List of Chinese Americans

This is a list of notable Chinese Americans, who are famous, have made significant contributions to the American culture or society politically, artistically or scientifically, or have appeared in the news numerous times.

List

Art and design

* Alan Chin - Artist
* Ping Chong - contemporary theater director
* James Wong Howe (黃宗霑) - nominated for ten Academy Awards for cinematography, winning twice (1955, 1963)
* Maya Lin (林瓔) - architect (Vietnam Veterans Memorial)
* I. M. Pei (貝聿銘) - architect, designed the Louvre Pyramid
* Anna Sui - fashion designer
* Vivienne Tam (譚燕玉) - fashion designer
* Vera Wang - fashion designer
* Wayne Wang - Hollywood director
* Sue Wong - Designer
* Tyrus Wong (黃齊耀) - Artist
* Frank Wu - science-fiction artist
* Frank H. Wu - author and law professor
* Ruby Yang (楊紫燁) - filmmaker, Editor
* Christine Yu (于纯婷) - Artist

Business

* John Chen - chairman, chief executive officer, president, Sybase
* Weili Dai - billionaire, co-founder, Marvell Technology Group [http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/54/biz_06rich400_Weili-Dai_8C8E.html]
* David Ji - co-founder, Apex Digital
* Andrea Jung (鍾彬嫻)- CEO, Avon
* James Lau - co-founder, chief strategy officer, NetApp
* David Lam - founder, Lam Research
* Kai-Fu Lee - President of Google China
* Kim Ng (伍佩琴) - baseball executive
* Patrick Soon-Shiong, surgeon, founder Abraxis BioScience, billionaire
* An Wang (王安) - computer engineer and inventor, co-founder, Wang Laboratories
* Edward Wang - co-founder, VMware
* Charles Wang (王嘉廉) - founder, CEO, chairman, Computer Associates
* Jerry Yang (楊致遠) - Co-founder, CEO, Yahoo! Inc.

Entertainment

* Rosalind Chao - actress
* Joan Chen - actress, director
* Mandy Cho - former beauty queen hailing from Hong Kong
* Annabel Chong - adult film actress
* China Chow - actress, model (father is Chinese-American)
* Michaela Conlin - actress, She is of Chinese and Irish descent
* Kam Fong Chun - actor
* Haing S. Ngor - Chinese Cambodian actor; won an Oscar for Best Supporting actor in The Killing Fields
* Kelly Hu - actress
* William Hung - actor of American Idol fame
* James Hong - actor
* Rupert Jee - owner of the Hello Deli next to the Ed Sullivan Theatre; has made numerous appearances on The Late Show with David Letterman
* Malese Jow - actress & singer on Unfabulous and Bratz
* Archie Kao - actor and model
* Nancy Kwan (關南施) - first Chinese-born star in Western cinema [http://www.nancy-kwan.com website]
* Dan Kwong - performance artist, writer, teacher, playwright ("Be Like Water")
* Tiffany Lam - former beauty queen hailing from Hong Kong
* Bruce Lee - martial artist, kung fu actor
* Brandon Lee - actor, son of Bruce Lee
* Jason Scott Lee (李截) - actor
* Lena Li - Playboy model
* Lucy Liu (1968 - ) film/television actress ("Charlie's Angels", "Kill Bill")cite news | last =Hamamoto| first =Ben| coauthors=| title =O’Donnell Apologizes for ‘Ching-Chang-Chong’ Joke| pages=| publisher =Nichi Bei Times| date =2006-12-21 | url =http://www.nichibeitimes.com/articles/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1166726773&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1| accessdate =2006-12-22 ]
* John Lone (尊龍) - actor, most notable for his role as Pu Yi in The Last Emperor
* Keye Luke - actor
* Olivia Munn - actress, model and television personality
* Irene Ng - Chinese Malaysian actress who played the title character in Nickelodeon's The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo
* Melissa Ng - Hong Kong actress
* Janel Parrish- actress & singer
* David Ren - Film Director of Shanghai Kiss
* Robin Shou (仇雲波) - martial artist
* Kobe Tai - adult film actress
* Jennifer Tilly - actress (born in California)
* Meg Tilly - actress
* Chuti Tiu - actress, "Desire", "24", "Dragnet", "Beautiful", "The Specials", former America's Junior Miss (first non-Caucasian winner) *
* Lauren Tom - voice actress
* Ming Tsai (蔡明) - chef and restaurateur (Blue Ginger); host of Emmy Award winning television show "East Meets West"
* Kelly Vitz- actress on Sky High and Nancy Drew
* Garrett Wang (王以瞻) - actor in
* Ming-Na Wen - Macanese-born actress
* Anna May Wong (黃柳霜) - first female Asian-American star of the screen
* B. D. Wong (黃榮亮) - actor in , winner of a Tony Award for M Butterfly
* Helen Wong - model and actress
* Russell Wong (王盛德) - actor
* Victor Wong (黃自強) - Hollywood actor
* Daniel Wu (吳彥祖) - Hong Kong-based Chinese American actor
* Kiko Wu - adult model and actress
* Martin Yan - chef, host of Yan Can Cook
* Welly Yang - actor and artist
* Victor Sen Yung - actor, portrayed Hop Sing in Bonanza
* Nan Zhang - actress, Gossip Girl as Kati Farkas

Journalism

* Jeff Chang - journalist, hip-hop historian
* Laura Chang - science editor, "The New York Times"
* Julie Chen - newsreader on "The Early Show" and host of "Big Brother"
* Anna Chen Chennault (陳香梅) - journalist, notable in American public life; also, wife of Claire Chennault, of the Flying Tigers
* Connie Chung - TV news anchor, the second woman ever to anchor a national news program
* Ben Fong-Torres (方振豪) - journalist, Rolling Stone
* Jennifer 8. Lee - journalist, "The New York Times"
* Carol Lin - news anchor
* Sam Chu Lin - journalist, one of the first Asian Americans on network TV news
* Lisa Ling (凌志慧) (1973 - ) journalist, known for her role as a co-host of ABC's "The View" and host of "National Geographic Ultimate Explorer" [Ling - [http://www.cctv.com/program/UpClose/20050711/100358.shtml] "The Committee of 100, an organization composed of elite Chinese Americans, accepted Lisa Ling as one of its members in 2004"]
* Jennifer Su (Jennifer Tsou) - Television news anchor, Star TV
* Kaity Tong - Television news anchor, WPIX-TV
* Jeff Yang - writer, media/business consultant, Asian American culture columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle
* Anthony Yuen - journalist
* William Yukon Chang - Founder/publisher of the first English-language New York Chinatown newspaper, Chinese American Times

Literature

* Bette Bao Lord (包柏漪) - writer, novelist
* Eileen Chang - writer
* Lan Samantha Chang - writer; director of the Iowa Writer's Workshop
* Frank Chin (趙健秀) - novelist, playwright, and essayist
* Maxine Hong Kingston - writer, novelist
* David Henry Hwang (黃哲倫) - playwright
* Gish Jen - writer, novelist
* Ha Jin - novelist, winner of the National Book Award for "Waiting"
* Gus Lee (李健孫) - writer
* David Wong Louie - writer
* Lisa See - writer
* Adeline Yen Mah (馬嚴君玲) - author and physician
* William Marr (馬為義,非馬) - Engineer, poet, translator, and artist
* Amy Tan - best-selling author
* Jade Snow Wong - writer
* Timothy C. Wong (黃宗泰) - sinologist, translator, and literary theorist
* Gene Luen Yang - graphic novelist
* Laurence Yep (叶祥添)- author of children's books
* Judy Yung - writer
* Ben Fee - writer and labor organizer

Military

* Maj. Arthur Chin (陳瑞鈿) - World War II pilot and fighter ace with Canton Provincial Air Force, National Revolutionary Army
* David S. C. Chu - US Army Captain, now Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness
* Gordon Pai'ea Chung-Hoon, US Navy Rear Admiral
* John Liu Fugh - the first Chinese American officer to be promoted to the rank of General in the US Army, and the Army's first Chinese American Judge Advocate General
* Wah Kau Kong - Second Lieutenant and first Chinese American fighter pilot in the US Air Force
* Hazel Ying Lee (李月英) - first Chinese American woman to earn a pilot’s license; flew for the US Army Air Forces as a WASP during World War II
* James Yee - US Army Captain and chaplain, formerly charged with sedition
* Francis B. Wai - US Army Captain and the only Chinese American to have been awarded the Medal of Honor
* Mun Charn Wong, US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, friend of Wah Kau Kong
* Sue Moy Chen, First female to serve in a Chemical Reconnaissance unit in the U.S. Army

Music

* Jin Au-yeung - rapper
* Flora Chan - Hong Kong-born singer/actress
* Jaycee Chan - American-born, Hong Kong singer, son of Jackie Chan
* Chi Cheng - bassist to alternative metal band, Deftones
* Kelis - singer [ [http://www.rockonthenet.com/artists-k/kelis.htm "Kelis, born to a Puerto Rican and Chinese mother and African-American father, began her singing aspirations as a child with the Girl's Choir of Harlem."] ]
* CoCo Lee - singer
* Annie Lin - singer-songwriter
* Justin Lo - American-born, Hong Kong singer
* Yo-Yo Ma (馬友友) - cellist
* Dawn Xiana Moon - singer-songwriter, model, writer
* Richard On - guitarist-songwriter for rock band O.A.R.
* Ne-Yo - R&B artist, 1/4 Chinese
* Tan Dun - grammy and Oscar award winning composer; recipient of the prestigious Grawemeyer Award for his opera Marco Polo
* Vienna Teng - singer-songwriter
* Chris Wong Won ("Fresh Kid Ice", 'The Chinaman") - Chinese Trinidadian rapper, member of 2 Live Crew
* Wang Lee-Hom - American-born Taiwanese singer, composer and actor

Politics and government

* Norman Bay - former U.S. Attorney
* John Chiang - State of California Controller
* Chin Lin Sou - community leader
* Elaine Chao - current Secretary of Labor, first Chinese-American Cabinet Secretary
* Denny Chin - federal judge, Southern District of New York
* David S. C. Chu - United States Undersecretary of Defense for Readiness (R)
* March Fong Eu - former California Secretary of State
* Hiram L. Fong - former Republican U.S. Senator from Hawaii (R)
* Matthew K. Fong - former Republican state treasurer of California (R)
* Ed Jew - former member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors (D)
* Harry Lee, late Sheriff of Jefferson Parish, (D)
* John Liu - (劉醇逸) New York City Councilman (D)
* Liu Yong-chuan - overseas student leader
* Gary Locke (politician) - former Democratic Governor of Washington
* Thomas Tang - United States Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit
* Shien Biau Woo (吳仙標) - former attorney general and lieutenant governor of Delaware, current president of the 80-20 Initiative
* David Wu - first and only Chinese American U.S. Representative, Democrat from Oregon
* Harry Wu - human rights activist
* Sherman Wu - civil rights activist and scientist
* Mae Yih - former Oregon State Senator (D)
* Helen Zia (謝漢蘭) - community activist and writer
* Leland Yee () - California State Senator

cience, engineering and education

* Choh Hao Li (李卓皓) - biochemist.
* Min Chueh Chang (張明覺) - co-inventor of the first birth control pill
* Steve Chen - computer scientist, supercomputer designer, Cray
* Shiing-Shen Chern - mathematician
* Leroy Chiao - NASA astronaut
* David Jung-Kuang Chiu - Former Director of Asian Studies and Dean of University Advisement, Hofstra University
* Wen Tsing Chow (周文俊) - missile guidance scientist, digital computer pioneer
* Paul C. W. Chu (朱經武) - physicist, superconductivity
* Steven Chu - 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics, first Asian-American to run one of the 16 national laboratories operated by the Department of Energy (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)
* Fan Chung - mathematician
* Dr. David Ho (何大一) - AIDS researcher
*William C. Hsiao - Harvard economist
*Feng-hsiung Hsu (許峰雄) - IBM developer of Deep Blue, which beat World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov in 1997
* Henry C. Lee - forensic scientist
* Yuan-Cheng Fung (馮元楨) - Founder of Modern Biomechanics
* Tsung-dao Lee (李政道) - 1957 Nobel laureate in Physics
* T. Y. Lin (林同炎) - civil engineer (bridgebuilder)
* Edward Lu - NASA astronaut
* Lue Gim Gong - in 1888, he invented an orange, which is still grown in Florida, that survives cold weather
* Chang-lin Tien (田長霖) - professor, former chancellor UC Berkeley
* Samuel C. C. Ting - 1976 Nobel laureate, Physics
* Terence Chi-Shen Tao (陶哲軒) - mathematician
* Roger Y. Tsien (錢永健) - an American chemist and a professor at the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego.Renowned for revolutionizing the fields of cell biology and neurobiology by allowing scientists to peer inside living cells and watch the behavior of molecules in real time.In 2004, Tsien was awarded the Wolf Prize in Medicine
* Daniel Chee Tsui - 1998 Nobel prize, Physics
* Kai-Fu Lee - President of Google China
* Taylor Wang - first ethnic Chinese scientist to go into space, 1985 on space shuttle Challenger
* Pei-Yuan Wei - creator of ViolaWWW
* Flossie Wong-Staal - virologist and AIDS researcher
* Chien-Shiung Wu (吳健雄)- female scientist
* Chen Ning Yang (楊振寧) - 1957 Nobel laureate in Physics
* Henry Yang (楊祖佑) - chancellor, UC Santa Barbara
* Shing-Tung Yau (丘成桐) - mathematician

ports

* Johnny Chan - professional Poker Player
* Michael Chang (張德培) - youngest male tennis player to win a Grand Slam tournament
* Tiffany Chin (陳婷婷) - figure skater
* Amy Chow (周婉儀) - gymnast and Olympic medal winner
* Norm Chow (周友賢) - UCLA Bruins offensive coordinator
* Julie Chu - Olympics hockey player
* Mark Foo - professional surfer
* Ivana Hong - gymnastics
* Karen Kwan - former figure skater, sister of Michelle Kwan
* Michelle Kwan (關穎珊) - figure skater [ [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/longterm/olympics1998/sport/figskate/articles/chinese20.htm Washingtonpost.com: Chinese Americans Bask in Kwan's Spotlight ] ]
* Corrie Lothrop - gymnastics
* Kevin Tan - gymnastics
* Lisa Wang - rhythmic gimnastics
* Caroline Zhang- figure skater
* Yao Ming - Houston Rockets basketball player
* Brian Ching - Houston Dynamo soccer player

Other

* Chang and Eng Bunker - Siamese twins, pioneer immigrants
* Vincent Chin - killed in fight, considered by Chinese-American advocacy groups to be victim of bias crime
* Alex Chiu - eccentric promoter
* Mock Duck - New York Chinatown mobster, leader of the Hip Sing Tong.
* Charles Goodall Lee - first licensed Chinese American dentist in the United States.
* Clara Elizabeth Chan Lee - first Chinese American woman voter in the United States.
* Betty Ong - flight attendant on American Airlines Flight 11
* Little Pete - San Francisco Chinatown mobster
* Soong Mei-Ling a.k.a. Madame Chiang Kai-Shek
* Lili Wang - murdered at her university
* Katherine Young (郑珣) - world's oldest user of the Internet
* Yung Wing (容闳) - first Chinese and Asian to obtain a degree from an American college (Yale University)
* Raymond Kwok Chow (周國祥) - also known as "Shrimp Boy", San Francisco Chinatown mobster, leader of the San Francisco Chapter of Chinese Freemasons

Footnotes

ee also