Born into the steam and starch of a Chinese laundry, Anna May Wong (1905-1961) emerged from turn-of-the-century Los Angeles to become Old Hollywood\'s most famous Chinese American actress, a screen siren who captivated global audiences and signed her publicity photos--with a touch of defiance--Orientally yours.
Challenging the parodically racist perceptions of Wong as a Dragon Lady, Madame Butterfly, or China Doll, Huang\'s biography becomes a truly resonant work of History that reflects the raging anti-Chinese xenophobia, unabashed sexism, and ageism toward women that defined both Hollywood and America in Wong\'s all-too-brief fifty-six years on earth..
As Huang shows, Wong\'s Rendezvous with History features a remarkable parade of characters, including a smitten Walter Benjamin and (an equally smitten) Marlene Dietrich.
Now, more than a century after her birth, Yunte Huang narrates Wong\'s tragic life story, retracing her journey from Chinatown to silent-era Hollywood, and from Weimar Berlin to decadent, prewar Shanghai, and capturing American television in its infancy.
Born into the steam and starch of a Chinese laundry, Anna May Wong (1905-1961) emerged from turn-of-the-century Los Angeles to become Old Hollywood\'s most famous Chinese American actress, a screen siren who captivated global audiences and signed her publicity photos--with a touch of defiance--Orientally yours
