NOI h. SAF

"It's a pretty sad situation to be rejected by Chinese because I'm 'too American' and by American producers because they prefer other races to act Chinese parts."

Anna May Wong is the first Chinese American actress to become a huge star in Hollywood and the first Asian American actor to gain international recognition, she was a trailblazer, an icon, and a legend. In a time when women were revolutionizing the way they were treated, Anna May Wong was making her mark right along with the others; hers on the silver screen. She was making audiences laugh, and enticing and hypnotizing them with her on-screen characters. She pulled emotions out of people like love, hope, joy, anger, sympathy and fear. For you see, many of the characters that Anna played onscreen never made it to the end of the film. She had a great sense of humour and she joked about this saying that her tombstone should read "She died a thousand deaths." It's amazing how she kept her spirits up to get through the industry she worked in. A racist industry that would not accept her as an American woman of Chinese descent, because of this she was mainly given stereotypical roles. Yet through it all Anna remained gracious, and humble. Really, she was a power woman. A pioneer.

I suspect that Anna May Wong knew that she was a trailblazer and this is what I truly admire about her. She knew how limited her options would be being the first Chinese American actress to star in Hollywood movies, she voiced her frustration on this many times (see the quote above), but she never quit acting. It's an unfortunate reality, and a stagnant societal disposition, in which society as a whole will not be accepting of the first person to break down a barrier. Yet because of that person paving the way everyone else who follows in their footsteps will have it a lot easier. Anna paved the way for all the Asian and Asian American actors, and also for women of colour who are now acting in Hollywood and working in the American entertainment industry.