Nancy Kwan's guest appearances

Nancy Kwan

ASIAN AMERICA: THE KEN FONG PODCAST

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In 1960, Nancy Kwan burst onto the screen in glorious color as the titular Suzie Wong. The film was a major hit that both launched her career and gained her lasting name recognition in the industry. After a memorable stint in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s celebrated Flower Drum Song, she went on to a bizarre mix of smaller films and bit roles but never seemed to find her place. How could this happen to such an attractive and charming leading lady? Oh. Right. In this episode, Bart and Jenna take a look at Kwan’s career beginnings, the social context of the decade and the pitfalls of being a Chinese actor in the dominantly white world of Hollywood. They do their best to investigate the roots of how racist stereotypes get started, from orientalism to cinematic archetypes, and encourage you to turn to better sources than them for the full truth of the matter.The following films are discussed:• The World of Suzie Wong (1960)    Directed by Richard Quine    Starring Nancy Kwan, William Holden, Sylvia Syms• Flower Drum Song (1961)    Directed by Henry Koster    Starring Nancy Kwan, James Shigeta, Miyoshi Umeki• The Main Attraction (1962)    Directed by Daniel Petrie    Starring Nancy Kwan, Pat Boone, Mai Zetterling• Tamahine (1963)    Directed by Philip Leacock    Starring Nancy Kwan, John Fraser, Dennis Price• The Wild Affair (1965)    Directed by John Krish    Starring Nancy Kwan, Terry-Thomas, Victor Spinetti• Nobody’s Perfect (1968)    Directed by Alan Rafkin    Starring Nancy Kwan, Doug McClure, James ShigetaResources:• The Other Question…, Screen, 1983    Written by Homi K Bhabha• The Hypersexuality of Race: Performing Asian/American Women on Screen and Scene    Written by Arthur Dong• Asian American Actors: Oral Histories from Stage, Screen, and Television    Written by Arthur Dong• Hollywood Chinese (2007)    Directed by Arthur Dong• Slaying the Dragon (1988)    Directed by Deborah Gee

In 1960, Nancy Kwan burst onto the screen in glorious color as the titular Suzie Wong. The film was a major hit that both launched her career and gained her lasting name recognition in the industry. After a memorable stint in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s celebrated Flower Drum Song, she went on to a bizarre mix of smaller films and bit roles but never seemed to find her place. How could this happen to such an attractive and charming leading lady? Oh. Right. In this episode, Bart and Jenna take a look at Kwan’s career beginnings, the social context of the decade and the pitfalls of being a Chinese actor in the dominantly white world of Hollywood. They do their best to investigate the roots of how racist stereotypes get started, from orientalism to cinematic archetypes, and encourage you to turn to better sources than them for the full truth of the matter.The following films are discussed:• <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054483/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The World of Suzie Wong</a> (1960) Directed by Richard Quine Starring Nancy Kwan, William Holden, Sylvia Syms• <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054885/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Flower Drum Song</a> (1961) Directed by Henry Koster Starring Nancy Kwan, James Shigeta, Miyoshi Umeki• <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056212/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Main Attraction</a> (1962) Directed by Daniel Petrie Starring Nancy Kwan, Pat Boone, Mai Zetterling• <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058636/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Tamahine</a> (1963) Directed by Philip Leacock Starring Nancy Kwan, John Fraser, Dennis Price• <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057685/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Wild Affair</a> (1965) Directed by John Krish Starring Nancy Kwan, Terry-Thomas, Victor Spinetti• <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063361/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Nobody’s Perfect</a> (1968) Directed by Alan Rafkin Starring Nancy Kwan, Doug McClure, James Shigeta Resources:• <a href="https://academic.oup.com/screen/article-abstract/24/6/18/1653403?redirectedFrom=fulltext" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Other Question…</a>, Screen, 1983 Written by Homi K Bhabha• <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/082234033X/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=082234033X&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;linkId=2b01b4e4e9961643baeb11a3dae2a26f&amp;tag=backrow-20" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Hypersexuality of Race: Performing Asian/American Women on Screen and Scene</a> Written by Arthur Dong• <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0786407301/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0786407301&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;linkId=f25c38e17f6d05562e6fd1c75f72570d&amp;tag=backrow-20" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Asian American Actors: Oral Histories from Stage, Screen, and Television </a> Written by Arthur Dong• <a href="https://www.deepfocusproductions.com/films/hollywood-chinese/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Hollywood Chinese</a> (2007) Directed by Arthur Dong • <a href="https://www.kanopy.com/product/slaying-dragon-1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Slaying the Dragon</a> (1988) Directed by Deborah Gee

Ep# 46 - Nancy Kwan in the 60s

October 15, 2014 - In an intimate conversation with acclaimed producer Susan Lacy, Nancy Kwan recounts the defining moments of her memorable career.

An Evening with Nancy Kwan