He was proud to be an American. Not a stereotype.
October 28, 1917: Gorō Suzuki, later known as Jack Soo, was born on a ship in the Pacific Ocean.
His parents were sailing from the United States to Japan. They wanted their first child to be born there, but he arrived a little too early. The family later returned to the United States, and Gorō grew up in the Oakland, California, area. His father worked as a tailor and his mother as a dressmaker.
The Suzukis found a close community at the Oakland Japanese Methodist Church. Gorō sang for the congregation, imitated famous singers, and performed in plays around San Francisco.
At 17, he won an award from the Japanese American Citizens League for an essay titled “Why I’m Proud to be an American.”
In 1942, Executive Order 9066 upended his life, as it did for thousands of other Japanese Americans. He and his family were sent first to the Tanforan Assembly Center in California, then to the Topaz War Relocation Center in Utah.
Becoming Jack Soo
He kept performing. He and fellow incarcerees organized comedy acts, talent shows and musicals, and he served as master of ceremonies. He often used humor to act out the daily experiences of the people around him.
By June 1943, he had been cleared to leave Topaz for work in Cleveland, Ohio. By December, he was working in nightclubs, and he became known around Akron and Cleveland for his club acts and his radio performances.
Then his Japanese heritage was discovered, and he was pulled off the radio. Most sources say this is when Gorō Suzuki became Jack Soo, a name that let him pass as Chinese in a country hostile to people of Japanese descent.
Not a Stereotype
He went on to work as an actor, comedian and singer. His breakout role came in the Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway musical Flower Drum Song, alongside Miyoshi Umeki. He later appeared in the 1961 film version, which also starred James Shigeta, Umeki, and Nancy Kwan.
About three decades after Executive Order 9066 sent him to Topaz, Soo joined the cast of Barney Miller in 1975. The network sitcom followed the detectives of a fictional Manhattan police precinct. He played Nick Yemana, a dry-witted, philosophical Japanese American detective.
The series ran from 1975 to 1982. It was celebrated for its multi-ethnic, multi-racial cast, with Puerto Rican, Jewish, Black and Asian American officers in the squad room.
Yemana was known for his deadpan humor and his awful coffee.
Proud American
Soo played the role for about four and a half seasons, and his mug, nameplate and badge from the show have been displayed at the National Museum of American History.
Biographies say he refused roles that demeaned Asian Americans, spoke out against negative ethnic portrayals, and insisted on being recognized as an American. By turning down stereotypes, he helped open the door for Asian American actors who came after him.
He died on January 11, 1979, at age 61, partway through the fifth season of Barney Miller. The show marked his loss with a clips episode. Hal Linden, who played Captain Barney Miller, recalled how Soo gave Yemana humor about his Japanese American heritage, along with dignity and pride.
At 17, he wrote about being proud to be an American. For the rest of his career, he asked to be seen as one.