If you saw the recent Screen Actors Guild Awards telecast on Netflix, you know that EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE well and that one of the coolest highlights of the night was when 94 year-old cast member, James Hong, took to the microphone to speak when the film won for Best Cast in a Motion Picture. Hong, who got a well-deserved star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame last year, was hip, funny and relevant. He reminded folks that when MGM made the prestigious 1937 release, THE GOOD EARTH, the lead roles went to non-Asian actors because Hollywood felt that Asian actors in the Asian drama would not have box office appeal. James Hong reminded Hollywood in 2023 that representation matters.
He got his SAG card thanks to a bit part in a 1955 Fox film starring Clark Gable and Susan Hayward called SOLDIER OF FORTUNE. Hong went on to roles in FLOWER DRUM SONG, THE SAND PEBBLES, CHINATOWN, BLADE RUNNER, BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA and AIRPLANE! to name a few of his films. He got an extremely extensive list of film and TV credits. (Yes, I know he did an episode of SEINFELD.)
I know it's not a large role, but I love Hong as Kahn, the butler to Faye Dunaway's character, in CHINATOWN. The way he plays Kahn and the way she reacts to him, I believe the butler knew Evelyn Mulwray's heartbreak and dark secrets. He's protective of her.
With that in mind, I want to recommend another James Hong performance. He was reunited with Jack Nicholson in a sequel to the 1974 classic. Nicholson and Hong were Jake Gittes and Kahn again the 1990 sequel, THE TWO JAKES. Nicholson directed the sequel. It's not as great as CHINATOWN, however it's not bad. To me, the real heart -- the melancholy heart -- of the film is the scene where Jakes goes to visit Kahn. It's well-written and very well-acted. Robert Towne, writter of the CHINATOWN original screenplay, wrote the screenplay for THE TWO JAKES.
My other recommendation is a silly yet fun sports comedy that came out in 2007. I saw it at a critics' preview screening. The room had a plenty of stuffy veteran male critics who did not laugh. Veteran critic Thelma Adams and I sat next to each other and we laughed a lot. The comedy is BALLS OF FURY starring Dan Fogler, Christopher Walken, George Lopez, Terry Crews ... and James Hong as the blind mentor to a former ping-pong champion now doing undercover work for the FBI. Heck, the movie is only 90 minutes long and James Hong steals it with his comedy performance. Here's the music video.
....and a scene from the movie.
In closing, let me again write something that I wrote well over a year ago: The Motion Picture Academy should give James Hong an honorary lifetime achievement Oscar!
He deserves it.
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