NOTES
Chapter One
1. A Moment in Time, directed by Ruby Yang.
2. Moyers, Becoming American: The Chinese Experience, Part 3, “No Turning Back.”
3. Yang, A Moment in Time.
4. Ibid.
5. Norman Fong, in Chin, “Growing Up in San Francisco Chinatown in the 1950s.”
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
8. Although this particular martial-arts form is usually spelled “kung fu,” many speakers of southern Chinese dialects pronounce it with the “G” sound.
9. Fong, “Growing Up.”
10. Yang, A Moment in Time.
11. Ibid.
12. The films were sent overseas from Taiwan and Hong Kong with Chinese subtitles for the benefit of viewers who spoke neither Mandarin nor Cantonese, the usual languages in which the films were originally made. English subtitles were also included, and some Chinatown kids would even use the films as a resource for language learning or practice.
13. Yang, A Moment in Time.
14. Ibid.
15. Irene Dea Collier, conversations with author, 2016 and 2017.
16. Ibid.
17. On Strike!: The Birth of the College of Ethnic Studies, San Francisco State University Archive.
18. Ibid.
19. Before cable television, the local San Francisco channels and their network affiliates were as follows: KTVU Channel 2 (independent), KRON Channel 4 (NBC), KPIX Channel 5 (CBS), KGO Channel 7 (ABC) and KQED Channel 9 (PBS).
20. On Strike!
21. Mark Zannini, written communication to author, 2017.
22. Norman Fong, conversation with author, 2017.
23. Fong, “Growing Up.”
24. Ibid.
25. Chuck, Chinatown: More Stories of Life and Faith, 114.
26. Yang, A Moment in Time.
Chapter Two
27. Wong Fei Hung was a real person who lived in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He was a physician and kung fu master who became a folk hero. More than one hundred films have been made about him. While Kwan Tak Hing was featured in practically all of the Wong Fei Hung films from the 1940s through the 1960s, current actors, including the likes of Jackie Chan and Jet Li, continue to star in films about him.
28. Sherman Wong, conversations with author, 2016.
29. Judy Wing Lee, written communications to author, 2016.
30. Hoover Ng, comment on the topic of “Chinatown Movie Theaters,” in “We Grew Up in San Francisco Chinatown,” Facebook, September 2016, https://www.facebook.com/groups/wguisfct.
31. Walden Jay, “Chinatown Movie Theaters.”
32. Mark Zannini, conversations with author, 2017.
33. Melody Chan Doss-Wambeke, written communications to author, 2016 and 2017.
34. Yang, A Moment in Time.
35. Ibid.
36. Ibid.
37. Ibid.
38. Ibid.
39. Darryl Eng is the pseudonym assigned to an interviewee who prefers that his real name not be used in this book. The facts and quotes attributed to the name reflect the thoughts and experiences of the contributing interviewee, and they do not represent those of anyone who actually is or was named Darryl Eng. Darryl appears in several chapters, and all of his anecdotes and stories were communicated to the author via conversations or written communications.
40. Ibid.
41. Jay, “Chinatown Movie Theaters.”
Chapter Three
42. Darryl Eng. The names “Uncle Frank” and “Aunt Susan” used in this chapter were changed from their originals in order to safeguard Darryl’s anonymity. They are not meant to represent anyone else’s Aunt Susan or Uncle Frank, living or deceased.
43. More than a few ABCs found this to be true. They often did poorly in Chinese school, generally disliked it and speak of it today with words like “awful,” “a waste of time” or “torture.”
Chapter Four
44. A poster for the 1973 film shows an actor with a club resembling a cross between a two-by-four and a baseball bat.
45. Walden Jay, comment on the topic of “Corporal Punishment,” in “We Grew Up in San Francisco Chinatown,” Facebook, October 26–28, 2016, https://www.facebook.com/groups/wguisfct.
46. Gary Kong, “Corporal Punishment.”
47. Mel Lim, “Corporal Punishment.”
48. Dabin Lo, “Corporal Punishment.”
49. Cooper Chow, “Corporal Punishment.”
50. Jae Jee, “Corporal Punishment.”
51. Susi Ming, “Corporal Punishment.”
52. Jay, “Corporal Punishment.”
53. Wanda Wong, “Corporal Punishment.”
54. Lio, “Example of ‘User Innovation’ from Chinese Mothers.”
55. Robert Lowe, “Corporal Punishment.”
56. Michael Tam, “Corporal Punishment.”
57. Kong, “Corporal Punishment.”
58. Jay, “Corporal Punishment.”
59. Chuck, ed., Chinatown: Memories of Life and Faith, 78–79.
60. Ibid.
61. Lowe, “Corporal Punishment.”
62. Ibid.
63. Ibid.
64. Conant and Hammond, “In Their Words: How Children Are Affected by Gender Issues,” 35.
Chapter Five
65. Raymond Lee, comment on the topic of “Working in a Family Business,” in “We Grew Up in San Francisco Chinatown,” Facebook, September 30, 2016, https://www.facebook.com/groups/wguisfct.
66. Ibid.
67. Ibid.
68. The term is used here to say that Michael’s father was a longtime, established expert in his field: jewelry. Many of Chinatown’s shops, as mentioned by Raymond Lee, sold inexpensive trinkets and novelty items to tourists. Michael’s reference to his father as “OG” can be considered a deep compliment to his father’s professional expertise and dedication to both his work and his family.
69. After the mid-1970s fall of Vietnam, there was another influx of Asian immigrants into the United States. Some of the newcomers were ethnic Chinese or Chinese Vietnamese whose familiarity with the language and general culture led them to Chinatown, where they, like the post–World War II southern Chinese before them, made homes and/or established small businesses.
70. Michael Tam, “Working in a Family Business.”
71. Darryl Eng, conversations with author, 2016 and 2017.
72. Leland Wong, “Working in a Family Business.”
73. Ibid.
74. Ibid.
75. Herb Caen wrote a daily column for the San Francisco Chronicle. His pieces dealt with local goings-on, insider gossip, the social scene and political happenings. He was a master of the pun, and his columns were always cheerful and humorous. Caen’s writings also reflected his deep love for his city and its citizens.
76. Wong, “Working in a Family Business.”
77. Chuck, Chinatown: More Stories of Life and Faith, 133–34.
Chapter Six
78. Melody Chan Doss-Wambeke, comment on the topic of “Favorite and Least Favorite Chinese Foods While Growing Up” (hereafter “Foods”), in “Ed Wong,” Facebook, January 3–4, 2017, https://www.facebook.com/ed.wong.52438.
79. Jack Woo, “Foods.”
80. Dale Filipas, “Foods.”
81. Nanette Lim, “Foods.”
82. Marilyn King, “Foods.”
83. Herman Jew, “Foods.”
84. Darryl Eng, conversation with author, 2017.
85. JuJu Lee, “Foods.”
86. Irene Dea Collier, conversation with author, 2017.
87. Sophia Wong, “Foods.”
88. Bhide, “Lucky Foods: Jai (Vegetarian Buddha’s Delight) from China.”
89. Doss-Wambeke, “Foods.”
90. Norman Fong, conversation with author, 2017.
91. Sproul, “Growing Up in San Francisco Memories.”
92. Lee, “Foods.”
93. Orange pie has been often mentioned as an “all-time favorite” by boomer ABCs. It was also available from Uncle’s Café on Waverly Street. Much debate lingers over which restaurant had the best. The pie was only made by Sun Wah Kue and Uncle’s.
94. Leland Wong, “Foods.”
95. King, “Foods.”
96. Lee, “Foods.”
97. Arthur Dong, “Foods.”
98. Heidi Chiao, “Foods.”
99. Young, in Cynthia Tom, “Chinatown Childhood Memory Shop—Call for Memories.”
100. Center for Asian American Media (hereafter CAAM), “Chef Brandon Jew of ‘Mister Jiu’s’ Shares His Inspiration.”
101. Ibid.
102. Cooper Chow, “Foods.”
103. Annie Leong Lum, “Foods.”
104. CAAM.
105. P.J. Leong, “Foods.”
106. As told to author by Darryl Eng.
Chapter Seven
107. Frances Mathewson-Leong is a pseudonym, and the experiences attributed to her in this book do not reflect those of any person, living or deceased, who was ever named Frances Mathewson or Frances Mathewson-Leong. The names Mr. Leong, Mrs. Leong, Glenn Leong and Dennis Woo were utilized solely to maintain Frances’s anonymity and do not represent any person, living or deceased, who has ever been similarly named. All of Frances’s anecdotes were told to the author in conversations.
108. Him, Lim and Yung, Island: Poetry and History of Chinese Immigrants on Angel Island 1910–1940, 112–13.
109. While Cheryl is her real name, she prefers not to reveal her current surname. All of Cheryl’s anecdotes were told to the author either by conversation or written communications.
Chapter Eight
110. Brandon Jew, “A Chef ’s Childhood Memories of Chinese New Year in San Francisco,” Sfchronicle.com, February 11, 2016.
111. Darryl Eng, conversation with author, 2017.
112. Sproul, “Growing Up in San Francisco Memories.”
113. Harold Lee is a pseudonym. His anecdotes and experiences in this book are not meant to represent those of any other person, living or dead, who has ever borne the name Harold Lee. Conversation with author.
114. Spotswood, “Tradition Is a Blast at Cheers of Chinatown.”
115. Rose Chung, conversation with author, 2017.
116. Miss Asian Global & Miss Asian America Pageant, accessed February 2017, http://missasianamerica.com.
117. Kwong, “Chinese New Year: Watch Gum Long Rule Streets of SF.”
Chapter Nine
118. All of Allison Wong’s anecdotes were told in conversations with the author, 2017.
119. The old Chinatown Recreation Center has given way to a thoroughly modern replacement on its original site. In 2011, the center was renamed in honor of Betty Ann Ong, a typical Chinatown kid who grew up to be a very special and exceptional adult. She was a flight attendant aboard American Airlines Flight 11 on 9/11. She calmly, professionally and bravely made ground contact to give a detailed commentary of events aboard the plane as they took place. Her phone call ended when the aircraft hit the World Trade Center.