Richard Loo


Richard Loo was an American film actor who was one of the most familiar Asian character actors in American films of the 1930s and 1940s. He appeared in more than 120 films between 1931 and 1982.

Early life

Chinese by ancestry and Hawaiian by birth, Loo spent his youth in Hawaii, then moved to California as a teenager. He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley and began a career in business.

Career

The stock market crash of 1929 and the subsequent economic depression forced Loo to start over. He became involved with amateur, then professional, theater companies and in 1931 made his first film. Like most Asian actors in non-Asian countries, he played primarily small, stereotypical roles, though he rose quickly to familiarity, if not fame, in a number of films.
His stern features led him to be a favorite movie villain, and the outbreak of World War II gave him greater prominence in roles as vicious Japanese soldiers in such successful pictures as The Purple Heart and God Is My Co-Pilot. Loo was most often typecast as the Japanese enemy pilot, spy or interrogator during World War II. In the film The Purple Heart he plays a Japanese Imperial Army general who commits suicide because he cannot break down the American prisoners. According to his daughter, Beverly Jane Loo, he didn't mind being typecast as a villain in these movies as he felt very patriotic about playing those parts. He was also considered an "atmosphere" player along with Spencer Chan, Willie Fung and Frank Chew.
In 1944 he appeared as a Chinese army lieutenant opposite Gregory Peck in The Keys of the Kingdom. He had a rare heroic role as a war-weary Japanese-American soldier in Samuel Fuller's Korean War classic The Steel Helmet, but he spent much of the latter part of his career performing stock roles in films and minor television roles.
In 1974 he appeared as the Thai billionaire tycoon Hai Fat in the James Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun, opposite Roger Moore and Christopher Lee.
Loo was also a teacher of Shaolin monks in three episodes of the 1972–1975 hit TV series Kung Fu and made a further three appearances as a different character. His last acting appearance was in The Incredible Hulk TV series in 1981, but he continued to act in Toyota commercials into 1982. He died of a cerebral hemorrhage on November 20, 1983.

Personal life

Loo's first wife, Bessie Sue, was a well-known Hollywood agent. They had twin daughters Angela Marie Loo and Beverly Jane Loo. Beverly Loo was prominent in publishing, while Angela Loo Levy was a Hollywood agent and accomplished ski patroller. Richard Loo remained with his second wife, Hope, until his death in 1983 at the age of 80. He had a stepdaughter, Christel Hope Mintz.

Filmography

War Correspondent as Bandit The Secrets of Wu Sin as Charlie SanThe Bitter Tea of General Yen as Capt. LiNow and Forever as Hotel clerk Student Tour as Geisha's customer The Painted Veil as Chinese peasant Limehouse Blues as Customer at Harry Young's The Mysterious Mr. Wong as Bystander outside store Stranded as Chinese groom Captured in Chinatown as Ling hatchet man Shadows of the Orient as Yung Yow - Chinese henchman China Seas as Chinese inspector at gangplank Roaming Lady as Chinese man Shadow of Chinatown as Loo, Chinese man on street Mad Holiday as Li Yat Stowaway as Chinese merchant After the Thin Man as Lichee Club headwaiter The Good Earth as Chinese farmer Lost Horizon as Shanghai airport official The Soldier and the Lady as Tartar The Singing Marine as Shanghai hotel official Outlaws of the Orient as General That Certain Woman as Elevator operator West of Shanghai as Mr. ChengThank You, Mr. Moto as Cop at shooting site Blondes at Work as Sam Wong Too Hot to Handle as Charlie Shadows Over Shanghai as FongNorth of Shanghai as Jed's PilotPanama Patrol as Tommy YoungMr. Wong in Chinatown as Tong chiefMiracles for Sale as Chinese soldier in demo Lady of the Tropics as Delaroch's chauffeur Island of Lost Men as Gen. Ahn LingDaughter of the Tong as Wong, hotel clerkBarricade as Colonel, commander of the rescue party The Fatal Hour as Jeweler Doomed to Die as Tong leaderEllery Queen's Penthouse Mystery as Henchman They Met in Bombay as Japanese officer Secrets of the Wasteland as QuanA Yank on the Burma Road as Commandant Star Spangled Rhythm as Emperor Hirohito Remember Pearl Harbor as Mandolin playing Japanese radioman Submarine Raider as Chauffeur Suji Bombs Over Burma as Col. KimLittle Tokyo, U.S.A. as OshimaWake Island as Mr. Saburo Kurusu Across the Pacific as First Officer MiyumaManila Calling as Filipino Flying Tigers as Dr. Tsing Road to Morocco as Chinese announcer City Without Men as Japanese spy Flight for Freedom as Mr. Yokahata The Amazing Mrs. Holliday as General Chan The Falcon Strikes Back as JerryChina as Lin YunYanks Ahoy as Japanese submarine officer Behind the Rising Sun as Japanese officer dispensing opium Destroyer as Japanese submarine commander So Proudly We Hail! as Japanese radio announcer Jack London as Japanese Ambassador Rookies in Burma as Colonel Matsuda The Purple Heart as Gen. Ito MitsubiThe Story of Dr. Wassell as Chinese doctor on train The Keys of the Kingdom as Lt. ShonBetrayal from the East as Lt. Cmdr. Miyazaki, alias TaniGod Is My Co-Pilot as Tokyo JoeChina Sky as Col. YasudaChina's Little Devils as Colonel HurajiBack to Bataan as Maj. HaskoFirst Yank into Tokyo as Col. Hideko OkanuraPrison Ship as Capt. OsikawaTokyo Rose as Colonel SuzukiThe Beginning or the End as Japanese officer Seven Were Saved as Colonel YamuraWeb of Danger as WingBeyond Our Own as James Wong Women in the Night as Col. NoyamaTo the Ends of the Earth as Commissioner Lu Half Past Midnight as Lee Gow The Cobra Strikes as Hyder AliThe Golden Eye as Undetermined Secondary Role Rogues' Regiment as Kao PangState Department: File 649 as Marshal Yun UsuThe Clay Pigeon as Ken Tokoyama aka The WeaselMalaya as Colonel Genichi TomuraThe Steel Helmet as Sgt. TanakaChinatown Chump as Chinese counterfeiterOperation Pacific as Japanese fighter pilot I Was an American Spy as Col. Masamato5 Fingers as Japanese Ambassador Target Hong Kong as Fu ChaoDestination Gobi as Commanding Officer, Japanese POW camp China Venture as Chang SungHell and High Water as Hakada FujimoriThe Shanghai Story as Junior officerLiving It Up as Dr. LeeThe Bamboo Prison as Commandant Hsai TungSoldier of Fortune as General Po LinHouse of Bamboo as Inspector Kita Love is a Many-Splendored Thing as Robert HungThe Conqueror as Captain of Wang's guardAround the World in 80 Days as Hong Kong saloon manager Battle Hymn as Gen. KimThe Quiet American as Mr. HengHong Kong Affair as Li NoonThe Scavengers Espionage: Far East Seven Women from Hell as Sgt. TakahashiConfessions of an Opium Eater as George WahA Girl Named Tamiko as OtaniDiamond Head as Yamagata The Sand Pebbles as Major ChinOne More Time Which Way to the Front? as Japanese naval officer One More Train to Rob as Mr.ChangChandler as LeoThe Man with the Golden Gun as Hai Fat

Television

Note: Loo twice appeared as a talk-show guest--with Johnny Carson in 1969 and Dick Cavett in 1971. The latter, who loved to do an impression of Loo specifically, asked him about his career, including being of Chinese ancestry yet playing Japanese soldiers in WWII films and the different ways Chinese and Japanese spoke English.