The actor who played Chinaman Long Duk Dong is Japanese. And in Sixteen Candles he is seen wearing his clothes and hair in traditional Japanese style (in the tree scene), his accent is more Japanese than Chinese, he speaks Japanese ( Banzai! ) and the incidental music and sound effects played during his scenes are all Japanese music. Nothing about ...
Show more »
The actor who played Chinaman Long Duk Dong is Japanese. And in Sixteen Candles he is seen wearing his clothes and hair in traditional Japanese style (in the tree scene), his accent is more Japanese than Chinese, he speaks Japanese ( Banzai! ) and the incidental music and sound effects played during his scenes are all Japanese music. Nothing about his character, except his name, is Chinese. For all intents and purposes, he IS Japanese! It seems, at first viewing, that the producers made a huge ethnocentric goof! However it is later revealed as an intentional goof via the pop song Turning Japanese that is played in one scene: Dong IS Chinese (hence the name), however he is TURNING Japanese (aka a wannabe Japanese), maybe because Japanese pop culture was hip in mid-80s America, while Chinese culture was not (and never has been).
Show less «
