Pam Ling
Encyclopedia
Pam Ling is a Chinese American
physician, best-known as a castmate on The Real World: San Francisco
, the third season of MTV
's long-running reality television
show.
. In the first few weeks of their stay in the house, she was finishing up a difficult rotation. Like castmate Mohammed Bilal, she was one of the more calm and low-key roommates, and was the one of the last roommates that Puck would agree to talk to during conflict resolutions with the rest of the house. She became close with castmates Pedro Zamora
and Judd Winick
, and the three became inseparable, with Cory joining them halfway through their stay in San Francisco.
She attempted to maintain a long-distance relationship with her then-boyfriend Chris Barbour, and the roomies surprised her by having him visit San Francisco on her birthday, putting on a mock presentation of This is Your Life
, with a tuxedo-wearing Winick as the announcer, and her boyfriend as the final person to appear. Unbeknownst to anyone, Winick had developed feelings of his own for Pam, and after she would get home late at night from work and fall asleep with a book across her lap and a pen in her hand, Judd would turn off her bedside lamp, put the book away and cover her up. Ling and Winick supported Pedro by attending his lectures whenever they could.
spoke at their ceremony. They had a child in May 2005 and currently live in San Francisco.
The couple still continues Pedro's work in AIDS education. Pam completed her residency in primary care at the University of California, San Francisco
, in 1999, and entered into an AIDS
-research fellowship. She currently specializes in HIV and AIDS research. Her husband lectures about AIDS and wrote a book about the life of Zamora entitled Pedro and Me [2000].
's life, Ling is portrayed by Jenn Liu. Ling and Winnick can be seen in a cameo in a scene in which Jenn Liu and Alex Loynaz, as Ling and Winnick, are meeting up on a set of stairs.
Chinese American
Chinese Americans represent Americans of Chinese descent. Chinese Americans constitute one group of overseas Chinese and also a subgroup of East Asian Americans, which is further a subgroup of Asian Americans...
physician, best-known as a castmate on The Real World: San Francisco
The Real World: San Francisco
The Real World: San Francisco is the third season of MTV's reality television series The Real World, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras follow their lives and interpersonal relationships...
, the third season of MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's long-running reality television
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
show.
On the Real World
On the show, Ling was a Phi Beta Kappa member from Harvard, an overachiever, and in her third year of medical schoolMedical school
A medical school is a tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches medicine. Degree programs offered at medical schools often include Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Bachelor/Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Philosophy, master's degree, or other post-secondary...
. In the first few weeks of their stay in the house, she was finishing up a difficult rotation. Like castmate Mohammed Bilal, she was one of the more calm and low-key roommates, and was the one of the last roommates that Puck would agree to talk to during conflict resolutions with the rest of the house. She became close with castmates Pedro Zamora
Pedro Zamora
Pedro Pablo Zamora was a Cuban-American AIDS educator and television personality...
and Judd Winick
Judd Winick
Judd Winick is an American comic book, comic strip and television writer/artist and former reality television personality...
, and the three became inseparable, with Cory joining them halfway through their stay in San Francisco.
She attempted to maintain a long-distance relationship with her then-boyfriend Chris Barbour, and the roomies surprised her by having him visit San Francisco on her birthday, putting on a mock presentation of This is Your Life
This Is Your Life
This Is Your Life is an American television documentary series broadcast on NBC, originally hosted by its producer, Ralph Edwards from 1952 to 1961. In the show, the host surprises a guest, and proceeds to take them through their life in front of an audience including friends and family.Edwards...
, with a tuxedo-wearing Winick as the announcer, and her boyfriend as the final person to appear. Unbeknownst to anyone, Winick had developed feelings of his own for Pam, and after she would get home late at night from work and fall asleep with a book across her lap and a pen in her hand, Judd would turn off her bedside lamp, put the book away and cover her up. Ling and Winick supported Pedro by attending his lectures whenever they could.
After the Real World
After the show ended, Pam and Barbour broke up while her and Winick’s relationship moved beyond friendship. They visited Pedro in his hometown of Miami as he was hospitalized and their feelings deepened during their visits. On November 11, 1994, the day after the last San Francisco "Real World" episode aired, Pedro died. The death hit Ling and Winick especially hard, as they had become the closest to Pedro after leaving the show. Ling and Winick began dating in 1995 and moved in together. They announced their relationship at a Real World Reunion Special which brought together the casts of the first four seasons. Judd, wearing a gorilla suit, proposed to Pam in March 2000 after dating for five years. They married in a civil ceremony on August 26, 2001. Writer Armistead MaupinArmistead Maupin
Armistead Jones Maupin, Jr. is an American writer, best known for his Tales of the City series of novels, based in San Francisco.-Early life:...
spoke at their ceremony. They had a child in May 2005 and currently live in San Francisco.
The couple still continues Pedro's work in AIDS education. Pam completed her residency in primary care at the University of California, San Francisco
University of California, San Francisco
The University of California, San Francisco is one of the world's leading centers of health sciences research, patient care, and education. UCSF's medical, pharmacy, dentistry, nursing, and graduate schools are among the top health science professional schools in the world...
, in 1999, and entered into an AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
-research fellowship. She currently specializes in HIV and AIDS research. Her husband lectures about AIDS and wrote a book about the life of Zamora entitled Pedro and Me [2000].
In popular culture
In Pedro, Nick Oceano's 2008 film dramatizing Pedro ZamoraPedro Zamora
Pedro Pablo Zamora was a Cuban-American AIDS educator and television personality...
's life, Ling is portrayed by Jenn Liu. Ling and Winnick can be seen in a cameo in a scene in which Jenn Liu and Alex Loynaz, as Ling and Winnick, are meeting up on a set of stairs.
Sources and external links
- Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss, and What I Learned by Judd Winick (2000; Henry Holt & Co.)
- The Real World Diaries (1996; Pocket Books; MTV Books)