Victor Gee Keung Wong (; July 30, 1927 – September 12, 2001) was an American actor, artist, and journalist of
Chinese descent
Overseas Chinese people are people of Chinese origin who reside outside Greater China (mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan). As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese. As of 2023, there were 10.5 million people livin ...
.
He appeared in supporting roles in films throughout the 1980s and 1990s, including Chinese sorcerer Egg Shen in
John Carpenter
John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, composer, and actor. Most commonly associated with horror film, horror, action film, action, and science fiction film, science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s, he is ...
's cult film ''
Big Trouble in Little China
''Big Trouble in Little China'' (also known as ''John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China'') is a 1986 American fantasy action-comedy film directed by John Carpenter, and starring Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun and James Hong. The ...
'', royal adviser
Chen Bao Shen in the
Best Picture
The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...
–winning ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' () is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the last Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted from Puyi's 1964 auto ...
'' (1987), rural storekeeper Walter Chang in the
comedy horror
Comedy horror (also called horror comedy) is a literary, television and film genre that combines elements of comedy and horror fiction. Comedy horror has been described as having three types: "black comedy, parody and spoof." Comedy horror can a ...
film ''
Tremors'' (1990), and Grandpa Mori in the ''
3 Ninjas
''3 Ninjas'' is a series of action comedy family films about the adventures of three young brothers who are trained by their Japanese grandfather in the art of ''ninjutsu''. Victor Wong is the only cast member to appear in all four films.
C ...
'' tetralogy (1992–1998). He also played several starring roles for independent filmmaker
Wayne Wang
Wayne Wang (; born January 12, 1949) is a Hong Kong-American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Considered a pioneer of Asian-American cinema, he was one of the first Chinese-American filmmakers to gain a major foothold in Hollyw ...
, who described him as his "alter ego".
Earlier in his career, Wong worked for
KQED as an on-air reporter and later a pioneering
photojournalist
Photojournalism is journalism that uses images to tell a news story. It usually only refers to still images, but can also refer to video used in broadcast journalism. Photojournalism is distinguished from other close branches of photography (suc ...
.
His association with
Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko ( ; Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz until 1940; September 25, 1903February 25, 1970) was an American abstract art, abstract painter. He is best known for his color field paintings that depicted irregular and painterly rectangular reg ...
, whom he met during his studies at the
San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI) was a Private college, private art school, college of contemporary art in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1871, SFAI was one of the oldest art schools in the United States and the oldest west of the Mis ...
, saw him interact with several luminaries of the
Beat Generation
The Beat Generation was a literary subculture movement started by a group of authors whose work explored and influenced American culture and politics in the post-World War II era. The bulk of their work was published and popularized by members o ...
, including
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation.
Of French-Canadian ...
, who fictionalized him as "Arthur Ma" in his novel
''Big Sur''.
Early life and education
Wong was born in
San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
and lived in
Chinatown
Chinatown ( zh, t=唐人街) is the catch-all name for an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, Asia, Africa, O ...
near the
Stockton Street Tunnel
The Stockton Street Tunnel is a tunnel in San Francisco, California, which carries its namesake street underneath a section of Nob Hill near Chinatown for about three blocks. It was opened in 1914. The south portal is located at Bush Street, wh ...
to Chinese parents. His father, Sare King Wong, was born and raised in
Guangdong
) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...
province, and later moved to
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
as a news journalist. His mother Alice was a devout Christian who took the family to the First Chinese Baptist Church every week. Wong was one of five children; his siblings were Sarah Wong Lum, Zeppelin Wong, and twins Shirley Wong Frentzel and Betty Wong Brown.
[ Sare King Wong's grandfather had founded the ''Young China'' newspaper with Dr. ]Sun Yat-sen
Sun Yat-senUsually known as Sun Zhongshan () in Chinese; also known by Names of Sun Yat-sen, several other names. (; 12 November 186612 March 1925) was a Chinese physician, revolutionary, statesman, and political philosopher who founded the Republ ...
. Victor Wong was fluent with both English and Cantonese, which helped lead his acting career to Hong Kong.[
Wong and his family moved to Courtland, California when he was two years old after his father took a job as teacher and principal at a school for the children of local Chinese laborers. The family would move back to Chinatown within three years and his father was active in local politics. He would live in ]Sacramento, California
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...
for much of his adult life.[
*a "For much of the past two decades—in which he had appeared in nearly 30 Hollywood films—Wong had lived in Midtown Sacramento." — ¶ 3.
*b "Unlike most Hollywood actors, Wong eschewed the fast life and glamour of Los Angeles and continued to live humbly in his unassuming Midtown Sacramento residence where he could be close to his children. — ¶ 23.]
Wong studied political science and journalism at the University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
and theology at the University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
under Paul Tillich
Paul Johannes Tillich (; ; August 20, 1886 – October 22, 1965) was a German and American Christian existentialist philosopher, religious socialist, and Lutheran theologian who was one of the most influential theologians of the twenti ...
, Reinhold Niebuhr
Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr (June 21, 1892 – June 1, 1971) was an American Reformed theologian, ethicist, commentator on politics and public affairs, and professor at Union Theological Seminary for more than 30 years. Niebuhr was one of Ameri ...
and Martin Buber
Martin Buber (; , ; ; 8 February 1878 – 13 June 1965) was an Austrian-Israeli philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a form of existentialism centered on the distinction between the I and Thou, I–Thou relationship and the I� ...
. In Chicago, Wong joined The Second City
The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise. It is the oldest improvisational theater troupe to be continuously based in Chicago, with training programs and live theaters in Toronto and New York. Since its debut in 1959, it has b ...
comedy troupe and stayed with Langston Hughes
James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. An early innovator of jazz poetry, Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harl ...
.[ Wong returned to San Francisco for the summer, taking part in a theatre production and never returning to Chicago; he resumed his studies at the ]San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI) was a Private college, private art school, college of contemporary art in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1871, SFAI was one of the oldest art schools in the United States and the oldest west of the Mis ...
under Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko ( ; Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz until 1940; September 25, 1903February 25, 1970) was an American abstract art, abstract painter. He is best known for his color field paintings that depicted irregular and painterly rectangular reg ...
, earning a master's degree in 1962.
Journalism
Although he had acted in and staged productions with his first wife, Olive, who he had met after his return from Chicago, Wong was inspired by the assassination of John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963. Kennedy was in the vehicle with his wife Jacqueline Kennedy Onas ...
to pursue a career in journalism, landing an on-air role for KQED's ''Newsroom,'' where he won a Regional Emmy
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
, from 1968 until 1974, when he was stricken with Bell's palsy
Bell's palsy is a type of facial paralysis that results in a temporary inability to control the facial muscles on the affected side of the face. In most cases, the weakness is temporary and significantly improves over weeks. Symptoms can vary f ...
.[
During his tenure on ''Newsroom'', Wong is credited with inventing the photojournalistic essay, covering stories with his still camera and returning to narrate them in the studio.] The palsy would give him his later distinctive appearance, but at the time, he felt his roles had diminished because he wasn't "pretty looking".
Acting career
After his news career ended, Wong turned to acting, starting in the local Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans with ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of those immigrants).
Although this term had historically been used fo ...
theatre and later landing larger roles on the stages of New York City. In October 1980, Wong made his Asian American Theater Company
The Asian American Theater Company (AATC) is a non-profit theatre performance company based in San Francisco. Its stated mission is "To connect people to Asian American culture through Theatre". The company's main stage productions are new plays an ...
(AATC) debut in San Francisco by appearing in their production of ''Paper Angels'' by Genny Lim. He was on Social Security Disability Insurance
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSD or SSDI) is a payroll tax-funded federal insurance program of the United States government. It is managed by the Social Security Administration and designed to provide monthly benefits to people who ha ...
at the time due to his palsy. In New York, he acted in the plays '' Family Devotions'' and '' Sound and Beauty'', written by David Henry Hwang
David Henry Hwang (born August 11, 1957) is an American playwright, librettist, screenwriter, and theater professor at Columbia University in New York City. He has won three Obie Awards for his plays '' FOB'', '' Golden Child'', and '' Yellow ...
.
His stage work led to television work and eventually, into movies; his film debut was in 1984's '' Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart'', directed by Wayne Wang
Wayne Wang (; born January 12, 1949) is a Hong Kong-American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Considered a pioneer of Asian-American cinema, he was one of the first Chinese-American filmmakers to gain a major foothold in Hollyw ...
. In between film roles, Wong lived in Sacramento, California
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...
, where he supported the local performing arts. In 1987 he was the Old Man in the movie hit The Golden Child alongside Eddie Murphy. In 1992, he acted in the Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
film, '' Cageman'' (笼民). He later starred as Grandpa Mori in the ''3 Ninjas
''3 Ninjas'' is a series of action comedy family films about the adventures of three young brothers who are trained by their Japanese grandfather in the art of ''ninjutsu''. Victor Wong is the only cast member to appear in all four films.
C ...
'' franchise, and the cult-classics, ''Big Trouble in Little China
''Big Trouble in Little China'' (also known as ''John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China'') is a 1986 American fantasy action-comedy film directed by John Carpenter, and starring Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun and James Hong. The ...
'' and '' Tremors''. Director Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci ( ; ; 16 March 1941 – 26 November 2018) was an Italian film director and screenwriter with a career that spanned 50 years. Considered one of the greatest directors in the history of cinema, Bertolucci's work achieved inte ...
had trouble with Wong on the set of ''The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' () is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the last Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted from Puyi's 1964 auto ...
'' amid arguments over historical authenticity and cut most of Wong's scenes in the film, which won the Best Picture Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People and fictional and mythical characters
* Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar
* Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...
for 1987.
He worked closely with director Wayne Wang
Wayne Wang (; born January 12, 1949) is a Hong Kong-American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Considered a pioneer of Asian-American cinema, he was one of the first Chinese-American filmmakers to gain a major foothold in Hollyw ...
. The independent filmmaker and fellow San Franciscan first cast him in the lead role of his 1985 film '' Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart,'' and went on to include him in '' Eat a Bowl of Tea'' and '' Life Is Cheap... But Toilet Paper Is Expensive'' (both 1989), and ''The Joy Luck Club'' (1993). Wang later called Wong his role model for living life.
He retired from acting in 1998 after suffering two strokes. Wong returned to art, and held a solo exhibition at the B. Sakata Garo gallery in Sacramento.
Association with the Beat Generation
In the 1950s, while studying art under Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko ( ; Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz until 1940; September 25, 1903February 25, 1970) was an American abstract art, abstract painter. He is best known for his color field paintings that depicted irregular and painterly rectangular reg ...
, Victor Wong had his first art exhibition at the City Lights Bookstore
City Lights is an independent bookstore-publisher combination in San Francisco, California, that specializes in world literature, the arts, and progressive politics. It also houses the nonprofit City Lights Foundation, which publishes selected ...
. During this time, Wong befriended Lawrence Ferlinghetti
Lawrence Monsanto Ferlinghetti (March 24, 1919 – February 22, 2021) was an American poet, painter, social activist, and co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers. An author of poetry, translations, fiction, theatre, art criticism, and ...
.[ He illustrated ''Oranges'', Dick McBride's first collection of poetry, which was handset and printed at the Bread and Wine Mission in 1960. He met ]Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation.
Of French-Canadian ...
in the early 1960s, who chronicled their meeting in his novel ''Big Sur
Big Sur () is a rugged and mountainous section of the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of the U.S. state of California, between Carmel Highlands and San Simeon, where the Santa Lucia Range, Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from th ...
'' (1962). In the novel, Wong is characterised as "Arthur Ma".[
]
Personal life
Wong was married four times: to Olive Thurman Wong (daughter of civil rights activist Howard Thurman
Howard Washington Thurman (November 18, 1899 – April 10, 1981) was an American author, philosopher, theologian, Christian mystic, educator, and civil rights leader.
As a prominent religious figure, he played a leading role in many social just ...
), Carol Freeland, Robin Goodfellow, and Dawn Rose. He had two daughters, Emily and Heather, and three sons, Anton, Lyon, and Duncan. His children Emily and Anton were from his first marriage to Olive Thurman.
His son, musician Lyon Wong, died in 1986 after being attacked by a young man while walking home in Sacramento. Wong was asked to film the prologue scene for ''Big Trouble in Little China'' shortly after Lyon's wake; after shooting the scene, Wong suffered his first stroke.[ At approximately the same time, Wong met and befriended Dawn Rose, who was an artist in Locke; they married in 1998 and together they purchased a former restaurant and store completed in 1913 in Walnut Grove, planning to open an art gallery and teahouse there in 2001.][
]
Death
On September 11, 2001, Wong and his wife Dawn Rose spent the day trying to get news of their sons who were in New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
during the September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
(who were found to be unharmed). After Rose went to sleep, Wong stayed up to continue following the news of the September 11 attacks. He died of a heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
at some point during the early hours of September 12, 2001. He was 74.[
]
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
Asian Week obituary
*
*
Sare Ging Wong in the 1940 Census
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wong, Victor
1927 births
2001 deaths
American male film actors
American male journalists
American male television actors
American journalists of Chinese descent
American television journalists
Beat Generation people
Male actors from San Francisco
University of Chicago Divinity School alumni
University of California, Berkeley alumni
American male actors of Chinese descent
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American journalists
American expatriates in Hong Kong
San Francisco Art Institute alumni