From SFGate.com comes this idiotic column by author and commentator Emil Guillermo. I’ve annotated it out of sheer annoyance.
He banged. I resisted. And still do.
When I first saw Hong Kong-born UC Berkeley engineering student William Hung sing that Ricky Martin song on Fox’s “American Idol” last January, I tried to ignore it.
But, after Hung’s humiliation, there came a nice outpouring of sympathy for the rejected puppy dog.
Here was an accented Asian American with bad hair, bad teeth, bad moves and a bad accent. And even though he can’t sing, America still loved him.
OK. The glorification of bad is a nice twist. But I figured the joke would die off soon enough.
It hasn’t. And now I’m wondering why America is extending the joke.
Is there more than just the glorification of bad, something driven by racism?
Emil Guillermo: Race Pimp.
Three months after being told on “Idol” he could not sing, Hung is part of some kind of perfect storm to stardom.
Hung returns this week with a new CD on Koch Records, a music video on the Fuse Music Channel and all the accompanying national media attention, including a “Today” show appearance Friday.
For a taste of the Hung hype, get a load of a press release by Alan Grunblatt, general manager and executive vice president of Koch Records, which states, in part, “William is the perfect artist for our culturally diverse society. He is the new Elvis!”
I don’t begrudge a marketer his right to make a buck. But Colonel Tom Parker knew Elvis could really sing and dance. With William Hung, is there any other reason to extend the joke on America except that it plays to a racist image of the ineffectual Asian-American male?
Well, you’re getting a column out of it, ain’t you Emil? Emil Guillermo: Race Pimp.
What is Hung but an infantilized, incompetent and impotent male image? Strong? No. Virile? No. Sexy? The guy’s a virgin.
You can sell that?
You certainly wouldn’t see them glorify a black man who couldn’t sing and dance on “American Idol.” Nor would they prop up a clumsy, tone-deaf white person.
Certainly, there’d be no shortage of worthy candidates for Hung-like stardom. Regular “American Idol” viewers know tons of good singers have been rejected and abused by the show’s Simon Cowell.
The difference here? Hung is Asian American. And the accented-foreigner gag is still considered acceptable shtick in modern comedy — at least when it comes to Asian Americans.
Can I get an “Ah so”?
Uh, Emil? Just who is it who’s doing the “accented-foreigner shtick” here? Hint: it rhymes with Tee-mil Dee-uillermo, Space Gimp.
Intentionally or not, Koch and Fuse are updating a classic anti-Asian image — that of the Mickey Rooney character in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” complete with buck teeth, bad hair and bad accent. Rent the movie and cringe.
If they wanted to do a remake, they could just hire William Hung.
It wouldn’t be so bad if we saw positive images of Asian-American males in the media. But, for the most part, we’ve been invisible, and the images have usually come with martial-arts enhancements.
Bruce Lee’s combative persona has been the most virile and most enduring icon for Asian-American males. But the stereotypes that predominate are the sinister and inscrutable or ineffectual and effeminate.
One thing can be said for those who seek to exploit William Hung: He has not been asked to demonstrate any karate moves or threaten the American way of life.
Because it never even occurred to anyone but you, Emil. Or should I say, “it never even occurred to anyone but you, Emil Guillermo: Race Pimp.”
So, where’s the outrage? Even the Asian-American community seems to be taken by Hung.
“As Asian Americans, we look through this racial lens, and we see this guy who embodies all the stereotypes we’re trying to escape from,” said James Hou, a documentary filmmaker who explored Asian-American male sexuality in “Masters of the Pillow.”
Hou even saw the “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” link. But he doesn’t want to suppress Hung’s voice, nor his desire to be a singer.
“As an Asian-American male, I think he’s honest with himself,” said Hou, proud, in a strange way, that some dorky-looking Asian American with a Hong Kong accent and no singing talent is making it happen. “I respect what he’s doing.”
And what about Hung’s exploiters?
(Emil Guillermo: Race Pimp)
“I think the motivation is greed,” said Hou. “I think it would be racist if they didn’t make any money off of it, and they just wanted to make fun of him.”
Hou’s Faustian money-makes-it-all-right pragmatism surprises me, especially because he called Hung a “sideshow act” and admitted that the singer embarrasses Hou’s pals.
“But if he turns into a mega-star, if he’s really successful, I think it’s going to be positive,” said Hou. “With money comes power and fame. This guy has the potential to make hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars. Ask William Hung if he’s exploited.”
Spoken like a guy who wouldn’t mind trading places with Hung.
But one man who doesn’t have Hung envy and who sees the racism is Shaofan Li, Hung’s civil-engineering professor at UC Berkeley.
Li has all the answers, especially when you are looking to solve the differential equation for beam deflection.
Li, who said he is very concerned about his student, added that Hung scored an 80 (out of 100) in the first midterm in his class. That merits a grade of B, so Hung’s no dummy. But Li knows Hung is capable of an A — in engineering, not singing.
“I hope it comes to an end,” he said last week of the Hung hype.
Oh, I see. An Asian didn’t score higher on a midterm engineering exam, so clearly some sinister outside force must be conspiring against him. Otherwise, how to explain an Asian’s sub-par performance on a test involving mathematics? Because math is, like, genetic with these people. Argues Dr. Shaofan Li: Race Pimp.
More than Hung’s grades, Li is concerned for the young man’s well being. To him, the racism is clear.
Li said he sees how people ridicule Hung, single him out and extrapolate his virtues, or nonvirtues, to the entire racial class.
“I can see that some people are malicious,” said Li. “I’m not stupid.”
Dr. Shaofan Li: Race Pimp.
But understanding why the public likes Hung is more complex. “He doesn’t have singing talent,” said Li. “But he does have a unique personality.”
Li then described Hung as if he were some borderline messianic, cultlike figure. In watching Hung perform, Li notices how his student deals with the criticism and racism.
“Every time he faces the negative, he’s oblivious,” said Li. “Other people would become insane. He doesn’t. He takes it, absorbs it and turns it into a positive. He does it without thinking, naturally. Like Forrest Gump. Stupid is as stupid does.”
But the cluelessness is just his approach — he’s a lamb, not a lion. And it really is too bad he can’t sing or dance, because, as Li described it, Hung’s trying to turn this negative situation into a positive one.
From Li’s perspective, Hung is dealing, at the same time, with both the negative and positive forces that stem from his predicament.
“I learn from him,” said Li, who marvels at how Hung never gets upset in the face of adversity.
“You don’t want to criticize or make a big deal of your critics,” said Li. “You want to awaken [their] conscience. That’s what Hung did. If he gets upset, he only hurts himself.”
That would make Hung like some kind of Zen master who always turns the other cheek.
Ah-so. It’s a Zen thing, we wouldn’t understand. Emil Guillermo: Race Pimp
So, maybe there’s something for us to learn from this experience, even if the entertainment value of his talent is minimal.
But still, Hung’s professor hopes the civil-engineering student returns to his natural environment — his college studies — soon.
Does the student get it?
On the “Today” show last week, Hung played up his innocence and his extreme earnestness.
“I hope people will see me as a serious singer,” he said, “and take my singing seriously.”
Oh, boy. They have him believing the hype.
“They.” How sinister. Poor William, unable to fend for himself. Because he’s a weak messianic effeminate no-talent buck-toothed Zen lamb cult hero, presumably. Says Emil Guillermo: Race Pimp.
Hung doesn’t see himself reinforcing stereotypes with the lame dancing and the accented rhythmlessness of it all. He’s proud of his badness.
“They’re laughing at him — I know that,” said Li, touching on the racist nature of the exploitation.
(Or pointedly begging the question, you decide. Dr. Shaofan Li: Engineering Race Pimp).
“And, if it stretches out, the negativity will dominate. Someone has to draw the line. Prolonging the process will make it a big debacle.”
I’m with the professor. The joke has gone on too long. And it’s worse when the participant is so willing.
Emil Guillermo is a radio and TV commentator and the author of “Amok: Essays From an Asian American Perspective,” winner of an American Book Award. He’s also a grubby little Race Pimp. E-mail:
“Nor would they prop up a clumsy, tone-deaf white person.”
Two words: Tiny Tim
Oh, yeah. Somebody held a gun to William Hung’s head and forced him to appear on “American Idol”. Then somebody else held another gun to his head and forced him to sign that recording contract.
It’s really rare, as well, for a professor to observe that a “B” student ought to be an “A” student.
The Race Pimp probably thinks that we should all feel sorry for “sinister . . .inscrutable . . ineffectual and effeminate” (ethnically Chinese, born in Paris, raised in the United States) Yo-Yo Ma, the most popular classical musician in the United States (most popular for good reasons, I would add).
So they keep the talentless minority guy around so they can laugh at him behind his back? Interesting observation, and I have to agree that it is painfully true. But enough about Mr. Guillermo, R.P.
the kid is just funny and fun to watch, and he’s getting attention for it. to smart, hip guys like Emil Guillermo, RP and Shaofan Li, RP, PhD this is clearly mean-spirited and racist on the part of anyone pretending to enjoy Hung’s act. and taking attention away from legitimate performers like … Emil Guillermo, RP.
P.S. interesting Amazon.com factoid: purchasers of Guillermo’s book also bought books by J.K. Rowling, and no one else. now that’s an interesting demographic…
Jesus … it just goes on and on and on.
Emil Guerrero is a Filipino name, right? The funny thing about this “Asian-American” nonsense is that he has about as much in common with my Chinese wife, culturally or physically, as I do. If he told her that “we are all Asians” she would just look at him. And if he had said that to a Japanese soldier sixty years ago, I imagine he would have gotten his head whacked clean off his body.
“Nor would they prop up a clumsy, tone-deaf white person.”
Best refutation ever: Mrs. Miller.
s/Guerrero/Guillermo/g
Not enough coffee and too much baseball on my mind.
Didn’t South Park actually do this first in the “Timmy & the Lords of the Underworld” episode?
I couldn’t watch “Brother Bear” (yes, I’m one of the nine people in the world who saw it in the theater) without thinking, “I fink itz a cwying shame whut they’re doing tuh that poowah kid.”
Great catch, Jeff. Lots of fun reading your rejoinders.
“Only white people can be figures of fun—ever.” That is the premise here, right?
Thank God we have somebody like Emil Guillermo around to point out the inherent racism in William Hung’s popularity. All this time, we foolishly thought we liked him for his infectious spirit and tenacity. Not to mention that his famous line (“I have no regrets. I did my best”) was the best rebuke to Simon’s callous, “how dare you appear before me with no talent” sneering that show has ever heard. All this time, I had no idea that I was only laughing at the dancing Asian freak.
Fortunately, we have people as enlightened as Mr. Guillermo who bravely refuses to look past race and see William Hung not as an individual, but rather how he represents the Asian American race as a whole.
Thank you, Emil Guillermo. In the future, when we bestow the next allotment of fifteen minutes to the next silly craze, we will make sure the person in question in inoffensively white.
Lance Bass still has a job. He’s no William Hung, of course.
These uberserious media critics are missing something: William Hung is a slapdown of Simon Cowell and the would-be starmakers. Hung’s little fame experiment REALLY PISSES Cowell off, which makes him (Hung) a hero as far as I’m concerned.
Well done, William Hung!
“You certainly wouldn’t see them glorify a black man who couldn’t sing and dance”
Ever heard of Biz Markie? He was doing this stuff 20 years ago.
Oh, and to add on: Who is exploiting whom? The nebulous “Them” who are (allegedly) laughing at William Hung?
Or William Hung, who has become the one breakout American Idol star so far? Hell, even Ed Grimley, er, Clay Aiken had to wait for the show to finish before he release an album and did the whole tour thing.
Should a professor really be telling reporters what their students make on exams, regardless of said professor’s race pimp status? Isn’t there some privacy issue involved here?
Michael Morgan,
Yes, there is – and it can be very serious, but only if it is done by the non-PC. PC-racism is the highest form of PC and therefore always get a pass.
Privacy issue? Yes, FERPA
ROTFL!!!!”So they keep the talentless minority guy around so they can laugh at him behind his back? Interesting observation, and I have to agree that it is painfully true. But enough about Mr. Guillermo, R.P.”
That was just so funny!! I thought it was worth cutting, pasting and putting out for everyone to enjoy again. Hilarious column and comments all!
PS…I like Hung – and I’m laughing with him. I think he’s cute and loveable and since I’m not a race pimp – it has nothing to do with his race.
Er… What’s a “race pimp”? Because I think I agree with your points here, but that vague phrase leaves me unsure.
What’s a race pimp?
Think about it a second. A pimp has one thing to sell, and that is something he doesn’t produce. He tries to sell it to anyone and everyone. If he succeeds, he collects most of the proceeds of someone else getting screwed.
A race pimp is someone who tries to sell that race the explanation for everything. When the race pimp gets paid off with things like newspaper column gigs, tenured faculty positions, CNN shows, that ends up screwing anyone who’s interested in truth.
PPS this totally makes up for sending me down the rabbit hole on that hitandrun thing on the Fed Bureaucracy memo. yeesh! my ears are still ringing.
So I gather you are hinting at something about this Eric Guillermo?
I don’t get it.
proud? I’m asian-american and i cringed everytime i see him on tv.
he’s still popular not because people really like him; he’s still popular because they continue to laugh at him.
Two Words:
Wesley Willis
OK… Who in the hell is William Hung? I’m no hermit, I keep up with pop culture, blah blah blah, and I have never in my life heard of this human being.
Granted, I don’t watch “American Idol”—plague of modern television AND music—but here this Hung character is characterized as known well outside the confines of that single show.
I mean, do all of you actually watch “American Idol,” or are you picking up on this supposed Hung phenomenon via some other conduit? I AM AN OBSESSIVE NEWS FREAK, AND I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF WILLIAM HUNG.
word?)
He appeared in just about every promo for AI before the season, and he occasionally still appears in promos. So you don’t even have to watch the show to have seen him—just have watched the Fox network at some point.
But this’ll get you started…
Floyd: “Emil Guillermo” is a Spanish name. Of course, due to being part of Spain’s empire for so long, Spanish has become part of the culture there, and a lot of the population has Spanish names. However, I have no idea if this Guillermo (Spanish version of “William,” btw, ironically) is Filipino or not. He could be—California has a large Filipino population.
And I have never watched American Idol, nor will I ever, and therefore neither know nor care who this William Hung person is. Oops, I guess Anne will think I’m a racist now.
It wouldn’t be so bad if we saw positive images of Asian-American males in the media. But, for the most part, we’ve been invisible, and the images have usually come with martial-arts enhancements.
Does this guy watch television? What about B.D. Wong, currently occupying a (non-accented, non-stereotypical) role in two of the Law & Order series? He plays a psychologist who probably doesn’t have a martial arts bone in his body.
Super stuff. It’s good to see true racism exposed.
Damn, am I glad I’m not in Dr. Shaofan Li’s class. I can just imagine the radiating waves of disapproval he’d send my way if my lily-white ass dared to do well on the material.
And Anne…? I’d rather have the earnest and good-natured William at one of my parties than a race-obsessed lemon-sucker like you.
Toren. Now there’s a guy whose site I miss… Hope all’s well.