Mr. Wong (web series)
Mr. Wong is an internet television series which debuted in 2000 and lasted 13 episodes (an unaired 14th episode was made available for the DVD release). It features the adventures of a Chinese American butler for a wealthy socialite WASP named Miss Pam.[1] He previously worked as a butler for Bing Crosby and often mourns him. It has developed a cult following whilst being hosted on the website Icebox.com, which also features independently made cartoons such as Queer Duck. But the cartoon has drawn fierce criticisms from the Asian American community who viewed it as racist.[2][3]
Mr. Wong | |
---|---|
Genre | Black comedy Adult animation |
Created by | Pam Brady and Kyle McCulloch |
Voices of | Pam Brady Kyle McCulloch |
Theme music composer | Fuzzbee Morse, Davy Jones |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 13 |
Production | |
Running time | 3–4 minutes (episodes are two parts) |
Production company(s) | Icebox, Mondo Mini Shows, National Lampoon |
Release | |
Picture format | Flash cartoon |
Original release | 2000 – 2001 |
External links | |
Website |
Mr Wong's creators, Pam Brady and Kyle McCulloch, also write for the television series South Park.[4] The DVD was released under the "National Lampoon's Presents" banner.
The music for Mr. Wong was composed and performed by Fuzzbee Morse.
The theme song was sung by former Monkees lead singer Davy Jones.
List of episodes
Film
In September 2000 a direct to video film adaptation of Mr. Wong called "Crap Attack" was in negotiation between IceBox Incorporated and Artisan Entertainment, however, when the film was publicly announced by Artisan president Bill Block the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans initiated a letter-writing campaign that successfully convinced Artisan to drop the project. The Coalition later took out an advertisement in Daily Variety criticizing the cartoon and thanking Artisan for abandoning the movie project.[5][6][7][8]
Reception
The character has had a negative reaction from critics in the mainstream media and Asian American groups, yet maintains a limited cult following.[2][9][3][10][11][12]
References
- Robischon, Noah (2000-06-23). "Drawing Power". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
- Liu, Marian (2000-07-31). "Funny or Racist? 'Mr. Wong' Draws Mixed Reaction". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
- Liu, Marian (2011-06-24). "Asian Americans Divided Over Web's 'Mr. Wong' / Cartoon series offends some -- others laugh". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
- "National Lampoon's "Mr. Wong"". UCLA. 2002-04-09. Archived from the original on 2008-06-25. Retrieved 2008-10-06.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
- "Death to Mr. Wong".
- "Asian-American groups object to "Mr. Wong"".
- "Artisan Ends Talk To Turn "Mr. Wong" Into Film". Variety.
- "IceBox's Mr. Wong Direct-To-Video Plans Melt". AWN.
- Gross, Larry P.; Katz, John Stuart; Ruby, Jay (2003). Image Ethcs in the Digital Age - Larry P. Gross, John Stuart Katz, Jay Ruby - Google Books. ISBN 9780816638253. Retrieved 2012-11-30.
- "Steve Stanford of Icebox.com on Internet cartoons". CNN. 2000-09-10. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
- "Mr. Wong, Miss Swan: Asian Stereotypes Attacked". E!. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
- "Wong cartoon draws ire of Asian Americans". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2011-11-20.