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Welcome to Japanifornia's J-Wiki where we track Japanese American (Nikkei) character actor's appearances in the early days of Asian Representation—some good, some cringe, but all interesting. See our listings for shows like or from the 1960s and 1970s.

As of 25 November 2024 this wiki contains a total of 745 articles.

Check Out: Marvel_Stories_Set_in_Japan

Edna Mode Hāfu People (and characters) who are half Japanese.	Jack Soo Nikkei People of Japanese ancestry born, or living long-term, outside of Japan.	Bad News Bears Go To Japan Gaijin in Japan Non-Japanese in Japan.
Nihonjin in the West Nihonjin in the West Japanese born in Japan, often living outside of Japan, who have achievements associated with their time outside of Japan	Japanifornia Locations Japanifornia Locations Locations that exist in the Japanifornia Universe, from video game settings to fictional movie locations.	George Takei Nikkei who were Interned Notable Japanese Americans who spent time in an American Internment Camp during WWII.
Helen Funai The 1970s The Age of Independence: When kids roamed free, TV was on a strict schedule, and the music was on vinyl. I lived in the mid-west and found my movies on UHF channels, usually on Saturday afternoons.	Mr. Miyagi The 1980s The Cable Age: So many channels, so little that's good. We made mix tapes and bumped them in our Sony Walkman or car stereo. I was living in Baltimore or going to college in New York.	E. Honda The 1990s The Console Age: Alternative lifestyles, and the rise of the Digital Age. Our music was on CD, which you could buy new or used. We wore a lot of flannel and black jeans. I, myself, lived in San Franokyo.

Suggested Starting Points:

• Japanese Comic Book Characters
• Japanese in American Pop Culture

We tend to follow rabbit holes for Japanese and Japanese American character actors from the 70s and 80s.

Japanifornia Icons

• Miyoshi Umeki the first Eastr-Asian actor to win an Academy Award for her role in Sayonara in 1957.
• Larry Shinoda, a Japanese American car designer who designed the Chevrolet Corvette and the Ford Mustang.
• Yuri Kochiyama an American Civil Rights activist who worked with Malcom X in Harlem.
• Hiroshi Fujiwara, the Godfather of Streetwear from Japan, who collaborated with Tinker Hatfield and Mark Parker at Nike to produce the HTM sub-brand.
• Steve Yano, who with Dr. Dre and Tony A. Da Wizard, produced and sold the Roadium Mixed Tapes at Roadium Swap Meet in Gardena, California in the early 1980s.
• Wataru Misaka broke the color barrier in professional basketball when he played three games for the New York Knicks in 1947.
• Sessue Hayakawa was a Japanese actor and matinee idol during the silent film era of the 1910s and early 1920s.
• Sono Osato was a half Japanese dancer in the 30s, and later an activist and philanthropist.
• Isamu Noguchi was a half Japanese sculptor and artists.
• Rocky Aoki founder of Benihana, and incorrigible 60s and 70s philanderer.

ChatGPT Nikkei Top Ten

• Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014, human rights activist
• Michio Kaku, born in 1947, theoretical physicist and science communicator
• Ellison Onizuka, 1946-1986, astronaut who died in the Challenger space shuttle disaster
• Kristi Yamaguchi, born in 1971, Olympic gold medalist figure skater
• Sab Shimono, born in 1943, actor and director
• Fred Korematsu, 1919-2005, civil rights activist
• Sessue Hayakawa, 1889-1973, actor and producer
• Patsy Mink, 1927-2002, first woman of color elected to the U.S. Congress
• Richard Aoki, 1938-2009, civil rights activist and member of the Black Panther Party
• Steven Okazaki - documentary filmmaker who has won numerous awards, including an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject in 1991.