Sessue Hayakawa

Sessue Hayakawa was a Japanese-American actor who rose to fame in Hollywood during the silent film era. He was the first actor of Asian descent to achieve stardom as a leading man in the United States and Europe. He was known for his broodingly handsome looks and his roles as a forbidden lover or a charismatic villain. He became one of the first male sex symbols of Hollywood and a romantic idol for millions of American women, despite the racial discrimination and stereotypes of his time. He was also one of the highest paid stars of his time, earning $5,000 per week in 1915, and $2 million per year through his own production company from 1918 to 1921. He starred in over 80 feature films, and three of his films (The Cheat, The Dragon Painter, and The Bridge on the River Kwai) stand in the United States National Film Registry. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Colonel Saito in The Bridge on the River Kwai in 1957. He also appeared in other notable films such as The Typhoon, The Wrath of the Gods, The Tong Man, The Sheik, The Swiss Family Robinson, and Hell to Eternity. He was married to actress Tsuru Aoki, who co-starred with him in several films. They adopted three children and raised them in Japan. Hayakawa died of cerebral thrombosis in Tokyo in 1973, at the age of 87. He is buried at Nakano Cemetery in Tokyo. He is regarded as a pioneer and a legend of Asian-American cinema.