Frank Yan's Oral History

Yan_Frank-omeka.jpg

Title

Frank Yan's Oral History

Subject

Chinatowns
Chinese--Migrations
Chinese American grocers
Chinese Americans--Employment
Chinese Americans--California--Los Angeles
Chinese Americans--Social conditions
Chinese Americans--Social life and customs
Education
United States--Emigration and immigration--History

Description

Frank Yan introduces his mother’s background in Portland, Oregon, where his grandfather ran several businesses before returning to China when his mother was a teenager. He describes his parents’ arranged marriage in Toisan, his mother’s experiences in a Communist re-education labor camp, and how his mother escaped to Hong Kong and acquired visas for the family to immigrate to San Francisco in 1955 when Yan was one. Yan shares his early memories at the Chinese market his father opened in Tuscon, Arizona before opening a gift shop in Chinatown, Los Angeles, where Yan became one of the “Chung King Road Kids” directly represented in Leo Politi’s children’s book “Moy Moy.” Yan describes working at Hong Sang Lung market, joining Jeff Yang’s Golden Lion Dancers troupe, and attending Castelar Elementary School and Chinese school, where he describes his favorite childhood games and local foods. He concludes his interview about his “enjoyable childhood” by mentioning a prank in a cooking class, working at a drive-in hamburger stand in Inglewood, and how his mother’s home cooking gained demand in Chinatown.

Creator

Phun, Juily
Yan, Frank

Source

Asian American Pacific Islander Oral History Project

Publisher

California State University, Los Angeles

Date

2017-04-19

Contributor

Jeong, Sae Hee "Keshy"

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Format

mp3

Language

eng

Type

Sound

Identifier

Yan_Frank_01.mp3

Coverage

Hong Kong
Inglewood (Calif.)
Los Angeles (Calif.)
Portland (Or.)
San Francisco (Calif.)
Tucson (Ariz.)

Location

Los Angeles (Calif.)

Duration

01:40:40

Citation

Phun, Juily and Yan, Frank, “Frank Yan's Oral History,” California State University - Los Angeles, accessed July 26, 2025, https://calstatela-exhibits.libraryhost.com/items/show/806.