(1905–1961)
Anna May wong is considered as the first Chinese American film star, gaining international recognition through many movie roles in Hollywood and Europe. Her career was widely varied, spanning in silent film, sound film, television, stage, and radio. Starring in over 60 films, one of her biggest roles was in Shanghai Express alongside her close friend Marlene Dietrich in 1932
She was considered a pioneer for Asian minority representation in Hollywood. But unfortunately could only take on typecast roles of the “exotic oriental”. In the 1920s and still, in today's day and age, racism is prominent in Hollywood as it was commonplace for white actors and actresses.
At the age of 17 in the 1920s, Anna May Wong partook in her first role in a silent film, The Toll of the Sea (fun fact – it was one of the first movies made in colour). After this movie and her next role in The Thief of Bagdad (1924) at the age of 19, she became a fashion icon, achieving international stardom.
Despite being immensely talented, being wildly articulate and working alongside big named actors, she still became a victim of racism, threatened and exposed to the dangers of working in a white-washed industry.
In the late 1920s, Anna May Wong became frustrated with the typecast and stereotypical supporting roles she reluctantly played in Hollywood. She left for Europe stating “I was so tired of the parts I had to play, there seems little for me in Hollywood, because, rather than real Chinese, producers prefer Hungarians, Mexicans, American Indians for Chinese roles”
In Europe, she starred in several notable plays and films, among them Piccadilly (1929).
The most notable instance of the racism she had received was the film The Good Earth, a drama about Chinese farmers. Despite Anna May Wong giving an incredible audition for the role, the producers decided for the leads to be portrayed by actors of German and American descent. Luise Ranier, the female lead of The Good Earth won an Academy Award for the whitewashed role.
While Netflix's Hollywood is a work of fiction, it incorporates the stories of several real-life figures including Anna May Wong. Played by Michelle Krusiec, it shares her battle to find her footing in a business that only offered stereotypical roles to Asian-American performers.
In this present day, Anna May Wong's work has finally been given the appreciation and credit it deserved. She is now widely regarded as a groundbreaking star who laid the foundation for the generations of Asian American actors that came after her.
– lauren
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