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Television's Hasian Persuasion
This week's San Francisco Gate takes a look at the recent upsurge in television's hot Asian ("Hasian") male factor and asks the enduring question, "Have we come a long way, baby?"The author Jeff Yang surveys People's "Sexiest Man Alive" issue and answers in the affirmative thanks to the presence of Survivor's Yul Kwon, Lost's Daniel Dae Kim and John Cho, formerly of Kitchen Confidential. While Yang sticks to East Asia, if you throw in South Asian actors Naveen Andrews of Lost and Sendhil Ramamurthy of Heroes, you start to get more evidence that Hollywood's worst crimes of representation might be behind it.
Dissent in the ranks, however, comes from Single Asian Female comic author Ethan Lee who points out that most women, even Asian-American women, would rather date George Clooney.
Yang also hints at the monkey wrench in the positive spin when he notes that the sexiest Asian man on television to him is doughy, defiantly dorky Masi Oka of Heroes. In Hollywood, transcending ethnicity seems to be more an issue of washboard abs and pumped-up pecs than anything else. Show us the full spectrum of Asian beauty, and then you may have an argument for a true, optimistic upswing in multi-ethnic casting.
In the meantime, we'll take all the Daniel Dae Kims we can get. Speaking of which, Kim isn't fairing too well in the People Magazine online poll for "sexiest Lost cast member" or star whose hair you'd like to "run your hands through." Lend a hot Asian actor a hand, and vote.
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