Anna May Wong: Death of a Trailblazer

Anna May Wong: Death of a Trailblazer

Up next

Death of a Name | Reviving a Mobit

What do you think will be the top baby names of 2025? Will "Mildred" make a comeback? What’s in a name…that makes it popular to one generation, and downright ugly to the next? From "Bertha" and "Layla" to "Reagan" and "Katrina," history shows us that politics, pop songs and news ...  Show more

Marlene Dietrich Goes To War | Reviving a Mobit

We’re celebrating the birthday month of the iconic Marlene Deitrich by revisiting a special episode from the "Mobituaries" audiobook. Marlene Dietrich cemented her status as a Hollywood legend with a series of iconic performances that flouted traditional women's roles and ignited ...  Show more

Recommended Episodes

Anna May Wong Steps into the Spotlight
HISTORY This Week

June 4, 1939. Anna May Wong steps off an ocean liner to greet her fans in Australia. In many ways, she is a classic Hollywood actor. Glamorous and famous. She’s made some sixty movies that have been seen around the world. But in other ways, Anna May Wong is singular. She’s the fi ...  Show more

Yiman Wang, "To Be an Actress: Labor and Performance in Anna May Wong's Cross-Media World" (U California Press, 2024)
New Books in Film

Between 1919 and 1961, pioneering Chinese American actress Anna May Wong established an enduring legacy that encompassed cinema, theatre, radio, and American television. Born in Los Angeles, yet with her US citizenship scrutinised due to the Chinese Exclusion Act, Wong—a defiant ...  Show more

Old Hollywood's First Asian Amerian Star, Anna May Wong
Vulgar History: Tudors

We're joined today by Katie Gee Salisbury, author of the new Anna May Wong biography Not Your China Doll: The Wild and Shimmering Life of Anna May Wong. Katie helps guide us through a discussion of Anna May Wong's life from childhood through Hollywood and European stardom, her tr ...  Show more

Michelle Yeoh: Never Give Up | 262
Even the Rich

Michelle Yeoh was a gravity-defying, glass ceiling-smashing Hong Kong action film star for years, until she decides to tackle Hollywood. But her road to international stardom is paved with heartbreak and struggles. She endures years fighting against typecasting and borderline rac ...  Show more