Angry Asian Man

9.10.2012

locating the sacred festival, september 12-23

Get sacred, New York. From September 12-23, catch the Locating the Sacred Festival, taking place in all five boroughs. Presented by Asian American Arts Alliance, it's a collaboration of artists from all across the city, exploring the meaning of the word "sacred" and its relevance in their communities. Events include a 9/11-inspired spoken word theater performance by Kelly Zen Yie-Tsai, a sundown concert with Dana Leong, and much, much more.

Kind of last minute, but if you're in New York, head over to the Asian American Writers' Workshop for the latest Mouth to Mouth Open Mic: Sikh Night.

Jen Kwok and Ed Lin host a night of levity and healing on the inauspicious 9/11, featuring Pushkar Sharma and Cihan Kaan. It's happening Tuesday night, September 11. Here are some more details:

New music from DFD! My dude Jonathan Park, aka Los Angeles emcee Dumbfoundead, recently dropped the music video for "Growing Young," the first single off his upcoming sophomore album Take the Stares. This one's all illustrated and stuff. Take a look:

We're getting poetic up here. It's time for another installment of Angry Poetry Corner, a regular weekly spotlight on the work of API poets -- not necessarily angry -- curated by Cara, our Angry Asian Intern. Because you could use a little more poetry in your life.

In the corner this week, a poem by Aaron Sayama, chosen from our recent open call:

Fans of Hollywood stuntman Steven Ho's guest appearances on Conan will be pleased to know that he's scheduled to be back on the show this Thursday, September 13 -- his eighth time on the show! I always look forward to seeing Steven find new ways to kick Conan O'Brien's ass.

tbs orders second season of sullivan and son

Looks like we'll be getting another shot of Sullivan & Son. The popular new summer sitcom, starring comedian Steve Byrne and produced by Vince Vaughn, has posted some pretty strong numbers, so TBS is ordering a second season: TBS Orders Second Round of Sullivan & Son.

Were you weirded out by the yellowface in the Cloud Atlas trailer?

Judging from this tweet, I'm guessing actor Jim Sturgess isn't too concerned about the seriously ghastly Asian makeup he's sporting in the upcoming movie.

Or as he puts it: "Lovely!"

You know, if it wasn't his intention to insult anyone regarding the yellowface going on in this movie, he's doing a damn fine job of it now. (Thanks, Joe.)

new law protects against religious bias in the workplace

Over the weekend in California, Governor Jerry Brown signed a new law that that protects those wearing religious or hairstyle, such as Sikhs and Muslims, from discrimination in the workplace: Jerry Brown signs law protecting Sikhs, Muslims, from workplace bias

AB 1964, authored by Assemblywoman Mariko Yamada, restricts employers from segregating an employee from customers and public view as a means of accommodating the employee's religious beliefs. That means, say, a Sikh employee who wears a turban cannot be relegated to working the back room of a clothing store.

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Candy Chang: Before I die I want to... In her New Orleans neighborhood, artist Candy Chang turned an abandoned house into a giant chalkboard asking a fill-in-the-blank question: "Before I die I want to ___." Her neighbors' answers were surprising, poignant and funny.

OSU Haters: Exposing "Know Your Place" Aggression: "Given the historical awareness underpinning these tweets, we must remember what dominant assumptions encourage us to forget: racial violence is often a response to success." Yes.

With Asian immigration rising, candidates seek national office: Seventeen Asian Americans are running for U.S. Congress -- a record-breaking number. Sukhee Kang, current mayor of Irvine, is one of them.

The Asian Vote in 2012: KPCC's Pat Morrisson interviews Congresswoman Judy Chu and APALC's Voter Engagement Manager Tanzila Ahmed on Asian Americans and the election.

this week's angriest posts

Not necessarily the angriest, just the most viewed.

"oh, those ching chongs are with you?"

punched "me love you long time" comedian speaks out

that asian guy with obama's family

jeremy lin's late night escape in taipei

tapioca balls may cause cancer? noooooooooo!

umma gangnam style: mike song's mom's got the moves

psy signs with justin bieber's manager

hey, it's barack

hollister models go to korea, act like assholes

orange county man charged with murdering girlfriend

Stay Angry, my friends.

9.07.2012

audrey's night out 2012, september 15

It's on. This is for all of my fashionable folks in Los Angeles.

You are invited to Audrey Magazine's fifth fashion show and party, Audrey's Night Out 2012, an evening of fashion, fantasy and fun. It's happening Saturday, September 15 at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica.

This year's Night Out will be hosted by Jamie Chung and Justin Chon, with performances by Carly Rae Jepsen (yes, the "Call Me Maybe" gal), Clinton Sparks and Legaci. Here are some more details about the event:

Heads up, DREAMers. The Asian American Center for Advancing Justice, Asian Students Promoting Immigrant Rights through Education, United We Dream, South Asian Americans Leading Together and a host of other AAPI organizations are holding a webinar next week for undocumented youth seeking to understand how to apply for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). It's happening the evening of Wednesday, September 12. Here are some more details:

The Los Angeles acoustic cello rock duo Oak & Gorski have recorded a new EP, Sounds Like Love, and they're calling on fans and supporters to help get it out. They're currently winding down a Kickstarter campaign to raise the cash to manufacture the record. Here's their funny video with the pitch:

Damn. What the hell is wrong with people? Horrific story out of Southern California... Last week, a 59-year-old woman died after being set on fire by her son: Sylmar woman allegedly set on fire by her son dies, LAPD says.

Heunae Chang died of severe burns after being intentionally set on fire at her home in Sylmar. Her son, 25-year-old Philip Chang, was originally booked for attempted murder while she was still alive, but there will no doubt be new charges pending an investigation:

My people, it's time. Time to meet the Angry Reader of the Week, spotlighting you, the very special readers of this website. Over the years, I've been able to connect with a lot of cool folks, and this is a way of showing some appreciation and attention to the people who help make this blog what it is. This week's Angry Reader is comedian/writer Hari Kondabolu.

Tell me if this sounds about right. Clothing company Hollister -- you may also be familiar with its parent company Abercrombie & Fitch -- opened up its first store in South Korea. To commemorate the occasion, they shipped in some young shirtless American models to dress up the place.

The models did not behave well.

Asianspotting! If you were watching President Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention last night, you may have wondered, "Hey, who's that random Asian guy up on stage?" Because this blog received a spike in traffic last night from search results for "asian guy obama family dnc."

For your information, that Asian guy rolling with the President's family is Konrad Ng, husband of Maya Soetoro-Ng, sister of President Obama. Giving Barack the bro-in-law-hug. I might add that Konrad is a friend to this blog and a former Angry Reader of the Week.

I'm pretty sure I wrote a post like this four years ago, after the last DNC. So... consider this your quadrennial dose of knowledge dropped.

tapioca balls may cause cancer? noooooooooo!

In a revelation that could send boba shops everywhere into a panic, new research suggests that those delicious chewy tapioca balls that go in your boba tea may include chemicals that cause cancer. Whaaaaat.

Researchers at the University Hospital AAchen in Germany have reportedly found traces of a carcinogenic chemical known as aspolychlorinated biphenyls in tapioca ball samples: Bubble Tea Tapioca Pearls May Contain Cancer-Causing Chemicals, German Study Claims.

east west players presents encounter, sept 6 - oct 7

Hey, L.A. Come to the David Henry Hwang Theatre and see Encounter, a dance theater production from East West Players in association with the Navarasa Dance Theater. Encounter explores different types of encounters, from the Divine to Bob Marley, with stories from all around the world. Opening night is September 12, and the production ends October 7th. More information:

Passing along this update about continued efforts to pursue justice for Pvt. Danny Chen... October 3 marks the one year anniversary of this death. Coincidentally, Sgt. Andrew Van Bockel, one of the eight men charged in connection with Chen's death will face court martial that week.

If you're in New York, OCA-NY is organizing a van trip down to Fort Bragg, North Carolina to attend the court martial. They'll be holding a meeting next week to share plans to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Pvt. Chen's death. Here's some more information:

Oh, heads up. The holidays are still a little while away, but that doesn't mean you can't put this sweet little set on your wish list. The Harold & Kumar Ultimate Blu-ray Collector's Edition hits shelves on November 13.

The "Highly Flammable 3-Movie Set" includes the holy trinity of Asian American stoner movies -- Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle, Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay and A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas -- along with three scented air fresheners and six scented drink-coaster sets.

A must-have for any Harold and Kumar fan.

orange county man charged with murdering girlfriend

This week in Orange County, authorities arrested a man who allegedly killed his girlfriend at his home in Laguna Hills, California, then fled to Arizona: O.C. man charged with murdering his college sweetheart.

24-year-old Alexandra Tang was found dead with multiple stab wounds on Saturday morning. Her boyfriend Derek Henry Pinski, was taken into custody nine hours later, 350 miles away, at his father's home in Mesa, Arizona. What the hell happened?

On Wednesday, Congresswoman Judy Chu, Veteras Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and California's Attorney General Kamala Harris all spoke at the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. American Idol runner-up Jessica Sanchez was even on hand to perform. Here's some video:

Somewhere Between, directed by Linda Goldstein Knowlton, is a feature documentary that follows four Chinese American adopted teenage girls and their struggles for identity. I haven't had a moment to watch it yet (to be totally honest, I've a had a screener sitting on my desk for a while) but I'm told that it's a thoughtful, moving film and I'd like to help get the word out.

Here's the trailer:

If you've been following Jeremy Lin's every move -- LIKE I HAVE -- you know that he's been hanging out and making his way through Beijing, Hong Kong and Taipei over the last month. As you can imagine, his presence has created quite a stir among media and fans.

In this Jeremy Adventure, A Late Night Escape in Taipei, Jeremy and his crew, including David Lee of the Golden State Warriors, sneak out of their hotel rooms to plays some hoops with the Taipei locals. This is a fun one:

Remember that Atlantic City casino lawsuit over some folks who got a hell of a payoff when they were dealt cards from an unshuffled deck?

Last week, the casino announced that it would let those gamblers keep the nearly $1 million they won from those games: Golden Nugget casino says it will pay $1.5M in winnings in Atlantic City unshuffled cards case.

A judge ordered the Golden Nugget to let players cash in their chips. And ultimately, rather than file an appeal, the Golden Nugget decided to pay the winners -- most of whom are Asian -- to make the whole thing go away:

kearny street workshop presents runway 2012

Bay Area! Get your style on. The Kearny Street Workshop presents KSW Runway 2012, its annual fashion show on Saturday, September 8 at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center. Six local designers will be showcasing their work, and there will be a live auction for accessories and garments. Here's more, including information about the designers:

Calling all independent music artists!

Looking for some exposure? Asian American entertainment television network Myx TV is searching for artists to showcase on the second season of Press Play, where you'll compete for fame, glory and the chance to perform on a nationwide television stage. Here's the video call for artists:

Singer/songwriter David Choi just released his latest music video for "Lucky Guy," yet another collaboration with the guys from Wong Fu Productions. This one comes with a story, a little something on the sensitive tip. Take a look:

In San Francisco, police are looking for the culprits behind a series of fraud cases that appear to be targeting older Cantonese-speaking women: Two SF women scammed out of thousands over holiday weekend.

The two most recent cases occurred over the weekend in Chinatown and near Market and Third Streets. Both incidents involved scammers approaching an Asian woman in her 60s and spinning a crazy story about stepping in blood and warding off evil spirits. Not kidding:

On Tuesday, congressional candidate Tammy Duckworth, President Obama's sister Maya Soetoro-Ng and actor/activist Kal Penn all spoke at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. Here's video of their remarks.

And since we're talking about "Gangnam Style"...

Korean pop music artist Psy, whose runaway global music video hit has now surpassed an astonishing 100 million YouTube views (and counting), has signed a deal with Scooter Braun's Schoolboy Records, whose roster includes Justin Bieber: Justin Bieber's Manager Signs Korean YouTube Star Psy.

While I've been actively trying to avoid all things "Gangnam Style," I cannot deny the simple awesomeness of this clip: UMMA GANGNAM STYLE.

That's dancer/choreographer Mike Song breaking it down, Gangnam Style, alongside his mom. Straight from the living room. According to Mike, this is the first dance he's ever taught his mom, and as you can see, she's got some serious natural talent. It's a sight to behold:

Punched "Me Love You Long Time" comedian speaks out

Star of the smackdown heard around the 'net.

Standup comedian Brett Eidman, now best known as the guy who got punched out on stage for doing his dumbass "me love you long time" Asian schtick, is no doubt feeling the negative effects of his notoriety, and appears in this interview in order to clear things up about his act and what went down in the video, aka the smackdown heard around the 'net:

enemy alien screening at janm, september 8

Hey, Los Angeles. Catch a screening of the documentary Enemy Alien at the Japanese American National Museum on Saturday, September 8.

The film tells both the story of the late Farouk Abdel-Muhti, a Palestinian activist detained by Homeland Security and held for two years without charge, and that of the filmmaker, Konrad Aderer, as he begins to explore his own family's history as Japanese Americans incarcerated during WWII.

Aderer will be there for a Q&A after the screening. Here's more info:

This is for my Vietnamese brothers and sisters.

If you're in Southern California, and you or someone you know is interested in becoming naturalized, but need some help through the process, the Asian Pacific American Legal Center is providing a free citizenship workshop for the Vietnamese community.

It's happening Saturday, September 29, 9:00am to 3:00pm at the Lambert Park Auditorium in El Monte. Here are some more details on the workshop and how to sign up:

Found in Translation is a collection of classic Japanese songs reinterpreted by western artists from various genres, produced by Dave Liang of The Shanghai Restoration Project. The first project in this collection focuses on the works of iconic singer and coposer Kazuo Zaitsu.

Here's the lead single from the project, "September Tea" featuring singer/songwriter Emi Meyer -- who we love around here -- and inspired by Kazuo Zaitsu's "September." Check it out:

This November, there are five people running for Mayor of Fremont, California. Three candidates happen to be Asian American -- and one of them is a teenager: Teenager runs for mayor of Fremont.

18-year-old Aziz Akbari, a sophomore studying mechanical engineering at the University of Southern California, is barely old enough to vote, but he's serious about local politics and has sights set on his hometown's mayor seat:

Here's the next installment of Fog City Nights, a web series by Pat La Rock that interviews b-boys and b-girls and showcases them breaking it down in the streets of San Francisco. More great moves, with some great music to boot. Check out Session 2:

All right, AJ Rafael fans. Here's what's up. For a limited time, I'm giving away a pair of tickets to see AJ and special guest Us on the Play. Live. Breathe: Music Fall Tour. Pick one of the tour dates, and you and guest can go check out the show. Scroll down to find out how to enter. First, here are the tour dates:

The indie horror film Chink, which is being touted as the first Asian American serial killer movie, just teased its first trailer and images over on Twitch.

Directed by Stanley Yung, written by Koji Steven Sakai, and starring Jason Tobin, the film aims to mash the angst of an Asian American identity story with the twisted thrills of a slasher flick. Here's the trailer:

It all started with a highly unfavorable Yelp review.

Well, no. It all started with a recent racist encounter Michael C. had with wait staff while dining with colleagues at The Old Pro in Palo Alto, California, where a server referred to Michael and his co-worker as "ching chongs." Seriously. As in, "Oh, those CHING CHONGS are with you?" Oh, hell no.

Michael recounts the incident in his one-star review of The Old Pro:

kollaboration dc, september 22

Hey, DC. We didn't forget about you. Kollaboration is on. The 3rd annual Kollaboration DC talent competition and showcase is going down on Saturday, September 22 at the George Washington University Lisner Auditorium.

Kollaboration DC will feature special guest performances by electronic duo Atoms Apart, hip-hop group SNRG, rapper/MC Manifest along with singer Amanda Lee, singer-songwriter Lumi Bustamante, and headliner/Japanese pop icon SALIA. Here's some more information about the show:

Breathin': The Eddy Zheng Story is an upcoming documentary film is about Bay Area community leader Eddy Zheng, who served twenty years in prison for a robbery he committed as a teenager, turned his life around and dedicated himself to youth violence prevention, only to face deportation to China. He's a fascinating figure, and hopefully this film will help to share his amazing story.

The good folks behind the documentary are hosting a fundraiser to come up with the money to finish the film. They've received a matching grant from East Bay Fund for Artists up to $10,000, so if you're in the Bay Area and down to have a good time for a good cause, your help would be greatly appreciated.

It's basically a fun-ass dance party with Bandung 55 (featuring Kiwi Illafonte) and some of the Bay Area's hottest DJs. It's happening Friday, September 14 at 330 Ritch in San Francisco. Here are some more details about the party:

One thing I really enjoy about running this blog is hearing about new music... I recently got the heads up from a reader about Gentleman's Vibe, a hip hop group out of Vancouver who have been making some catchy tunes. After sifting through some links, I'm a new fan. Here's the music video for "Big Spender," released a couple of months ago:

On Tuesday night, September 4, the San Francisco Giants will commemorate the Dragon himself with the Bruce Lee Tribute Night. Shannon Lee, Bruce's daughter, will be in attendance to perform the National Anthem, and Linda Lee Cadwell, Bruce's widow, will throw out the ceremonial first pitch.

To top it off, attendees will get a collector's edition Bruce Lee bobblehead. Here's a funny promo video. It gets deadly:

We observe the passing of scholar and racial historian Alexander Saxton, who died last week by a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home in Lone Pine, California. He was 93: Alexander Saxton, Historian and Novelist, Dies at 93.

As a writer, activist and cultural historian, among other things, Saxton was a fierce champion of ethnic studies, and was instrumental in establishing the first Asian American studies program in the United States at UCLA in the early 1970s:

President Obama prepares for the 2012 Democratic Convention by calling on none other than John Cho and Kal Penn. The President is counting on them. But are they up for the challenge? If they can just get off the couch:

I won't re-post Jenny An's terribly misguided and tiresome piece for xoJane, "I'm an Asian Woman and I Refuse to Date an Asian Man," which has predictably drawn the ire of the internet masses over the last few days.

Instead, I'll instead point you to Jeff Yang, who breaks down the art of the internet troll and actually talks to Ms. An about her intentions behind the piece. Yes, it was indeed provocation: Asian Woman Writes That She Refuses to Date Asian Men: Is She an Internet Troll or Agent Provocateur?

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Asian American youth culture is coming of age in 'the 626': Take a walk through the 626 Night Market with the Fung Brothers, whose rap ode to the San Gabriel Valley helped put the 626 on the pop culture map.

Gangnam Style's U.S. Popularity Has Koreans Puzzled, Gratified: No, hipsters, "Gangnam Style" is not just a video about "crazy Asians doing crazy Asian stuff." Learn more about K-Pop, the "accomplished singer-songwriter" PSY, and Korea's reaction to the song's popularity.

Yoshie Akiba: The woman behind famous Bay Area jazz club Yoshi's: Yoshie Akiba emigrated to the U.S. from an orphanage in Japan, and shortly after, went on to open Yoshi's, a jazz and sushi bar out in the Bay Area.

Why Couldn't Richard Aoki Have Been an Informant?: While Tamara K. Nopper doesn't want to believe that Aoki was an FBI informant, she does wonder if he could have been one.