New book on Korean American actor Philip Ahn

10.21 - Posted by Editor

Visiting Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature Hye Seung Chung is the author of a new book titled Hollywood Asian: Philip Ahn and the Politics of Cross-Ethnic Performance (Temple University Press).

Kudos to Professor Hye Seung Chung on her new book. From the official press release:

Visiting Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature Hye Seung Chung is the author of a new book titled Hollywood Asian: Philip Ahn and the Politics of Cross-Ethnic Performance (Temple University Press).

Originally written as a Ph.D. dissertation at the University of California, Los Angeles, Hollywood Asian is a pioneering study of Philip Ahn (1905-1978), the first Korean American actor in Hollywood and son of a celebrated Korean nationalist An Ch’ang-ho. Drawing upon a wide range of archival documents from the actor’s personal papers and studio memos to files of federal government agencies (State Department and Office of War Information), Chung’s book addresses complex historical, theoretical, and critical issues pertaining to Asian and Asian American representations in American film and television (from the 1930s to the 1970s), well exceeding the scope of a conventional star study.