Flower Drum Song was a 1961 American musical film directed by Henry Koster, adapted from the 1958 Broadway musical of the same name. The film was based on the 1957 novel by Chinese American author C.Y. Lee and featured music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II.
The film had a predominantly Asian American cast, which was highly unusual for the time. Several Japanese American actors had key roles:
- James Shigeta played the lead role of Wang Ta, a young Chinese American man torn between traditional Chinese values and the lure of American culture.
- Miyoshi Umeki portrayed Mei Li, a young Chinese woman who immigrates to the United States in an arranged marriage to Shigeta’s character.
- Jack Soo played Sammy Fong, the owner of a nightclub in San Francisco’s Chinatown and the romantic interest of the character Linda Low.
- Reiko Sato had the role of Helen Chao, another young Chinese woman caught between cultures.
The film was groundbreaking in its casting of Asian American actors, though it was not without its issues. Some have criticized the film for perpetuating stereotypes and for the use of Japanese actors in Chinese roles. Nevertheless, Flower Drum Song marked an important step forward in the representation of Asian Americans in Hollywood.
