Mun Charn Wong (

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

: 黃門贊; January 24, 1918 – September 17, 2002) was an American businessman. Wong served in the

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

along with his friend, Wah Kau Kong, the first Chinese American fighter pilot. He played football on the Air Force team and was a noted quarterback. After the war, Wong became a successful life insurance executive for the

Transamerica Corporation The Transamerica Corporation is an American holding company for various life insurance companies and investment firms operating primarily in the United States, offering life and supplemental health insurance, investments, and retirement services. ...

. In 1989, the company recognized him as a "Legend of Transamerica", the highest honor awarded by the company. Wong was active in his community, serving as president of several Chinese cultural organizations and on the board of the Cerebral Palsy Association. In his free time, Wong enjoyed playing with celebrity golfers, and his amateur team won the 1987 U.S. Open Preview Pro Am golf tournament with the help of

Larry Ziegler Larry Ziegler (born August 12, 1939) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Ziegler was born in St. Louis and grew up in Creve Coeur, Missouri. He was one of 14 children; he had seven brothers an ...

. Throughout the years, Wong kept Kong's memory alive, publishing an educational booklet, working with U.S. Senator

Daniel Akaka Daniel Kahikina Akaka (; September 11, 1924 – April 6, 2018) was an American educator and politician who served as a United States Senator from Hawaii from 1990 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Akaka was the first U.S. Senator of Nat ...

to educate the public, participating in a television program about Kong on

KHON-TV KHON-TV (channel 2) is a television station in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States, serving the Hawaiian Islands as an affiliate of Fox and The CW. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside MyNetworkTV affiliate KHII-TV (channel 9). Both stati ...

, and giving interviews to historians. To preserve Kong's memory, Wong helped establish the Wah Kau Kong Memorial Award Scholarship in Aerospace Studies at the

University of Hawaii A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

Early life

Mun Charn Wong was born in

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

on January 24, 1918. He was raised on the island of

Oahu Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O� ...

along with four brothers and two sisters. Wong attended Ka'ahumanu Elementary School and Washington Intermediate School, and graduated from McKinley High School in 1936. He studied chemistry at the

and was a member of the university chapter of the ROTC and the

Hawaii National Guard The Hawaii National Guard consists of the Hawaii Army National Guard and the Hawaii Air National Guard. The Constitution of the United States specifically charges the National Guard with dual federal and state missions. Those functions range f ...

. Wong graduated from UH in 1940 with a Bachelor of Science degree.

Military service

After college, Wong joined the

, where he was eventually promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. Long's decision to join the Air Force was inspired by that of his childhood friend, Wah Kau Kong. During

, Wong was stationed across

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

and flew several missions over Germany. Wong played football on the Air Force team and was a noted

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

. Although he had never played football before joining the Air Force, Wong tried out for the team in 1943; 300 players showed up and 36 were chosen, with Wong making the team. Coach Captain Charles Erb, Jr. helped improve his game, and his skills were noticed:

this slender, unimposing chap has been coming along fast under Coach Erb's tutelage. His specialty is the rifling of a forward pass. Wong is one of those gridiron technicians who can add airmail to special delivery, to the great delight of the fans who like their football out in the open.

In 1944, Wong learned of the demise of his friend, Wah Kau Kong, who had flown 14 missions with two kills before becoming engaged in an air battle with a German fighter pilot over Blomberg,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. However, no further information was available. Determined to find out what happened to Kong, and out of respect for Kong's family, Wong vowed to discover details of the duel and return any of his friend's belongings to the Kong family. Thus, Wong embarked on his own mission to Blomberg with the permission of his commanding officer. Through interviews of local residents, Wong was able to find the specific location that Kong's P-51 Mustang (the "Chinaman's Chance") was shot down. Wong made contact with the man who carried Kong's body from the crash site and was able to recover his friend's remains, sending them home to Honolulu for proper burial.

Career

Wong spent two decades in life insurance, beginning in 1953 with L.T. Kagawa's Security Insurance Agency, which later became known as Occidental Underwriters of Hawaii as part of the Transamerica Life company. Wong was immediately successful, achieving the Million Dollar Round Table and Leading Producers Club in just his first year. In September 1989, Wong attended the Transamerica convention in Stockholm, Sweden where he was named the "Legend of Transamerica," the highest honor bestowed by the company. Wong was one of only twelve life insurance agents to be named a legend in the history of Transamerica Occidental Life Insurance Company.

Personal life

Wong was married to Mew Choy, and together they raised four sons and two daughters. One of Wong's eight grandsons,

exotica Exotica is a musical genre, named after the 1957 Martin Denny Exotica (Martin Denny album), album of the same name that was popular during the 1950s to mid-1960s with Americans who came of age during World War II. The term was coined by Simon Wa ...

musician and composer Randy Wong, credits his grandfather with giving him his initial interest in the music genre. Mun Charn Wong sold life insurance to exotica pioneer

Arthur Lyman Arthur Lyman (February 2, 1932 – February 24, 2002) was an Hawaiian jazz vibraphone and marimba player. His group popularized a style of faux-Polynesian music during the 1950s and 1960s which later became known as exotica. His albums became ...

, and he used to take his grandson to see Lyman perform on Friday nights. Wong enjoyed golf and was known to play with notable PGA golfers. In 1986, Wong played with

and a team of amateurs to win the '87 U.S. Open Preview Pro Am golf tournament against competing team captains

Johnny Miller John Laurence Miller (born April 29, 1947) is an American former professional golfer. He was one of the top players in the world during the mid-1970s. He was the first to shoot 63 in a major championship to win the 1973 U.S. Open, and he ran ...

George Archer George William Archer (October 1, 1939 – September 25, 2005) was an American professional golfer who won 13 events on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the Masters in 1969. Early years Born in San Francisco, California, Arc ...

, and

Gil Morgan Gilmer Bryan Morgan II, OD (born September 25, 1946) is an American professional golfer. Morgan was born in Wewoka, Oklahoma. He graduated from East Central State College in Ada, Oklahoma in 1968. In 1972, Morgan earned a Doctor of Optometry de ...

. Wong died in Honolulu on September 17, 2002, at the age of 84. His final resting place is in the

National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific The National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (informally known as Punchbowl Cemetery) is a national cemetery located at Punchbowl Crater in Honolulu, Hawaii. It serves as a memorial to honor those men and women who served in the United St ...

Associations

Wong was president of the Wong Kong Har Tong society from 1959-1960 and the president of the Association of Life Underwriters of Hawaii in 1962. He was also on the board of the Cerebral Palsy Association, and belonged to several fraternal and service organizations, including the

Shriners Shriners International, formally known as the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (AAONMS), is an American Masonic society established in 1870 and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida. Shriners International describes itself ...

, the Masons,

Lions Clubs International The International Association of Lions Clubs, more commonly known as Lions Clubs International, is an international non-political service organization established originally in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois, by Melvin Jones. It is now headquartere ...

, and Rotary International.

Publications

* *"Power Phrases That Sell Money". (May 1988). ''Insurance Sales'' 131, pp. 17–18. *''Wah Kau Kong: America's First Chinese-American Fighter Pilot'' (1993). With Dean C. Sensui.Self-published 16 page biography on Wah Kau Kong used by U.S. Senator

as the source during the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Normandy Invasion and remembrance of Army Air Corps Second Lieutenant Wah Kau Kong. See the '' Congressional Record'', v. 140, no. 149, December 1, 199
full textrecord
Actual publication available through the Hawaii State Public Library system. *

Notes and references

Further resources

(1951-08-23
Public domain image of Mun Charn Wong
* *

External links

Speech by Senator Daniel Akaka commemorating friendship of Mun Charn Wong and Wah Kau Kong
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wong, Mun Charn 1918 births 2002 deaths American businesspeople in insurance United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Businesspeople from Hawaii People from Honolulu United States Army Air Forces officers University of Hawaiʻi alumni Hawaii people of Chinese descent