SINGAPORE - In our showbiz industry where the young and gorgeous often get bigger roles and more attention, evergreen actress Hong Huifang could be considered over the hill.

Yet the mother of two, who turns 52 in January, is one of the queens of endorsements at MediaCorp.

Old is indeed gold.

And it's an eclectic selection too.

This year, Hong has put her face to beauty salon BodyPerfect, wig boutique Fortune Wigs and milk powder Anlene.

She also endorses Riversound Residence in Sengkang and Nirvana Memorial Garden columbarium.

She is up there with popular idol actress Jeanette Aw, 33,who has under her belt Olay Regenerist facial cream, SK 999 Pure Gold Jewellery, Owl coffee products and New Moon abalone and rice.

Other idols aren't far behind either. Joanne Peh, 28, has Laurier sanitary pads, Singapore Exchange investment gameStockWhiz and Kovan Regency.

She will also be the face for an upcoming electronics endorsement.

Meanwhile, Elvin Ng, 31, endorses Shokubutsu men's toiletries, Systema oral care and Mercedes- Benz.

Hong, who started acting in 1983 at 22, told The New Paper in a recent interview that her deals came as a huge surprise.

She's very flattered, she added. "I had a lot of endorsements when I was in my 20s, like for beverages and bird's nest." But the deals ended in my 30s and 40s, probably because it was an awkward age. I was neither young nor old."

She believes her clients like her healthy and positive image now, and also her strong family bonds.

Her age and the years she has spent in showbiz also make her a convincing ambassador to certain target markets.

Read the full story here.