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Yellowface is a form of theatrical makeup used by performers to represent an East Asian person. Some have claimed that media portrayals of East Asians in American media's history have reflected a dominant Americentric perception rather than realistic and authentic depictions of true cultures, customs and behaviors. == Early Asian American actors == Lee Tung Foo was a well known singer due to his performances in vaudeville around the 1910s.〔(''Lee Tung Foo and the Making of a Chinese American Vaudevillian, 1900s-1920s ) by Moon, Krystyn R., Journal of Asian American Studies - Volume 8, Number 1, February 2005, pp. 23-48〕 Around the same time, Japanese actor Sessue Hayakawa began appearing in films.〔(www.goldsea.com ) ''Sessue Hayakawa: The Legend''〕 Signed to Paramount Pictures, he had roles in more than 20 silent films including ''The Wrath of the Gods'' (1914) and ''The Typhoon'' (1914), and was considered to be a Hollywood sex symbol.〔 When Hayakawa's contract with Paramount expired in 1918, the studio still wanted him to star in an upcoming movie, but Hayakawa turned them down in favor of starting his own company.〔 He was at the height of his popularity during that time.〔 His career in the United States suffered a bit due to the advent of talkies, as he had a heavy Japanese accent. He became unemployable during the World War II era due to anti-Japanese prejudice. He experienced a career revival beginning in 1949 in World War II-themed films, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in ''The Bridge on the River Kwai''.〔 Anna May Wong, considered by many to be the first Chinese-American movie star,〔Chan, Anthony B. Perpetually Cool: The Many Lives of Anna May Wong (1905–1961). Lanham, MD: The Scarecrow Press, 2003. ISBN 0-8108-4789-2 p. xi, p. 42.〕 was acting by the age of 14 and in 1922, at 17 years old, she became the first Asian to break Hollywood's miscegenation rule playing opposite a white romantic lead in ''Toll of the Sea''. Even though she was internationally known by 1924, her film roles were limited by stereotype and prejudice; tired of being both typecast and being passed over for lead Asian character roles in favor of non-Asian actresses, Wong left Hollywood in 1928 for Europe.〔 Interviewed by Doris Mackie for ''Film Weekly'' in 1933, Wong complained about her Hollywood roles: "I was so tired of the parts I had to play."〔Leong, Karen J. The China Mystique: Pearl S. Buck, Anna May Wong, Mayling Soong, and the Transformation of American Orientalism. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2005. ISBN 0-520-24422-2. pp. 83, 187.〕〔Wollstein, Hans J. "Anna May Wong." Vixens, Floozies, and Molls: 28 Actresses of late 1920s and 1930s Hollywood. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 1999. ISBN 0-7864-0565-1. p. 252.〕 She commented: "There seems little for me in Hollywood, because, rather than real Chinese, producers prefer Hungarians, Mexicans, American Indians for Chinese roles."〔Parish, James and William Leonard. "Anna May Wong." Hollywood Players: The Thirties. New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House Publishers, 1976, pp. 532–538. ISBN 0-87000-365-8.〕 In 1935, she was considered for the leading role in ''The Good Earth'', which went to Caucasian actress Luise Rainer. Wong refused the role of the villainess, the stereotypical Oriental Dragon Lady. Keye Luke was one of the most successful actors of his time, starring as the "Number-One Son" Lee Chan in the popular Charlie Chan films (which also featured white actors Warner Oland or Sidney Toler playing Charlie Chan in yellowface), as well as the original Kato in the 1940s Green Hornet, and Detective James Lee Wong in ''Phantom of Chinatown'' (1940), another role previously played by a caucasian actor (Boris Karloff). Korean-American actor Philip Ahn, after rejection for speaking English too well, braved death threats after playing Japanese villains. Ahn would go on to have a prolific career, however. Some Asian-American actors nonetheless attempted to start careers. Merle Oberon, a mixed-race Anglo-Indian, was able to get starring roles after concocting a phony story about her origins and using skin whitening make-up. There were others pioneering Asian American actors like Benson Fong (who played the Number Three son in the Charlie Chan films), Victor Sen Yung (who played the Number Two son in the Charlie Chan films), Richard Loo (who also played many Japanese villain roles), Lotus Long (known for her role as Lin Wen opposite Keye Luke in the ''Phantom of Chinatown''), Suzanna Kim, Barbara Jean Wong, Fely Franquelli, Chester Gan, Honorable Wu, Kam Tong, Layne Tom Jr., Maurice Liu, Rudy Robles, Teru Shimada, Willie Fung, Toshia Mori and Wing Foo; all began their film careers in the 1930s and '40s. With the number of Asian-American actors available, actor Robert Ito wrote an article that described that job protection for Caucasian actors was one reason Asians were portrayed by Caucasians. "With the relatively small percentage of actors that support themselves by acting, it was only logical that they should try to limit the available talent pool as much as possible. One way of doing this was by placing restrictions on minority actors, which, in the case of Asian actors, meant that they could usually only get roles as houseboys, cooks, laundrymen, and crazed war enemies, with the rare "white hero's loyal sidekick" roles going to the big name actors. When the script called for a larger Asian role, it was almost inevitably given to a white actor."〔(www.brightlightsflim.com ) ''A Certain Slant''〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Portrayal of East Asians in Hollywood」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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