Chinese Exclusion Act passed in 1882-banning immigration of those who were of Chinese Heritage

National Origins Act passed in 1924 -banning immigration of those with Asian origins

Magnuson Act passed in 1943-repealed the The Chinese Exclusion Act, but not the National Origins Act

Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965-A  point when quotas and revisions of the former immigration Acts become more open to Asian immigration

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lum_v._Rice

“Sixteen Candles” The movie that featured  characterization of an Asian exchange student named “Long Duk Dong” played by Japanese American Gedde Watanabe I found this interview he did back in 2014 interesting. This movie of course also brought up a lot of questions for me with the way it portrayed an Asian character.

Do you remember auditioning for Sixteen Candles? I was living in New York and had been in the original cast of [Stephen Sondheim’s] Pacific Overtures and done work with the Public Theater and Joe Papp. My agent at the time sent me the script. It said the character of Long Duk Dong was a foreign exchange student and from Asia, but that was about it. To set myself apart, I asked a friend of mine who had a thick Korean accent if I could hang out with him and learn. I then went to the audition in character using my friend’s accent. Which wasn’t a very smart idea because I was basically lying and would have to tell them at some point that I only spoke English and was from Ogden, Utah. The casting director, Jackie Burch, was talking to me like I was from another country. Finally I had to admit I was lying. She wanted me for the role and said, “Don’t tell John.” So we kept it a secret until the table read in Chicago when I took him aside and said, “John, I have to tell you something ... ” He said, “Where’s your accent?” I was just so nervous telling him that I was afraid I’d get fired and aware of my own embarrassment that I’d told a huge lie. But John just had a big chuckle as if to say, “Boy, was I duped.”