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ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
LISA LING & RICK YUNE
(Updated
Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 06:06:48 PM)
he's the most watched Asian woman on American TV. He's the year's hottest Asian American movie hunk. She's 26. He's 29. She's 5-5. He's 6-1. She's Chinese. He's Corean. Both are unquestionably American. She's daringly bubbly. He's recklessly intense. What makes them special to many AA minds is that they defied the odds and the unwritten laws of the American media to become the lone bona fide Asian American star couple.
Rick Yune was barely one when his family left his native Seoul, Corea for Silver Springs, Maryland. His education has been enviably ivy-covered -- private schools topped off by a Wharton MBA. Then came a stint as a Wall Street stock trader and modeling for Versace and Polo. He made a memorable film debut in December 1999 as a young Japanese American husband accused of murder in Snow Falling on Cedars. Yune's character walks and gets the girl. A breathless Newsweek profile didn't hurt his career. His intense and classic Asian features add sizzle to The Fast and the Furious (2001) and will undoubtedly do the same for The Fence (2001).
Lisa Ling is a Sacramento native who got her start in TV at the age of 15 as a reporter for a syndicated teen magazine show called Scratch. Just as she was about to leave for Boston University, Channel One asked her to become one of its peripatetic on-air reporters. She attended USC while working full-time at Channel One's Hollywood studio. All her dates at USC were white, it's rumored. Soon after graduating she joined the panel of The View, ABC's popular daytime talkshow and began spending time with a Disney exec named Morgan Wandell. The fact that Disney is ABC's parent company led to resentment and innuendo. What really raised AA eyebrows was an Old Navy commercial showing Ling cavorting with a group of men and uttering the line "I like my men strong and good-looking". The beef? None of the five men are Asian.
Little wonder that many were skeptical of rumors that surfaced in early 2000 that Ling and Yune had become a couple. Some speculate that it's a sign that Asian men are ascendant. Others suspect it's just Ling's effort at rehabilitating her image with her Asian American viewership. Still others are just glad to see an Asian-Asian star couple at long last.
What do you think?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
In response to the comment about Lisa Ling not being qualified to be a day time host, she is well qualified. It's time we have Asians representing! I am tired of this black and white society. What about other races? There are not only two races. And besides who are we to judge whether a couple is a good match or not. As far as I'm concerned, if they choose to be together, I have no comments!
Proud azn girl
Sunday, March 24, 2002 at 20:56:59 (PST)
The fact is that AM/AF outnumber any other marriage group by an order of 6:1 and are the most common couple in the world.
Asian Studs
Saturday, March 23, 2002 at 06:56:43 (PST)
I think it's fine. I don't think it's a matter of being white-washed or not-white-washed. What does the term really mean anyway, if you think about it? So in order to be "down" with the Asians, Lisa Ling would have to speak with a shitty accent, wear qi-pao's on The View, and only talk about BUBBLE TEA, GINSENG, and KUNG FU, right??! Give me a break!!
I don't like her though. I think she's too timid on the View, she tries too hard to seem interested, and she really isn't too good of a speaker. She just isn't assertive enought to do day-time talk shows.
Replace her with the likes of Coco Lee or Lucy Liu and then we'd be rockin'. We need someone who's fun, cool, and confident.
my 2 cents
Thursday, March 21, 2002 at 16:17:01 (PST)
I think rick yune should be with Halle Berry. Lisa Ling is a white want to be
who needs an identity check.
latina loving korean hombre
Thursday, March 14, 2002 at 22:07:02 (PST)
What's wrong? There's absolutely nothing wrong with this picture! Relax, everyone.... I'm happy for Rick and Lisa.
Minna Kim Vancouver, BC Canada minna19722001@yahoo.ca
Thursday, March 07, 2002 at 18:11:14 (PST)
It's incredible how biased this write-up is about Lisa Ling. From what I know of Rick Yune, he only dated white girls before he started dating Lisa. They're a great couple and people need to stop making ugly assumptions about their relationship. Get a life. Lisa and Rick rock!
realist
Thursday, February 21, 2002 at 15:51:08 (PST)
i think it is great! She is adorable and he is hot! They are cute together. It should not make a difference what color or race she dates. Wake up America!
winter garden girl ssherratt@pgmusa.com
Wednesday, February 20, 2002 at 14:19:46 (PST)
there are so few asian couples on tv, that even if it doesn't last, I'm glad they are together.
I don't think that LL is doing a fake couple thing for looks only. She doesn't "have" to do this. Besides, who cares?? why don't we mind our own business. What the hell is white washed to do with this anyway?
LL + RY is ok by me.
Tuesday, February 05, 2002 at 20:58:11 (PST)
K-girl from SF,
What you said exposes the typical passive Asian mentality. Look at the Jews. They did't adopt Anglo cultures. And the blacks, they even mock white people in their shows. We don't need to sell ourselves to the whites in order to succeed.
FOP
Tuesday, February 05, 2002 at 13:12:56 (PST)
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