As a keen martial arts practitioner, I was eager to watch the 1984 movie, "The Karate Kid," when it was released. In the film, the Japanese American actor Noriyuki "Pat" Morita plays the unassuming Mr. Miyagi, a martial arts expert and bonsai master. Morita was born in California, so his accent as a Japanese character speaking English had to be faked and his grammar corrupted -- a Hollywood requisite for Asian roles at the time. Instructing his young American protege in the correct procedure for bonsai trimming, he declares, "Close eye. Trust. ... Think only tree. ... Wipe your mind clean everything but tree."
Tea Leaves
Hollywood's skewed view of Japan
Caricatures and lurid plot lines have shaped Western attitudes
Mickey Rooney's portrayal of the Japanese character Mr. Yunioshi in the 1961 movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's" leaned into ugly stereotypes, prompting one reviewer to write, "The role is a caricature and may be offensive to some." (Getty Images)
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