An All Asian American Affair

Photos by John J. Kim

Star Turn: Actress Tia Carrere meets the media backstage at last weekend's Golden Ring Awards in San Francisco. Carrere was one of 13 honorees.

Second Golden Ring Awards highlight APA artistic achievement

BY PAUL LEE CANNON

The stars shined brightly over and inside San Francisco's Davies Symphony Hall Saturday night when the Asian American Arts Foundation (AAAF) presented its second Golden Ring Awards. The stellar event, hosted by comedian Henry Cho, paid tribute to 13 highly regarded forces in the APA arts and entertainment community.

In front of the mostly Asian American audience--triple the turnout at the 1995 Golden Ring Awards at Yerba Buena Gardens--the foundation honored a wide range of talent: performance artist Brenda Wong Aoki; hip-hop DJ Q-Bert; dancer Marianna Tcherkassky; actors Steve Park and Russell Wong; actress Tia Carrere; actresses Nancy Kwan and Pat Suzuki, actor James Shigeta, and author C.Y. Lee for their contributions to Flower Drum Song; film producer Terence Chang; director John Woo; and contemporary jazz group Hiroshima, which received the Golden Ring Lifetime Achievement Award.

Proceeds from the event (tickets were $50 or $150 a seat) go directly to the two-and-a-half-year-old foundation, which helps fund Asian American arts programs and provides scholarships and grants to emerging APA artists.

In 1995, the AAAF presented its first Golden Ring Awards in response to APA programs that lost funding due to National Endowment for the Arts' cutbacks. Since its inception, the foundation has raised more than $60,000. AAAF Chairman Jeff Adachi hoped to double, even triple that amount with this year's gala.

"The AAAF was created to provide a vehicle for the arts to take a proactive role by investing ourselves and our artists in the images that we want to see in our stories," Adachi said during the ceremony's introduction. "But at the same time there is a cost and a consequence to not getting our stories out, not investing in the arts. Our stories are being lost.

"We hear that anti-Asian American violence is at its highest peak. When the National Review cover came out, we had very few vehicles to respond. Now that's changing, and it's a very exciting time.

"It's a dream come true for our foundation," he concluded. "We want to get the message out, and we're gonna have the artists show you themselves."

After Adachi's opening words, an on-screen montage of films starring Asian American men, ranging from Bruce Lee to Gedde Watanabe, kicked off the evening. A large movie screen at the rear of the stage also treated the crowd to images depicting the accomplishments of APA artists.

But the clips were not always meant to be uplifting. At one point, a disturbing scene from the recent film Donnie Brasco flashed across the screen: A Japanese restaurant host gets severely beaten after insisting that a character, played by Johnny Depp, take his shoes off before sitting down.

Nonetheless, this year's event had something in store for everyone. The crowd ran the gamut from eager, camera-ready grandmothers to svelte teenagers looking as if they were on their way to the prom. A black tux was the outfit of choice for men; for women, the "little black dress" ruled. The high Asian quotient in attendance even extended to the security staff.

In between award presentations, the audience saw the high-energy moves of the Lynn Imanaka Dancers and heard the melodies of violin prodigy Rachel Kim, the rock 'n' roll sounds of the band Shaking Babies, the riveting words of performance artist Justin Chin, and the hip-hop vibes of DJ Q-Bert and the Invisbl Skratch Pickls.

Flanked by three sculpted male dancers, recording artist Jocelyn Enriquez brought "A Little Bit of Ecstasy" to the Davies stage. She dazzled the crowd with her hit single and her slim, red, Shanghai-style silk pants, beaded bra, and Mata Hari-inspired headpiece.

In addition to performing, Enriquez presented the Emerging Artist Award to DJ Q-Bert, who skipped giving an acceptance speech, opting instead to hold up the award and wave to the audience while exiting stage left.

The leader of the contemporary jazz group Hiroshima eagerly made an acceptance speech after accepting the Lifetime Achievement Award from writer Ben Fong-Torres.

Another honoree, performance artist Brenda Wong Aoki, aptly expressed the Golden Ring's significance. She said the recognition of APA artists on such a large scale is something long overdue, especially since there are still many more artists out there who need to be seen and heard.

"Nobody's voice is a single voice," she said. "The voice carries many, many generations."

During what was perhaps the evening's most riveting moment, playwright David Henry Hwang presented special Golden Ring Awards to the principal players of Flower Drum Song. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Rodgers and Hammerstein-produced Broadway play and the 36th anniversary of the release of the film. Flower Drum Song was the first-ever Broadway musical and film production featuring an all-Asian American cast.

After a clip reminded the audience of the film's charm, author C.Y. Lee and actors Nancy Kwan, Pat Suzuki, and James Shigeta nobly made their way across the stage. The cheering Davies crowd immediately rose to their feet.

C.Y. Lee then took his turn at the mike, announcing that Hwang, who has rewritten the musical, "has the blessing of Rodgers and Hammerstein" to bring Flower Drum Song back to Broadway.

At a pre-show reception, Kwan said that despite such achievements, she still feels that a glass ceiling exists for Asian Pacific American actors.

"I think it's opening up a little bit more, but I don't think it's nearly enough," she said. "I think Asian actors are still struggling for better roles today, as in the past."

Another highlight of the evening was a surprise appearance by the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who presented the "Anna May Wong Award of Excellence" to actor and comedian Steve Park.

Jackson seized the opportunity to stress the importance of the AAAF, emphasizing that the battle for equality continues.

"How we learn about cultures is through their arts," Jackson said. "Whether [we're called] 'Charlie Chan' or 'little black Sambo,' we all fight for equity.''

After accepting the award, Park embraced the civil-rights dignitary; both then raised clutched hands in a sign of victory. Following a standing ovation, overwhelmed with emotion, Park choked back tears and delivered his acceptance speech.

"I can't tell you what an honor it is that Jesse Jackson took time out of his day to present me this award," he said.

Park, best known for his supporting roles in the films Fargo and Do the Right Thing, also used the moment as a platform to talk about his role models and to strongly dispel a common minority myth.

"When I was growing up and someone asked me who my role models were, it was funny because they were all black men: Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali. Blacks have helped me so much. The ongoing stereotype that blacks and Koreans can't get along is a myth perpetuated by the news media.''

On a lighter note, funny lady Margaret Cho, who's currently pursuing directing as well as acting, presented a Golden Ring Award to hot action-film director John Woo. Cho, a 1995 recipient of a Golden Ring Award, starred in Woo's summer blockbuster Face/Off alongside John Travolta and Nicolas Cage.

"To say that I'm just a fan of John Woo is a gross understatement," Cho told the Davies audience. "I am obsessed with John Woo.''

Woo's partner in the film world, producer Terence Chang, was also honored.

Adding star quality to the evening were appearances by actress Michelle Yeoh, who will star opposite Pierce Brosnan in the latest James Bond flick, and honorees Tia Carrere and Russell Wong.

Among the lesser-known but equally deserving honorees was Marianna Tcherkassky, a former principal dancer with American Ballet Theater. When her limousine pulled up in front of Davies Symphony Hall, neither the press nor the public approached her. However, she did rack up style points for her white organza gown with matching shawl.

Tcherkassky said her "defining moment'' was dancing with Mikhail Baryshnikov in the title role of Giselle in 1976. In accepting her Golden Ring Award, she told the audience: "It's easier to express myself through dance and bury myself in a role than to tell you how thankful and honored I am for this award."

Carrere and Wong were just as--if not more--striking in person as they are on the silver screen.

The Chinese-Hawaiian-Filipino actress wore a slinky black dress with beaded accents. Her hair styled as tousled ringlets, Carrere wore a shiny diamond bracelet and black velvet stilettos to complete the look.

"Maybe I shouldn't have a drink in my hand,'' she said jokingly at the pre-show reception before answering questions about her success and her future.

Carrere, whose career took off after a leading role in Wayne's World, is currently at work on the film Star City with Stephen Baldwin. The production company she and her husband lead, Phoenician Films, has produced 20 movies, six of which starred Carrere--including Kull, the Conqueror with Kevin Sorbo.

The more reserved Wong talked about his upcoming film projects, including the much anticipated The Locked Room, which resurrects and reinvents the Charlie Chan series.

Judging by the success of this year's gala, it seems obvious that future Golden Ring Awards would become an annual tradition on an ever bigger scale. But according to Adachi, "that depends on the level of interest for such events and whether the time is right to take it to the next level.

"If there's a lot more community support as well as financial support, we'll be there," he said. "And if my wife, Mutsuko, lets me."

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