Christy Chung helps LVMH move some Champagne

Moet Chandon threw a party to hype the brand at Cirque Le Soir, the hot new club at Bund 22 in Shanghai and thought that having Christy Chung stand with her hands on her hips wearing a partially transparent mermaid dress that she probably had to be sewed into would be a good way to attract attention. They were right.

Cirque Le Soir sounds like a nightclub designed by someone who really liked Baz Lurhman's "Moulin Rouge".

Sina; Talk Magazine; China Daily Secret

Mogul to build huge new studio in China; Zhang Ziyi, Zhao Wei, Ady An, Jing Tian help celebrate.

Wang Jianlin, billed as China's richest man by the Hurun Report in Forbes, announced a mega-studio in Qingdao; or as Variety put it he unveiled plans for global domination. Whatever the size of Wang Jianlin's fortune, he isn't short of the ready, having just picked up the AMC cinema chain for $2.6 billion. Lots of Hollywood stars and execs turned out along with enough Chinese onscreen talent for a few blockbusters. There will be year round activity at the Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis which will have seven (!) hotels, an indoor theme park (of course), an IMAX research facility and for those who just want to spend money, a yacht trading center.

Among the actresses were Zhang Ziyi who seemed to be dealing with an incipient wardrobe malfunction:

A rueful smile tells us that everything is OK:

A bit earlier in the day:

Vicki Zhao Wei wasn't having any difficult with a beautifully draped cape over a dress whose pattern looks a lot like the one worn Zhang Ziyi:

Showing versatility--a half wave using either her right or left hand:

Ady Ang Yi-Xuan and Jing Tian were among the young veterans of the screen, both looking as demure as one can while wearing evening dress in the middle of the afternoon:
Ady Ang Yi-Xuan

Jing Tian

L.A. Times; Variety; Sina

This just in...Vivian Chow still gorgeous

She was appearing in support of an album about to released and still knows to draw a crowd:

Sina slide

Karen Mok throws herself a party

Karen Mok has been in show business for 20 years. An exhibition chronicling her career is on display at a shopping mall in Honk Kong called in English "The Age of MOKnifigance, although there is no word yet regarding a follow-on docuMOKtery. It consists of costumes from notable film roles and live performances, props from films including the false teeth she wore in Stephen Chow’s "The God of Cookery" and photos from her childhood.

Looks like a good turnout:

The exhibition was overseen by a stylized version of the ubiquitous Hello Kitty:

Yahoo Singapore; Chanel News Asia; Zimbio

Gong Li and Kelly Chen rep Swiss watches

Gong Li is the brand ambassador for the new Piaget Limelight Gala collection of expensive watches that, according to a breathless company announcement, represents the 1960s "which were known as a golden age pervaded by a resolutely fanciful spirit." Som of us remember the 1960s as a time of civil rights demonstrations, radical political campaigns and the war in Vietnam but that probably won't sell many diamond encrusted watches.

Over the past five years China has rewarded luxury goods manufacturers with a presence there with double digit annual growth. Philippe Leopold Metzger, CEO of Piaget, is not one to miss a sure thing. Here he slips a few hundred thousand dollars worth on diamonds onto Gong Li's wrist.

The creative director for the campaign decided that the best way to present Gong Li was as a photoshopped image that was barely recognizable:

Meanwhile Kelly Chen put on a pink dress and slapped a decal on her arm from Ernest Borel, a Swiss watchmaker that targets a larger and less wealthy slice of the market:

She joined a few hundred guests of the sponsor and a photo crew for a quick shipboard photo opportunity. Leaning against a rail she was her usual serene self, looking as placid as the sea.

Piaget; Xinhua; Ernest Borel; Sina

Brigitte Lin goes to the theatre, draws a crowd

"The Absolute Beauty" is running in Hong Kong and Brigitte Lin checked out a performance and went backstage to greet the star, Liu Xiaoqing. The play is centered on Sai Jinhua, a famous courtesan in Nanjing during the Qing Dynasty.

Brigitte Lin and Liu Xiaoqing:

Liu Xiaoqing on stage:

Big smile for the paparazzi:

Simply gorgeous:

Liu Xiaoqing has quite a story: a leading actress in the 1980s, she retired from the stage and became a success in business but ran afoul of the tax laws and served a year in prison. She returned to the stage several years ago.

dongguantoday; Sina slide