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SPECIAL FEATURES
Tia Carrere
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Hiroshima
James Hong
Bruce Lee
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Martial Law
Minoru Miki
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George Takei on Diversity

OCTOBER 2003 NEWS

October 2003 promises to be filled with many exciting things happening. From California's "Recall Election" being delayed then on, hearing the views of the candidates (that didn't address immigration), the California Governor debate, announcement of Howard Dean as a Democrat Party presidential candidate, Merrill Lynch avoiding persecution in the Enron Affair, the ouster of former Stock Market Chief Richard Grasso (result of his $140 million compensation package), BofA broker chared in illegal trading, where income levels went down while poverty rates went up, Iraq/United States are developing a new Constitution, calls for peace in the Middle East, Althea Gibson/John Ritter/Johnny Cash/Edward Said/Donald O'Connor/Elia Kazan/Nawabzada KhanYi Sung-chun passed away, high court deciding if "One Nation , Under God" is legal, the Tyco scandal, etc. - the world is definitely facing "interesting times."

As the Asian/Asian Pacific American communities' struggle to have their voices heard exist in these "interesting times" - the importance of acquiring an in-depth perspective of our historical heritages and its legacy becomes even greater. As stated in a well-known axiom - "If one doesn't know one's history, one is doomed to repeat its mistakes."

As a result, an invitation is extended to attend the many events and issues that have recently occurred directly affects the Asian/Asian Pacific American (US Asian) and/or emantes from these communities. In October's "Event Section" - it is our suggestion to support Byron Yee's "Paper Son" and East West Players' "Passion."

In light of the vast spectrum of topics, issues and events that are related to our communities, we've divided the vast amount of news into various categories that are listed below:

APA Media Polls Business Community
Diversity Events Featured Artists
Film & Television Music Politics
R.I.P. Sports Theater
 

Please note that upon "CLICKING" on each link listed within this section, one will have the ability to obtain additional in-depth information on each even.

Invitation is extended to "chat" with other parties about APA Media issues by clicking on the banner listed on the "right"

APA MEDIA POLLS


CLICK HERE to participate in a "Film Poll" where you can tell us what movies from and/or with artists from the Asian/Asian Pacific American communities has the most buzz and support - along with reading some of the latest information regarding other APA movies and the film industry.

Listed below are the current films in the poll. (Please note that some of the films listed below are included in the Dragon's Roar DVD.)

ABC American Adobo American Desi
Bend It Like Beckham Better Luck Tomorrow Charlotte Someteimes
Close Call Debut Eye
Flip Side Full-Time Killer Monsoon Wedding
Notorious C.H.O. Together Way Home

YOUR MUSICAL INPUT IS NEEDED as we seek identify the talented and upcoming Asian/Asian Pacific American music artists and their songs in our "Music Poll."

Click HERE to participate in this poll that will indicate your opinion(s) on the music groups listed below, along with reading some of the latest information regarding selected artists and the music industry.

The artists included in this month's poll are listed below. Please note that some of the below-listed artists, including others from our Asian Pacific American Music Station at MP3.Com have been featured in the Dragon's Roar DVD.

Mia Doi Todd Second Wind Phuz
Ghost Orgy Florelie Escano Shell Lee
KJWAN Dig Jelly Burning Tree Projekt
Justis Kuo The Speaks Michelle Branch
Wendy Woo Linkin Park Elements of the Outer Realm

FEATURED ARTISTS & LEADERS

DRAGON'S ROAR MUSID DVD

 

 

On November 25, 2003 - the Dragon's Roar DVD will be released containing the performances from a wide spectrum of music (i.e. hip-hop, rock, rap, pop, etc) being performed by groups such as Elements of the Outer Realm, Prach Ly, Ill Again, Noel, Cut the Chemist and The Sounders that was recorded on September 5, 2003.

In addition, there are "one on one" interviews with the these music artists that will explore why they have gone beyond just entertainers to being fujll-fledged artists. An added features are "one on one" interviews with participants from films such as Charlotte Sometimes, Better Luck Tomorrow, Looking for YlloGrl, First Vietnamese International Film Festival and Movie-Producer.Net.

This DVD documents the artists from the Filipino, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Hmong, Korean, Chinese and Japanese American communities that were brought together to celebrate their common passions to creatively express their respective stories and talents for the general public.

ERIC LIU

 

 

Eric Liu is a former speechwriter for President Clinton and author of the "The Accidential Asian: Notes of a Native Speaker," which explores what it means to be Chinese-American. He was born in the United States and is enrolled now at Harvard Law School.

In 1998, he was named a fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet & Society. He has served as a speechwriter for President Clinton and a director of legislative affairs at the National Security Council. A regular contributor to MSNBC and Slate, Eric also edited the anthology Next: Young American Writers on the New Generation. He was a co-director of the Berkman Center's Digital China/Harvard project.

Eric Liu stated in the PBS series, "Matters of Race" - "What maketh a race? To people in China, the Chinese constitute a single race. Except, that is, for those Chinese who aren't Chinese; those who aren't of the dominant Han group, like the Miao, or the Yao, or the Zhuang or whatever.

They belong to separate races….To the Japanese, who certainly think of themselves as a race, the Chinese, Indians and Koreans are all separate races.

To the Koreans, the Filipinos are; to the Filipinos the Vietnamese. And so on. To the Anglos who founded the United States, the Irish who arrived in great waves in the early nineteenth century were a separate race.

To the Germans who killed Jews in this century and the French who watched, the Jews were a separate race. To the blacks of America, the Anglos and the Irish and Germans and the French and the Jews have always ended up being part of the same, and separate, race." (From The Accidental Asian: Notes of a Native Speaker)

He's written that "that being Chinese-American in this period is to "experience an odd foreboding exhilaration." (that is both odd and foreboding).

MIMI SO

 

 

Born into a family of gifted third generation jewelers, Mimi So's natural talent and ability thrived. Her personality is a mix of her parents, with drive inherited from her mother - a woman truly unique in her abilities and determination, and talent and business savvy from her father - who was a gifted jewelry artisan, keen businessman and scholar.

Young Mimi So exhibited talent at an early age, through drawings and paintings that decorate her parent's home to this day. But by eight years old, necessity required her to put aside her favorite pastime, and join the family business, where she began by wiping store counters she could barely reach. Realizing that she was quite shy, her father assigned Mimi to be the store greeter, welcoming customers with her now trademark smile.

One day, when her mother was late, thirteen-year-old Mimi eagerly arranged a display showcase. After a day of compliments from customers, her parents realized that Mimi had an eye for attractive and harmonious presentation. By sixteen, Mimi went to her first tradeshow, where she was introduced to the vast world of jewelry design. On that day, Mimi So realized her life's ambition - to design exceptional jewelry.

After receiving her Bachelors of Fine Art in Design from the renowned Parson's School of Design, Mimi continued her education by earning her Gemologist Certification, and assumed more responsibility at her family stores. But with her foundation of experience, training, and talent, Mimi was destined to strike out on her own.

Only twenty-four years old, Mimi took the plunge by opening a 120 square foot storefront on the corner of 5th avenue and 47th street in midtown Manhattan.

Mimi So's intimate shop introduced a unique, personal-touch perspective that the street had never seen. Mimi So and her personable and highly attentive staff are known for their creativity, knowledge, focus on service and education. Mimi So's justification for her high standards was simple: "My name is on the door."

In 1999, Mimi So was invited to the exclusive COUTURE conference in Scottsdale, where the top 1% of jewelry retailers are hosted by the top 5% of international manufacturers for an all expense paid week of private exhibits and education programs. Mimi So was the youngest person ever invited, and among only five from New York City, home to so many retailers.

Her collections are now available in Neiman Marcus Precious Jewelry Salons across the country and other select fine retail stores. Top publications such as Vanity Fair, In Style, Harper's Bazaar, Elle, and Town and Country continuously feature Mimi So's fashion forward designs. Her distinctive pieces are in high demand at the Academy Award's, Emmy's, Grammy's and many other awards shows.

Mimi So has a few fans of her own, including Gwyneth Paltrow, Halle Berry, Jennifer Aniston, Sarah Jessica Parker, Reese Witherspoon, Michael Michelle, Destiny's Child, Jessica Simpson, Ricky Martin, Boyz to Men, Eve, Charlotte Church, Naomi Campbell, Steve Case, David Bowie, Iman, Usher, Michael Jordan, Oprah Winfrey, Julianne Moore, Toni Braxton, and many, many more. (information from her website)

BYRON YEE

 

 

Byron Yee is a Los Angeles based comedian and actor. He has appeared at the proverbial "clubs and colleges all over the country" and has been seen on Comedy Central's Two Drink Minimum and NBC's Friday Night.

Byron was born in Wichita, Kansas on November 4th, 1961. His family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma shortly after that and then to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1965 where he considers "home".

Bing Quai Yee (his father) was a geologist for Exxon and went where the oil was. Rosalind Yee (his mother) taught elementary school for a while before staying at home to raise Stewart, Byron, Corinne, and Allison.

Byron attended D. D. Kirkland Elementary School, Hefner Junior High, and finally Putnam City High School where he graduated in 1979. He went on to the University of Oklahoma where he graduated in 1983 with a BS in Chemical Engineering. Coincidentally in that year, he began stand-up comedy at Joker's in Oklahoma City.

Because of the oil bust at the time, Byron was unable to find work as an engineer so he did the normal menial jobs while pursuing stand- up. He performed all over the country from the Comedy Corner in Dallas to the Comic Strip in New York to the Improv in LA.

But as fate so often intervenes, he was offered a job as an IBM Marketing Representative in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Bowing to familial pressures (Mom), he spent three years there before finagling a transfer to San Francisco where he could continue his day job and be a comic by night.

Byron arrived in San Francisco in February 1990, just four months after the Loma Prieta earthquake. He began performing out of the legendary Holy City Zoo and graduated into the bigger clubs in the Bay Area.

After establishing himself as a San Francisco comic, Byron began work on "Paper Son" in 1996. It premiered in 1997 at the Victoria and San Francisco Fringe Festivals and went on throughout the United States, Canada, and Scotland.

INFORMATION ABOUT "PAPER SON"

 

 

"My name is Byron Yee. I am the second son of Bing Quail Yee. I am the son of a paper son.

"My father was an immigrant. He came to America to escape the Japanese invasion of China in 1938. He was 15 years old and he didn't know a word of English. He didn't have a penny in his pocket and he was living in a crowded apartment in New York City with relatives he had never met. I know nothing about my father's history, about his past."

In the show "Paper Son," which has been warmly received by critics in San Francisco and Canada, the Oklahoma City-born comedian traces his emotional journey from super-assimilated American to self-acceptance as the son of a Chinese immigrant.

The program shares Byron's conclusion that "It's a miracle that I (Byron) was even born in the United States." "It just kind of hit me like a ton of bricks. The story is a lot more than about being from Oklahoma. My story is my father's story. It's a personal story told against a historical backdrop, and the historical backdrop is a story that the Chinese don't really talk about all that much."

All that and more is packed in a funny, touching and charming one- man show, "Paper Son," in which Yee traces the journey that eventually provided him a relationship with his Chinese Immigrant father, something he avoided when his dad was alive.

Yee quickly puts his comedy chops to work, reviewing the first 28 years of his life where he did everything he could to not be Chinese to his arrival in San Francisco, where his heritage hit him squarely between the eyes.

From his program, one concludes that "You see my story is no different from anyone else's… In all of our collective past, we've all had that one ancestor that had the strength to break from what was familiar to venture into the unknown. I can never thank my father and uncle enough for what they had to do so that I could be here today. One wrong answer between them and I would not be here."

Click HERE to read the L.A. Times review of October 2, 2003..

JEFF PARK

 

 

Jeff Park has over a decade’s worth of marketing, public relations and business development experience culled from a diverse range of experiences. After studies at UCLA in 1991, he worked for UCLA Extension’s Business Engineering and Management school until the formation of his own marketing firm in 1992. Among his clients: Spike Lee’s 40 Acres and a Mule Productions, “The Martin Lawrence Show,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” “Coach,” and Puma Athletic.

After his entrepreneurial venture, Jeff’s long-standing interest in technology served him as a communications consultant, and he has helped organizations take the complexities of technology and parlay them into understandable messages for the industry and public. Among Mr. Park’s clients: Metaphor Software Group (media management software for the film and television industries); CACI (enterprise-wide software developer), SportsTrac Systems (software developer for professional athletic industry); SelectLaw (ASP developer for the legal industry); and Camino Software Group (high capacity industrial storage).

Jeff is the exiting co-president of the Media Image Coalition (MIC), a program of the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations that advocates fair representations and hiring practices for all under-represented groups in mass media, particularly film and television. MIC is a broad-based coalition of approximately thirty constituent member organizations, among them: The NAACP, Screen Actors Guild (SAG), American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), Writers Guild of America (WGA), the Producers Guild of America, Women in Film, Organization of Black Screenwriters (OBS), Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), Media Action Network for Asian Americans (MANAA), Nosotros, League of Women Voters, and Children Now.

Jeff Park's activities with Move-Producer-Net provides a special opportunity for upcoming and aspiring filmmakers to achieve success via some useful tools. For more information, please click HERE.

KATHY KUO, TANIYA NAYAK AND JOHN GIDDING

 

 

Kathy Kuo, Taniya Nayak and John Gidding are the Asian/Asian Pacific American representatives in an upcoming program from the producers (Scout Productions) of "Queer Eye For The Straight Guy" for ABC Family titled "Knock First." The rest of the cast includes Carrie Roy, Shane Booth and Andy Hampton.

This program, which will premiere on Monday, October 6 (5:30 PM ET/PT) KNOCK FIRST offers a twist to the teenage do-it-yourself show giving teens, with the help of their friends and professional decorators, the chance to reveal their identity through the makeover of their room.

The fun begins when the parents depart and the teen and their friends convene with a designer in a deluxe Airstream trailer, to visualize the room’s potential - then the fun begins. The program channels teen angst and growing pains into manual labor for a practical, entertaining and engaging half-hour of television.

 

 

Taniya Nayak - this Boston-native was born in Nagpur, India feels that she is (culturally speaking) more modern and Americanized than my parents, having been raised here. She has maintained her architectural dreams (she was part of a team that won Top Honors in the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) Student Sketch Problem Competition) by working in her father's architectural firm, despite her father's discouragement. This former cheerleader and bartender was recognized as one of "Boston’s Most Beloved Bartenders" in the 2001 Improper Bostonian while attending University of Massachusetts at Lowell and obtaining a B.A. in Marketing.

Kathy Kuo - this Rhode Island School of Design graduate was born in Taiwan and traveled extensively, as the result of her father’s work in the diplomatic corps. It's her belief that her travels made her the visual person that she is. This architect is also a model for print (Aveda), catalogue and runway (Armani). Her past projects include working on a NASA research project conducted at M.I.T., design work for bed and bath products (Tommy Hilfiger U.S.A.), graphic design, and model making.

 

 

John Gidding - this Yale University graduate (who speaks English, French and Turkish) was born in Istanbul to a Turkish mother and American father. In 2003, he earn his M.A. in Architecture from Harvard University that fulfilled his childhood dream. In his first semester at Yale, the parody magazine Rumpus named John as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People at Yale. He also started modeling as the result of being spotted by a scout that asked him if he was interested in modeling for a software ad targeted to college students. His past employment included working with the Turkish ambassador to Germany to design a Turkish embassy for Berlin, and working as a draftsman and model builder for architectural firms in Istanbul and Boston.

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

      OUR GOALS

The purposes of this section are the following:

OPPORTUNITY
to discover more about our dreams
UNDERSTANDING
our fears and our hopes and
UNCOVERING
invaluable and missing information

APA & MEDIA NEWS

CHINESE TV DOESN'T OFFEND GOVERNMENT
Phoenix Satellite Television reporters, a Hong Kong-based network, take care not to offend the Chinese government. Doing so would jeopardize Phoenix's status as the only foreign-owned television channel with permission to broadcast news to the mainland in Mandarin.
Read More>>>>>

TALENT OF LANG LANG
Lang Lang recent activities include giving a solo performance in Most Mozart festival's opening night gala, signed a five-year contract with Deutsche Grammophone, performs 150 performances a year worldwide, Teen People magazine named him one of the "Top 20 Teens Who Will Change the World" and appearing on the "Tonight Show with Jay Leno."
Read More>>>>>

CHARLIE CHAN RETURNS
Fox Movie Channel has televised four restored Chan films with a roundtable discussion of prominent Asian Americans representing film history, sociology, authors and actors will address racial stereotypes, the casting of non-Asians in Asiatic roles and race relations in America. Click HERE to read Part 1 and Click HERE to read Part 2 of the dialogue.
Read More>>>>>

APA ENTREPENEURS
Twenty years ago, African-Americans were No. 1 in U.S. minority business ownership. US Census Bureau reports that Latinos are first, Asians second and African-Americans third. Asian-American-owned businesses have increased 10% per year, compared to 7% for non-minority-owned businesses and California was home to 34.6 percent of those businesses.
Read More>>>>>

TRANSRACIAL ADOPTIONS
The adoption of so many Korean children is an uncomfortable subject for Korean people, adoptees and others. They don't know whether to feel shame or pity or turn their backs.
Read More>>>>>

WHEN SKIN COLOR WAS DESTINY
One demographer estimated that more that 150,000 black people sailed away permanently into whiteness during the 1940's, marrying white spouses and most likely cutting off their black families. (with the support of the Black press)
Read More>>>>>

AMERICA'S ALLURE IS FADING FOR CHINESE
Some smuggled Chinese are even leaving America as soon as they pay their debts, and without gaining permanent residency, because they want a less stressful life at home.
Read More>>>>>

EWP'S "PASSION"
Read the story of how EWP's "Passion" became a reality - despite its many complexities and review of the production.
Read More>>>>>

CORY YUEN'S "SO CLOSE"
As seen in his many movies, like his recent "So Close," Cory Yuen's inventiveness in setting up martial arts action is unbeatable.
Read More>>>>>

"THE ROCK" IN "THE RUNDOWN"
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, pro wrestler and action hero, sets his sights on drama in his latest film "The Rundown."
Read More>>>>>

"LOST IN TRANSLATION'S" TOKYO ROOTS
Sophia Coppola's main source of inspiration for the film was the time she spent in her post-college years wandering around Tokyo, not knowing what she wanted to do for work, contemplating her options while being intoxicated with its sense of hysterical glamour, East-crashes-into-West artifacts and mishmash of misspelled, often hilarious pop-culture references. Her film is the latest example of Japanese and American films have incorporated, taken, utilize and developed various cultural elements. (Note: Some Asian Americans have a different opinion of the film.)
Read More>>>>>

UPCOMING FILMS WITH APA ACTORS
Read about the various Asian Pacific American actors, directors and writers participating in films scheduled to be released in the near future - that includes Robert Tsai in John Black's "School of Rock." Click HERE and HERE to read about APA's in upcoming TV shows. Network casts include Lindsey Price in NBC's Coupling and Parminder Nagra joined ER.
Read More>>>>>

R.I.P. - KATHERINE CHEUNG
Katherine Cheung, a Chinese immigrant who defied tradition in the 1930s to become the nation's first licensed female Asian American aviator, died Tuesday of natural causes at her home in Thousand Oaks. She was 98.
Read More>>>>>

ERIKA TAI IS IN "TRILOGY"
Playwright Ken Urban's opus "The New Jersey Trilogy" is complex, thematically dense, raucously funny, brutally unflinching about violence, intellectually challenging and, occasionally, maddeningly oblique.
Read More>>>>>

L.A.'S CHINATOWN AWAITS "GOLD RUSH"
With a new light-rail line bringing in more visitors, merchants and community leaders are making plans to return the area to its glory days.
Read More>>>>>

R.I.P. - KENJI ITO
Kenji Ito, Seattle attorney and civic leader acquitted in 1942 by an all-White jury of U.S. spy charges, dies at the age of 94 on August 10, 2004.
Read More>>>>>

PROBLEMS AT HYUNDAI
At Hyundai Motor America Inc., two things have been on the rise: monthly sales figures and the number of executives walking out the door.
Read More>>>>>

MINORITY VINTNERS
"The wine guys really have not done that much marketing to the Asian American population," said Greg Chew, co-founder of DAE Advertising in San Francisco who is developing a national association of Asian American wine consumers.
Read More>>>>>

YAHOO & ET
The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company is partnering with Paramount Television Group's popular celebrity news program "Entertainment Tonight" where they will take over the Web site for "Entertainment Tonight," sell its advertising space and stream video clips of its celebrity interviews, including outtakes not seen on the show.
Read More>>>>>

ZUMANITY'S ASIAN INFLUENCES
The 15 or so actual acts in "Zumanity" constitute a Chinese menu's worth of sexual configurations: androgynous man/androgynous woman; black man/white man; disinterested man/angry woman; sadistic man/submissive woman; exhibitionistic man/sex-hungry women.
Read More>>>>>

UPCOMING APA CLOTHING DESIGNERS
Read about upcoming clothing designers such as Marilyn Yu of Plutonium Clothing, Munhee Moon of Sunhee Moon, Carol Young of Undesigned and Ivy Chan/Umay Mohammed/Shinobu Sering of Nisa.
Read More>>>>>

JEWELRY BY ROSALINA
Rosalina Tran Lydster, founder of Jewelry by Rosalina, creates high-end jewelry, ranging from $1,500 to $70,000, exclusively for Neiman Marcus. Typically, just 10 copies of each design are produced, but she also works directly with clients for one-of-a-kind pieces. Bold gems and exquisite craftsmanship set her work apart from that of other fine jewelers.
Read More>>>>>

INTERVIEW WITH SIMON YAM
Read about his participation in the last Laura Croft movie, his charity efforts, modeling career, television dramas and film career of 170 movies.
Read More>>>>>

INTERVIEW WITH TERENCE YIN
Read about Terence Yin who was a UC Berkeley student aspiring to become a medical consultant, but now a Hong Kong movie star and a singer with 19 films, two TV dramas and a supporting role in Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life.
Read More>>>>>

ANITA MUI HAS CANCER
Hong Kong Canto-pop diva Anita Mui has revealed she has cervical cancer, but vowed to overcome the disease.
Read More>>>>>

VINCE JUNG & FORMOSA CAFE
Vince Jung, the 39-year-old owner whose father and grandfather ran the famous Formosa Cafe (adjacent to Paramount Studios) before him, very little has changed in eight decades until the recent developments around his restaurant.
Read More>>>>>

DAVID HWANG CHARGED
David Hwang, Rancho Santa Margarita man native, was being held on 21 counts of child molestation after discovering more than 100 videotapes, some depicting the man engaged in sex acts with children as young as 3.
Read More>>>>>

R.I.P. - YUKIO OKUTSU
Yukio "Yuki" Okutsu, a Hawaii-born Army sergeant whose Distinguished Service Cross was upgraded to a Medal of Honor three years ago for his heroism in World War II, died at the age of 81.
Read More>>>>>

AN OMAR SHARIF BOYCOTT
Attention Hollywood: A 71-year-old, Oscar-nominated actor with vast experience and an exotic accent seeks good roles. No "Ali Baba-type stuff."
Read More>>>>>

APA'S REJECT POST 9/11 COUNSELING
According to a recent Asian American Federation of New York study, many Asian-Americans have rejected professional therapy after Sept. 11.
Read More>>>>>

SANDRA OH IN "UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN"
Sandra Oh is a featured cast member of "under the Tuscan Sun" film starring Diane Lane.
Read More>>>>>

LOU DIAMOND PHILLIPS' REFLECTIONS
At 41, Lou Diamond Phillips gets a little sentimental when he looks back on a career that includes roles in 40 movies and a Tony nomination for "The King and I."
Read More>>>>>

CHINA EMBRACING BEAUTY CONTESTS
"People really like beauty pageants. With higher living standards, they have higher spiritual pursuits. They want to see beautiful women. Politics can't suppress this," said Li, one of about 30 women who will compete in the first-ever Miss World pageant to choose a Miss China.
Read More>>>>>

WHAT THE F.. DO YOU KNOW ABOUT BEING ASIAN
Controversial Philadelphia-based spoken word duo Black Hair, Brown Eyes, Yellow Rage sounds off about racism, sexual stereotypes, and the need for a Pan-Asian activist movement.
Read More>>>>>

FILM REVIEW: MILLENNIUM ACTRESS
In Satoshi Kon's "Millennium Actress," a blend of fantasy and history, the young actress Chiyoko Fujiwara is shown in a role with war-battered Japan as the backdrop.
Read More>>>>>

NEW BREED OF JAPANESE BASEBALL PLAYERS
Unlike most of the foreigners who play here, the returning Japanese players are more bicultural and bilingual. This has allowed them to win the trust of their teammates, many of whom envy their travels, and bridge the gap between Japanese and American brands of baseball.
Read More>>>>>

OLDEST PERSON IS JAPANESE
Kamato Hongo is believed to be the oldest person (by Guinness Book of Records) in the world at the age of 116. She was born in September 1887, when Japan was still in the throes of its conversion from samurai rule to modern democracy.
Read More>>>>>

VIENNA TENG - MUSICIAN
It's not surprising that many Asian Americans find Teng's folk-pop inspiring.
Read More>>>>>

COMEDY MEETS RACISM
As minorities' numbers have grown, so has their ability to make their voices heard when they feel humor slips into insult. But that doesn't mean comedians will stop treading the line between the two.
Read More>>>>>

AA'S LESS LIKELY TO BE SCREEN
Asian and Latin American immigrants in California are less likely to be screened for cancer than either whites or blacks, a lapse that costs lives and raises health care costs. Blacks and Hispanics feel that they receive worse healthcare than their white compatriots.
Read More>>>>>

TAIWAN IN THE UNITED NATIONS
Of all the nations in the world, only one -- Taiwan -- is excluded from the United Nations.
Read More>>>>>

DALAI LAMAI
During his current tour of the United States, the Dalai Lama has confirmed his status as the world's No. 1 feel-good guru, reaching across boundaries of culture and religion.
Read More>>>>>

SOUTH KOREAN SUICIDE AT WTO MEETING
South Korean activist who took his life at the WTO meeting becomes a symbol of opposition to more competition in agricultural markets.
Read More>>>>>

MARGARET CHO'S CLOTHING LINE
Working with longtime friend and clothing designer Ava Stander, Cho set out to create a collection that is classic, glamorous and comfortable for the fuller-figured woman. Discover some other changes in her life, such as her husband - Al Ridenour, (writer and artist).
Read More>>>>>

EWP SHOWS
Support their upcoming programs such as Passion, 38th Anniversary Season Politics of Passion, DHHWI Charlie Chan for Governor Reading Series, David Henry Hwang Writers Institute classes and the 7th Annual Company’s Shakespeare Marathon.
Read More>>>>>

APA'S AT FASHION WEEK
Fashion Week is off to a sexy start, with sweet overtones, in N.Y. with the creations of Kimora Lee Simmons, Kaisik Wong and Rosa Cha are featured.
Read More>>>>>

FILM REVIEW: SO CLOSE
"So Close" is a martial arts valentine to the power of fighting women. It's a slick and delirious Hong Kong action film where women are the high kickers who count, fully capable of putting the hurt on any male who gets in their way. It may sound like "Charlie's Angels," but it puts that glib and soulless film in its place.
Read More>>>>>

ASIAN IMPORTS RULE
If California really does set most automotive trends, the outlook for America's domestic car companies is grim: Import brands are now easily outselling the Big Three in the nation's largest car market.
Read More>>>>>

GERREN TAYLOR READS RONALD TAKAKI
The first African American model to appear in a Marc by Marc Jacobs print advertising campaign, shot by famed fashion photographer Juergen Teller is keeping up with schoolwork by . . . and reading (Ronald Takaki's "A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America"
Read More>>>>>

AA'S IN MUSICALS
Asian Americans take center stage in two splashy musicals - Flower Drum Song and the Wedding Banquet.
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PETER CHANG - 1ST KOREAN AMERICAN
October 2003 will mark the 100th birthday of Peter Chang, whose life itself is the history of Korean immigrants. His mother boarded one of Korea's first immigrant boats, the Gallic, in 1903, well into pregnancy, and gave birth to Chang at the Crusaders Hospital in Oakland near San Francisco, as Chang became the first Korean-American.
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KOREAN AMERICAN CHRISTIANS
Going to church has long defined the lives of most Korean immigrants, but many young Korean Americans are leaving the conservative, insular ministries their parents built and are creating their own multiethnic institutions.
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KOREATOWN CELEBRATION
L.A.'s Koreatown parade celebrates the 100th anniversary of Korean immigration to the U.S. will pass by hundreds of Olympic Boulevard restaurants, health clubs, shops and banks that have helped the neighborhood bounce back from the 1992 riots.
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NYC'S KOREATOWN
The flavor and energy of Korea thrive in a midtown enclave in New York.
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BYRON YEE'S "PAPER SON"
In Byron Yee's production title "Paper Son," which has been warmly received by critics in San Francisco and Canada, the Oklahoma City-born comedian traces his emotional journey from super-assimilated American to self-acceptance as the son of a Chinese immigrant.
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MATTERS OF RACE
Innovative series challenges its audience to reconsider the architecture of race, its role in American democracy and its relationship to power in America.
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JUDY CHU STATES APA'S LOSE IN CA RECALL
Rep. Judy Chu states "APAs Lose Most from California Recall Election." (Note: Carol Braun, the only Black woman to serve in Congress, announced her candidacy for President. Note: Vietnamese American Van Vo is running for California governor.
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US DETAINS MUSLIM CHAPLIN
U.S. authorities have detained 34 years old James "Yousef" Yee, a Muslim chaplain (after being raised as a Christian) who counseled suspected terrorists at the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay, saying he was carrying classified documents when he arrived back in the United States.
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SUCCESS OF DAT PHAN
With a sitcom, movie deal and national tour in the works, plus a team of publicists, Dat Phan is obviously being groomed for big things.
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LITTLE TOKYO PROJECT
Little Tokyo Project raises big expectations as a 303-unit apartment complex breaks ground, downtown boosters say the time is ripe for more residential construction.
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MICHELLE BRANCH IS AN AMERICAN DREAM
Michelle Branch to Portray Leslie Gore on NBC's 'American Dreams.'
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ERNIE REYES IS WITH "THE ROCK"
As the rebel leader Manito in director Peter Berg's high-octane comic action-adventure "The Rundown," martial arts expert Ernie Reyes Jr. seems to defy gravity as he spins and twirls and delivers precision, scissor-like kicks to the abdomen and head of muscle-bound action star the Rock.
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ROLAND TSENG DONATES $38M
Roland Tseng, A businessman who attended Cal State Northridge only briefly, has agreed to donate a collection of Chinese antiquities to the campus in a gift the school estimates to be worth $38 million.
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CHINA EDITS HILLARY
The Chinese publisher (Yilin Press) has acknowledged making changes in the text (Hillary's book) but said they were "minor, technical" alternations that did not affect the integrity of the book.
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MAGIC & OTHERS IN L.A. CHINATOWN
Plans are underway to develop new housing and retail space in Chinatown — in a possible collaboration with former Los Angeles Laker Earvin "Magic" Johnson.
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AKRAM KHAN - DANCER
As both performer and choreographer, Khan, 29, is currently among the hottest properties in international dance. Born in London to Bangladeshi parents, he's also part of the mushrooming young Anglo-Asian population portrayed in such movies as "East Is East" and "Bend It Like Beckham."
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STRONG ACCENT, LITTLE EXPERIENCE
Many within the APA communities have stated that being an immigrant, having a "strong accent," little experience in politics, etc. have been "deciding factors" on not achieving the success they "deemed" they deserve - yet we have the success of Arnold.
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B.D. WONG'S VIEWS
Today, when Wong looks into TV's electronic mirror he does indeed see himself such as police psychiatrist George Huang on "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," prison priest Father Ray Mukada on HBO's "Oz" series, on "Chicago Hope," "The X-Files" and "Bless This House," among other series and none of those shows was he playing a subservient Asian man.
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R.I.P. - EDWARD SAID
Edward W. Said, a Columbia University professor and leading spokesman in the United States for the Palestinian cause, has died. He was 67.
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GOLDSEA'S 50 MOST INSPIRING APA'S
Read Goldsea's choices of pioneers who paved the way for other Asian Americans.
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FIRST VIETNAMESE INTL. FILM FESTIVAL
The Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA), in collaboration with the Vietnamese Language and Culture (VNLC) at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), presents the first historic Vietnamese International Film Festival (ViFF).
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CHINA'S PIANO ISLAND
For decades, music — or more accurately, Western classical music — has defined this former colonial outpost, nicknamed Piano Island for its high concentration of pianos in private homes - Gulangyu.
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APA COMMUNITY'S SUPPORT OF THE ARTS
It's amazing what kind of excuses people make to get themselves out of attending events in the Asian American community. (Note: Visit our "Event Section" to review what programs one can attend and support. It is our suggestion to support Byron Yee's "Paper Son" and East West Players' "Passion.")
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FILM REVIEW: "RUNDOWN"
Peter Berg's action-comedy underscores what fans of "The Scorpion King" already know: The Rock is a genuine movie star.
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FILM REVIEW: "UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN"
Director Audrey Wells fails to live up to earlier promise in this lurching romance that includes Sandra Oh.
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INCOME GAP LEAVES CITY ASIANS BEHIND
Long recognized as one of the most prosperous minority groups, Asian-Americans nationwide enjoy overall incomes and educational rates higher than whites as well as most other minority groups. That holds true in Chicago's suburbs, as well, but the story is very different in the city, where many ethnic Asians are mired in poverty deeper than most other minorities, including African-Americans and Latinos.
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R.I.P. - NAWABZADA KHAN
Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan, 85, the head of Pakistan's main opposition alliance and one of its greatest democracy advocates, died Friday of a heart attack after falling ill during a meeting of party leaders in Islamabad.
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HR-333
The legislation would provide money to colleges and universities that have at least 10% Asian American and Pacific Islander undergraduate enrollment to enable such schools to improve and expand their capacity to serve Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
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JAMES OH - GOLFER
Only 21, James Oh wins the Nationwide Tour event at Empire Lakes as he makes the case he's ready to be a professional.
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MAXINE HONG KINGSTON
Her new book (The Fifth Book of Peace) -- the first Kingston has published since her 1989 novel, ''Tripmaster Monkey,'' save for a collection of essays -- is a strange, scarred thing, pieced together from fragments, smelling of smoke and anguish.
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JHUMPA LAHIRI'S "THE NAMESAKE"
This is my novel (The Namesake), such as it is, Lahiri is also saying: in a world of eroding kinship, the story of one modest, haphazard stay against oblivion, summed up best, of course, by the name Gogol.
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