King of Chinatown (1939)

We're finally going to see the first Asian-American on US currency in the year 2022 – the outstanding Anna May Wong.

Anna May Wong is considered by many to be the first Chinese-American Hollywood movie star. She starred in dozens of productions, with some of the more famous ones being Shanghai Express (1932), Java Head (1934), and The Toll of the Sea (1922), which was one of the very first films made in color.

Wong was an actress and activist whose career spanned silent film, sound film, television, stage, and radio.

She was the first prominent Asian-American actress, she used her time and money to help the Chinese during World War II and the Second Sino-Japanese War, and she challenged the way Asians were treated throughout her entire career.

It's no wonder that Anna May Wong will be the first Asian-American on US currency through the 2022 - 2025 American Women Quarters series. Though it's long, long overdue.