1 00:00:01,320 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:14,800 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Tracy V. 3 00:00:14,960 --> 00:00:16,640 Speaker 1: Wilson and I'm Holly Frye. 4 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:20,360 Speaker 2: Not long ago, we did a topic because I had 5 00:00:20,400 --> 00:00:23,159 Speaker 2: it on my list two times, and I said, we 6 00:00:23,239 --> 00:00:26,200 Speaker 2: might have another episode about somebody who was somehow on 7 00:00:26,239 --> 00:00:29,640 Speaker 2: my short list two times, and here it is today. 8 00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:34,040 Speaker 2: This is about artist Tyrus Wong, who was born in 9 00:00:34,120 --> 00:00:36,720 Speaker 2: China and brought to the United States as a child 10 00:00:36,840 --> 00:00:40,000 Speaker 2: at a time when immigration to the United States from 11 00:00:40,080 --> 00:00:44,720 Speaker 2: China was banned under the Chinese Exclusion Act. Then, over 12 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:48,440 Speaker 2: the course of just an extraordinarily long career, he worked 13 00:00:48,440 --> 00:00:52,680 Speaker 2: across a range of media in a whole collection of industries. 14 00:00:52,760 --> 00:00:57,320 Speaker 2: There was animation and live action film, commercial art, public art, 15 00:00:57,840 --> 00:01:01,240 Speaker 2: greeting cards, and in the last years of his life, 16 00:01:01,400 --> 00:01:05,440 Speaker 2: kite making in his personal workshop. He went by a 17 00:01:05,440 --> 00:01:07,640 Speaker 2: few different names over the course of his life for 18 00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:10,360 Speaker 2: some reasons we will get to, but as an adult 19 00:01:10,360 --> 00:01:13,160 Speaker 2: he was pretty much known as Tyros. His friends, a 20 00:01:13,160 --> 00:01:15,760 Speaker 2: lot of them called him Thai, and that's how he 21 00:01:15,840 --> 00:01:18,640 Speaker 2: was typically credited on the films that he worked on, 22 00:01:18,760 --> 00:01:21,600 Speaker 2: and it was Tyros Wang was how he signed his artwork. 23 00:01:21,760 --> 00:01:24,080 Speaker 2: That is the name that we will stick with today. 24 00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:28,440 Speaker 2: Tyros Wang was born wuan Ganyo on October twenty fifth, 25 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:31,880 Speaker 2: nineteen ten, in the village of Titian in the Guangdong 26 00:01:31,920 --> 00:01:36,160 Speaker 2: Province of China. His parents were named Saipo and Li Si, 27 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:39,679 Speaker 2: and he was born during a tumultuous time in China. 28 00:01:39,880 --> 00:01:42,160 Speaker 2: This was just a year before the start of the 29 00:01:42,240 --> 00:01:46,520 Speaker 2: Chinese Revolution of nineteen eleven. This revolution led to the 30 00:01:46,600 --> 00:01:50,200 Speaker 2: end of the Qing dynasty, which was China's last imperial dynasty. 31 00:01:50,920 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 2: This uprising had grown out of ongoing issues of instability, 32 00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:58,120 Speaker 2: including the Opium Wars of the mid nineteenth century, the 33 00:01:58,160 --> 00:02:01,240 Speaker 2: First Sino Japanese War at the end of the nineteenth century, 34 00:02:01,440 --> 00:02:04,720 Speaker 2: and the Russo Japanese War of the early twentieth century, 35 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:09,080 Speaker 2: matt gave Japan control over what had been Chinese territory 36 00:02:09,160 --> 00:02:13,639 Speaker 2: in Manchuria. As an adult, Tyrus described his father as 37 00:02:13,720 --> 00:02:17,080 Speaker 2: well educated, a man who knew a lot about things 38 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:21,400 Speaker 2: like poetry and literature and calligraphy, but their family was 39 00:02:21,440 --> 00:02:25,720 Speaker 2: living in poverty, and eventually his parents decided that Tyrus's 40 00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:28,800 Speaker 2: father would take him to the United States, where they 41 00:02:28,840 --> 00:02:32,440 Speaker 2: thought he would have better opportunities. They kept in touch 42 00:02:32,520 --> 00:02:35,720 Speaker 2: through letters after this, but Tyrus never saw his mother 43 00:02:35,919 --> 00:02:39,440 Speaker 2: or his sister again. He left aboard the SS China 44 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:42,840 Speaker 2: in either nineteen nineteen or nineteen twenty. There were sources 45 00:02:42,960 --> 00:02:46,080 Speaker 2: used in this episode that had each of those years. 46 00:02:46,639 --> 00:02:50,160 Speaker 2: At this point, immigration to the US from China was 47 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:53,800 Speaker 2: outlawed under the Chinese Exclusion Act, which also made it 48 00:02:53,840 --> 00:02:58,040 Speaker 2: illegal for Chinese people to become US citizens. The Chinese 49 00:02:58,080 --> 00:03:01,359 Speaker 2: Exclusion Act was the first law that played major restrictions 50 00:03:01,400 --> 00:03:04,760 Speaker 2: on who could enter the United States. It was originally 51 00:03:04,760 --> 00:03:07,080 Speaker 2: written as a ten year ban, but then it was 52 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:11,040 Speaker 2: extended and then made permanent in nineteen oh two. The 53 00:03:11,080 --> 00:03:14,720 Speaker 2: only exceptions to the Chinese Exclusion Acts immigration band were 54 00:03:14,760 --> 00:03:19,520 Speaker 2: people like diplomatic official, students, and teachers traveling with certification 55 00:03:19,680 --> 00:03:22,280 Speaker 2: from the Chinese government, as well as people who had 56 00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:25,960 Speaker 2: already been in the United States prior to November seventeenth, 57 00:03:26,080 --> 00:03:30,320 Speaker 2: eighteen eighty. However, a couple of things happened after the 58 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:33,960 Speaker 2: Chinese Exclusion Act was passed in eighteen eighty two that 59 00:03:34,120 --> 00:03:37,880 Speaker 2: shifted how it could be enforced. One was the US 60 00:03:37,960 --> 00:03:41,920 Speaker 2: Supreme Court's decision in United States versus wangkim Arc in 61 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:44,800 Speaker 2: eighteen ninety eight. That's another topic that's been on my 62 00:03:44,840 --> 00:03:48,880 Speaker 2: episode list for a long time. Wangkim Arc had been 63 00:03:48,920 --> 00:03:52,360 Speaker 2: born in San Francisco to Chinese parents, and he was 64 00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:56,440 Speaker 2: denied re entry into the United States after a trip abroad. 65 00:03:57,320 --> 00:04:00,920 Speaker 2: The Supreme Court in his case decided that the birthright 66 00:04:01,120 --> 00:04:05,640 Speaker 2: citizenship provisions of the fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which 67 00:04:05,720 --> 00:04:07,800 Speaker 2: was passed in the wake of the US Civil War, 68 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:13,040 Speaker 2: also applied to people born on US soil to Chinese parents. 69 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:17,080 Speaker 2: The other was the nineteen oh six San Francisco earthquake 70 00:04:17,080 --> 00:04:19,320 Speaker 2: and fire, which we talked about on the show in 71 00:04:19,360 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 2: November of twenty nineteen, and we just ran it as 72 00:04:22,080 --> 00:04:26,679 Speaker 2: a Saturday Classic. San Francisco City Hall was destroyed along 73 00:04:26,760 --> 00:04:29,400 Speaker 2: with all the records it contained, and this made it 74 00:04:29,440 --> 00:04:31,640 Speaker 2: possible for people to say that they had been born 75 00:04:31,680 --> 00:04:34,320 Speaker 2: in the US but could no longer prove it because 76 00:04:34,560 --> 00:04:37,919 Speaker 2: their records had been destroyed in that fire. Children of 77 00:04:38,040 --> 00:04:41,839 Speaker 2: US citizens who are born abroad are also eligible for citizenships, 78 00:04:41,839 --> 00:04:44,800 Speaker 2: So this meant that, for example, a Chinese man could 79 00:04:44,880 --> 00:04:47,920 Speaker 2: return to China and say his wife had given birth there, 80 00:04:48,320 --> 00:04:51,080 Speaker 2: creating a paper trail for a child, who could then 81 00:04:51,279 --> 00:04:54,320 Speaker 2: enter the US, whether it was really his own child 82 00:04:54,520 --> 00:04:58,640 Speaker 2: or someone else's child using that identity. Of course, people 83 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:01,839 Speaker 2: had tried to immigrate from China to the United States 84 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:05,920 Speaker 2: using false identities long before this nineteen oh six earthquake, 85 00:05:06,560 --> 00:05:09,960 Speaker 2: but the destruction of all those records led to an 86 00:05:10,200 --> 00:05:13,600 Speaker 2: enormous increase in these kinds of entries into the country. 87 00:05:14,160 --> 00:05:17,880 Speaker 2: It also sparked a trade in identities and papers as 88 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:21,760 Speaker 2: people tried to reunite with family members or help people 89 00:05:21,800 --> 00:05:25,640 Speaker 2: they knew get into the United States. Chinese people being 90 00:05:25,720 --> 00:05:28,440 Speaker 2: brought to the US under this kind of paper trail 91 00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:32,440 Speaker 2: became known as paper sons or less often paper daughters. 92 00:05:33,360 --> 00:05:36,720 Speaker 2: In response to this surgeon illegal entries into the country, 93 00:05:36,839 --> 00:05:40,200 Speaker 2: the United States built an immigration station at Angel Island 94 00:05:40,240 --> 00:05:44,840 Speaker 2: in San Francisco Bay, intended to identify and deport paper 95 00:05:44,920 --> 00:05:48,039 Speaker 2: sons and other Chinese people who didn't meet the legal 96 00:05:48,080 --> 00:05:52,400 Speaker 2: criteria for entry. While people from other nations also entered 97 00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:56,160 Speaker 2: the United States through Angel Island, most were Chinese, and 98 00:05:56,320 --> 00:06:00,760 Speaker 2: immigration inspectors were intentionally looking for reasons to keep Chinese 99 00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:05,800 Speaker 2: people out. Arrivals from China to Angel Island were separated 100 00:06:05,800 --> 00:06:10,720 Speaker 2: by sex and subjected to degrading medical exams before undergoing 101 00:06:10,920 --> 00:06:15,240 Speaker 2: extensive questioning about their family history and their life in China. 102 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:19,120 Speaker 2: Their purported family members in the United States were then 103 00:06:19,279 --> 00:06:23,719 Speaker 2: similarly questioned with those two sets of answers compared to 104 00:06:23,800 --> 00:06:28,080 Speaker 2: see whether they matched. These were questions like what direction 105 00:06:28,240 --> 00:06:31,160 Speaker 2: does your house face, how many windows does it have, 106 00:06:31,640 --> 00:06:35,040 Speaker 2: how many stairs are there? What's the floor made of? 107 00:06:35,480 --> 00:06:38,159 Speaker 2: What were the names of all your neighbors? Did any 108 00:06:38,240 --> 00:06:42,719 Speaker 2: of them have pigs? How many pigs? Questions that were 109 00:06:42,839 --> 00:06:48,159 Speaker 2: really detailed, really specific, and not necessarily something a typical 110 00:06:48,240 --> 00:06:51,599 Speaker 2: person would actually know or remember. If you ask me 111 00:06:51,640 --> 00:06:57,080 Speaker 2: how many windows my neighbor's house has, even visualizing it 112 00:06:57,120 --> 00:06:58,040 Speaker 2: in my head, I don't know. 113 00:06:58,240 --> 00:07:00,560 Speaker 1: I wouldn't pass this test. They were are meant to 114 00:07:00,640 --> 00:07:05,400 Speaker 1: be unpassable as much as possible. Word about these interrogations 115 00:07:05,480 --> 00:07:08,640 Speaker 1: quickly spread within the Chinese community, and people trying to 116 00:07:08,760 --> 00:07:12,920 Speaker 1: enter the US would carefully memorize answers to prepare for them, 117 00:07:13,480 --> 00:07:16,120 Speaker 1: and people also had to keep their memories of all 118 00:07:16,160 --> 00:07:20,120 Speaker 1: the answers fresh because this process would be repeated if 119 00:07:20,160 --> 00:07:23,320 Speaker 1: a Chinese person ever traveled outside the US and tried 120 00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:27,000 Speaker 1: to return, or if their immigration status was questioned for 121 00:07:27,080 --> 00:07:30,920 Speaker 1: some reason while they were in the US. This happened 122 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:32,920 Speaker 1: to Tyris Wong at one point when he crossed the 123 00:07:32,960 --> 00:07:36,040 Speaker 1: border into Mexico to visit Tijuana as a young man, 124 00:07:36,080 --> 00:07:38,040 Speaker 1: and then was stranded there for about a month. 125 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:41,960 Speaker 2: When Tyros was brought to the United States, his father 126 00:07:42,120 --> 00:07:45,960 Speaker 2: traveled under the name look Get and Tyrs was documented 127 00:07:46,000 --> 00:07:50,200 Speaker 2: as Luktai Yau. When they arrived at Angel Islands, officials 128 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:54,120 Speaker 2: immediately separated the two of them from one another. Tyros's 129 00:07:54,160 --> 00:07:56,680 Speaker 2: father had been in the US before, and he was 130 00:07:56,800 --> 00:08:01,160 Speaker 2: processed and released. But for about the next ten year 131 00:08:01,160 --> 00:08:04,960 Speaker 2: old Tyros was the only child at Angel Island. He 132 00:08:05,040 --> 00:08:08,080 Speaker 2: had no idea where his father was or whether he 133 00:08:08,080 --> 00:08:12,000 Speaker 2: would ever see him again. A month is such a 134 00:08:12,040 --> 00:08:14,520 Speaker 2: long time for a child to be without a parent, 135 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:18,520 Speaker 2: especially in this kind of environment, but a lot of 136 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:21,360 Speaker 2: people who were detained at Angel Island were held for 137 00:08:21,440 --> 00:08:22,480 Speaker 2: a lot longer. 138 00:08:23,600 --> 00:08:26,920 Speaker 1: Tyris was housed in a small barracks like building with 139 00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:30,520 Speaker 1: triple bunk beds. He was assigned to a top bunk 140 00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:33,480 Speaker 1: where it was always hot. He also just had nothing 141 00:08:33,520 --> 00:08:36,320 Speaker 1: to do. At one point, a guard gave him some 142 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:39,120 Speaker 1: chewing gum and showed him how to chew it, and 143 00:08:39,160 --> 00:08:41,800 Speaker 1: Tyros chewed it until it ran out of flavor, and 144 00:08:41,840 --> 00:08:44,520 Speaker 1: then put it on top of the radiator, let it melt, 145 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:46,600 Speaker 1: caught it on a piece of paper when it slid 146 00:08:46,640 --> 00:08:48,920 Speaker 1: to the bottom, and then put it on top again, 147 00:08:49,160 --> 00:08:52,920 Speaker 1: over and over, just to try to pass time. In 148 00:08:52,960 --> 00:08:55,320 Speaker 1: a documentary made later in his life, he said that 149 00:08:55,360 --> 00:08:59,760 Speaker 1: Angel Island was miserable and that he hated it there. Ultimately, 150 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:03,160 Speaker 1: Tyrus and his father passed their interrogations and they were 151 00:09:03,160 --> 00:09:07,440 Speaker 1: reunited For a while. His father worked for a cobbler 152 00:09:07,480 --> 00:09:11,400 Speaker 1: in Sacramento, and then, for reasons that aren't entirely clear, 153 00:09:11,640 --> 00:09:14,400 Speaker 1: he went to Los Angeles for work and he left 154 00:09:14,480 --> 00:09:18,559 Speaker 1: Tyros behind. It was during this period that Tyrus started 155 00:09:18,559 --> 00:09:22,920 Speaker 1: going by the name Tyros Wong. A teacher anglicized the 156 00:09:23,000 --> 00:09:25,880 Speaker 1: name Tyros from his paper son name of Tai Yao, 157 00:09:26,559 --> 00:09:30,959 Speaker 1: and he kept his original family name of Wong. Tyros 158 00:09:31,040 --> 00:09:33,959 Speaker 1: seems to have started out trying to follow his father's 159 00:09:33,960 --> 00:09:37,920 Speaker 1: instructions to behave himself, but after a while he started 160 00:09:37,920 --> 00:09:40,320 Speaker 1: taking a day off school every week to go fishing, 161 00:09:40,840 --> 00:09:43,719 Speaker 1: and then that progressed to skipping more days and then 162 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:46,199 Speaker 1: more than a month of just not going to school 163 00:09:46,240 --> 00:09:49,920 Speaker 1: at all. He also got into various boyhood mischief, and 164 00:09:50,040 --> 00:09:52,520 Speaker 1: after his school sent a report card to his father 165 00:09:52,559 --> 00:09:56,000 Speaker 1: in Los Angeles. Soon Tyris got a letter with money 166 00:09:56,000 --> 00:09:59,760 Speaker 1: for a train ticket and instructions to come to La immediately. 167 00:10:01,000 --> 00:10:03,679 Speaker 1: As an adult, Tyros said that once he arrived, his 168 00:10:03,720 --> 00:10:05,600 Speaker 1: father slapped him in the face for the way he 169 00:10:05,640 --> 00:10:09,839 Speaker 1: had been behaving. That probably sounds horrifying, I know. When 170 00:10:09,840 --> 00:10:12,080 Speaker 1: I heard him tell this story in a documentary, I 171 00:10:12,120 --> 00:10:14,120 Speaker 1: was like, Oh, no, your relationship with your father must 172 00:10:14,160 --> 00:10:16,160 Speaker 1: have been horrible. It wasn't. 173 00:10:16,200 --> 00:10:19,040 Speaker 2: As an adult, Tyros had a lot of fond memories 174 00:10:19,040 --> 00:10:22,240 Speaker 2: of his father, describing him as very strict, but also 175 00:10:22,320 --> 00:10:28,000 Speaker 2: as recognizing and encouraging Tyrus's interest in and aptitude for art. 176 00:10:28,600 --> 00:10:31,520 Speaker 2: By this point, art was really the only thing that 177 00:10:31,559 --> 00:10:34,000 Speaker 2: Tyros was interested in, the only thing he liked to do. 178 00:10:34,640 --> 00:10:38,480 Speaker 2: His father taught him calligraphy and had him practice every night, 179 00:10:39,040 --> 00:10:42,120 Speaker 2: using a paintbrush dipped in water to write on pieces 180 00:10:42,160 --> 00:10:45,800 Speaker 2: of old newspaper because they couldn't afford paper or ink. 181 00:10:46,480 --> 00:10:50,240 Speaker 2: When Tyrus's father found him playing baseball with some neighborhood boys, 182 00:10:50,280 --> 00:10:52,960 Speaker 2: he made him stop because if Tyrs hurt one of 183 00:10:52,960 --> 00:10:56,000 Speaker 2: his hands that could interfere with his ability to become 184 00:10:56,120 --> 00:10:57,800 Speaker 2: an artist. 185 00:10:57,440 --> 00:11:00,560 Speaker 1: And the idea that Tyros might study art or even 186 00:11:00,600 --> 00:11:06,400 Speaker 1: become a professional artist was almost unbelievable within their community. Overwhelmingly, 187 00:11:06,520 --> 00:11:09,600 Speaker 1: Chinese people in the United States were working as manual 188 00:11:09,679 --> 00:11:13,200 Speaker 1: laborers or in restaurants or laundries, because those are the 189 00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:16,520 Speaker 1: only jobs that were really open to them. When one 190 00:11:16,520 --> 00:11:19,520 Speaker 1: of Tyros's middle school teachers brought up the possibility of 191 00:11:19,520 --> 00:11:22,120 Speaker 1: getting a scholarship so that he could study at Otis 192 00:11:22,200 --> 00:11:25,520 Speaker 1: Art Institute, his father was working at a gambling den 193 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:27,520 Speaker 1: and they were living in a boarding house. 194 00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:31,760 Speaker 2: Tyros did get that scholarship, though, and when it ran out, 195 00:11:31,800 --> 00:11:35,160 Speaker 2: he really didn't want to go back to a typical school, 196 00:11:35,920 --> 00:11:38,560 Speaker 2: so his father decided to borrow money to cover the 197 00:11:38,600 --> 00:11:42,080 Speaker 2: cost of his tuition for the next term, insisting that 198 00:11:42,120 --> 00:11:44,680 Speaker 2: Tyros had to work hard and apply himself to his 199 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:47,120 Speaker 2: study of art so that his father would know that 200 00:11:47,160 --> 00:11:48,320 Speaker 2: this expense. 201 00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:51,520 Speaker 1: Was worth it. Tyros worked as a janitor to help 202 00:11:51,559 --> 00:11:54,400 Speaker 1: pay for his time at Otis Art Institute, which was 203 00:11:54,400 --> 00:11:57,880 Speaker 1: the first professional school of the arts established in Los Angeles. 204 00:11:58,520 --> 00:12:01,559 Speaker 1: In addition to studying the work of European masters. He 205 00:12:01,640 --> 00:12:05,319 Speaker 1: spent a lot of time at the library studying Chinese art. 206 00:12:05,720 --> 00:12:09,000 Speaker 1: He was particularly interested in the art of the Song Dynasty, 207 00:12:09,080 --> 00:12:12,280 Speaker 1: which spanned from about nine sixty to twelve seventy nine. 208 00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:17,920 Speaker 1: Landscapes were particularly important in Song Dynasty art, often portraying 209 00:12:17,960 --> 00:12:21,480 Speaker 1: sweeping views of the natural world, with mountains and vistas 210 00:12:21,559 --> 00:12:25,920 Speaker 1: overwhelming any people or built elements in the scene. Many 211 00:12:25,960 --> 00:12:29,480 Speaker 1: of these works also used calligraphy like brushwork in an 212 00:12:29,480 --> 00:12:32,880 Speaker 1: evocative way to suggest the details that were part of 213 00:12:32,880 --> 00:12:37,040 Speaker 1: the scene. Shortly before Tyrus finished his courses at Otis 214 00:12:37,120 --> 00:12:40,680 Speaker 1: Art Institute, his father got sick. When his father died 215 00:12:40,720 --> 00:12:43,559 Speaker 1: in nineteen thirty five, Tyros was twenty five and at 216 00:12:43,559 --> 00:12:46,720 Speaker 1: that point really on his own. We'll talk more about 217 00:12:46,760 --> 00:13:00,000 Speaker 1: that after a sponsor break. While tyrs Bang was studying 218 00:13:00,080 --> 00:13:03,480 Speaker 1: at Otis Art Institute, he was also starting to exhibit 219 00:13:03,520 --> 00:13:08,440 Speaker 1: his artwork alongside other artists, especially other Asian artists. These 220 00:13:08,480 --> 00:13:11,880 Speaker 1: included Hideo Date, who had been born in Japan, and 221 00:13:12,080 --> 00:13:17,200 Speaker 1: Benji Okubo, who was born in California to Japanese parents. Today, 222 00:13:17,520 --> 00:13:21,840 Speaker 1: the term Orientalist is more often used to describe artwork 223 00:13:21,920 --> 00:13:26,400 Speaker 1: by Western artists that's been inspired by Asian art and culture, 224 00:13:26,480 --> 00:13:30,160 Speaker 1: but at the time these young artists were known as 225 00:13:30,200 --> 00:13:36,280 Speaker 1: the California Orientalists or the Los Angeles Orientalists. Together, Tyrus 226 00:13:36,360 --> 00:13:40,120 Speaker 1: Wong and Benji Okubo founded the Oriental Artists group. 227 00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:44,320 Speaker 2: Of Los Angeles. Throughout the nineteen thirties, these and other 228 00:13:44,400 --> 00:13:48,560 Speaker 2: Asian and Asian American artists in California were really developing 229 00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:53,600 Speaker 2: a full artistic movement. Wong's work during this period included 230 00:13:53,720 --> 00:13:57,360 Speaker 2: murals on the walls and menu art for the Dragon's 231 00:13:57,400 --> 00:14:00,880 Speaker 2: Den restaurant in Chinatown, which Eddie had opened in the 232 00:14:00,920 --> 00:14:05,439 Speaker 2: basement of his Antiques tour. Benjiokubo and Hideo Date were 233 00:14:05,440 --> 00:14:07,760 Speaker 2: part of this as well, and The Dragon's Den became 234 00:14:07,800 --> 00:14:11,160 Speaker 2: famous for its decor and its food, and it became 235 00:14:11,200 --> 00:14:16,280 Speaker 2: a popular hangout for Hollywood actors. Wong's artwork also appeared 236 00:14:16,320 --> 00:14:20,120 Speaker 2: in exhibits at the Art Institute of Chicago, including the 237 00:14:20,160 --> 00:14:24,280 Speaker 2: first official International Exhibition of Etching and Engraving in nineteen 238 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:28,240 Speaker 2: thirty two and the International Exhibition of Contemporary Prints for 239 00:14:28,320 --> 00:14:32,960 Speaker 2: a Century of Progress in nineteen thirty four. Other artists 240 00:14:32,960 --> 00:14:37,400 Speaker 2: in these exhibitions included people like Henri Matisse, Marie Lawrensa, 241 00:14:37,680 --> 00:14:41,880 Speaker 2: Pablo Picasso, and Vasily Kandinski, but in the nineteen thirty 242 00:14:41,920 --> 00:14:46,360 Speaker 2: two catalog, Wong was listed only as tyrists, with no 243 00:14:46,560 --> 00:14:50,360 Speaker 2: mention of his country of origin. Some of Wong's work 244 00:14:50,440 --> 00:14:53,040 Speaker 2: during the nineteen thirties was for the government as part 245 00:14:53,040 --> 00:14:57,680 Speaker 2: of the Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project. This program 246 00:14:57,760 --> 00:15:00,560 Speaker 2: was part of the collection of legislation, relief efforts, and 247 00:15:00,640 --> 00:15:04,280 Speaker 2: other initiatives known as the New Deal, spearheaded by President 248 00:15:04,280 --> 00:15:07,880 Speaker 2: Franklin D. Roosevelt in his administration as the US tried 249 00:15:07,880 --> 00:15:11,400 Speaker 2: to recover from the Great Depression. At its peak in 250 00:15:11,480 --> 00:15:15,720 Speaker 2: nineteen thirty six, this program employed more than five thousand artists. 251 00:15:16,400 --> 00:15:20,320 Speaker 2: Wang created two paintings a month for exhibition in government buildings, 252 00:15:20,560 --> 00:15:24,000 Speaker 2: along with some murals. In nineteen thirty seven, his work 253 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:26,800 Speaker 2: was included among the pieces that the US government sent 254 00:15:26,920 --> 00:15:31,040 Speaker 2: to represent this federal project at the Paris Exhibition. But 255 00:15:31,120 --> 00:15:34,560 Speaker 2: at some point Wang lost his position in the program 256 00:15:34,720 --> 00:15:37,640 Speaker 2: when it was discovered that he was not a US citizen, 257 00:15:38,200 --> 00:15:40,880 Speaker 2: and at that point it was also not legal for 258 00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:44,200 Speaker 2: him to become one. On June twenty seventh of that 259 00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:48,040 Speaker 2: same year, which was nineteen thirty seven, Tyrus Wang got 260 00:15:48,040 --> 00:15:51,160 Speaker 2: married to Ruth Kim, something he later described as the 261 00:15:51,200 --> 00:15:54,560 Speaker 2: most joyous moment of his life. Ruth had been born 262 00:15:54,640 --> 00:15:57,920 Speaker 2: in California to Chinese parents, and she and Tyros had 263 00:15:57,960 --> 00:16:00,520 Speaker 2: met at the dragons Den while she was working there 264 00:16:00,560 --> 00:16:03,440 Speaker 2: as a waitress. In nineteen thirty eight, they had their 265 00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:07,520 Speaker 2: first of three daughters, who they named Kay. Ruth played 266 00:16:07,520 --> 00:16:10,800 Speaker 2: a huge part in Tyrus's career as an artist, including 267 00:16:11,040 --> 00:16:13,800 Speaker 2: recommending that he worked for Walt Disney after their daughter 268 00:16:13,960 --> 00:16:18,200 Speaker 2: was born. While Tyros was making some money through art commissions, 269 00:16:18,520 --> 00:16:21,600 Speaker 2: he really wanted and really needed a steady job once 270 00:16:21,640 --> 00:16:24,720 Speaker 2: he was married and had a child. In nineteen thirty eight, 271 00:16:24,800 --> 00:16:27,320 Speaker 2: he was hired as an in betweener working on Mickey 272 00:16:27,320 --> 00:16:31,120 Speaker 2: Mouse shorts. Most people hired to work as animators for 273 00:16:31,160 --> 00:16:34,600 Speaker 2: Disney started out in the in betweener pool. This was 274 00:16:34,640 --> 00:16:36,680 Speaker 2: considered to be the best way to learn to be 275 00:16:36,720 --> 00:16:40,240 Speaker 2: an animator and specifically how to do it for Disney animation, 276 00:16:41,320 --> 00:16:44,920 Speaker 2: but a lot of artists found and probably still find 277 00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:49,440 Speaker 2: this to be a tedious and repetitive job. More senior 278 00:16:49,480 --> 00:16:53,120 Speaker 2: animators would draw the key frames marking the beginning and 279 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:55,600 Speaker 2: the end of a character's motion, and then the in 280 00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:58,960 Speaker 2: betweeners would draw all those frames that it took for 281 00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:02,280 Speaker 2: the character to me smoothly from one key frame to 282 00:17:02,360 --> 00:17:08,280 Speaker 2: the next. It's this very similar thing drawn over and 283 00:17:08,320 --> 00:17:12,960 Speaker 2: over again. Yeah, little variation. Tyrus Wong really did not 284 00:17:13,240 --> 00:17:18,480 Speaker 2: like this job. But then he heard that Disney was 285 00:17:18,520 --> 00:17:21,280 Speaker 2: working on an adaptation of Bambie A Life in the 286 00:17:21,320 --> 00:17:24,919 Speaker 2: Woods by Felix Salton, and this novel tells the story 287 00:17:24,960 --> 00:17:27,520 Speaker 2: of a fawn named Bambi growing up in the forest, 288 00:17:27,600 --> 00:17:31,399 Speaker 2: and it is interpreted as both an early environmentalist novel 289 00:17:31,560 --> 00:17:34,879 Speaker 2: and as an allegory about the persecution of Jews and 290 00:17:34,880 --> 00:17:38,560 Speaker 2: the rise of anti Semitism in Europe. The Nazis banned 291 00:17:38,640 --> 00:17:43,119 Speaker 2: it as a Jewish propaganda in nineteen thirty five. Disney 292 00:17:43,240 --> 00:17:46,680 Speaker 2: had started working on its adaptation of Bambie shortly after 293 00:17:46,760 --> 00:17:50,320 Speaker 2: their first animated feature film, which was Snow White, came 294 00:17:50,320 --> 00:17:53,480 Speaker 2: out in nineteen thirty seven, and from an artistic point 295 00:17:53,480 --> 00:17:57,879 Speaker 2: of view, Disney was kind of struggling with it. These realistic, 296 00:17:58,160 --> 00:18:01,439 Speaker 2: detailed backgrounds that had been part of Snow White just 297 00:18:01,640 --> 00:18:05,840 Speaker 2: weren't working for a story that took place entirely in 298 00:18:05,920 --> 00:18:10,359 Speaker 2: the forest with animal characters. Wong read the book and 299 00:18:10,400 --> 00:18:12,320 Speaker 2: he liked it, and even though he'd only been at 300 00:18:12,359 --> 00:18:15,040 Speaker 2: Disney for a couple of months, he thought that he'd 301 00:18:15,040 --> 00:18:17,280 Speaker 2: be a better fit for Bambi than for the in 302 00:18:17,400 --> 00:18:20,640 Speaker 2: Betweener Pool. On his own time, he made a set 303 00:18:20,680 --> 00:18:24,399 Speaker 2: of small forest paintings, drawing on his own experience as 304 00:18:24,400 --> 00:18:27,640 Speaker 2: a landscape painter and his study of song dynasty art, 305 00:18:27,920 --> 00:18:31,160 Speaker 2: along with other influences, and then he took these paintings 306 00:18:31,160 --> 00:18:35,680 Speaker 2: to Tom Codrick, art director on Bambie. While the backgrounds 307 00:18:35,720 --> 00:18:39,639 Speaker 2: and snow white had been really detailed, Wong's examples for 308 00:18:39,760 --> 00:18:44,240 Speaker 2: Bambi were a lot softer. They used calligraphy like brushstrokes 309 00:18:44,280 --> 00:18:47,640 Speaker 2: to suggest things like leaves and the branches of trees, 310 00:18:47,760 --> 00:18:52,719 Speaker 2: rather than tightly defining all of them. The characters that 311 00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:57,680 Speaker 2: were drawn separately on animation cells stood out against this background. 312 00:18:58,359 --> 00:19:02,679 Speaker 2: Wong's backgrounds also gave the forest around the characters a 313 00:19:02,680 --> 00:19:08,639 Speaker 2: more evocative and almost mysterious atmosphere. His approach to this 314 00:19:08,800 --> 00:19:13,280 Speaker 2: background art wound up influencing everything else about the film, 315 00:19:13,359 --> 00:19:17,920 Speaker 2: including things like the dialogue and the score. Although Wong's 316 00:19:17,920 --> 00:19:20,800 Speaker 2: work was used as an example all across the teams 317 00:19:20,800 --> 00:19:23,520 Speaker 2: of people who were working on this film and played 318 00:19:23,520 --> 00:19:26,240 Speaker 2: a huge part in how the final product looked and felt. 319 00:19:26,640 --> 00:19:28,640 Speaker 2: In the three and a half years he was there, 320 00:19:28,920 --> 00:19:32,600 Speaker 2: Wong was never actually introduced to Walt Disney. He also 321 00:19:32,640 --> 00:19:34,880 Speaker 2: didn't get into a lot of specifics, but he did 322 00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:36,880 Speaker 2: later say that he felt like some of the other 323 00:19:36,920 --> 00:19:40,600 Speaker 2: people working at Disney treated him differently from everyone else, 324 00:19:41,000 --> 00:19:44,439 Speaker 2: whether that was because of racism, professional jealousy, or a 325 00:19:44,480 --> 00:19:48,600 Speaker 2: combination of the two, or some other thing. In May 326 00:19:48,840 --> 00:19:51,880 Speaker 2: of nineteen forty one, while Bambi was still in production, 327 00:19:52,720 --> 00:19:57,159 Speaker 2: unionized animators that Walt Disney productions went on strike. So 328 00:19:57,320 --> 00:20:01,080 Speaker 2: this strike and the labor movement within the animation industry 329 00:20:01,119 --> 00:20:05,439 Speaker 2: are really a whole other story, but the process of 330 00:20:05,640 --> 00:20:08,800 Speaker 2: organizing a union and the decision to go on strike 331 00:20:08,880 --> 00:20:14,520 Speaker 2: had been incredibly divisive among Disney artists. Some of the 332 00:20:14,600 --> 00:20:18,600 Speaker 2: artists were deeply loyal to Disney and specifically to Walt 333 00:20:18,920 --> 00:20:22,359 Speaker 2: or they felt like they were artists, not the type 334 00:20:22,359 --> 00:20:26,399 Speaker 2: of workers who should form a trade union. Others, though, 335 00:20:26,520 --> 00:20:28,760 Speaker 2: were fighting for a lot of the same things that 336 00:20:28,840 --> 00:20:32,800 Speaker 2: have led workers in other industries to unionize, things like 337 00:20:32,920 --> 00:20:38,280 Speaker 2: job security, more equitable pay structures, and reasonable working hours. 338 00:20:39,160 --> 00:20:43,280 Speaker 2: Artists who weren't receiving on screen credit also wanted credit 339 00:20:43,320 --> 00:20:45,639 Speaker 2: for their work, and a lot of people were really 340 00:20:45,680 --> 00:20:49,800 Speaker 2: angry that they had never received long expected profit sharing. 341 00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:54,240 Speaker 2: After the success of Snow White, Disney workers who wanted 342 00:20:54,280 --> 00:20:59,200 Speaker 2: to unionize joined the Screen Cartoonists Guild, while Disney also 343 00:20:59,359 --> 00:21:03,960 Speaker 2: had its own company union, called the Federation of Screen Cartoonists. 344 00:21:04,720 --> 00:21:08,560 Speaker 2: Tensions escalated between these two groups of workers, and between 345 00:21:08,560 --> 00:21:12,680 Speaker 2: the Screen Cartoonist Guild and Disney management. Art Babbitt, who 346 00:21:12,720 --> 00:21:16,560 Speaker 2: was Disney's highest paid animator, left his position as president 347 00:21:16,640 --> 00:21:19,960 Speaker 2: of the Disney Company Guild to join the Screen Cartoonist 348 00:21:19,960 --> 00:21:23,520 Speaker 2: Guild and continue to work on organizing the other animators. 349 00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:27,159 Speaker 2: Disney fired Babbitt along with a group of other employees 350 00:21:27,200 --> 00:21:29,800 Speaker 2: who had joined the union, and the nineteen forty one 351 00:21:29,840 --> 00:21:33,879 Speaker 2: Disney Animator strike started a few days later. This strike 352 00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:37,200 Speaker 2: went on for five weeks, with President Roosevelt sending a 353 00:21:37,240 --> 00:21:39,600 Speaker 2: federal mediator to try to negotiate. 354 00:21:40,440 --> 00:21:42,320 Speaker 1: Ultimately, Disney did. 355 00:21:42,160 --> 00:21:46,280 Speaker 2: Recognize the Screen Cartoonists Guild and signed a collective bargaining 356 00:21:46,320 --> 00:21:50,920 Speaker 2: agreement with the union. Disney was also forced to rehire 357 00:21:51,000 --> 00:21:53,399 Speaker 2: Babbitt and some of the other animators who had been 358 00:21:53,480 --> 00:21:57,720 Speaker 2: fired over their organizing efforts, but a lot of animators 359 00:21:57,800 --> 00:22:01,119 Speaker 2: either quit or lost their jobs all of this, and 360 00:22:01,200 --> 00:22:04,480 Speaker 2: one of them was Tyrus Wong, who was fired before 361 00:22:04,560 --> 00:22:08,680 Speaker 2: production wrapped on Bambi, even though he hadn't participated in 362 00:22:08,760 --> 00:22:12,119 Speaker 2: this strike. I am not sure of the details of 363 00:22:12,160 --> 00:22:16,240 Speaker 2: why specifically he was fired, but it's described as having 364 00:22:16,280 --> 00:22:18,520 Speaker 2: been in connection to all of this, even though he 365 00:22:18,600 --> 00:22:23,359 Speaker 2: didn't participate. When Bambi was released in theaters, he was 366 00:22:23,440 --> 00:22:27,840 Speaker 2: credited as backgrounds on a slide with nine other names. 367 00:22:28,200 --> 00:22:31,680 Speaker 2: There was nothing in those credits to suggest how influential 368 00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:34,639 Speaker 2: he had been on this film. A couple of months 369 00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:37,680 Speaker 2: after the Disney strike ended, Japan attacked the US naval 370 00:22:37,720 --> 00:22:40,960 Speaker 2: base at Pearl Harbor, drawing the United States into World 371 00:22:40,960 --> 00:22:46,280 Speaker 2: War II. On February nineteenth, nineteen forty two, President Franklin D. 372 00:22:46,440 --> 00:22:50,919 Speaker 2: Roosevelt issued Executive Order in ninety sixty six, ordering people 373 00:22:50,960 --> 00:22:55,800 Speaker 2: of Japanese ancestry, including Japanese American citizens born in the US, 374 00:22:56,240 --> 00:22:59,760 Speaker 2: to be imprisoned at concentration camps located away from the 375 00:22:59,760 --> 00:23:03,280 Speaker 2: West Coast. We have a two part episode on Executive 376 00:23:03,359 --> 00:23:06,359 Speaker 2: Order ninety sixty six that came out in February of 377 00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:07,320 Speaker 2: twenty seventeen. 378 00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:09,000 Speaker 1: The people who. 379 00:23:08,880 --> 00:23:13,480 Speaker 2: Were imprisoned under this executive order included Tyres Wang's artistic 380 00:23:13,560 --> 00:23:17,359 Speaker 2: colleagues Benji Okubo and Hideo Date. Both of them were 381 00:23:17,359 --> 00:23:22,479 Speaker 2: incarcerated at Heart Mountain Relocation Center. Executive Order ninety sixty 382 00:23:22,480 --> 00:23:26,840 Speaker 2: six didn't apply to Wong since he was Chinese not Japanese, 383 00:23:26,920 --> 00:23:30,040 Speaker 2: but he and other people who were from China or 384 00:23:30,080 --> 00:23:33,439 Speaker 2: other parts of Asia outside of Japan, was faced with 385 00:23:33,520 --> 00:23:38,000 Speaker 2: the possibility of being mistaken for a Japanese person and imprisoned. 386 00:23:38,800 --> 00:23:41,760 Speaker 2: He started wearing a button on his lapel to identify 387 00:23:41,840 --> 00:23:46,040 Speaker 2: himself as Chinese. World War two and the mass incarceration 388 00:23:46,240 --> 00:23:49,480 Speaker 2: of Japanese immigrants and their children disrupted the Asian art 389 00:23:49,520 --> 00:23:53,440 Speaker 2: movement that had been developing in California over the previous decades. 390 00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:56,600 Speaker 2: The artists who had been working and exhibiting together before 391 00:23:56,640 --> 00:23:59,520 Speaker 2: the war really never came together in the same way 392 00:23:59,560 --> 00:24:03,639 Speaker 2: again after the war ended and people were eventually released 393 00:24:03,640 --> 00:24:06,920 Speaker 2: from the camps. We will get some more of Wang's 394 00:24:06,960 --> 00:24:09,840 Speaker 2: work during and after the war. After a sponsor break. 395 00:24:19,320 --> 00:24:23,080 Speaker 2: After being fired from Disney, Tyrus Wong was contacted by 396 00:24:23,200 --> 00:24:26,679 Speaker 2: Warner Brothers Pictures about coming to work for them, but 397 00:24:26,840 --> 00:24:30,160 Speaker 2: this wasn't to do animation work. It was for live 398 00:24:30,200 --> 00:24:33,440 Speaker 2: action films. He was reluctant to do this at first 399 00:24:33,480 --> 00:24:36,920 Speaker 2: because he did not have any experience working for live 400 00:24:36,960 --> 00:24:40,679 Speaker 2: action movies at all. He took this job though, and 401 00:24:40,720 --> 00:24:44,440 Speaker 2: he worked with Warner Brothers until nineteen sixty eight. He 402 00:24:44,480 --> 00:24:48,200 Speaker 2: did a lot of concept art and pre production illustration 403 00:24:48,359 --> 00:24:51,399 Speaker 2: work in this role, so he really helped to set 404 00:24:51,440 --> 00:24:54,880 Speaker 2: the visual look and feel for a lot of movies. 405 00:24:55,359 --> 00:24:59,280 Speaker 2: These included Rebel Without a Cause, The Wild Bunch, Sans 406 00:24:59,280 --> 00:25:04,400 Speaker 2: of Yajima, and Anti Mame, along with many others. According 407 00:25:04,400 --> 00:25:07,120 Speaker 2: to a profile of him at the Angel Island Immigration 408 00:25:07,280 --> 00:25:11,959 Speaker 2: Station Foundation, he also participated in a strike of Warner 409 00:25:12,040 --> 00:25:16,120 Speaker 2: Brothers artists and wound up being jailed overnight at one 410 00:25:16,160 --> 00:25:17,600 Speaker 2: point during this strike. 411 00:25:18,640 --> 00:25:22,360 Speaker 1: This wasn't his only job. He also started hand painting 412 00:25:22,440 --> 00:25:26,040 Speaker 1: dinnerware for the Winfield Pottery Company in the late nineteen forties. 413 00:25:26,680 --> 00:25:29,240 Speaker 1: This was connected to a rise in popularity of a 414 00:25:29,280 --> 00:25:32,840 Speaker 1: style of home decor known as Chinese Modern, and he 415 00:25:32,880 --> 00:25:37,320 Speaker 1: painted porcelain pieces with things like birds, flowers, and bamboo. 416 00:25:37,800 --> 00:25:41,000 Speaker 1: There were no do overs in this hand painted dinnerware, 417 00:25:41,119 --> 00:25:44,440 Speaker 1: so each design he created had to be done correctly 418 00:25:44,480 --> 00:25:47,520 Speaker 1: on the first try, with no way to make adjustments 419 00:25:47,600 --> 00:25:52,120 Speaker 1: or corrections afterward. In the nineteen fifties, Dick Kelsey, who 420 00:25:52,160 --> 00:25:56,840 Speaker 1: he'd worked with at Disney, suggested he start designing greeting cards, 421 00:25:57,119 --> 00:26:01,439 Speaker 1: specifically Christmas cards was something else he didn't really know 422 00:26:01,560 --> 00:26:04,120 Speaker 1: much about. He had not been raised as a Christian, 423 00:26:04,280 --> 00:26:08,399 Speaker 1: he'd not really celebrated Christmas. But his wife, Ruth, was 424 00:26:08,440 --> 00:26:11,760 Speaker 1: a Presbyterian and had been a Sunday school teacher, and 425 00:26:11,920 --> 00:26:16,480 Speaker 1: she had also studied literature at UCLA. So while Tyrs 426 00:26:16,480 --> 00:26:21,359 Speaker 1: created the artwork, Ruth suggested themes and motifs and wrote 427 00:26:21,400 --> 00:26:25,960 Speaker 1: inscriptions for the insides of the cards. The production schedule 428 00:26:26,040 --> 00:26:28,520 Speaker 1: for greeting cards meant that he spent a lot of 429 00:26:28,560 --> 00:26:31,600 Speaker 1: his time in the summers listening to Christmas music to 430 00:26:31,600 --> 00:26:35,560 Speaker 1: set the mood, because every year's designs were due by 431 00:26:35,600 --> 00:26:40,399 Speaker 1: the autumn of the previous year. Tyris Wong's Christmas cards 432 00:26:40,440 --> 00:26:43,520 Speaker 1: became very popular and sought after, and they were also 433 00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:47,800 Speaker 1: clearly identified as his designs. He signed each of them, 434 00:26:47,880 --> 00:26:51,600 Speaker 1: and his contracts with greeting card companies specified that those 435 00:26:51,640 --> 00:26:55,000 Speaker 1: signatures could not be removed. A lot of his earlier 436 00:26:55,040 --> 00:26:58,480 Speaker 1: greeting card work was with regional publishers in California, and 437 00:26:58,560 --> 00:27:02,560 Speaker 1: one of these publishers, Fiforgnia Artists, named Wong its Artist 438 00:27:02,640 --> 00:27:05,760 Speaker 1: of the Year in nineteen fifty five. Some of these 439 00:27:05,800 --> 00:27:09,560 Speaker 1: publishers also distributed cards through Hallmark, and by the nineteen 440 00:27:09,640 --> 00:27:14,240 Speaker 1: sixties Wong was working with Hallmark directly. Greeting card companies 441 00:27:14,280 --> 00:27:17,920 Speaker 1: also released display albums of his work with a brief biography, 442 00:27:18,320 --> 00:27:21,800 Speaker 1: both as a sales tool and for collectors of his work. 443 00:27:22,560 --> 00:27:26,919 Speaker 1: These Christmas cards continued to feature the evocative brushwork and 444 00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:29,960 Speaker 1: Chinese style that had been part of his work on Bambi. 445 00:27:30,600 --> 00:27:34,080 Speaker 1: Some of these designs were relatively secular, images of things 446 00:27:34,160 --> 00:27:37,560 Speaker 1: like decorated tree boughs or a kitten playing with some 447 00:27:37,720 --> 00:27:41,200 Speaker 1: string next to a sprig of holly, or some wintry 448 00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:46,679 Speaker 1: scenes or fruit. Others were more explicitly religious, like angels 449 00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:49,520 Speaker 1: or one that was one of his daughters praying by 450 00:27:49,560 --> 00:27:53,480 Speaker 1: a lit candle, or marry Joseph and the infant Jesus 451 00:27:53,520 --> 00:27:58,520 Speaker 1: together in a cave like grotto. Sometimes particularly popular cards 452 00:27:58,560 --> 00:28:01,760 Speaker 1: would influence the themes of his future designs, like in 453 00:28:01,840 --> 00:28:05,640 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty four, one of his cards depicted a shepherd 454 00:28:05,720 --> 00:28:08,160 Speaker 1: and a flock of sheep under a tree that had 455 00:28:08,359 --> 00:28:12,680 Speaker 1: just bright pink bows. I love them, they are very striking. 456 00:28:13,200 --> 00:28:16,440 Speaker 1: Also on this as a very starry sky. This one 457 00:28:16,720 --> 00:28:19,640 Speaker 1: card sold more than a million copies, and it led 458 00:28:19,680 --> 00:28:24,679 Speaker 1: to additional bright pink foliage in subsequent years. He later 459 00:28:24,760 --> 00:28:27,159 Speaker 1: said the greeting cards were the work that he was 460 00:28:27,240 --> 00:28:31,080 Speaker 1: the proudest of. By the time Wong started working on 461 00:28:31,119 --> 00:28:34,720 Speaker 1: the Christmas cards, things had changed somewhat for Chinese immigrants 462 00:28:34,800 --> 00:28:38,360 Speaker 1: to the United States. China was allied with the United 463 00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:41,160 Speaker 1: States during World War II, and in nineteen forty three, 464 00:28:41,320 --> 00:28:45,400 Speaker 1: as the war was ongoing, Congress repealed the Chinese Exclusion 465 00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:48,880 Speaker 1: Act and other laws that banned immigration from China and 466 00:28:48,960 --> 00:28:52,000 Speaker 1: restricted the rights of Chinese people in the United States. 467 00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:55,920 Speaker 1: The US still tightly limited the number of people allowed 468 00:28:55,920 --> 00:28:58,600 Speaker 1: to immigrate to the US from China, but it became 469 00:28:58,680 --> 00:29:02,680 Speaker 1: possible for Chinese people already in the US to seek citizenship. 470 00:29:03,440 --> 00:29:06,600 Speaker 1: Tyris Wong became a US citizen three years later in 471 00:29:06,680 --> 00:29:07,760 Speaker 1: nineteen forty six. 472 00:29:08,680 --> 00:29:11,920 Speaker 2: It had also been illegal for Chinese people and people 473 00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:15,000 Speaker 2: from some other nations to buy property in parts of 474 00:29:15,040 --> 00:29:18,800 Speaker 2: the United States. A number of states had passed so 475 00:29:18,880 --> 00:29:22,840 Speaker 2: called alien land laws, mainly starting after the end of 476 00:29:22,920 --> 00:29:26,800 Speaker 2: World War One. These banned people who were not eligible 477 00:29:26,840 --> 00:29:29,200 Speaker 2: for citizenship from owning. 478 00:29:28,920 --> 00:29:30,160 Speaker 1: Or leasing property. 479 00:29:30,880 --> 00:29:36,360 Speaker 2: In many areas, land deeds also included racially restrictive covenants, 480 00:29:36,440 --> 00:29:39,160 Speaker 2: which banned the sale of a property to people of 481 00:29:39,200 --> 00:29:43,200 Speaker 2: a specific race, and a lot of the US, racially 482 00:29:43,240 --> 00:29:47,520 Speaker 2: restrictive covenants prevented property from being sold to black people, 483 00:29:47,680 --> 00:29:51,719 Speaker 2: but in places with the larger population of other racial 484 00:29:51,840 --> 00:29:56,360 Speaker 2: or ethnic groups, sometimes religious groups, these covenants often targeted 485 00:29:56,400 --> 00:30:01,800 Speaker 2: them instead. The US Supreme Court struck down racially restrictive 486 00:30:01,880 --> 00:30:06,560 Speaker 2: covenants as unconstitutional in Shelby versus Kramer in nineteen forty eight, 487 00:30:06,960 --> 00:30:09,760 Speaker 2: and it did the same with alien land laws in 488 00:30:09,840 --> 00:30:14,560 Speaker 2: Fuji versus California in nineteen fifty two. Once they were 489 00:30:14,640 --> 00:30:18,840 Speaker 2: legally able to, the Wong family bought a house in Sunland, California, 490 00:30:19,160 --> 00:30:22,800 Speaker 2: which is today considered part of Los Angeles. Even though 491 00:30:22,840 --> 00:30:25,480 Speaker 2: the laws and covenants that had made it impossible for 492 00:30:25,560 --> 00:30:28,760 Speaker 2: them to buy a house before had been ruled unconstitutional, 493 00:30:29,320 --> 00:30:32,680 Speaker 2: finding one was still a difficult process for them. The 494 00:30:32,800 --> 00:30:35,760 Speaker 2: family would find a suitable home, only to be told 495 00:30:35,800 --> 00:30:38,760 Speaker 2: that it had already been sold, but then still see 496 00:30:38,760 --> 00:30:42,280 Speaker 2: that it was on the market weeks later. Wong said 497 00:30:42,280 --> 00:30:44,720 Speaker 2: that when they finally chose a house to buy, they 498 00:30:44,760 --> 00:30:47,360 Speaker 2: made sure a neighbor would be okay with their living 499 00:30:47,400 --> 00:30:51,520 Speaker 2: there before they even made an offer. In the nineteen seventies, 500 00:30:51,600 --> 00:30:55,440 Speaker 2: Tyrus Wang retired from his work in commercial art. He 501 00:30:55,520 --> 00:30:58,640 Speaker 2: had developed a shakiness in his hands that made painting 502 00:30:58,720 --> 00:31:02,360 Speaker 2: more difficult. Instead, he started spending a lot of his 503 00:31:02,480 --> 00:31:05,760 Speaker 2: time making kites, building on things he had learned from 504 00:31:05,800 --> 00:31:08,640 Speaker 2: his late father while he was still a child. He 505 00:31:08,760 --> 00:31:12,760 Speaker 2: used materials like bamboo, ritan, paper, and silk to make 506 00:31:12,960 --> 00:31:16,800 Speaker 2: beautifully decorated, intricate kites, and then he would take them 507 00:31:16,840 --> 00:31:19,800 Speaker 2: to Santa Monica Beach to fly. Once a month, he 508 00:31:19,880 --> 00:31:22,920 Speaker 2: was oft in there with a whole collection of these kites, 509 00:31:23,080 --> 00:31:27,360 Speaker 2: like flocks of birds or butterflies, or fish in different colors, 510 00:31:27,440 --> 00:31:33,920 Speaker 2: or long centipedes, like one hundred different segments of centipede body, 511 00:31:34,000 --> 00:31:36,960 Speaker 2: each of the segments made from a separate panel, and 512 00:31:37,240 --> 00:31:42,560 Speaker 2: all of them separately constructed and balanced and decorated. In 513 00:31:42,640 --> 00:31:45,280 Speaker 2: nineteen seventy eight, he and Ruth went on a trip 514 00:31:45,320 --> 00:31:48,440 Speaker 2: to China, and after they returned, Ruth had a series 515 00:31:48,440 --> 00:31:52,400 Speaker 2: of strokes, and after that she developed dementia. For about 516 00:31:52,440 --> 00:31:56,040 Speaker 2: fifteen years, Tyros stepped away from public life almost entirely 517 00:31:56,200 --> 00:31:59,240 Speaker 2: to take care of her. She died in January of 518 00:31:59,320 --> 00:32:02,360 Speaker 2: nineteen ninety five, and their friends really wondered how Tyris 519 00:32:02,440 --> 00:32:06,720 Speaker 2: would go on. He gradually returned to the public eye, though, 520 00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:09,120 Speaker 2: and in the last years of his life, Tyrs Wong 521 00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:13,560 Speaker 2: started getting some recognition for his earlier work. He had 522 00:32:13,600 --> 00:32:16,520 Speaker 2: worked in so many different media, some of which we 523 00:32:16,640 --> 00:32:20,040 Speaker 2: have not even touched on in this episode, like sculpture 524 00:32:20,480 --> 00:32:25,360 Speaker 2: and scarf painting and book illustrations. For example, he illustrated 525 00:32:25,400 --> 00:32:28,400 Speaker 2: a book called Footprints of the Dragon, a Story of 526 00:32:28,440 --> 00:32:31,400 Speaker 2: the Chinese and the Pacific Railways by Vanya Oaks in 527 00:32:31,520 --> 00:32:34,840 Speaker 2: nineteen forty nine. He and his work had come to 528 00:32:34,880 --> 00:32:38,160 Speaker 2: be seen as kind of a bridge between different generations 529 00:32:38,160 --> 00:32:41,840 Speaker 2: of Chinese immigrants and Chinese Americans, as well as between 530 00:32:41,880 --> 00:32:45,680 Speaker 2: the Chinese community and the greater communities of California and 531 00:32:45,760 --> 00:32:46,800 Speaker 2: the United States. 532 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:49,520 Speaker 1: In two thousand and one, he was named a Disney 533 00:32:49,600 --> 00:32:53,760 Speaker 1: Legend and recognized for his extensive contributions to the movie Bambie. 534 00:32:54,000 --> 00:32:56,320 Speaker 1: In two thousand and six, he received the Windsor Mackay 535 00:32:56,320 --> 00:32:59,200 Speaker 1: Award at the Annie Awards. That's an industry award by 536 00:32:59,240 --> 00:33:04,480 Speaker 1: the Internationally Animated Film Association Hollywood. Windsor McKay, which we 537 00:33:04,520 --> 00:33:07,000 Speaker 1: have talked about on the show, was a cartoonist and animator. 538 00:33:07,120 --> 00:33:09,280 Speaker 1: We covered him in a two part episode in May 539 00:33:09,280 --> 00:33:13,040 Speaker 1: of twenty eighteen. In twenty thirteen and twenty fourteen, the 540 00:33:13,080 --> 00:33:16,560 Speaker 1: Walt Disney Family Museum hosted a retrospective exhibition of his 541 00:33:16,640 --> 00:33:19,479 Speaker 1: work called Water to Paper, Paint to Sky, The Art 542 00:33:19,520 --> 00:33:23,160 Speaker 1: of Tyriswong. He attended this exhibition at the age of 543 00:33:23,200 --> 00:33:24,200 Speaker 1: more than one hundred. 544 00:33:25,080 --> 00:33:28,640 Speaker 2: Tyros Wong died at home on December thirtieth, twenty sixteen, 545 00:33:28,720 --> 00:33:31,680 Speaker 2: at the age of one hundred and six. Toward the 546 00:33:31,800 --> 00:33:34,440 Speaker 2: very end of his life, he had participated in the 547 00:33:34,480 --> 00:33:38,120 Speaker 2: making of a documentary about his life called Tyris. This 548 00:33:38,280 --> 00:33:42,480 Speaker 2: was finished in twenty fifteen and nationally broadcast on PBS 549 00:33:42,520 --> 00:33:46,360 Speaker 2: American Masters in twenty seventeen. In twenty eighteen, he was 550 00:33:46,400 --> 00:33:49,680 Speaker 2: honored with a Google doodle on his birthday. Clicking the 551 00:33:49,800 --> 00:33:52,200 Speaker 2: kite in the corner of the doodle brings up a 552 00:33:52,240 --> 00:33:56,120 Speaker 2: short animation about his life. There's also a forthcoming book 553 00:33:56,200 --> 00:33:59,880 Speaker 2: about him called background Artist, The Life and Work of Tyros, 554 00:34:00,440 --> 00:34:04,360 Speaker 2: which is planned for release in October. I thought about 555 00:34:04,400 --> 00:34:07,240 Speaker 2: putting this episode off when I learned this book was 556 00:34:07,280 --> 00:34:11,040 Speaker 2: on the way, But I've worked on this podcast for 557 00:34:11,080 --> 00:34:13,319 Speaker 2: more than a decade, and at this point I know 558 00:34:14,080 --> 00:34:16,880 Speaker 2: that when I try to do that, what really happens 559 00:34:17,280 --> 00:34:21,960 Speaker 2: is the episode just never gets done. Yeah before anyone 560 00:34:22,080 --> 00:34:25,880 Speaker 2: since suggestions, Yes, I've tried all kinds of list making 561 00:34:26,040 --> 00:34:30,480 Speaker 2: and reminder setting and various strategies to keep this pattern 562 00:34:30,560 --> 00:34:34,920 Speaker 2: from happening. I've learned what really needs to happen is 563 00:34:35,080 --> 00:34:37,400 Speaker 2: to just go ahead and do the episode and not 564 00:34:38,040 --> 00:34:41,840 Speaker 2: delay it for a future eventuality. 565 00:34:42,040 --> 00:34:46,640 Speaker 1: That is Tyrus Wong, who I love. Of course he's lovable. 566 00:34:47,760 --> 00:34:50,640 Speaker 1: Do you also have lovable listener mail? I do, I 567 00:34:51,040 --> 00:34:54,359 Speaker 1: have listener mail? So this listener mail. 568 00:34:54,400 --> 00:34:57,160 Speaker 2: We've gotten a couple of notes on this topic, and 569 00:34:57,239 --> 00:34:58,799 Speaker 2: I'm just going to read one of them, which is 570 00:34:58,840 --> 00:35:03,000 Speaker 2: from Elaine. Elaine said, Hi, Holly and Tracy. You mentioned 571 00:35:03,280 --> 00:35:06,399 Speaker 2: not being able to find an episode or remember doing 572 00:35:06,440 --> 00:35:08,759 Speaker 2: one on the War of Jenkins Eer, but I thought 573 00:35:08,800 --> 00:35:11,439 Speaker 2: I remembered hearing about it and it would have been 574 00:35:11,520 --> 00:35:14,719 Speaker 2: from stuff you missed in history class. Please see attached screenshot. 575 00:35:14,800 --> 00:35:17,080 Speaker 2: I found a four minute episode, so that must be 576 00:35:17,080 --> 00:35:19,719 Speaker 2: a very old one with previous hosts. I'm surprised I 577 00:35:19,800 --> 00:35:24,440 Speaker 2: remember a four minute episode just sharing. I'm thinking maybe 578 00:35:24,480 --> 00:35:27,800 Speaker 2: it also came up in another episode alas I don't 579 00:35:27,800 --> 00:35:30,040 Speaker 2: have a pet. Next time I write in, I'll get 580 00:35:30,080 --> 00:35:34,040 Speaker 2: a photo of my friends rabbits. Thank you love the show, Elaine, 581 00:35:34,120 --> 00:35:37,520 Speaker 2: So thank you Elaine, and to the couple other folks 582 00:35:38,320 --> 00:35:41,560 Speaker 2: who sent us a note about this very old episode 583 00:35:42,239 --> 00:35:46,520 Speaker 2: about the War of Jenkins Ear. I cannot remember exactly 584 00:35:46,560 --> 00:35:48,800 Speaker 2: where this came up. It was in a past episode, 585 00:35:48,800 --> 00:35:50,360 Speaker 2: and I was like, I feel like we have talked 586 00:35:50,360 --> 00:35:52,520 Speaker 2: about this, and I can find no record of it 587 00:35:53,040 --> 00:35:57,680 Speaker 2: that there is indeed a very old, four minute long 588 00:35:57,760 --> 00:36:00,279 Speaker 2: episode of the show from the very very early days 589 00:36:00,360 --> 00:36:03,520 Speaker 2: the show called why did England and Spain Fight over 590 00:36:03,640 --> 00:36:07,920 Speaker 2: an Ear? That is not the episode. I could not 591 00:36:08,160 --> 00:36:11,319 Speaker 2: remember though, because what I kept thinking was no, like, 592 00:36:11,360 --> 00:36:14,480 Speaker 2: it's a thing that I worked on, and Holly and 593 00:36:14,520 --> 00:36:17,279 Speaker 2: I were not involved in the show in any way 594 00:36:18,600 --> 00:36:20,759 Speaker 2: until our names start showing. 595 00:36:20,520 --> 00:36:21,440 Speaker 1: Up at the beginning of it. 596 00:36:22,719 --> 00:36:26,680 Speaker 2: So if you're hearing an episode that says that starts 597 00:36:26,680 --> 00:36:32,120 Speaker 2: off something like I Am Candace and I am Jane, 598 00:36:32,360 --> 00:36:35,160 Speaker 2: we were not involved in the show production at that point. 599 00:36:35,320 --> 00:36:39,800 Speaker 2: I think what I'm actually remembering is that for a while, 600 00:36:40,040 --> 00:36:43,160 Speaker 2: in addition to doing this podcast, I attempted to do 601 00:36:43,320 --> 00:36:47,880 Speaker 2: a whole additional podcast called This Day in History Class 602 00:36:47,920 --> 00:36:51,600 Speaker 2: that was a day by day, approximately five minutes every day, 603 00:36:51,719 --> 00:36:55,520 Speaker 2: episode on something that happened in history that day. There's 604 00:36:55,719 --> 00:36:59,640 Speaker 2: definitely a jenkins Ear episode of This Day in History 605 00:36:59,640 --> 00:37:02,040 Speaker 2: Class that I definitely worked on, and I think that 606 00:37:02,200 --> 00:37:06,719 Speaker 2: is what I am remembering. So thanks to everyone who 607 00:37:06,840 --> 00:37:10,560 Speaker 2: sent notes about this extremely old episode. The mystery is solved, 608 00:37:10,680 --> 00:37:15,640 Speaker 2: question mark. I think it's solved anyway, So yes, thank 609 00:37:15,680 --> 00:37:17,719 Speaker 2: you so much, Elaine, thank you to everyone else. If 610 00:37:17,760 --> 00:37:19,600 Speaker 2: you would like to send us a note or at 611 00:37:19,640 --> 00:37:22,040 Speaker 2: History podcastiheartradio dot. 612 00:37:21,880 --> 00:37:25,880 Speaker 1: Com, and you can subscribe to our show on the 613 00:37:25,920 --> 00:37:30,759 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app or wherever else you'd like to get your podcasts. 614 00:37:34,600 --> 00:37:37,720 Speaker 1: Stuff You Missed in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 615 00:37:38,080 --> 00:37:42,680 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 616 00:37:42,800 --> 00:37:44,840 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.