure jade". Born in Chengdu, Sichuan, she moved to Taiwan with her family in 1949 during the Chinese civil war. A leading figure in Chinese romance novels, she rose to fame with Outside the Window (1963), which led to her association with Ping Hsin-tao, owner of the Crown magazine. The two later married and co-founded production companies to adapt Chiung Yao's works for the screen, pioneering cross-strait collaboration in television and film. Her works achieved enormous popularity across the Chinese-speaking world and Southeast Asia in the late 20th century, launching the careers of many actors, with My Fair Princess ranking among the most-watched Chinese television dramas of all time.