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Graham Russell Gao Hodges. Anna May Wong: From Laundryman's Daughter to Hollywood Legend. Palgrave Macmillan, 2004. 284 pages; $27.95.
International Beauty
I can't wait for the movie! And I hope desperately that there will be a movie of Graham Russell Gao Hodges' biography (one of three recently published) of Chinese-American actress Anna May Wong. Hodges brings to life one of Hollywood's lesser known "legends." Born in 1905 Los Angles to Chinese immigrants, she spent her life attempting to bridge two worlds-something the pioneering Asian-American actress never quite accomplished
Although discouraged by her family, Anna May, a beautiful young girl, longed to be in the movies. In 1919, she landed a small part; by the time she died at the age of 56, her filmography consisted of sixty-one titles.
Hodges emphasizes that during her prime, the actress was a famous international beauty-her photo was ubiquitous in the United States, Europe and China. She was on the cover of Look Magazine's second issue. She designed her own gowns inspiring fashion designers to incorporate Chinese elements into their own creations; she was a spokeswoman for cosmetics.
Much of the tragedy of her life resulted from the fact that Anna May could not escape Asian stereotyping in film. Anna May played the Asian slave girl, mistress, servant or...