Barbie Unveils Anna May Wong Doll For AAPI Heritage Month

Six months after being immortalized on a U.S. quarter, Asian American Hollywood heroine Anna May Wong has earned yet another honor confirming her icon status: her own Barbie.

Mattel announced the debut of an Anna May Wong doll on Monday in honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

The model sports her signature fringe, brows and groomed nails. The doll is dressed in a scarlet gown with a gleaming golden dragon motif and cape, as shown in the 1934 film “Limehouse Blues.”

Anna Wong, Wong’s niece, granted her approval and worked closely with the brand to establish Barbie’s style.

“I didn’t think twice about it. “It was such an honor and so exciting,” Wong said in an email to The Associated Press. “I wanted to ensure that her facial characteristics and outfit were accurate. “They did it!”

Anna Wong grew up with a Barbie and Skipper doll, a Barbie dream house, and an automobile. She liked the concept of Asian children now having a doll that resembles them.

Asian American Hollywood heroine Anna May Wong has earned yet another honor confirming her icon status: her own Barbie.

The doll is from the Barbie “Inspiring Women” collection, which includes dolls modeled after pioneering women. Previous role models include aviator Amelia Earhart and artist Frida Kahlo.

“As the first Asian American actor to lead a U.S. television show, whose perseverance broke down barriers for her gender and the AAPI community in film and TV, Anna May Wong is the perfect fit for our Barbie Inspiring Women Series,” said Lisa McKnight, executive vice president of Mattel.

The Chinese American actor, born in Los Angeles, is often regarded as the first big Asian American cinema star. She began her career in the 1920s during the silent film era and rose to international prominence in films such as “The Thief of Bagdad,” as well as for her stylish sense. Anna May Wong appeared in “Shanghai Express” in the 1930s, opposite luminaries such as Marlene Dietrich. However, she lost the lead role of a Chinese villager in “The Good Earth” to Luise Rainer, a white actress who won an Oscar for best actress.

Anna May Wong traveled to Europe to act in the decades that followed. However, she later returned to the United States. In 1951, she hosted her own T.V. show, “The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong.” The short-lived mystery series was said to be the first to have an Asian American protagonist.

In 1960, she became the first Asian American woman to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her performance. She passed just a year later, at the age of 56.

SOURCE – (AP)