Richard Loo

Richard Loo
File:007HaiFat.jpg Loo, circa 1974
Born	(1903-10-01)October 1, 1903 Maui, Hawaii, U.S.A.
Died	November 20, 1983(1983-11-20) (aged 80) Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
Occupation	actor
Years active	1931—83
Spouse(s)	Bessie Loo (1929-1960); divorce Hope Loo (1964-1983); his death

Richard Loo (October 1, 1903 - November 20, 1983) was a Chinese American film actor who was one of the most familiar Asian character actors in American films of the 1930s and 1940s. A prolific actor, he appeared in over 120 films between 1931 and 1982.

Richard Loo was most often stereotyped as the Japanese enemy flier, spy or interrogator during the Second World War. 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 attempted a career in business. However, the stock market crash of 1929 and the subsequent economic depression forced him 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 coming of World War II gave him greater prominence in roles as vicious Japanese soldiers in successful pictures such as The Purple Heart (1944) and God Is My Co-Pilot (1945). In 1944, he appeared as a Chinese lieutenant opposite Gregory Peck in The Keys of the Kingdom. He had a rare heroic role as a weary Japanese-American soldier in the Korean War drama The Steel Helmet (1951), but spent much of his career in later years performing stock roles and with 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 7 episodes of the 1972-1974 popular TV show, Kung Fu.

His last acting appearance was in The Incredible Hulk television series in 1981 but he continued to perform for Toyota commercials into 1982. He died of a cerebral hemorrhage on November 20, 1983.

Personal life

His first wife, Bessie Loo, was a well-known Hollywood agent. They had twin daughters; Beverly Loo was prominent in publishing while Angela Loo Levy was a Hollywood agent and accomplished ski patroller.

He remained with his second wife, Hope, until his death. His step-daughter, Christel Hope Mintz, was an analyst with Shell Oil Company for 32 years.

External links

• Richard Loo at IMDb