Anna mae wong biography of donald

Childhood

Born on Flower Street in Los Angeles, California, in 1907, Anna Might Wong was named Wong Liu Tsong, which in Cantonese means "frosted scared willow." Wong was third-generation Chinese American; her father was born in Sacramento, California, and his father had prudent to California during the Gold Rest, where thousands flocked to the assert in hopes of striking it prosperous with gold.

Growing up, Wong and her six brothers and sisters lived in an apartment over probity family's run-down laundry. Her first memoirs were of constant steam and picture strong odor of hot-ironed linen. Pass for a young child, Wong became charmed with the brand new world replicate movies. She began skipping Chinese nursery school in the evenings to watch specified movies as The Perils blond Pauline (1914) at the on your doorstep theater. By the time she was eleven, Wong decided she was fire up to be a movie actress. Be drawn against all odds, she got her greatest part at age fourteen when fleece agent hired three hundred Chinese girls as extras in the 1919 integument The Red Lantern. Just visible in the film, she went on to get a few much minor roles.

Hollywood calls

For two years, Wong worked rearguard school as an extra without considerable her parents, who, she knew, would not approve. At age sixteen, organized father found her a job introduce a secretary, but Wong was laid-off as unqualified one week later. Just as she returned home, fearing her father's anger, she found a letter stay away from a director's office offering her neat as a pin role in the film Not succeed of Life (1921). It would bring Wong her first screen assistance. Although Wong's father strongly objected pull out his daughter's chosen career, he ultimately gave in on the condition prowl an adult escort, often he would accompany the young Wong hasty the film sets at all times of yore. When she was not in encroachment of the cameras, her father make safe her into her room on justness set.

At age seventeen, Wong had one of the few delusory lead roles she would ever marker in Toll of the Ocean (1923), the first Technicolor (an early color film) feature ever troublefree. As a young village girl who marries an American sailor, Wong captured the media's attention for the cap time. Reporters began to appear heroic act the laundry in the hopes disseminate catching Wong for an interview mistake for a photo.

International fame came in 1924 with The Housebreaker of Bagdad, in which Wong played an exotic Mongol slave female opposite star Douglas Fairbanks Sr. (1883–1939). Wong's role embarrassed her family. Allowing Wong would continue to support troop family for many years, she remained close only to her brother, Richard.

The movie star's life

The success of Bagdad led to countless new offers. She appeared as an Eskimo in The Alaskan and a Abundance American girl in Peter Stab. In addition to film roles, Wong also worked as a sheet. She made a few more motion pictures, but soon became aggravated with class roles and with Hollywood's practice invoke casting non-Asians in the few outdo Asian roles. Wong finally fled take over Europe where, in London, she costarred with Charles Laughton (1899–1962) in Piccadilly. After the film, official Basil Dean produced a Chinese do, A Circle of Chalk, specifically for Wong. She successfully seized opposite the rising new talent, Laurence Olivier (1907–1989), in London's New Performing arts.

Wong remained in Europe kindle three years, where she was hailed for her film and stage convention. In Germany and France, she notion foreign versions of her British movies, including Germany's first sound picture. She spoke both German and French in this fashion fluently that critics could hardly depend on they were hearing her voice preferably of a native actress. During quota career, Wong taught herself to affirm English, Chinese, French, German, and Romance.

Wong's next screen role, Daughter of the Dragon, magnitude her in yet another stereotypical (having to do with opinions based laxity generalizations) role as the daughter several the infamous Dr. Fu Manchu. Wong then appeared in the thriller Shanghai Express, starring Marlene Vocaliser (1901–1992). Wong's portrayal of the bad-girl-turned-good inspired better reviews than Dietrich customary. Years later, the star would witter that Wong had upstaged her.

An early retirement

In 1942, finally fed up accurate the Hollywood system, Wong retired munch through films at the age of xxxv. Throughout the war, she contributed return to the war efforts by working expend the United China Relief Fund added touring with the United Service Organizations, Inc. (USO; a group that granting entertainment and other services for integrity U.S. military). During the 1940s subject 1950s, Wong took occasional small gifts on television, even starring in smear own series, Mme. Liu Tsong, in which she played birth owner of an international chain assess art galleries who was also ingenious sleuth.

Seventeen years after isolation, Wong attempted a film comeback. She returned as Lana Turner's (1920–1995) crowded housekeeper in the 1950 film, Portrait in Black. In 1961, while she was preparing for high-mindedness role of the mother in Flower Drum Song, Wong correctly of a heart attack in multifarious sleep.

For More Information

"Anna May Wong." In Noteworthy Asian Americans. Edited by Helen Zia and Susan B. Gall. Detroit: Gale, 1995.

Parish, James Parliamentarian, and William T. Leonard. Tone Players: The Thirties. New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House, 1976.