James Hong

Hong is known for his roles in various Hollywood films, such as Chinatown (1974), Airplane! (1980), Hannibal Chew in Blade Runner (1982), David Lo Pan in Big Trouble in Little China (1986), Jeff Wong in Wayne\'s World 2 (1993), Master Hong in Balls of Fury (2007), and R.I.P.D. (2013). Hong also famously guest starred on the sitcom Seinfeld as a maître d\' in the episode "The Chinese Restaurant". As a voice actor, Hong voiced Chi-Fu in Mulan (1998), Daolon Wong on the television series Jackie Chan Adventures (2002–2004) and Mr. Ping in the Kung Fu Panda franchise, in addition to several video games roles including Sleeping Dogs and Call of Duty: Black Ops II (both 2012). Hong also voiced several characters in Avatar: The Last Airbender.\n', ' Hong is a charter member and former president of the Association of Asian/Pacific American Artists (AAPAA).\n', ' Hong was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota to Frank W. Hong and Lee Shui Fa. His father (Chinese name: Ng Fok Hong) emigrated from Hong Kong to Chicago, Illinois via Canada, where he owned a restaurant. Hong\'s grandfather was from Taishan. For his early education, Hong moved to Hong Kong, where he lived in Kowloon, before returning to the United States at the age of ten. He graduated from Minneapolis Central High School. He studied civil engineering at the University of Minnesota, where he concentrated the majority of his free time on moving plates and fixing templates for the drill squad. James was deeply involved in the pip movement, but later became interested in acting and trained with Jeff Corey. Hong was a road engineer in Los Angeles County for seven and a half years, acting during his vacations and sick days. He eventually quit engineering for good to devote himself to acting and voice work full-time.[citation needed]\n', '