[Anthony Chan] explained: "Normally, she (my mother) would never see this, since white people would dominate conversations." His curiosity for the actress grew and eventually, he wrote the only biography of the world famous actress that comes from an Asian American perspective. Chan himself provides further insight, as the International Examiner spoke with the author of "Perpetually Cool."
Anthony Chan: The idea for a book started in 1992, when I first got to the University of Washington. I had read a couple of articles and books on Anna May Wong, but they all came from a European American perspective, so they were going to trash her, and they did. Here, I wanted to write from an Asian American perspective. I wanted to use themes like "racial formation," "whiteness," and ideas from scholars like Edward Said to explain how Anna May Wong lived in a racist time, because no one else would. And doing this could only be done by someone who is Asian American.
When Anthony Chan first heard of Anna May Wong, it came from his mother who expressed to him that she was a huge star. His father also told him: "She was cute." In her films, they told him that Wong often spoke with European American women on equal terms, or in fact she sometimes got the better of them.
Chan explained: "Normally, she (my mother) would never see this, since white people would dominate conversations." His curiosity for the actress grew and eventually, he wrote the only biography of the world famous actress that comes from an Asian American perspective. Chan himself provides further insight, as the International Examiner spoke with the author of "Perpetually Cool."
International Examiner: When did you come up with the idea to write about Anna May Wong and why?
Anthony Chan: The idea for a book started in 1992, when I first got to the University of Washington. I had read a couple of articles and books on Anna May Wong, but they all came from a European American perspective, so they were going to trash her, and they did. Here, I wanted to write from an Asian American perspective. I wanted to use themes like "racial formation," "whiteness," and ideas from scholars like Edward Said to explain how Anna May Wong lived in a racist time, because no one else would. And doing this could only be done by someone who is Asian American.
IE: What can a reader today, get out of reading "Perpetually Cool?" Why?
AC: For Asian American actors, they need to know where they are going, and to know that, they must understand the past. People who read this will see that her story is one of success against all odds. She was a Chinese American at the time living in an era of exclusion laws, meaning they (Chinese) did not matter. For many Asian people, they let racism cave in on them and allow it to get the better of them, but she as a woman of color in Hollywood, in spite of the social conditions and discrimination, she overcame the racism and succeeded to make a career and a life for herself. She did this because she was highly intelligent, understood her situation, and she was highly adaptable and ambitious. Sometimes I have students of color who come up to me and say: 'Well, I can't do this or that.' What a reader today can get out of this story is how one person discovers agency and empowerment; that if you can find your own agency and empower yourself, you can do what you want.
IE: You write about her role as Lotus Flower in the film "The Toll of the Sea." There you write: "...is ostensibly a one-sided tale of the rape of Lotus Flower." But, there is no explicit sexual violation of Lotus Flower. Can you explain this comparison?
AC: There are many ways to look at it. Some ways are: 1) it can serve as a metaphor for imperialism; 2) it was criminal rape according to statutory rape laws, and 3) rape is a violation of the psyche and physicality of a person that causes trauma. This situation caused psychological harm and trauma. In the end, when Lotus Flower finally understands and realizes it was a rape, and that she was discarded by the European male, so she commits suicide.
IE: Is there any actress today that you would compare to Anna May?
AC: No, none. Some people bring up Lucy Liu, but she has never had a lead role. Anna May Wong was in the lead for Hollywood's first Technicolor film "The Toll of the Sea." If I were to compare her to another actress, it would be Katherine Hepburn. They were both feminists before their time. they went their own way, never married and did things without a man defining what to do.
IE: In this book, you also discuss subjects such as "Yellowface." For instance, you mention MAD TV's Miss Swan character. Given this example of "Yellowface," has progress been made in portraying Asian Americans in American media?
AC: That is a complex question. There is progress in that there are a lot more Asian Americans in performing arts. Now you have Asian actors coming over from Asia. And there are more outlets such as independent media. But portrayals? You still won't see Asian guys with European women, or that there are still never any 'regular' Asian guys portrayed. Like, why can't the portrayals on "CSI" be Asian American? Aren't they the best pathologist? Some of it has to do with the emergence of the Hollywood juggernaut. Before, in Anna May Wong's time, Wong could go to Europe and become a big star. But, can Lucy Liu go to Europe today and be a huge movie star? Probably no. Reason is, because now you have to deal with Hollywood that controls world distribution. For Hollywood, the bottom line is that Asian Americans don't sell. The best hope for Asian Americans is to make independent films, and create their own theaters (to create their own agency and empower themselves).
IE: Lastly, are you writing a screenplay for a feature film on the life of Anna May Wong?
AC: Yes, I'm only in the research stage. I've just talked to a couple of directors, and I do have in mind a London born actress to play the role of Anna May Wong.
Anthony Chan is an associate professor at the University of Washington. If you have further questions, he will be doing a book reading for "Perpetually Cool: The Many Lives of Anna May Wong (1905-1961)" at the Elliott Bay Bookstore on Monday, July 12, at 7:30 p.m.
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