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Steve Park (comedian)

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Steve Park
Born
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Occupations
  • Comedian
  • actor
  • voice actor
Years active1987–present
Spouse
​
(m. 1999)​
Children2

Stephen Park[1] is an American comedian and actor. He is best known for being a cast member of the sketch comedy television series In Living Color during the 1991–1992 season. He is also known for the film roles of Sonny in Do the Right Thing (1989), Detective Brian in Falling Down (1993), Mike Yanagita in Fargo (1996), and Lieutenant Nescaffier in The French Dispatch (2021).

Park's other acting work includes the role of Mike Sorayama in the Adult Swim animated television series The Venture Bros. and the role of Judge Pete in the critically acclaimed independent film Rocket Science (2007).[2] Park has acted in two Coen brothers films, Fargo and A Serious Man (2009).[3]

Early life and career

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Park grew up in Vestal, New York.[1] The son of Korean immigrants, Park began his entertainment career as a stand-up comedian before transitioning into acting.

Park was a cast member on In Living Color. He has appeared in films such as Do the Right Thing (1989), Fargo (1996), A Serious Man (2009), Snowpiercer (2013), The French Dispatch (2021), and Asteroid City (2023).

Personal life

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Park married Kelly Coffield, another former cast member of In Living Color,[1] in 1999. They have a son and a daughter.[1]

Advocacy

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"[T]he 1st AD (assistant director), in a short tirade, called an Asian-American actor to the set over a walkie-talkie with the words, 'I don't have time for this! Where's Hoshi, Toshi or whatever the f--k his name is. Get the oriental guy!' He did not even have the respect to learn the name of the actor, a veteran of 40 years."

—Steve Park, recounting his experience on the set of Friends[4]

In 1997, Park wrote a mission statement in which he called for Hollywood to portray people of Asian descent in a less disparaging light. He wrote the statement after witnessing a racist incident while appearing in a guest role on the television series Friends.[4] In his statement, Park wrote that "In movies and television, Asian characters, mostly men, are subjected to indignity and violence or are tokenized, while Asian women are exploited as objects of sexual desire. You rarely see Asian characters in leading roles that contain any significant power or influence".[4]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1989 Do the Right Thing Sonny
1990 Quick Change Grocery Cashier
Kindergarten Cop Assistant to Salazar
1991 Showdown in Little Tokyo Asian Cop #1
1992 Kuffs Officer Favaro
Toys Researcher
1993 Falling Down Detective Brian
1996 Fargo Mike Yanagita
Sgt. Bilko Captain Moon
Red Ribbon Blues Kris Lee
1997 Yellow Alex's Uncle
1998 Desperate Measures Dr. Gosha
2007 Rocket Science Judge Pete
2008 The Promotion David Kim
2009 State of Play Chris Kawai
A Serious Man Clive's Father
2010 The Best and the Brightest George Tanaka-Blumstein
Morning Glory Channel 9 Weatherperson
2012 Price Check Board Member
The Brass Teapot Dr. Li Ling
Putzel Song
2013 Snowpiercer Fuyu
Wedding Palace Kwan
2014 The Gambler Number 2
2015 Don Verdean Poon-Yen
2020 Kajillionaire Another Father Uncredited
2021 The French Dispatch Lieutenant Nescaffier
2023 Ghosted Utami
Asteroid City Roger Cho
The Good Half Father Dan
2025 Mickey 17 Agent Zeke Post-production
TBA Death of a Unicorn Post-production

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1989 The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd Deliveryman Episode: "Here's a Shot in the Dark"
1990 Kojak: Flowers for Matty Billy Television film
WIOU Dr. Kajita Episode: "They Shoot Sources, Don't They"
1991–1992 In Living Color Various 28 episodes
1992 MacGyver Tan Yee Episode: "The Stringer"
1994 Murder, She Wrote Joe Yoshanaga Episode: "Death in Hawaii"
1995 Martin Mr. Jones Episode: "Kill Him with Kindness"
1995–1997 Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child I Kwan / Dong (voice) 2 episodes
1996–1997 Friends Scott Alexander / Phil 2 episodes
1998 Boy Meets World Jump Master Episode: "Raging Cory"
1998–1999 Mad About You Dr. Lee 2 episodes
2004 Law & Order: Criminal Intent Dr. Shimo Episode: "Want"
The Venture Bros. Mike Sorayama (voice) Episode: "Past Tense"
2005 Hope & Faith Mr. Yamagoto Episode: "Carmen Get It"
2005–2008 Law & Order Dr. Park / Dr. Bruce Chang 2 episodes
2009 The Unusuals Councilman Tony Harbor Episode: "Pilot"
2011 White Collar Paul Sullivan Episode: "Deadline"
2012 Smash Reporter #1 Episode: "The Callback"
2012–2013 Elementary Oren Watson 2 episodes
2013 Phil Spector Focus Group Man Television film
2014 Believe Lim Episode: "Prodigy"
2014–2015 The Mindy Project Ray 2 episodes
2015 Person of Interest Mark Lee Episode: "Search and Destroy"
12 Monkeys Yakuza Soldier Episode: "Shonin"
2017 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Eugene Lee Episode: "Real Fake News"
2019–2020 Warrior Tu 7 episodes
2021 Infinity Train Min-Gi's Father (voice) Episode: "The Twin Tapes"

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Williams, Stephen P. (June 5, 2009). "'In Living Color,' the Sequel". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 26, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  2. ^ Holden, Stephen (August 10, 2007). "A Boy Rendered Speechless by Life". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 26, 2012. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  3. ^ Emerson, Jim (April 25, 2011). "Steve Park: A funny man, serious and significant". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  4. ^ a b c Park, Steve (1997). "Steve Park's Mission Statement". Model Minority: A Guide to Asian American Empowerment. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
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