Anna May Wong to be the first Asian American on US currency

Los Angeles, California - Anna May Wong, the first Asian-American movie star in Hollywood, will now be the first Asian American on US currency.

Anna May Wong (1905-1961) was the first Asian-American film star in Hollywood.
Anna May Wong (1905-1961) was the first Asian-American film star in Hollywood.  © IMAGO / AGB Photo

Anna May Wong (1905-1961) had a trailblazing career in Hollywood, but she also struggled to get meaningful roles as a Chinese-American actor due to discrimination.

Now she's got a new role, as the face of the fifth coin in the American Women Quarters Program.

On Monday, the US Mint will start producing coins pressed with Wong’s image: a graceful close-up of her face resting on an elegantly manicured hand. The LA native, known for her expressive eyes and flapper style, will be on some 300 million US quarters, made in facilities in Philadelphia and Denver.

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The coin, per US Mint website, is meant not just to honor the actor and her decades-long, groundbreaking career, but also to acknowledge the difficulties she faced.

Anna May Wong faced rampant racism in Hollywood

Anna May Wong moved to Europe in 1928 because she had more acting opportunities as a person of Chinese descent.
Anna May Wong moved to Europe in 1928 because she had more acting opportunities as a person of Chinese descent.  © IMAGO / AGB Photo

Anna May Wong's first lead role was in The Toll of the Sea (1922). She acted in film, on television, and on stage. She worked in both silent films and one of the first movies made in Technicolor.

Wong became a star during the era of yellow face, rampant Asian stereotypes, and miscegenation laws.

These racist ideas and laws robbed Wong, who was considered one of the most beautiful stars in Hollywood, of multiple romantic lead roles as actors of different races were prohibited from locking lips onscreen.

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Due to the lack of opportunities in Hollywood, she moved to Europe in 1928, where she had far more opportunities as a nonwhite actor and became an overnight sensation. Per the New York Times, Wong famously said she'd died a thousand deaths, as she was killed in every movie.

According to the US Mint website, "She is remembered as an international film star, fashion icon, television trailblazer, and a champion for greater representation of Asian Americans in film."

The Anna May Wong quarter is the fifth coin in the American Women Quarters Program. The program calls for five new quarters to be made each year starting in 2022 and until 2025.

Other women featured on the 2022 coins include writer Maya Angelou, astronaut Dr. Sally Ride, first elected principal chief of the Cherokee Nation Wilma Mankiller, and New Mexican suffrage movement leader Nina Otero-Warren.

Cover photo: collage: IMAGO / AGB Photo

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