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Artist
Unidentified Artist
Sitter
Keye Luke, 18 Jun 1904 - 12 Jan 1991
Lotus Pearl Shibata, 18 Jul 1909 - 14 Sep 1990
Date
1940
Type
Print
Medium
Chromolithograph on paper laid down on linen
Dimensions
Image: 99.6 × 63 cm (39 3/16 × 24 13/16")
Sheet: 105.3 × 68.3 cm (41 7/16 × 26 7/8")
Mount: 109.4 × 72.6 cm (43 1/16 × 28 9/16")
Topic
Costume\Headgear\Hat
Weapon\Gun
Weapon\Knife
Poster
Container
Keye Luke: Visual Arts\Artist
Keye Luke: Male
Keye Luke: Performing Arts\Performer\Actor
Lotus Pearl Shibata: Female
Lotus Pearl Shibata: Performing Arts\Performer\Actor
Portrait
Credit Line
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Object number
NPG.2017.113
Exhibition Label
Born Guangzhou, China
In the early 1930s, Keye Luke sidelined his promising artistic career to become one of Hollywood’s few Asian American actors. Through widely viewed film performances, he hoped to “clear up the debris of misunderstanding and misconception of the Chinese which Americans may have, and vice versa.” Between 1935 and 1949, he appeared in eleven films as Lee Chan, “Number One Son” of detective Charlie Chan.
In 1940, Luke starred in Phantom of Chinatown (advertised by this poster), becoming the first Asian actor to play an Asian detective in a lead role. He went on to originate several iconic roles, including Kato in the Green Hornet serials (1940–41), Mr. Wang in the Broadway musical Flower Drum Song (1958), and Master Po in the TV series Kung Fu (1972–75). Luke was honored with the first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award by the Association of Asian/Pacific American Artists in 1986.
Nacido en Cantón, China
A principios de la década de 1930, Keye Luke abandonó una prometedora carrera en el arte para convertirse en uno de los pocos actores asiático-americanos de Hollywood. Esperaba que participando en películas de gran difusión podría “aclarar las confusiones e ideas erróneas que puedan tener los americanos sobre los chinos, y viceversa”. Entre 1935 y 1949 actuó en 11 películas como Lee Chan, el “hijo número uno” del detective Charlie Chan.
En 1940 Luke protagonizó El fantasma de Chinatown (promocionada en este cartel), pasando a ser el primer asiático que interpretó a un detective asiático en un rol principal. Luego originó varios papeles icónicos, como Kato en la serie El Avispón Verde (1940–41), Mr. Wang en el musical de Broadway Flower Drum Song (1958) y el Maestro Po en la serie televisiva Kung Fu (1972–75). En 1986 recibió el primer Premio por Trayectoria otorgado por la Asociación de Artistas Estadounidenses de Asia/Pacífico.
