My Journal
Cast these actors
Was asked to name 5 Asian American leading men who deserve more screen time in this PRI story: How many Asian Hollywood stars can you name? Right, it's not easy Listen to the story here Cast these actors Ada Tseng, long-time editor of Asia Pacific Arts and frequent...
Bullet Train Episode #004 Japanese Romance Simulation Games
Otome has been extremely popular in Japan since the mid-1990s, but American gamers are just starting to realize how fun it can be to live out a romantic fantasy in a virtual world. But what can we learn about love from Japanese romance simulation games? We talk to...
Hardly Elementary: Spring 2015 Cover Story Featuring Lucy Liu
by Ada Tseng Google “Lucy Liu,” and Liu herself will tell you that most of the information about her on the Internet is incorrect. She’s not Taiwanese, like many websites claim (her parents are from Beijing and Shanghai; they came to the U.S. separately for school and...
KoreAm Journal Dec/Jan 2015 Cover Story: Randall Park
The Los Angeles native has long entertained fans with scene-stealing spots on television, film and the web. Now, with two major studio projects to his name, the actor talks candidly about working in the industry, diversifying roles and playing the long game. ...
ABC’s Fresh Off the Boat Stirs Controversy: “People Are Both Criticizing It and Praising It as This New Hope”
By Ada Tseng The term "fresh off the boat," frequently abbreviated as FOB, describes Asian immigrants that have recently come to the U.S. but not yet assimilated into American culture. For Asian Americans born and raised in the U.S., especially in the 1990s — when the...
The Year of the Night Market
By Ada Tseng Ramen burgers, kimchi fries and pho tacos. Stinky tofu. Spiral-cut fried potato skewers sprinkled with a variety of seasonings. And balls — lots and lots of balls: curry fish balls, fried yam balls, takoyaki squid and octopus balls, kimchi fried rice...
Ameriie is Back: New Albums, New Novels, New YouTube Channel
By Ada Tseng Listening to Ameriie talk a mile a minute, it sounds like she’s working on a million creative projects at once. The singer and musician is most known in mainstream America for her 2005 hit single “1 Thing,” back when her name only had one “i.” (The second...
Reshma Saujani’s Girls Who Code and the “Inspire Her Mind” Campaign
by Ada Tseng In Reshma Saujani’s 2011 Ted Talk, she discussed the importance of encouraging more American youth to pursue STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) careers in order to create jobs and re-ignite our economy. Not only are twice as many...
Man From Reno’s Ayako Fujitani As a Mystery Writer
By Ada Tseng When her latest film Man From Reno won the top prize at the 2014 Los Angeles Film Festival this summer, Ayako Fujitani was initially confused. “Dave [Boyle, the director,] told me, ‘We won!’ and I said, ‘For what?’” she remembers. She laughs. “I had...