CINEFILER

Philip Ahn

Born
March 29, 1905
Died
February 28, 1978
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Philip Ahn (born Pil Lip Ahn (안필립), March 29, 1905 – February 28, 1978) was a Korean American actor. He was the first Korean American film actor to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ahn's first film was A Scream in the Night in 1935. He appeared in the Bing Crosby film Anything Goes, though director Lewis Milestone had initially rejected him because his English was too good for the part. His first credited roles came in 1936 in The General Died at Dawn and Stowaway, opposite Shirley Temple. He starred opposite Anna May Wong in Daughter of Shanghai (1937) and King of Chinatown (1937). During World War II, Ahn often played Japanese villains in war films. Mistakenly thought to be Japanese, he received several death threats. He enlisted in the United States Army, having served in the Special Services as an entertainer. He was discharged early because of an injured ankle and returned to making films. Ahn appeared in Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing, Around the World in Eighty Days, Thoroughly Modern Millie and Paradise, Hawaiian Style, with Elvis Presley. He got to play Korean characters in Korean War movies such as Battle Circus (1953) and Battle Hymn (1956). In 1952, Ahn made his television debut on the Schlitz Playhouse, a series he would make three additional appearances on. Ahn would also be cast in four episodes of ABC's Adventures in Paradise, four episodes of the ABC/Warner Brothers crime drama Hawaiian Eye, and the CBS crime drama Hawaii Five-O. He made three appearances each on Crossroads, Bonanza, and M*A*S*H. He would also appear in two television movies. Ahn's most notable television role was as "Master Kan" on the television series Kung Fu. A Presbyterian, Ahn felt that the Taoist homilies his character quoted did not contradict his own religious faith.
Known For
One-Eyed Jacks
(1961)
Uncle
Around the World in Eighty Days
(1956)
Hong Kong Citizen (uncredited)
Never So Few
(1959)
Nautaung
They Were Expendable
(1945)
Army Orderly (uncredited)
Shock Corridor
(1963)
Dr. Fong
Battle Hymn
(1957)
Old Man
Back to Bataan
(1945)
Col. Coroki
Impact
(1949)
Ah Sing
The Keys of the Kingdom
(1944)
Mr. Pao, Envoy for Mr. Chia
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
(1955)
Third Uncle
Thoroughly Modern Millie
(1967)
Tea
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
(1973)
Chang (voice)
Macao
(1952)
Itzumi
Fair Wind to Java
(1953)
Gusti
Full Filmography
Acting
Desirable
(1934)
Chinese Waiter
A Scream in the Night
(1935)
Wu Ting (as Philip Ann)
Shanghai
(1935)
Servant
The General Died at Dawn
(1936)
Oxford
Stowaway
(1936)
Sun Lo
Klondike Annie
(1936)
The Good Earth
(1937)
Captain (uncredited)
Thank You, Mr. Moto
(1937)
Prince Chung
Roaring Timber
(1937)
Crooner
Daughter of Shanghai
(1937)
Kim Lee
Something to Sing About
(1937)
Ito (Terry's servant)
Tex Rides with the Boy Scouts
(1937)
Sing Fung, Laundry Man
China Passage
(1937)
Fang Tu
Hawaii Calls
(1938)
Julius
Charlie Chan in Honolulu
(1938)
Wing Foo
Red Barry
(1938)
Hong Kong Cholly
Disputed Passage
(1939)
Dr. Fung
Panama Patrol
(1939)
Sun
North of Shanghai
(1939)
Chinese Doctor
Barricade
(1939)
Col. Wai Kang
King of Chinatown
(1939)
Robert 'Bob' Li
Drums of Fu Manchu
(1940)
Dr. Chang
The Shadow
(1940)
Wu Yung
They Met in Bombay
(1941)
Japanese officer (uncredited)
A Yank on the Burma Road
(1942)
Dr. Franklin Ling
Let's Get Tough
(1942)
Joe Matsui
China Girl
(1942)
Kai Young
Submarine Raider
(1942)
First Officer Kawakami
Ship Ahoy
(1942)
Koro Sumo
The Tuttles of Tahiti
(1942)
Emily's Servant (uncredited)
Across the Pacific
(1942)
Man in Theatre (uncredited)
China
(1943)
Lin Cho
Around the World
(1943)
Foo
December 7th
(1943)
Shinto Priest (uncredited)
Don Winslow of the Coast Guard
(1943)
Hirota
The Adventures of Smilin' Jack
(1943)
Wu Tan
The Amazing Mrs. Holliday
(1943)
Behind the Rising Sun
(1943)
Japanese Officer Murdering Takahashi
The Purple Heart
(1944)
Saburo Goto (uncredited)
The Keys of the Kingdom
(1944)
Mr. Pao, Envoy for Mr. Chia
Dragon Seed
(1944)
Leader of City People (uncredited)
The Story of Dr. Wassell
(1944)
Ping
They Were Expendable
(1945)
Army Orderly (uncredited)
Forever Yours
(1945)
Chinese Man (uncredited)
God Is My Co-Pilot
(1945)
Hong Kong Radio Announcer (uncredited)
Back to Bataan
(1945)
Col. Coroki
Betrayal from the East
(1945)
Kato
China Sky
(1945)
Dr. Kim
China's Little Devils
(1945)
Farmer
Singapore
(1947)
Jimmy - Bartender (uncredited)
Intrigue
(1947)
Louie Chin
The Chinese Ring
(1947)
Captain Kong
The Miracle of the Bells
(1948)
Ming Gow
The Creeper
(1948)
Ah Wong - Restaurant Owner
Rogues' Regiment
(1948)
Tran Duy Gian
Women in the Night
(1948)
Professor Kunioshi
The Cobra Strikes
(1948)
Kasim--Houseboy
Impact
(1949)
Ah Sing
Boston Blackie's Chinese Venture
(1949)
Wong Chung Shee
The Sickle or the Cross
(1949)
Chinese Official
State Department: File 649
(1949)
Col. Aram
The Big Hangover
(1950)
Dr. Lee
Secrets of Monte Carlo
(1951)
Wong
Halls of Montezuma
(1951)
Maj. Kenji Matsuoda (aka "Nomura")
I Was an American Spy
(1951)
Capt. Arito
China Corsair
(1951)
Wong San
Red Snow
(1952)
Taglu, a spy
Battle Zone
(1952)
South Korean Guerrilla Leader
Japanese War Bride
(1952)
Eitaro Shimizu
Macao
(1952)
Itzumi
Fair Wind to Java
(1953)
Gusti
Target Hong Kong
(1953)
Sin How
China Venture
(1953)
Adm. Amara
His Majesty O'Keefe
(1954)
Sien Tang, Dentist
The Shanghai Story
(1954)
Major Ling Wu
Hell's Half Acre
(1954)
Roger Kong
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
(1955)
Third Uncle
Jump Into Hell
(1955)
Chinese POW Lieutenant
The Left Hand of God
(1955)
Jan Teng
Around the World in Eighty Days
(1956)
Hong Kong Citizen (uncredited)
Battle Hymn
(1957)
Old Man
The Way to the Gold
(1957)
Mr. Ding - cafe owner
Hong Kong Confidential
(1958)
Tan Chung
Yesterday's Enemy
(1959)
Yamazuki
Never So Few
(1959)
Nautaung
The Great Impostor
(1960)
Capt. Hun Kim
One-Eyed Jacks
(1961)
Uncle
Diamond Head
(1962)
Mr. Immacona
Confessions of an Opium Eater
(1962)
Ching Foon
A Girl Named Tamiko
(1962)
Akiba
Shock Corridor
(1963)
Dr. Fong
Paradise, Hawaiian Style
(1966)
Moki Kaimana
Thoroughly Modern Millie
(1967)
Tea
The Karate Killers
(1967)
Sazami Kyushu
Cocoon
(1968)
Attorney General
The Sex Serum of Dr. Blake
(1970)
Mao Tse Tung (uncredited)
Kung Fu: The Way of the Tiger, the Sign of the Dragon
(1972)
Master Kan
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
(1973)
Chang (voice)
The Killer Who Wouldn't Die
(1976)
Soong
Data provided by TMDB