Archived Posts - October 2005

10.31.05

A follow-up on the story of Wah Hop Eng, the 87-year-old retired cook who was illegally evicted from his New York apartment by a bastard landlord: Landlord pleads guilty to illegal eviction of 87-year-old tenant

10.31.05

Behold, true believers! There is a cure for this dreaded Asian bird flu, and it is stinky, spicy fermented cabbage: Korean dish 'may cure bird flu'

10.31.05

L.A.M.B... The irritating problem just won't go away. This article seems to be coming a little late in the game, since we've been talking about for the better part of an ear now: New doubt: Is Gwen Stefaniís Harajuku obsession offensive? Free the Gwenihana Four! No doubt: That's racist!

10.31.05

The Giant Robot army grows stronger! Couple of items... Giant Robot gets mentioned in LA Weekly's big list of cool art things: State of the Art í05 (scroll down to "Robot vs. Munky"). Also, gr/eats gets a write-up in Jonathan Gold's "Counter Intelligence" column: Go! Go! Giant Robot!

10.31.05

Couple of Asian films festivals kicking off this week... first, brought to you by our neighbors to the north: the Ninth Annual Vancouver Asian Film Festival, November 4-7. The festival kicks off with the Canadian premiere of my man Mike Kang's The Motel. You're everywhere, Mike. Go Canada!

Also, down south: the Austin Asian Film Festival, November 3-6. Lots of good stuff from all over Asia and Asian America, inclusing Lane Nishikawa's World War II film Only The Brave. Check it out.

10.31.05

MTV2 is seeking martial arts practitioners for their new competitive reality show, Final Fu. Expect lots of ridiculous Oriental imagery. Yay. There's an application on the site, though I didn't peruse it too long, because the music started to drive me crazy. And man, what an awful title for a show.

10.31.05

So Geico, the car insurance company with all the funny commercials, recently held a 15-second movie trailer contest: The Golden Gecko. People can vote for their favorites online. Most of the films are kind of lame, but I thought I'd tip my hat to this one: Simple Betrayal by Matthew Choi, which boasts and all-Asian American cast and crew (I'm told). Now if I could just figure out what the hell is going on in it...

10.31.05

I believe I've mentioned the Kims of Comedy a few times before: Steve Byrne, Bobby Lee (of Mad TV), Dr. Ken, and Kevin Shea. Read this article from back in July. According to Steve, the Kims will soon be releasing a DVD (view the trailer here) and embarking on a standup tour (including a New Year's Eve performance at the Sacramento Punchline).

Steve also informs me the he'll be taping a half-hour special in mid-December for Comedy Central Presents. If you'd like to attend a taping, sign up for the mailing list on his website, and you'll get the info when it becomes available.

10.30.05

I have a special place in my heart for the National Asian American Telecommunications Association, also known as NAATA. With endeavors ranging from public television, to educational video distribution, to providing film funding, to running the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, the organization is concerned with all things pertaining to Asian American independent media. You could say I spent some formative years at NAATA. I spent a summer in the office as an intern, and a few years later, they employed my broke ass. But soon, "NAATA" will be no more...

In celebration of its 25th anniversary, NAATA is throwing a special anniversary event showcasing Asian American films and filmmakers NAATA has been involved with over the years. Thursday, November 10 at the Radisson Miyako Hotel in San Francisco. The organization will also announce its new name, Center for Asian American Media. I like it. Frankly, the old name had gotten pretty obsolete. Center for Asian America Media is a huge improvement. It's a lot more focused, and succinctly encompasses the many facets and functions of the organization. Well done, and congratulations! Learn more about the celebration here. And make it a point to support Asian American independent media!

10.29.05

It's going to be a riot. Both 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors and OPM are a part of the 4th Annual LA Fest of Sketch, which runs November 3rd-13th in... LA, dummy. You see, we Asians know comedy too. Represent! These crazy troupes are going to show you the funny. Should be a good time.

10.29.05

Hey, let's talk about crappy-looking movies. An astute reader stumbled upon this film: Koreatown. Which, as far as I can tell, has nothing to do with the Koreatown I know and love. And dude, where are the Koreans? Man, I can't wait to see this.

10.29.05

A few months ago, I was having dinner at a Mexican place with some friends. I'm feasting on my burrito, when I look up at the booth next us, and I see a guy who looks remarkably like George Takei. Now, I wasn't positive it was him, and I hadn't really seen a recent photo of Mr. Takei in a while... but what if it was him? (Insert all-Asians-look-alike joke here.) The key to determining if he was the real deal would be his voice. That distinctive, digified Sulu voice. I strained to overhear any little bit of his converation, but couldn't make out enough. My companions were less convinced that it was him. What in the world would he be doing in this dingy little Mexican joint? Hey, a man's got to have his burritos. Could I, as a lifelong Star Trek fan, risk embarrassment to approach this man and at least tell him he looked an awful lot like Mr. Sulu? If I was wrong, it would be awkward, but at least I'd have my answer. In the end, it didn't happen. Mr. Maybe Takei finished his meal and left before I got the chance. I was left to wonder forever...

Anyway, here's another article on George Takei: Mr. Sulu Comes Out

10.29.05

I have never seen Lumpia. But I have heard a great deal about it. I don't recall ever signing up for their mailing list. But one day I just started getting emails addressing me as "Lumpia Lover," (how can I love what I do not know?) advertising Lumpia-this and Lumpia-that. And let me tell you, they're relentless. Fanatical. Crazy about Lumpia. You gotta respect those who are this dedicated to their art. Their latest campaign involves something called Lumpia Palooza 2 (dammit, I missed the first one).

10.29.05

All you cinephiles, check out Cinema AZN, a new half-hour show from (you guessed it) AZN Television covering news and views from the Asian and Asian American film scene. Hosted by Marie-France Arcilla, the show premieres next week on November 3 (and will repeat like crazy thereafter). Sounds pretty interesting.

10.29.05

I have to comment on this week's Without a Trace. It was excruciatingly painful. No offense to the Asian American talent involved, but that episode sucked ass. For an hour, I was yelling and throwing things at the TV screen, and just thinking to myself, how much more worse can this get? Granted, I didn't have high hopes going in. But damn. The story just piled on stereotype upon stereotype, and it wasn't even subtle... strict Korean family runs a deli; dutiful elder son; rebellious daughter who only dates white guys (and may or may not be a sexual deviant); her not-yet-out-of-the-closet Korean fiance. I'd rather not go into detail, but it got pretty ugly. Basically, we Asians, repressed by our domineering obligations to parents and culture, are driven to do crazy, terrible things. I'm not saying this doesn't touch some root of truth, but the story was freaking ridiculous. Who are the people who wrote this stuff? Who do I get to blame? Again, I'm not out to slam the Asians American actors—getting roles is hard enough, and I think they did an admirable job. As they say, don't hate the player. Hate the game.

A lot of people have already commented on this, but I thought I'd get my kicks in too... The woman playing the mother? Unbearable. They had her saying lines in what was supposed to be Korean, but it wasn't any Korean I had ever heard. You think Jin's Korean on the first season of Lost was rough? He was an ace compared to this woman. And her faux Korean accent was driving me craaaazy. I'm not saying non-Koreans shouldn't be playing Koreans—I think Parry Shen did a great job given what he had to work with—but when language is involved, there needs to be a halfway decent stab at authenticity. Of course, to the rest of whitebread America it might as well be ching chong gibberish. So why should the producers care?

Definitely one to shake your head at.

10.29.05

As I mentioned earlier this week, Asian businesses in Philadelphia received letters threatening rape and bombing. White supremacist group Aryan Nation claimed responsibility: Asian bizmen get hate mail. That's racist! An online petition has been set up, condemning these acts and calling for community and political action against these hate crimes: Condemn anti-Asian American Hate Incidents in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania! Someone needs to kick the Aryan Nation in the balls.

10.29.05

Something crazy for Southern California folks this Halloween weekend... my pal Kristina Wong is co-curating this insane-sounding event performance art extravaganza, Carvalville. Sunday, October 30 at Highways Performance Space. Kristina says:

This will be probably one of the coolest things Iíve ever been a part of, because the whole experience is so awesomely interactive and everyone who comes to check it out will get something different out of it. We have a puppet show for adults! A human petting zoo! A Casino! Two psychics! A durational (2 hour!) trapeze act! A live dog! And if you donít bring a date, you can actually go home with one of the performers! All of it tucked in with social commentary and political subversion!

Not for the faint of heart, I'm told. For more information, go here.

10.29.05

Here's an interesting story about a Korean American soldier in the Korean army: Korean-American Soldier Wins Translation Award. I think I wrote about this guy a while back. A Korean American guy—born and raised in the U.S.—drafted into mandatory army service during a stay in South Korea when he found out he also held Korean citizenship. It appears he's made the best of a not-so-ideal situation.

10.29.05

In Asia, male grooming is booming. The beauty industry is no longer a female-dominated marketplace. Products for the uber-appearance-conscious metrosexual man, that's the new racket. And they're going crazy for it: Mirror, Mirror... Count on Asia.

10.29.05

Very cool-looking upcoming show in PBS: Race Is The Place. Oh, with a title like that, you know I'm going to love it. But if that's not enough to go on, here's a brief description:

Funny, angry and profound, RACE IS THE PLACE is a visual and verbal riff on race in America from the point of view of a wide variety of artists, poets, rappers, performance artists and stand-up comedians. Featuring established artists as well as up-and-coming young talent, who have in common their use of language to get their message across, RACE IS THE PLACE is a one-hour jam that combines racially slanted clips from old Hollywood movies with interviews and performances that dare to examine the most emotionally explosive issue in American life.

Yeah, I think I'm going to like it. Here's the press release, and here's the show's companion website (it launches November 8). The show premieres on the PBS series Independent Lens on November 22 (check your local listings).

10.29.05

Earlier this month, I mentioned that ImaginAsian TV was in danger of going off the air in the San Francisco Bay Area, and needed your community support. Word was that Comcast was going to drop it. But now, it seems that campaign is over. According to the iaTV website, they're in communication with Comcast. A well-placed "source" tells me the same—ImaginAsian will remain a 24/7 network in the Bay. Cool.

10.29.05

If you've watched any amount of televised professional poker, you've probably seen a few Asian faces here and there. There are actually a bunch of Asian folks—some legends—who have made names for themselves on the circuit. Jeff Yang's latest Asian Pop column takes a look at some of the Asian men and women of pro poker: All In

10.27.05

Dude, Sulu is gay. And I'm not saying that like, "Sulu is lame," the way schoolyard kids say it. The headline says it all: George Takei Discloses His Homosexuality. Star Trek rules. And Sulu rules too.

UPDATE: Crazy. As of noon today, October 28, this article on Takei is the most emailed story on Yahoo! News. That's because everybody loves Sulu. Sulu rules.

10.27.05

Hey, Los Angeles. I know that Katrina Relief is quickly going out of fashion... and this is sad. But you must check out RELIEF: A Benefit for APIA Survivors of Hurricane Katrina. They've already had events in New York and San Francisco, and now the LA benefit is going down November 10, 6:30pm at the SIPA Performance Space. Learn more here. And download the flyer here and here. All funds raised will be donated to organizations aiding Asian Pacific Islander Americans in the Gulf Coast region affected by Hurricane Katrina. Be there, and help out a good cause.

10.27.05

If you remember, back in August, Kwang Tae Lee and Richard Kim were questionably shot and killed by police officers in Dublin, CA. Since then, the grieving families have been left with very few satisfactory answers about the incident. What exactly transpired? Was there a language barrier? Was deadly force necessary? This weekend, the Bay Area Korean American Justice Coalition is holding a townhall meeting to involve the community and get people more informed about the issues at hand. The people aren't just letting this fade away—they want answers. Saturday, October 29th, 6:30 pm at East Bay Baptist Church in Oakland. For more information, contact the Korean American Association of SF & Greater Bay Area at 415-252-1346 or samujanglee@yahoo.com.

10.27.05

Hey, Margaret Cho fans... the comedienne is currently on a tour for her new book, I Have Chosen To Stay And Fight. She'll be at the Barnes and Noble in New York's Union Square tonight (Thursday the 27th). Just so you know.

10.27.05

Because we all can't get enough of freaky Bai Ling (I suspect she can't get enough of herself).... we will apparently be able to see her deleted scene from Star Wars: Episode III when the DVD is released next week. Joy. From IMDb:

Chinese film star Bai Ling, whose scene in George
Lucas's Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith
was deleted from the film after she posed topless for
Playboy magazine, will finally be seen in the film
when the two-disc Revenge of the Sith is released on
home video next week. Hers is one of several deleted
scenes that will be included in the DVD. In it, she
appears as Senator Bana Breemu and speaks four words
("That would be dangerous.") to Queen Amidala, played
by Natalie Portman, and Anakin Skywalker, played by
Hayden Christensen. She has previously said that in
the scene she appears to be "all naked with tattoos on
my body" and that her strange appearance is explained
in the movie.

One line? That's it? This is the big cut scene she made a fat squawk about last spring? You ask me, that's four freakin' words too many.

10.27.05

Take a look at this site: Proud Asian American. It's mission: "The goal of Proud Asian American is to provide clear and detailed statistical data related to Asian American issues in order to promote discussions within the Asian American community." Could be a valuable resource. Looks like it's just starting out, but it's most recent article points out that according to recent census data, Interracial Marriages Decrease Among Asian Americans

10.27.05

Congratulations to the Chicago White Sox, who their first World Series since 1917 by sweeping the Houston Astros 4-0. Here's a smiling photo of Man Soo Lee holding the trophy (UPDATE: Thanks to everyone who pointed out thwrong)o is captioned incorrectly). Second baseman Tadahito Iguchi also breaks a semi-noteworthy trend: for the past three years, the losing team in the World Series has been the one with a Japanese player on their postseason roster. No more!

10.26.05

New York Times review of Ninja, that ridiculous ninja-themed restaurant I mentioned a few weeks back: Yelping Warriors, and Rocks in the Broth. You're kidding me, right? Damn fools.

10.26.05

Hey, more Asians on television. But it's complicated. This week's episode of Without a Trace is entitled "Honor Bound," and guest stars Nicole Bilderback, Parry Shen, Kelvin Yu, Jodi Long and others. If you're not familiar with the show, it's about an FBI team responsible for tracking down missing persons. Here's a description of the episode:

"Honor Bound"

The team searches for a 25-year-old Korean-American who vanishes after a fight with her new boyfriend during her night shift at her parents' deli.

The investigation begins to uncover that the missing Wendy Kim felt stifled by the expectations of her traditional immigrant parents and her custom-bound elder brother, who are ashamed that she broke off her engagement to a man from their community. Initially, the team wonders if she's the casualty of a store robbery, if she's been victimized by her new boyfriend or spurned ex-fiancÈ, or if she simply ran away with the night's cash to start a new life for herself. Numerous additional suspects come to light when the team discovers, to her family's surprise, that Wendy was also an extremely active member in an Internet dating service.

And here's a preview. Sorry Mom and Dad, good little Wendy is actually a S&M prostitute on the side. And that slap! Ouch, Parry. Our actor on the inside blogs about his experience shooting the episode here and here.

10.25.05

The Memoirs of a Geisha product tie-in blitz continues! I've already mentioned Fresh Geisha makeup and Banana Republic's East Meets West couture. Well, now you can celebrate the geishapalooza with Memoirs of a Geisha Tea. Yes, inspired by the movie: "Behind the rice paper screen of the tea room the geisha masters the moment, serving with a respectful heart, a cup of green tea." (I suppose it's gotta be better than Steven Seagal's Lightning Bolt Energy Drink.) Salon.com's Broadsheet blog has a few comments on the Fresh line: Painted ladies

10.25.05

The Weinstein Co. has picked up the rights to Ernesto Foronda's (Better Luck Tomorrow) adaptation of Ryan Gattis' novel Kung Fu High School: Weinsteins Attend KUNG FU HIGH. The book sounds crazy, but what a crappy title. But who will they cast? Maybe Bow Wow. That would be sweet.

10.25.05

If it isn't obvious, I'm a big Bruce Lee fan. I'm also a huge DVD enthusiast. For the longest time, I've been waiting for definitive DVD versions of Bruce Lee's films. The only thing that's been available in the U.S. has been the Master Collection box set, which frankly sucked. Mind you, it had its schlocky value, complete with bad dubbing, incorrect titling, the whole cheap-ass feel—which I can appreciate. But it wasn't really the quality these films deserved. So last week, we got the Bruce Lee Ultimate Collection, previously only available as a Region 3 Hong Kong release. It apparently boasts enhanced picture and audio and all that. Here's a review. Perhaps not perfect, but it sounds pretty cool. Somebody hook me up!

Meanwhile, in Hong Kong: Festival planned for Lee statue unveiling

10.25.05

What in the world? A Chinese stuntman was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and exposing himself in public after wading naked into the rapids above Niagara Falls: Rapids stunt left bare and in legal hot water after knot comes loose. I don't even want to know.

10.25.05

Jeffrey Ma was a member of the infamous MIT Blackjack Team, "an infamous cabal of hyper-geniuses and anarchistic whiz kids who devised a method of card counting that took the gaming world completely by surprise." As I've mentioned before, they were the subject of Ben Menzrich's bestselling book, Bringing Down The House (now being developed into a racist Hollywood movie). I guess Jeffrey is now on the speaking circuit.

10.25.05

Very interesting article—a rant, actually—written from an industry perspective, over at IMDiversity.com: "Why There are 'No' Asians on Television". You may think you've heard this before, but this isn't the usual white-man-keeps-us-down argument. I think that part's generally understood—Hollywood is grossly unjust to Asians. The author in this article advocates for a more a proactive stance on the part Asian American artists and the community. A challenge, if you will. She makes a lot of points I agree with, while acknowledging the industry's extreme ignorance... though I think she's a little too forgiving of "the system." But hey, I'm not an actor. I'm not out there in the grind. What the hell do I know? I'd be interested in seeing what some of my APA actor friends thought of this article...

10.25.05

Heads up, Bay Area friends. Check out Asian American Theater Company's world premiere production of Jeannie Barroga's Banyan, November 3-20 at New Langton Arts in San Francisco. They say it's "a modern-day, multicultural variation on The Wizard of Oz that incorporates Filipino fantasy, folklore and humor." Sounds crazy (in a good way). Get your tickets soon—the November 10 show is already sold out. I should also mention AATC's fundraiser SWEET: An Evening of Wine & Chocolate on November 5. Proceeds will benefit AATC and production of Banyan. Well, all right.

10.25.05

Anybody catch Grey's Anatomy a few nights ago? From what I've seen, the show's had a fairly decent blend of racial representation on the show, which has been interesting (and refreshing). As much as I like Sandra Oh, one still hopes they'd put more Asian American men on a show set in a friggin' hospital (but that's a general, all-around television gripe). I mention this, because this week's episode prominently featured a storyline with a Hmong family. Michelle Krusiec played a patient facing paralysis, but her parents wouldn't let her have surgery without first undergoing a spiritual ritual (the father was played by Francois Chau, the dude from the creepy "Orientation" episode of Lost). I gotta say, I was surprised. This is an Asian ethnic group that normally receives very little attention on any scale. And sadly, national public consciousness about the Hmong people recently grew only because of the Chai Soua Vang murder trial. But here was a Hmong storyline, treated with a fairly balanced (to my understanding) portrayal on a top-rated network show. You know some ignorant fools out there were watching and saying, "What the heck is 'Mung'?" Hey, now's your chance to learn. Get off your ass and do some research.

I'd do a summary and analysis of the episode, which had some high points, but I think Xian beat me to it. He does an excellent job on his blog Racial Pro-File.

10.25.05

I'm sure you've heard by now... Rosa Parks, 92, Founding Symbol of Civil Rights Movement, Dies.

Here's a photo of her with Fred Korematsu, who also passed away earlier this year:



The two civil rights icons met for the first time at an ACLU awards dinner in San Francisco in 1988 (photo by Shirley Nakao).

10.25.05

In Philadelphia, members of the Aryan Nation are claiming responsibility for hate letters threatening the rape of Asian women and the bombing of Asian businesses. All those who received the letters are Asian immigrants with businesses in Chinatown, South Philadelphia or Southwest Philadelphia. Police are investigating: Letters To Asian Businesses Threaten Rape, Bombing. More here. This enrages me. People are just trying to make a living, and in addition to all the challenges of being immigrants, and running a business, they have to deal with these Aryan fools sending them racist $#!t. That's racist!

10.25.05

You've been hearing about this one... Jin Presents: The Emcee's Properganda. The new album from Jin, now known as The Emcee, hits stores today. For more information, check out his MySpace.

10.25.05

Roger Ebert interviews, sort of, everybody's favorite actress, the very normal Bai Ling: Slice, dice, smile. With a mini-review of Three: Extremes (a movie I did not enjoy too much). Oh yeah, Bai Lin is also appears in VH1's new show, But Can They Sing?. I hope not.

10.24.05

Been a lot of talk about the Avian Flu, or if you're in the blame-the-yellows kind of mood, the Asian Bird Flu. You know exactly who they're going to blame if/when that crap makes it over to the U.S. The dirty Asians and their dirty birds. Now, I'm no health expert, and I'm certainly not a scientist, but personally I think this whole thing has been overblown. We live in a culture of fear, and it's the scare-of-the-week. Resist.

10.24.05

I'm willing to bet most people in the United States don't know a whole lot about Mao Tse-Tung—myself included—other than his image appearing on several funky Andy Warhol works. The New York Times has a pretty interesting article on MAO: The Unknown Story, a new book by Jung Chang and Jon Halliday. Sounds pretty fascinating...

10.24.05

Missed this last week... from Newsweek's "Women and Leadership" cover feature, designer Vera Wang tells her How I Got There story.

10.23.05

Gothamist has an interesting interview with Thomas Yong, producer of Tie a Yellow Ribbon, a Super16 feature film "about the troubled lives of three Asian American over the course of two decades." Learn more about the film here.

10.23.05

Now you can get your low-wage, educated Asians through the power of the internets: E-Tutoring Broadens Bounds of Outsourcing. That is insane.

10.23.05

I'm told Sung Hi Lee has been recently showing up in a recurring role on Days of Our Lives. She plays Sophie, a sexy new waitress at Alice that Lucas takes a liking to while he's covering for Shawn as the bartender. But isn't Lucas a recovering alcoholic? I don't think it's a good idea for him to be working the bar.

10.23.05

Last week, graduate student teachers and researchers filed a complaint accusing Yale University of a pattern of discrimination against Chinese students. The complaint contends that Chinese students have been singled out for bad grades: Chinese students accuse Yale of discrimination. That's racist!

10.22.05

And so another World Series begins tonight. The Houston Astros vs. The Chicago Sox. Here's a great little article on the Sox's second basemen Tadahito Iguchi: Japanese-American Community Cheers Sox Iguchi. Aparently he's just a regular guy, hanging out in Chicago's northwest suburbs.

10.21.05

Oh holy goodness. I have seen my scary, shocking, racist news of the week. Prussian Blue, aka Lynx and Lamb, are considered the "Olsen Twins of the White Nationalist Movement." Yes, Neo-Nazi hate packaged in a blonde, blue-eyed pop sister duo: Young Singers Spread Racist Hate. Raising up a new generation of racists. It's pretty sickening.

10.21.05

Ken Watanabe will star with Sarah Michelle Gellar and Diego Luna in The Air I Breathe. Directed by Jieho Lee, it's a crime drama "based on an ancient Chinese proverb that breaks life down into four emotional cornerstones -- happiness, pleasure, sorrow and love." That tells me nothing about the movie.

10.21.05

After surviving Katrina, the Vietnamese American community in New Orleans is struggling to put itself back together: Sustained by Close Ties, Vietnamese Toil to Rebuild

10.21.05

I'm told that Ron Yuan has been showing up on CSI: NY as a recurring character, medical examiner "Dr. Evan Zao." Chalk up one more Asian dude on TV. We are so few.

10.21.05

That's what I'm talking about: Asian-Americans must speak up. Speak out against hate crimes, racial slurs, stereotypes and the rest of this racist crap. This is our country too.

10.21.05

Everybody has heard a rumor or two about Indiana Jones 4 over the last few years, but it's pretty much been stuck in the seven circles of development hell for a while now. This is actually an old rumor that has resurfaced recently on the internets: Michelle Yeoh in Indy 4. While I'm a huge fan of Ms. Yeoh, and seeing her in an Indiana Jones would be most kickass, I'm not holding my breath. I'll believe it when I see it.

10.21.05

Slate has an article on South Korea's superior advances in stem-cell research: The Seoul of Clones. Basicallly, it tries to answer why Korea leads the world in this field. That's great and all, but I think the article makes some huge, sweeping (and potentially dangerous) generalizations about Korea and its people.

10.20.05

New York Times article on Korean entrepreneurs in California: Coming to the West Coast Ready to Make a Deal

10.20.05

Here's a nice, lengthy article on Saving Face star Joan Chen: Suffocating in SoCal. Now, I normally don't get star struck, but I've been in the same room with this woman on three different occasions, and I've stifled the urge to say hello, fearing that I would be an incoherent idiot. What a beauty. She'll be in Eric Byler's latest film, Americanese.

10.20.05

Okay, I get that this column is supposed to be tongue-in-cheek, but this guy is being a fool: No Misnamed Panda Could Be The Cat's Meow

10.20.05

Style.com profiles the photography of Sung Jin Park "whose Kid Nostalgia series of black-and-white pictures of young Koreans is informed by a moody James Dean-style toughness." I think they're pretty darn cool.

10.20.05

Remember Donna Keiko Ozawa, the woman making artwork from thousands of used disposable chopsticks? Yeah, it sounds pretty gross. But they are sanitized before becoming art. The Waribashi Project is in its last few days of the exhibit at the San Francisco Japantown Center. There's a closing night reception this weekend. Learn more here and here.

10.20.05

After two seasons, StirTV is going off the air on October 29th. I always thought the show was kind of goofy, but it did good work. The good news is, there's a new show in the works from the creators of Stir... Night Shift, a new half-hour late night TV show, premieres November 5. There's information up at the Stir website.

10.20.05

Jennifer got eliminated from The Apprentice with Marth Stewart. Two Asian American reality contestants named Jen get eliminated in the same week from NBC reality shows. Conspiracy?

In other reality TV news, Connie is the Asian American contestant on MTV's Miss Seventeen. "17 accomplished and ambitious young women compete in weekly character-testing challenges, all under the watchful eye of Seventeen magazine editor-in-chief Atoosa Rubenstein." Yay.

10.19.05

What the...? Wednesday's "Doonesbury" strip:



"Oh please- you're Chinese! It's in your marrow!" I'm not a regular reader, so I'm unfamiliar with the characters or the context. But dang, that's racist!

UPDATE: This Uncle Duke character is supposed to be loudmouth, racist, culturally-insensitive idiot, as many readers have pointed out to me.

10.19.05

News out of South Asia: Death Toll in Asian Quake Soars to 79,000. And yet it seems like this tragedy is receiving so much less attention than previous disasters in the last year. Why? It's like the uncool natural diasaster.

10.19.05

People has an interview with Lost's Yunjin Kim. This is a strange tidbit of information:

How has the Asian community reacted to the show?

I know that in Koreatown in L.A., things practically shut down when the show is on because people want to tune in to see these two Koreans go at each other. I heard that people dressed up as Sun and Jin for Halloween last year, too.

I wonder where she gets her information... Koreatown shuts down? I have a hard time believing that... And how do you dress up like Sun and Jin? Wear sweaty, dirty jungle clothing? That's funny. Anyway, this week's episode was a Jin & Sun-centric flashback. Don't want to make this space a weekly Lost update, but I guess I'm just crazy about the show. Sorry.

10.19.05

Heads up, Southern California. Kollaboration, the annual crazy big-ass Korean American talent show, is going down November 12 at the LA Scottish Rite Theater. Just so you know. Now in its sixth year, the show has blown up into a full-fledged phenomenon. More on this later.

10.18.05

Sorry, Jen. You are not the Biggest Loser.

10.18.05

Oh my freaking goodness. There is a Blade TV series in the works. You know, Blade, the vampire superhero movies starring Wesley Snipes? They're making a televisions series (presumably without Mr. Snipes), because you just can't hunt too many vampires. They're everwhere. So on the show, it looks like Blade has assembled a team, a squad, a league of folks to kill some vampires with. And one of the dudes is Asian. From the casting call:

[SHEN] (ASIAN, MALE, MID TO LATE 20s) Blade's loyal ally, he's a thin but muscular Asian with a shaved head and an imperturbable manner. A former religious man, Shen now devotes his energies to the good fight against the vampire hordes. He helps perfect new technologies for Blade to use in his battles, and his mere presence helps the driven Blade achieve at least a measure of inner peace...SERIES REGULAR

Shen. Good ol' Shen. Count on the Asian guy to be in charge of the techno stuff. And inner peace.

10.18.05

Logo, an MTV/Viacom network focused on the gay and lesbian experience, is looking for gay and lesbian Asian American subjects for their Real Momentum series. Spotted on Craigslist: Gay Asian for MTV Cosmetic Surgery reality show. They're looking at the phenomenon of Asian Americans undergoing Blepharoplasty, aka eyelid surgery, and they need subjects. It looks like they'll actually pay for your surgery if they pick you. Goodness, people. DON'T DO IT! My Asian sisters, your eyes are absolutely beautiful the way they are!

If I remember correctly, "Regular" MTV did a similar show for their Real Life series. The episode followed an Asian American girl who was contemplating whether or not to go through with the surgery, and grappled with issues of Asian and Western-defined standards of beauty. In the end, I think she got the surgery...

10.18.05

More on Leandro Aragoncillo, the Filipino American FBI intelligence analyst arrested last month for allegedly taking classified documents from the White House and passing them to politicians in the Philippines: Philippine Spy Scandal Comes Amid Turmoil

10.18.05

Alice Wu's Saving Face is out on DVD today. Available at all the regular retailers. Support a good Asian American movie—a charming little romantic comedy you're probably going to dig. Staring Michelle Krusiec, Lynn Chen and Joan Chen. JOAN CHEN. Man. See you at the video store.

10.18.05

Spotted this at the bookstore a while ago, but kept forgetting to write about it: Bling Bling : Hip Hop's Crown Jewels by Minya Oh, aka Miss Info of Hot 97 fame. A look in words and pictures at the hip hop artists and their crazy fabulous jewelry. Sort of like show-and-tell, but with an introduction by Ludacris.

10.17.05

Speaking of Chicago, some props are due for the White Sox, who are going to the World Series. That includes second baseman Tadahito Iguchi of Japan, as wells as bullpen catcher Man Soo Lee. Go White Sox. You've made the Derfman (and many others) very happy.

10.17.05

Call for entries! The 2006 eleventh annual Chicago Asian American Showcase seeks features, shorts, documentaries and experimental films and videos. Chicago, what a town. Can you dig it? Download an entry form here.

10.17.05

Just found about this incident at George Mason University... earlier this month, Tariq Khan, a Pakistani-American student was brutalized and arrested for passing out anti-military-recruitment flyers on campus: George Mason Student Busted for Anti-Recruiting. Apparently, the arresting officer told him "You people are the most violent people in the world. There's no telling what youíll do"—referring to 9/11. "You people"? Meaning anti-military protestors—"the most violent people in the world"? Or perhaps he meant brown-skin looking folks like Mr. Khan... That's racist! A much more detailed (and left-leaning) rundown of the incident here.

10.17.05

This is pretty interesting... In making Flags, a movie about U.S. Marines in the Battle of Iwo Jima, director Clint Eastwood became concerned that he was telling only half the story. So decided to make another film, Lambs Before The Wind, telling the story of the Japanese side of the battle: Clint Eastwood Plans Two Films on Iwo Jima. Both films are scheduled for simultaneous release next fall. Here's a little more on the project at CHUD.com. It's going to be very interesting to see how this turns out.

10.17.05

Pacific Citizen has launched its new online edition: www.pacificcitizen.org. Having never heard of it, I dug around on the site and was surprised to learn that Pacific Citizen has been serving the Japanese American community since 1929. It's a small publication, but it's seen a lot of history... That's impressive.

10.17.05

Saw this story on Oprah today, profiling San Francisco's three top women in leadership: A New Team in Town. That includes Police Chief Heather Fong and District Attorney Kamala Harris.

10.17.05

I believe I mentioned this book last month. A how-to guide for parents who want to raise their children to be overachievers... just like the Asian kids. There's an article on the authors in yesterday's New York Times: Sisters Think Parents Did O.K.. Yay, I'm glad you think your parents raised you right. I think my parents did an okay job with me too. But something about this just bugs:

In "Top of the Class" the Kim sisters advise parents who want successful children to raise them just as the Kims did - in strict households in which parents spend hours every day educating their children, where access to pop culture is limited, and where children are taught that their failures reflect poorly on the family.

Let's face it, there are Asian parents who are like this, and a lot of kids out there can relate. This is no lie. But isn't this just boiling things down to yet another monolithic Asian stereotype, albeit a seemingly positive one? Learn the mysterious secrets of traditional Asian parenting! Your kids will finally be able to compete with those Asian whizbrains. I suppose it dispels assumptions that Asians are naturally smart. But damn, we sure are hard working.

10.17.05

This sucks. In her first tournament outing as a pro golfer, Michelle Wie is disqualified: Rude awakening. She's young... she'll bounce back easily. But what a crappy way to start your pro career.

10.16.05

Hell, I'll admit it. Proudly. I love SPAM. LOVE IT. Not junk email. Pink, meaty, gelatinous heaven in a blue and yellow tin. Who's with me? Apparently, the entire nation of South Korea: When Only Slabs of Pink, Jellied Byproduct Will Do

10.16.05

According to this story, a Chinese American mother, Joyce Shui, is being ordered by a court arbitrator to remove her daughter from a preschool with a Japanese language immersion program. Though the Japanese school is an established school and meets state requirements, the court ruled against her and sided with the irrational fears of the woman's white ex-husband: Mother fights on despite denial of Japanese studies. What, afraid your daughter won't be white enough for you? According to Shui, her ex-husband "fears that their daughter would grow up confused and that learning another language would put too much pressure on the child." Hey, welcome to America, buddy. Believe it or not, people in this country can learn languages in addition to English—and thrive.

10.16.05

Yao In The NB premieres tonight on AZN TV. It's a 10-part documentary series that follows the life of Yao Ming on and off the court throughout the 2003-04 season. I thought Year of the Yao (which almost nobody got to see in theaters) was a decent look at his rookie year. Hopefully, this series will give a little more insight into his personality.

10.16.05

For real? MTV is "seeking people who think there are just not enough Asians representin' on TV": MTV World needs your Asian Flava!. They need on-camera Chinese American talent for the new network, MTV Chi. I guess there's no room for any more Asians on the regular MTV.

10.15.05

The death of Bruce Lee has always been sort of shrouded in mystery. There are various conspiracy theories rolling around out there attributing his death to a drug overdose, or a family curse, or even triad assassination. Heck, some people think he's still alive, and waiting for the real Return of the Dragon. Anyway, Lee's former producer, Raymond Chow, offers his own simple explanation: Bruce Lee's Death Was Accident

10.15.05

Yay, another Chinese-is-popular article: Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity. I swear, the Times ran an article just like this only a few months ago.

10.14.05

Oh, I almost forgot. Toral got booted off The Apprentice last night. Good riddance. Sepia Mutiny's got the hilarious lowdown on her firing here and here. And here's Ms. Mehta's official site. So long, suckaaaa.

10.14.05

Oh, COME ON. A poor choice of words: USC still the one, but there are some chinks. I understand what it's getting at, but you're telling me they couldn't come up with a better headline? Even worse, there are indeed Chinese American players on USC's football team.

10.14.05

I can completely relate with this article: Immigrants let dishwashers collect dust. Growing up in my house, we NEVER used the dishwasher. It was used as extra kitchen storage space. To this day, I still hand-wash everything. What's that all about?

10.14.05

Tough times, but South Asian communities across the country are coming together in support of victims of the earthquake in South Asia. Here's an article from the the Seattle Times: Local Pakistanis' hearts, prayers, dollars go to earthquake victims. This one's from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Disaster unites South Asians in metro area

10.14.05

Here's a really interesting article in LA Times on a recent controversy stirred up by one student's high school newspaper column, addressing disparities between the Asian and Latino students' academic performance: Morphing Outrage Into Ideas. It looks like it got ugly—it could've been uglier—but at least resulted in community dialogue.

10.14.05

Hey, wanna be in a movie? I swear, I might very well regret posting this, but... they need extras for Fast and the Furious 3: Tokyo Drift. According to the email I got, they're looking for age 18-35 "ASIAN high energy people ONLY." So low energy Caucasians, get lost! Scenes are being shot next week in Hawthorne, CA, but the film actually takes place in Tokyo. Thus, they specify only Asian people may sign up. It's supposed to be some kind of underground rave/street racing scene. Participate at your own risk, I guess. For more information, see here. If anyone goes, tell me about it.

10.14.05

Columnist Jeff Yang is a dog lover, and he's tired of jokes about Asians eating dogs. So his latest piece explores the state of canine companionship in Asia: Putting On The Dog

Jeff also brings an interesting issue to my attention... Hindu holiday Diwali, and the ongoing saga for it to be recognized as a "Real New York Holiday." The main issue is a sacred one, something I can sorely empathize with: parking. The ultimate designation of a Real New York Holiday is the suspension of the city's alternate-side-of-the-street parking regulations. I'm not a New Yorker, but I know all fellow urban American drivers can understand this. Well, despite the presence of some 250,000 Indians in the city—the vast majority of them Hindu—and the inclusion of all other major religious holidays, Mayor Bloomberg is adamantly opposed to adding Diwali to its New York's Holy Parking Calendar. Learn more, and follow the saga here.

10.14.05

Recently heard about this film: American Fusion, a romantic comedy by Frank Lin. Starring Sylvia Chang, Esai Morales, Collin Chou, James Hong and Pat Morita. Trailer's kind of cute and by-the-numbers, but does it really indicate something fresh and new? I don't know... at first glance, it just seems like this scenario and these issues have been tread across before. But hey, I haven't seen it. And I have to at least give credit to work that makes an effort to tell Asian American stories. The film will be screening this month at the Hawaii International Film Festival.

10.14.05

Bay Area supporters of geeky literary web things, something for you to check out next week: Lap POP! - a night of performance, readings and photography from notable APA bloggers and artists. It will be "an intersection between geekery, personal expression, and pop culture." Hell yes. That sounds like my kind of party. Hosted by the fabulous Min Jung Kim, and featuring performances by Ernie Hsiung, Glenda Bautista, Robynn Takayama, Courtney Patubo, and Annie Lin. October 20 at Space180. Look here for more info.

10.14.05

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune recently ran a disturbing series on gang-rape in local Hmong community. Here's Sunday's article: Shamed into silence. There are links on the side to other articles in the series ("Related content"). It's pretty damn terrible...

10.14.05

Lately, we've seen the emergence of Asian American television networks like AZN and ImaginAsian. I think this is a pretty exciting time, and it's going to be interesting to see what happens once these endeavors really get off the ground and hopefully break through. I haven't seen enough airtime to have an informed opinion, but what I've seen so far has been... okay. You have to understand that these efforts are in their baby stages, and need to time to really develop, gain an audience, and take off. It's progress.

That said, I hear ImaginAsian needs some community support. On October 31, the network is going off the air in San Francisco. It appears that Comcast will be dropping them at the end of the month. This, despite the fact that Asians are the largest minority group in San Francisco. The size of the San Francisco Asian population is two times the Latino and four times the African American populations ...yet there are only two Asian American TV networks (KTSF & AZN) left. Comcast has declined to carry iaTV in San Francisco—even at no cost to them. However, the community has the power to change this. San Francisco Asian Americans, don't you want a choice? iaTV recommends some actions you can take:

1. Call Comcast SF toll free at 1-800-945-2288 to request ImaginAsian TV as part of their channel lineup.

2. Write a letter of support for iaTV and send it to Comcast: http://www.comcast.com/ContactUs/CustomerService.asp. You can use our sample letter (http://www.iatv.tv/getiatv/sample_letter.php) or write your own.

3. Send us a copy of your letter with our online form: http://www.iatv.tv/getiatv/form_letter.php. We will present all amassed letters to Comcast.

4. Spread the word and pass this email on - http://www.iatv.tv/getiatv/tellafriend.php

For more info about the campaign and how you can help, visit http://www.iatv.tv/getiatv/inthebay.php.

10.14.05

This is kind of amusing. GIGANTIC Chinese guys, then and now. Somehow, I doubt that Chang The Chinese Giant could hold a person in the palm of his hand.

10.14.05

The results of recent Jin battle: Jin Takes Home $50,000 At Fight Klub Battle In Bahamas. Jin, er, I mean, The Emcee has a new album, Jin Presents: The Emcee's Properganda, dropping on October 25th. (Why do hip hop albums "drop"? Why can't they just be "released"?) There's a positive review here.

10.13.05

Well, look what we have here... Asian Americans making sweet sweet music, up and down the east coast: Verge Music Tour. With show dates in Virginia, Boston, New York... cool sounds by cool people. Check it out.

10.13.05

Fa Hua Chen, the 52-year-old Chinese food deliveryman shot in a botched robbery in the Bronx has died: Politicians call for action as shot deliveryman dies. Police are still searching for the two men responsible for his murder. It gets worse... Chen's daughter, a college student in England, has been unable to obtain a travel visa after hearing of her father's murder: Dad slain, no visa for her. Police are now offering a $3000 reward for information leading to the suspects' arrest: Reward Offered In Delivery Man Murder. This has got to stop.

10.13.05

Greeaaaat. Here we go, you can't stop it... product tie-ins for Memoirs of a Geisha. This time, it's Banana Republic offering limited edition, East Meets West clothing designs. "Uniquely wearable pieces with a subtle Asian influence." Buy it all up, wear it, and show everybody how oh-so-hip you are to Eastern ways. It's like wearing a kimono, without having to worry about all that pesky Japaneeeese stuff. Let's all go to the mall!

10.13.05

No freaking way: Oldest noodles unearthed in China

10.13.05

For those of you in New York... ImaginAsian and China Century Entertainment present "A Celebration of Chinese Cinema," a new screening series of rare Chinese films. Screenings are taking place bi-weekly at The ImaginAsian theater on Saturdays and Sundays at noon, along with discussions with guest speakers following every show. Apparently, these films are NOT easily available (you won't find them at Blockbuster), and selected from the largest collection of high-quality modern and classic films made in Mainland China after 1949. So if this is your thing, go check it out. Schedule and ticket info are available at www.theimaginasian.com.

10.12.05

Re: Jin's English. Indeed, it was a dream. A silly dream involving a man in a chicken suit.

10.12.05

Rumor has it that Kristin Kreuk, the beauty known to many as Lana Lang on Smallville, might star with Steve Carrell in the forthcoming movie version of Get Smart: Kreuk May Get Smart. According to this article, she's also currently shooting a period drama, Partition.

10.12.05

Heather Park's going to be on the radio. Tomorrow (Thursday), she'll be on the "Talk With Maria" show, 10-11pm on 93.5 FM in the New York Metropolitan area. A live interview, and some music... Check Heather's website for details.

10.12.05

Ken Oak is now the Ken Oak Band, and their debut album is Symposium, now available. The sound is described as "cello rock." Also see Ken's Xanga and MySpace for more information.

10.12.05

I'm disturbed by the description of this guy's half British, half Japanese lifesize playdoll: Just like a woman. Seriously grossed out.

10.12.05

In New York, a Chinese deliveryman is in critical condition after being shot: Man shot delivering food fights for his life. That's jacked up. Another guy shot in the face for a few bucks. And as you know, this isn't the first time something has happened. In fact, it's part of a disturbing trend that's been happening for a while. Delivering freakin' Chinese food should not be this hazardous.

10.11.05

Apparently there's some freak Asian guy with a foot fetish creeping out dorm residents at the University of Washington: Foot fetishist afoot at UW. Greeaaaat. Now all the Asian men on campus are going to get funny looks. Hey, there's a shifty-looking Asian guy. Hide your feet!

10.11.05

Just found out about AsianLiveTV.com, a Dallas-based website for Asian Americans. Bet you feel pretty special now, eh Dallas?

10.11.05

Hey, here's a special offer for Angry readers in the Los Angeles area to see Sandra Tsing Loh in Mother on Fire. Using the password "Angry Asian Mother," just email the 24th Street Theatre at theatre@24thStreet.org and get yourself some complimentary tickets (limit 4) to see any of the upcoming Sunday 7pm shows (Oct. 16, Oct. 23 and Oct. 30). Tickets are on a first-come, first-serve basis. Cool, right? (Special thanks to Ying, for hooking it up.)

10.11.05

There's an Asian American basketball player on MTV2's Nike Battlegrounds: King of the Court. Darren Jiang, a 6'3" forward from New York. The show documents the search for the best hometown basketball players in Chicago and New York. I haven't seen the show, but I hear he's holding his own. Nice to see an Asian kid in the mix...

10.11.05

I thought I had posted something about this film, but I guess not... now in production, to be released next year: The Shanghai Kid, written by David Ren and starring Ken Leung. According to this article, it's about "a young, struggling Chinese-American actor who falls for a high school girl in the U.S. When he inherits his grandmother's house in Shanghai and travels there, he falls for a beguiling Chinese girl." Sounds kind of interesting. I have a funny story about this film... perhaps I'll tell it someday.

10.11.05

Here's the trailer for DOOM. Starring The Rock!

10.10.05

It isn't much, and posting this just seems kind of perfunctory (like everybody's doing it), but it's important... Here are some organizations providing relief for earthquake victims in South Asia. Give what you can:

www.unicef.org

www.oxfam.org.uk

www.wfp.org

www.kirf.org

www.ifrc.org

Do you get the feeling earthquake relief this time around isn't as "cool" as the Tsunami and Katrina?

10.10.05

Hey, everybody. I've been asked by Hyphen to write a piece for their next issue... Basically, I'm putting together a top 10 list of Asian American blogs and/or podcasts. I think I've got a decent list going, but I need a few more to round it out to ten. So, I'm putting a call out for some suggestions. What are the cool, intelligent, insightful, humorous, informative, outrageous Asian American blogs out there out the internets? I'd like to know.

Please don't just submit your own Xanga or Livejournal, which details what you ate for breakfast or how much homework you have, or who you hung out with on Saturday night. I'm looking for stuff with some purpose, or at least just kind of amusing... Send me some suggestions at angryminsoo@angryasianman.com.

10.10.05

I don't know much about dance, but I love the name of this show: 365 Ways of Doing and Undoing Orientalism. "Hong Kong's premier dance company CCDC (City Contemporary Dance Company) returns to New York for the first time in over a decade with 365 Ways of Doing and Undoing Orientalism, a full-length work co-choreographed by the company's Founder/Director Willy Tsao, Resident Artist Xing Liang and Tibetan dancer/choreographer Sang Jijia." Apparently, the work pokes fun at stereotypes... You know I like that.

10.10.05

Someone forwarded this email to me, regarding a couple of Asian American actors on the UPN:

Subject: ACTS: Write letter of support for UPN's 2 Asian Americans

Let's make this a national effort by passing this onto family and
friends, particularly outside of LA and people notnot necessarily
connected to the business. It makes a huge impact that people who
respond and write letters aren't necessarily friends or connected to the
show (but don't let me stop you, because EVERY letter does count!).

UPN now has TWO Asian-American Series Regulars on their Monday night
sitcom lineup. Alec Mapa returns to HALF AND HALF this season 9:30PM,
and LISA (Camille Mana) is brand new to ONE ON ONE at 8:00PM.
Entertainment Weeky quotes it has "the biggest overhaul of any series
this year," the cast change is very experimental and who knows how it
will fare with audiences. Additionally, Alec's Half and Half character
is homosexual, and One on One's Lisa isn't exactly the brightest bulb -
we are moving outside the "model minority!" This is great progress on
the APA front! Let these execs know that we are proud to be represented
as multidimensional, "regular" Americans.

ONE ON ONE STUDIO/NETWORK EXECS:

Mr. Les Moonves

CEO, CBS Corporation

c/o UPN

11800 Wilshire Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90025

Dawn Ostroff

President, Entertainment

UPN

11800 Wilshire Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90025

Bob Greenblatt

The Greenblatt/Janollari Studio

c/o Showtime Networks, Inc.

10880 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 1600

Los Angeles, CA 90024

Eric Kim

Director, Current Programs

UPN

11800 Wilshire Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90025

Laurie Zaks

Sr. VP, Current Programming

UPN

11800 Wilshire Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90025

Jocelyn Freid

Consultant, Comedy Development

Paramount Studios

5555 Melrose Ave.

Los Angeles, CA 90038

Thank you for your support!

Premise:

The 5th season of ONE ON ONE follows Breanna Barnes (Kyla Pratt), now
an 18-year old woman, as she moves from Baltimore to sunny California to
attend university and pursue her acting dreams. With her boyfriend Arnaz
(Robert Ri'chard) in tow, the two move into a house in Venice with an
eclectic group of roommates -- an aspiring filmmaker (Jonathan Chase), a
spoiled underachiever (Camille Mana), a hip-hop obsessed college student
(Brandy's brother Ray J), and a stylish girl who can't seem to hold down
a job (Nicole Paggi).

Background:

In 2004, the series received two NAACP Image Award nominations: Flex
Alexander earned a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy
Series and Kyla Pratt earned a nomination for Outstanding Supporting
Actress in a Comedy Series.

I've never seen either of these shows, nor am I familiar with most of the shows on UPN. However, I am a fan of good Asian American roles on TV, so I'll have to make an effort to check them out.

10.10.05

This is idiotic... Ninja is a new Japanese restaurant in New York with waiters who dress and act like ninjas: Kitchen Kitsch. I understand that there are ninja-themed restaurants in other parts of the world, but I just laughed when I saw the photo of the white dude in that sorry-ass ninja costume. According the restaurant's publicits, ninja warriors "spring up from hidden corners to surprise guests." Damn fools.

10.10.05

Mother on Fire, written and performed by Sandra Tsing Loh, is now playing at the 24th Street Theatre in Los Angeles, and runs through November 6. "A show for hysterical Los Angeles parents and those who must put up with them." You can also listen to her weekly perspectives, The Loh Life on KPCC 89.3 FM in Los Angeles.

10.10.05

I'm really diggin' AZN TV's schedule of Asian American documentaries over the next few months. It's solid, with classics like The Fall of the I-Hotel and Who Killed Vincent Chin? Oh, and Ham Tran's The Anniversary is a must-see (it airs November 2). For those of you who get AZN, here's an Excel spreadsheet with the next few months' airdates.

10.10.05

The BBC is compiling information about people who were or who know someone who is in the areas affected by the devastating earthquake in South Asia: Are you affected by the Asia quake?. The death toll numbers at least 20,000—probably more. This is crazy. I feel like we're on the way to recovering from one world tragedy, only to suffer the next one in line... Will America respond in the same way that they did with the tsunami?

10.10.05

Crossing East has some interesting Flash animations highlighting stories from APA history. There's one about Portland's Southeast Asian refugee community, a story on frontier herbalist Ing (Doc) Hay, and another on Hawaiian lineage in early Pacific Northwest history. Crossing East is the first radio series on Asian American history—eight one-hour documentaries. I haven't had a chance to check it out, but it sounds pretty cool.

10.10.05

Two former staffers at Reuters subsidiary Loan Pricing Corp. are alleging they experienced racial discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace: Racial 'Reut' Rage. Wenping Tu says her boss repeatedly expressed "disgust and disdain" for Chinese people, and referred to Tu as "cheap labor." She also claims he referred "to his seminal fluid [as] 'milkshake.' Gross. That's racist! (And sexist.)

10.09.05

Okay. I post this with a great deal of embarrassment and trepidation... There's a profile piece on me and this website in today's Washington Post: Incensed And Empowered. Please try to refrain from laughing at the photo. I was trying to look angry, but I think I just look... sleepy. That's all I have to say about that.

10.09.05

This email was forwarded along to me... A TIME reporter is looking for Asian American sources for a story:

SUBJECT: TIME Magazine Request for sources

I am a reporter with TIME Magazine looking for sources. I'm working
on a story about Asian-Americans between the ages of 20 and 40 whose
parents immigrated here after October 1965, when Congress passed a
landmark immigration law that loosened
decades-old restrictions on Asians. I would like to talk to you about
your experiences growing up in America. Among the subjects I'd like
to discuss are: education and career; marriage and relationships; and
religion-all relating to your family and your family's expectations.
I'm especially interested in stories where your parents had one goal
for you while you fought for another (ie, dad wanted you to become a
doctor; you wanted to become a teacher/artist/entrepreneur).

You must be:

*Born in the U.S. between 1965 and 1985

*Born to educated Asians who came over after October 1965

Also, ideally I would like to talk to people who were raised outside
of a big city-where you were perhaps one of the few Asian children in
your class or subdivision.

If interested, please send me a brief note explaining who you are,
what you're doing now and whether or not your parents might be
willing to comment on record to my email address at
Kristin_kloberdanz@timemagazine.com
Please include your contact information. My deadline is October 10.

Many thanks,

Kristin

October 10—that's tomorrow. I'm sure there are more than a few people out there who would be good for this story...

10.08.05

An article on Vietnamese shrimp fisherman in Port Arthur, TX affected by Hurricane Rita: Vietnamese worry about the future of shrimping

10.08.05

In September 2003, Captain James Yee was arrested and wrongfully accused of spying for the Taliban and Al Qaeda, after serving as the Muslim chaplain for prisoners at Guantanamo Bay. He spent 76 days in solitary confinement, and was threatened with the death penalty. Of couse, in the end, it was determined that the government had made a terrible mistake (damn that national security thing), and Yee was cleared of all charges. Oops, said the government. Here's an article: A Chaplain's Test of Faith. Now, Yee has written a book about his ordeal: For God and Country: Faith and Patriotism Under Fire

Arrested? Incarcerated? Accused of espionage? Sounds pretty familiar... Perhaps a fitting companion read with this book: My Country Versus Me by Wen Ho Lee

10.08.05

Hey, guess what? MTV is doing a casting call for its latest season of its flagship reality series, The Real World. "Anyone between the ages of 18 and 24 is encouraged to attend our open casting calls." See here. Now, as fans of the show may know, there has never been an Asian American male on any of the sixteen seasons of The Real World. To be honest, eventually, you just get used to this fact: the real world—at least, the real world that matters to MTV—doesn't really include Asian guys. That's racist! But hey, wouldn't it be cool if an Asian guy made it on the show? Yeah, it's one hell of a long shot, and you have to lead a drama-plagued life, or something's gotta be messed up about your past, and you have to be exceptionally good-looking. But if you're willing, here's your chance. Are you "real" enough?

10.08.05

Another article on Yunjin Kim (Sun on Lost): Yunjin Kim Finds a Home on 'Lost'. By the way, it looks episode five will be a Jin-centric flashback episode...

10.08.05

This is pretty fascinating... In June 1989, student protest leader Wang Dan made the Chinese government's "most wanted" list after he helped organize a people's protest for democracy in Beijing's Tiananmen Square. The demonstration turned massacre left hundreds, if not thousands, of protesters dead at the hands of the Chinese government. Today, Wang is the author of 17 books about his experiences, and he's working on his Ph.D. at Harvard University: Then & Now: Wang Dan, Tiananmen Square student leader

10.08.05

Another interesting perspective on the urination hate crime at the University of Michigan: Criticism and charity begin at home. If any good can come out of this, it will hopefully result in attempts at more balanced discussions of race and diversity. (But don't hold your breath.)

10.08.05

Check it out: Santa Cruz's Pacific Rim Film Festival—independent, thought-provoking films from Asia and the Pacific Rim, October 7-12. Best of all, almost all of the screenings are free thanks to generous community support. Free!

10.08.05

Okay, so racist, effed-up Asian-themed t-shirts are nothing new. I see them all the time. Everybody wants to make a buck on some tasteless Asian stereotype, because hey, it's fun, easy and okay to make fun of yellow people. At the risk of giving it unnecessary attention, here's another one: Asian Girls - You Won't Be Hungry Again In An Hour!. Yeah, it's as bad as it sounds. What's worse, this shirt is intended to be worn by Asian women. Thus, the encouragement: "Be proud of your heritage, Asian ladies! We men certainly are! Me-ow!" Hell no. That's racist!

As you know, every time I mention some racist-ass shirt, I also give a plug for my favorite t-shirt company, Blacklava. This shirt seems to be the perfect counter: I Will Not Love You Long Time. Hell yes.

10.08.05

"Hey Chad! Here's a great idea! Have a pudgy smug-ass white dude in the midst of some miserable-looking oriental monks! He'll really stick out and illustrate our concept of "difference!" Yeah, there's this weird advertisement for the Hopkins Real Estate Group, which frankly, I don't understand. The Hyphen blog's got some things to say: Blatant Racism Strikes Again

10.08.05

Bad news NBC's drama Inconceivable, starring Ming Na. It seems that it's having trouble finding an audience: "Inconceivable" Takes a Pause. They yanked it off last night's schedule... Could we be looking at one less Asian face on prime time? It has been known to him.

10.07.05

Effective yesterday, National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium has changed its name to the Asian American Justice Center. Read about it here: NAPALC Changes Name to Asian American Justice Center. New tagline: "Advancing Equality."

10.07.05

Let's get this straight: STEVEN SEAGAL IS NOT ASIAN. No matter how much martial arts he thinks he knows, no matter how small he squints his eyes. He's not Asian. You know it. I know it. The only person can't seem to understand this is Seagal himself. The latest example: Steven Seagalís Asian Experience Energy Drink. Yes, Steven Seagal's Lightning Bolt Energy Drink, complete with Steven's ugly mug on the can—"100% Pure Steven Seagal Juice." That just sounds disgusting.

10.07.05

Attention rappers, dancers, turntablists, singers and spoken word artists of "Asiatic descent." Open auditions this weekend for Asian Hip Hop Summit 4. This Sunday, October 9 at Jeet Kune Flow in Los Angeles' K-Town. See here for more information.

10.07.05

How great can Yao Ming? He doesn't know: Yao has grown into one of NBA's biggest stars

10.07.05

Singer Heather Park has a dilemma. She's got a concept for her first video, —for her single, "The Life"—but she wants your opinion on the matter. It seems her idea has sparked a minor controversy, so she wants some more feedback... Read about the concept, plus the pros the cons, spelled out on Heather's Xanga, and leave your comments at hearthepark.com.

10.06.05

Another Bay Area event this weekend... This one's for the poetry fiends: Filipino American History Month Poetry Reading. Saturday, October 8 at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Hosted by Joel Tan and Barbara Jane Reyes, featuring Anthem Salgado, Paolo Javier, Tony Robles, Sean Manzano Labrador, Katinka Baltazar, and Alexis Meneses. You like that?

10.06.05

Hey, San Jose (South Bay, represent!) ... something for you to do this weekend: Contemporary Asian Theater Scene's 4th Annual Asian Comedy Night. This Saturday, October 8th, at the Montgomery Theater. Starring comedians Dat Phan (where the hell has this guy been?), Tina Kim, and Paul Varghese. I like funny.

10.06.05

Just came across this blog, and I find it pretty interesting: Discrimination & National Security Initiative. It's a "research entity that examines the mistreatment of minority communities during times of military action or national crisis." Some good information and news to fuel your post-9/11 blues.

10.06.05

Oh hell, this does not bode well: Espionage Case Breaches the White House. Both the FBI and CIA are calling it the first case of espionage in the White House in modern history... and guess what? The accused spy is Filipino. Leandro Aragoncillo, a U.S. Marine most recently assigned to the staff of Vice President Dick Cheney, allegedly used his top secret clearance to steal classified intelligence documents from White House computers, then passed them off to politicians planning a coup in the Philippines. Asian spies in the White House! You know what that means for the rest of us... Watch your back.

10.06.05

Hey now. Margaret Cho's short-lived sitcom All American Girl will be released on DVD on January 31, 2006. The 4-disc set will include all 19 episodes of the 1994-95 series. Interesting. If you recall, there was a lot of publicity around it back in the day because it was the very first Asian American family on TV. Yay. I do remember watching the show, and I do remember that it sucked a lot. Still, it might be interesting to pick up, just for its value as a cultural artifact. Margaret Cho herself has some thoughts on the show in a recent blog entry: All American Girl

10.06.05

Drat. Melody did not win So You Think You Can Dance?

10.06.05

I think I mentioned Muck It Tees earlier this year. Back during the whole Hot 97 controversy, they were selling this nifty shirt: NOT 97. Just wanted to give them a little plug... they've got some fun cultural and political shirt designs, with specific love for South Asians and Koreans (the company is made up of two Korean-Americans and three Indian-Americans). You won't be seeing this one at Urban Outfitters.

10.05.05

Check it out... my pal Margaret has an interview with Dustin Nguyen in ChopBlock: The Real Deal. Suddenly, everybody's talking about Dustin Nguyen! And suddenly, I want to watch old 21 Jump Street reruns.

ChopBlock's also got a good feature on Steve Byrne, stand-up comedian and host of AZN's Asia Street Comedy: But Seriously... I have seen the man perform and he is indeed funny.

10.05.05

This is crazy. Short track speed skater Apolo Anton Ohno was greeted by 100 riot police officers upon his arrival this week in South Korea. I guess they're concerned about angry Koreans still bitter about his disputed win over Kim Dong-sung at the 2002 Olympics: Ohno arrives in South Korea. Remember that? The guy was haaaated over there.

10.05.05

What the heck? I just watched Lost, and in the preview for next week's episode, there was a moment where Jin (Daniel Dae Kim) says in perfect English, "Everything is going to change." Dude. Did I hear that correctly? What's going on? How is this possible? Has Jin known English all along? Or perhaps it has been magically bestowed upon him (like Locke's legs)... I have no idea. If this is for real, it could be an interesting development... Then it again, it could just be someone's crazy dream. I'm going to be pondering this for the next week.

10.05.05

Okay, okay. Please stop emailing me this stupid story. Nicholas Cage and his Korean wife gave birth to a baby boy: Oscar Winner Cage Becomes Father Again. Being freaks, they named their kid Kal-El, which comic book fans know is Superman's birth name. I'm sorry, unless your name is Jor-El, you cannot name your kid Kal-El. (I believe it's Kryptonian for "kick my ass.")

10.05.05

Well, it's official: Wie is pro. Sixteen-year old, six-foot Michelle Wie is now a golf pro—and worth millions. The future is bright!

10.05.05

I hadn't really thought of it this way... Sadly, many Americans' first exposure to Hmong ethnicity was through national coverage of Chai Soua Vang's murder trial: No Place Left to Hide -- Deer-Hunter Case Strips Hmong of Ethnic Anonymity

10.05.05

Bruce Lee—Asian America's James Dean? This AsianWeek article pays tribute to the man and his memory: Die Young and Live Long

10.05.05

More on the controversy over jokes made on the "Drew and Mike" radio show in Detroit: Asian students protest radio show content. There are differing accounts of what actually happened during the broadcast. But according to this article:

In a Sept. 23 segment of the "Drew and Mike in the Morning" show on 101.1 WRIF, the show's hosts inserted audio clips in their discussion of the Sept. 15 incident and of the low wages of Chinese autoworkers, that said "Me no speak Chinese" and "I must go toilet," in fake accents.

Does anyone out there have an audio clip of the actual segment? I'd like to hear it for myself.

10.05.05

Now you too can be a geisha with makeup products inspired by the movie! Yes, Memoirs of a Geisha product tie-ins: Fresh Announces Beauty Partnership with Highly Anticipated Memoirs of a Geisha. Also see here. We live in a crazy world.

10.05.05

Here's the trailer for Annapolis, directed by Justin Lin. I believe you can catch a glimpse of Roger Fan somewhere in the trailer. But if you blink, you'll miss him.

Speaking of Justin Lin, here's the latest news about Fast and the Furious 3... The lead will not be played by Bow Wow, as I previously believed. He's still in the movie, but he's playing some other dude. The lead character, Shaun, will be played by Lucas Black: Lucas Black drifting into 3rd 'Furious' race. This is not any more or less encouraging. I do hear that Brian Tee, Sung Kang and Jason Tobin are all in the cast. I don't think about this movie. Some days, it sounds like crap. Other days, it sounds a little less like crap. The premise sounds like a formula for trouble, but my gut tells me that Justin Lin and Co. are smarter than that. Make no mistake: this is a huge-budget, high-profile gig... there is certainly a kind of career leverage one achieves after making a move like this. We'll just have to wait and see...

10.05.05

I've been seeing this weird ass Volkswagon commercial on TV. I don't really know how to describe it, except that it's some sort of chinkified martial arts duel—without any apparent martial arts—between the VW Beetle and an inanimte object (i.e. New Beetle vs. Alarm Clock). They face off, and then the alarm clock explodes. Yeah. I didn't get it either. But there is that wonderful gong. Go here, choose "Do Battle" and "General Gao's Kung-fu Palace." You'll see, it's weird. I really really don't get it.

10.04.05

A selection from the ol' Angry Asian Mailbag, one of several I've received today:

FROM: "J. Adam Wyatt"

DATE: Tue, 04 Oct 2005 12:38:05 -0400

TO:
SUBJECT: Happy White Guy

Hey dumbass angry asian. The Drew and Mike morning show is not racisist.
The incident you are crying about is a clip from saturday night live that
the show always plays. If you find it offensive dont listen to it. Or go
and whine to saturday night live where the clip came from. Dont hate us
because we are white. Just because someone makes a joke about your race
does not mean they are racist. Listen to the show a little more and you
might understand. If you cant deal with it go back to your country where if
you complained about something like this they would kill you or put you in
prison. If your so angry LEAVE, GET OUT.

There it is, without fail. One of my personal favorites, the "go back to your country" line. It's a classic you can always count on. What can I say? Let it speak for itself. That's racist! No, wait, I mean racisist.

10.04.05

So check this out... You may have heard of Bringing Down the House, the book by Ben Mezrich that tells the true story of a group of MIT students that took Vegas for millions using blackjack and simple math. You may have also heard that the book was being made into a feature film starring Kevin Spacey as the MIT professor who taught the group. Now, here's what sucks. In real life, most of the actual blackjack team was composed of Asian males. But that's real life. In Hollywood-sucks-land, a studio executive involved in the casting process has apparently said that most of the film's actors would be white, with perhaps an Asian female. Aw hell. That's Hollywood for you. Read about it here: MIT Alumnus and 'Busting Vegas' Author Describe Experience of Beating the House (it's near the end). Once again, Hollywood gives Asian guy(s) get the shaft. Disappointing, yes. But is anyone really surprised? It's just business as usual. That's racist!

10.04.05

I ran into my pal Vince the other day, and was reminded of his film Walking Between The Lines. It's available for online viewing from Cinequest. Clever, cool short film... or as one has put it, "perhaps the greatest short film ever made in the history of man." I don't know about that, but I like it. Walking Between The Lines, by my buddy Vincent Tsu. Enjoy.

10.04.05

"Watch it, or I'll bust a Chai Vang on you." It's hard to completely justify the actions of Chai Soua Vang, but the Hmong American community can certainly empathize and understand the anger and fear that drove him: A cultural divide

10.04.05

Victor Vu's feature film First Morning has started a select city to city theatrical run. It's a quiet, dramatic film that tells a unique Vietnamese American story. Learn more here.

10.03.05

Here's an update in the case of the unsolved killing of Jae Sang Kim, a 57-year-old Atlanta businessman brutally murdered in June: Family Raises $25,000 Reward. For information on the case, or how you can help, contact Ronin Su at ronin_s@hotmail.com.

10.03.05

This is pretty cool. Writer Irwin Tang (the dude originally attributed with stirring up the Shaq/Yao controversy a few years back) has published a collection of semi-autobiographical stories, How I Became a Black Man and Other Metamorphoses, and it sounds pretty damn funny (and awkward). Here's an article from AsianWeek: Who Is Irwin Tang? Not about his transformation into a Black man—just a quest to find in himself a true, genuine Asian American male voice. Sounds pretty good to me.

10.03.05

More reactions from the hate crime at University of Michigan, where some dude on a balcony urinated on an Asian couple: True or not, alleged bias incident inflames. Once again, here's the blog that's been following the whole incident (where I've been getting my news): Reaction to Hate Crime at the U of Michigan

Meanwhile, a popular Detroit-area talk show, "The Drew and Mike Show," apparently mocked the victims of the incident. According to this article, while someone read the story on air, the other hosts kept saying in a sing-song fake Chinese accent, things like "Me no speak Chinee," and the usual racist ching chong crap we have to deal with: "Drew & Mike Show" mocks victims of anti-Asian hate crime. (I admit, I haven't heard the broadcast for myself.) Can't say I'd expect better behavior from a morning radio show. This is what they thrive on. F#@& that. That's racist!

A group of individuals from the University of Michigan have also written up a statement about the incident:

September 27, 2005

Open Letter to the Management of 101.1 WRIF,

As concerned members of the Asian/Pacific Islander American community at the
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor we are appalled and deeply disturbed to
discover that your "Drew & Mike Show" ran a racially insensitive and offensive
commentary on a racially-motivated incident that occurred at the U of M. On
Friday, September 23, 2005, sometime before 10:00 a.m., a female host of the
"Drew & Mike Show" read the headline from the Michigan Daily article while two
other show hosts spoke in fake Chinese accents, "Me no speak Chinee" and made
racist jokes about the very serious allegation of ethnic intimidation that has
caused severe anguish to individuals and our community at large. Students at U
of M are understandably outraged by the event, but to hear that one of the most
important radio stations in the Detroit area ridiculed the victims with such
blatant disregard for their humiliation and for the broader community's
suffering is truly unconscionable. Does WRIF mean to make entertainment out of
not only racist acts but the needless suffering of others? Later in the same
show, another headline was read about a recent poll claiming that 54% of
Americans support the Minutemen, an anti-immigrant vigilante organization. The
same voice that mocked the hate crime story spoke encouragingly about support
for the Minutemen. Is it the intention of WRIF to represent itself as a media
organization that supports and encourages hatred and violence toward ethnic
minorities and immigrants? We call upon 101.1 WRIF to clarify its commitment
to putting an end to racism, bigotry and acts of ethnic intimidation by taking
responsibility for the actions of its employees. We hereby call upon WRIF to:

- Provide a transcript or audio recording of the program

- Meet with representatives of the A/PIA community

- Respond to this letter within 72 hours of receiving it by contacting our repesentative, Denny Chan at (231) 329-2838 or denchan@umich.edu

We look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Stephen Ahn

Stephanie Kao

United Asian American Organizations Co-Chairs

Robinson Chin

Stephen Lin

Asian American Association Co-Chairs

Faculty members of Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

I will be surprised if this results in the station giving a rat's ass about any of this.

10.03.05

Looking for a place to service or repair your Japanese automobile in the Cary, NC area? Why not visit Happy Jap's? That's right, I kid you not. Happy Jap's! They're Japanese auto specialists. I guess they didn't get the memo. That's racist!

10.03.05

Dude, the latest edition of Asia Pacific Arts has an interview with The RZA. That is one guy seriously caught up in Asian culture. APArts actually one of my favorite online APA magazines. Lots of good news, reviews and interviews, so check back regularly.

10.03.05

Some conferences coming up... Branching Out The Banyan Tree, the 2005 Chinese American Studies Conference. October 6-9 at the Radisson Miyako Hotel in San Francisco. Lots of cool panels and presentations, including a sneak peek of clips from Eric Byler's American Knees and Arthur Dong's Chinese in Hollywood Project, and full-length screenings of Felicia Lowe's Chinese Couplet and Curtis Choy's What's Wrong with Frank Chin? Many interesting things will be discussed.

Next week, there's the SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice
Collective's 2nd Annual National Membership Meeting (whoa, that's a mouthful), co-sponsored by Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice. October 15th-16th, in Emeryville, CA. Many interesting things will be discussed.

Or how about the Southeast Regional Conference of Asian American Leaders? October 14th-15th, at the University of Florida. Southeastern students, represent! Many interesting things will be discussed.

And... the Association for Asian American Studies is accepting proposals for their annual conference, to be held March 22-26 in Atlanta, GA. The theme of the conference is "Bodies, Communities, Regions," and submissions are due October 31. Submit, fellow APA nerds. Many interesting things will be discussed.

10.03.05

Speaking of film festivals, the DC APA Film Festival 2005 kicks off this week with the Opening Night presentation of Mike Kang's The Motel, and closes out on October 16th with Neill Dela Llana and Ian Gamazon's Cavite. Looks solid. DC, where you at?

10.03.05

Speaking of Dustin Nguyen, you will soon be able to see him opposite Cate Blanchett in Little Fish. The film screened last month at the Toronto International Film Festival. Long way from 21 Jump Street, brother.

10.03.05

Over the weekend, I got to check out the San Diego Asian Film Festival, easily one of the funnest APA film festivals in the land. Saw some films, attended a panel, hung out with some cool people and generally just enjoyed the exciting atmosphere of supporting Asian American film. Overheard many times over the course of the weekend: "OH MY GOD IS THAT DUSTIN NGUYEN?" Yes, my friends. It is. Here's an article on the awards handed out this year: Stars shined brightly at SDAFF Gala Awards. The festival runs through Thursday, October 6th, with the Closing Night presentation of Lane Nishikawa's Only the Brave. Go check it out.

10.03.05

Check it out... In recognition of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Mothers, Daughters, Sisters, an award winning documentary about breast cancer and Asian Pacific Islander Americans will be screened at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles on Wednesday, October 5 at 6:00pm. Admission is $10 at the door. Get there early, and stay for the Q&A. Here's a flyer with more information.

10.01.05

Another Asian American politician making waves... Sam Yoon has made a strong fifth-place showing (in the cut for the final eight) for the City Councillor at Large post in Boston. He's the city's first Asian American council candidate—and he's got a good shot: Sam Yoon: Boston Councilman?. Boston's primary election will take place on Tuesday, September 27.

10.01.05

New York's Museum of Chinese in the Americas, currently housed in four small rooms, will be getting an expanded 12,000-foot space designed by Maya Lin: Chinese Museum to Get New $6.5M Home. The new building is expected to open by the end of 2006.