#JadinWong
Born: 24 May 1913, Marysville, California, United States.
Died: 30 March 2010, New York, New York, United States.
Jadin Wong was an actress, dancer and comedienne who was a pioneer in the #AsianAmerican performing arts. And for someone with such a diverse and impressive career, it’s been infuriatingly hard to find more than scant information on her (*stomps off to sit quietly and seethe*). But I’ve done my best and here’s a (very) brief bio.
Jadin Wong began her career by winning a contest … at the age of six! Ten years later she moved to Hollywood to become a dancer and by 1938 she was headlining at the #ForbiddenCity.
Wong was discovered by the actor and director #NormanFoster and his wife #ClaudetteColbert and embarked on a sporadic movie career that lasted from the 1930s to the 2000s and included
#AroundTheWorld in 1943. (There’s a story of a producer finding her walking on Sunset Boulevard so poor she was wearing her tap shoes and taking her home to his wife. I don’t know if that’s a reference to the Foster and Colbert story and haven’t found a source yet, sorry.)
On stage, Wong performed around the world in Europe, Hong Kong and Cuba as well as the USA. During the second World War years she entertained the troops, receiving recognition from President #Reagan for her contribution. #BarbaraStreisand was the opening act for Wong’s New York show.
Later she moved into talent management with, among others, #LucyLui on her books.
She died in New York in 2010 age 96.
#OldHollywood#OldFilms#GoldenAgeOfHollywood#ClassicCinema#MovieGreats#FilmHistory#AsianFilmHistory#AmericanActress#BIPOCStars