The United States mint is about to start circulating coins with actress Anna May Wong’s picture, the first Asian American to achieve this feat.
Dubbed Hollywood’s first Asian American movie star, Wong championed the need for more representation and less stereotypical roles for Asian Americans on screen.
The roles she did land were laced with racial stereotypes and she was underpaid, earning $6,000 for her top-billed role in Daughter of the Dragon compared to Warner Oland’s $12,000, who only appeared in the first 23 minutes of the film.
Anna, who died in 1961, struggled to land roles in Hollywood in the early 20th century, a time of “yellowface,” when white people wore makeup and clothes to take on Asian roles, and anti-miscegenation laws, which criminalized interracial relationships.
After experiencing this racist treatment in Hollywood, Wong moved to Europe and starred in English, French and German films.
Anna May’s career spanned 60 films — many in the silent era — and she earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960.
The U.S. Mint’s American Women Quarters Program celebrates five female trailblazers in American history each year between 2022 and 2025.
Wong is featured on the fifth coin released this year. The U.S. Mint is expected to produce more than 300 million Wong quarters at facilities in Philadelphia and Denver.
The tail of the coins will show a close-up of Wong with her head resting on her hand, while the front will feature a portrait of George Washington created by 20th-century sculptor Laura Gardin Fraser, who became the first woman to design a coin for the U.S. in 1921.
