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Barbara Jean Wong

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Occupation
  
Actress

Parents
  
Thomas Wong, Maye Wong

Role
  
Actress

Name
  
Barbara Wong

Years active
  
1937–1965


Barbara Jean Wong

Born
  
March 3, 1924 (
1924-03-03
)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Died
  
November 13, 1999, Tarzana, Los Angeles, California, United States

Spouse
  
Robert Wah Lee (m. 1950–1988)

Movies
  
The Man from Button Willow, The Red Dragon, Love Is a Many‑Splendored Thing, The East Is Red

Similar People
  
Raymond Lee, Otto Lang, Phil Rosen, Ching Siu‑tung, Henry King

Barbara Jean Wong (March 3, 1924 – November 13, 1999) was an American actress and primarily a radio actress.

She was a fourth-generation Chinese-American born in Los Angeles, California, to produce market owners Thomas and Maye Wong. She began her performance career at the age of five, as she could read and had a clear voice, and was soon dubbed the Chinese-American Shirley Temple because of her long black hair curled into ringlets and her charming persona. In 1937, as a voice actress, she began performing in programs for CBS. She played Judy Barton, one of the twins in the children's Christmas old time radio show The Cinnamon Bear. She was heard on several episodes of the Lux Radio Theater, Hallmark Playhouse/Hallmark Hall of Fame, Cavalcade of America, Three Thirds of a Nation, and many other shows. Her biggest radio role was on the comedy show Amos 'n' Andy, in which she played Amos' daughter Arbadella.

She attended the University of Southern California (USC) and Columbia University to earn degrees in drama and English. After college, Jean (she used her middle name) began working in the movies and worked in 20 films, including The Good Earth, The Man from Button Willow, and the Charlie Chan movie Charlie Chan in Honolulu, in which she played the part of Charlie Chan's Number Three daughter. Her last role was uncredited, a nurse in the epic motion picture Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing. Her featured-part movie career lasted from 1938 to 1955. In most of her movies, she was a backdrop, serving only as part of the scenery.

When Barbara Jean was married, she retired from acting and earned her teaching credentials from Cal State Los Angeles to begin serving her community as a teacher. She died of respiratory illness on November 13, 1999, in Tarzana, California, aged 75.

Filmography

Actress
1972
Anna and the King (TV Series) as
Second Bidder
- The Baby (1972) - Second Bidder
1965
The Man from Button Willow as
Stormy (voice)
1956
Buffalo Bill, Jr. (TV Series)
- The Golden Plant (1956)
1955
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing as
Nurse (uncredited)
1955
Cameo Theatre (TV Series)
- Bending of the Bough (1955)
1955
Soldier of Fortune as
Haka Girl (uncredited)
1955
The Halls of Ivy (TV Series)
- The Chinese Student (1955)
1954
Your Favorite Story (TV Series)
- The Man Trap (1954)
1954
The Lone Wolf (TV Series) as
Rose Kai
- The Chinese Story (1954) - Rose Kai
1953
Fireside Theatre (TV Series)
- The Traitor (1953)
1952
Boston Blackie (TV Series)
- Chinese Lottery (1952)
1951
China Corsair as
Croupier (uncredited)
1949
Chinatown at Midnight as
Betty Chang
1946
That Brennan Girl as
Nightclub Singer (uncredited)
1946
Calcutta as
Mrs. Smith's Manicurist (uncredited)
1946
The Trap as
San Toy
1945
The Red Dragon as
Iris Ling (as Jean Wong)
1945
China Sky as
Nurse (uncredited)
1945
God Is My Co-Pilot as
Chinese Nurse (uncredited)
1944
Babes on Swing Street as
Chinese Girl (uncredited)
1943
Behind the Rising Sun as
Chinese Girl Given Opium (uncredited)
1943
China as
Nan Ti
1938
Charlie Chan in Honolulu as
Chan Daughter (uncredited)
1934
Kid Millions as
Little Girl in Ice Cream Number (uncredited)

References

Barbara Jean Wong Wikipedia