Toyo Fujita
1893 - 1959A Tokyo Siren
Norman Dawn
Tsuru Aoki, Jack Livingston
Dr. John Niblock is conducting research in Japan when he is called to revive Asuti Hishuri, who has fainted during her wedding ceremony. Upon learning that Asuti is being forced into a loveless marriage, the chivalrous John offers to marry the girl in name only and take her to America where she can be free. When John and his Japanese bride arrive in San Francisco, California, the doctor's former sweetheart appears heartbroken, and Asuti realizes that she is in love with Ito, her husband's secretary.
A Tokyo Siren
Bonds of Honor
William Worthington
Sessue Hayakawa, Tsuru Aoki
In this picture, Sessue Hayakawa is in a dual role, playing twin brothers. One of them, Yamashiro is serious and hardworking, while the other, Sadao, is a playboy. There is a girl, Toko-Ku, who loves them both, but really prefers the bad boy. Sadao encounters Paul Berkowitz in a gambling den and borrows far more money from him than he can ever pay back.
Bonds of Honor
Where Lights Are Low
Colin Campbell
Sessue Hayakawa, Togo Yamamoto
The Chinese prince T'Su Wong Shih loves Quan Yin, the daughter of a gardener, but his uncle wants him to marry a girl of his own class. Leaving to study in the United States, the young man promises his beloved that they two will be together soon. Having finished university, one day T'Su Wong Shih visits the market of San Francisco, and at an auction of slaves, he finds Quan Yin auctioned. To save her, he agrees to pay a price of five thousand dollars but, not possessing the full amount, he makes a deal with the auctioneer for a three-year extension in which he must work to raise the money needed to rescue the girl. T'Su Wong Shih has no great success until he manages to win a large sum in a lottery. However, Quan Yin is now in danger because a Chinese gangster wants to have it and, to do that, goes to threaten the auctioneer who is forced to comply. T'Su Wong Shih is then engaged in a struggle to liberate his beloved: he defeats the gangster, rescues Quan Yin and claims her as his...
Where Lights Are Low
The Courageous Coward
William Worthington
Sessue Hayakawa, Tsuru Aoki
Sessue Hayakawa was making the transition from Asian villain to sympathetic hero in this picture. The plot is a combination of racial stereotypes that were common in the U.S. during the silent era and real-life situations experienced by Asians living Stateside. Hayakawa plays Suki Iota, a student who, while born and bred in America, wants a wife with traditional Japanese values. She appears in the form of Rei (Tsuru Aoki, Hayakawa's real-life wife), a singer who becomes known as the Japanese Nightingale.
The Courageous Coward
Officer O'Brien
Tay Garnett
William Boyd, Ernest Torrence
Bill O'Brien is promoted to lieutenant in the police department for his arrest of Mike Patello, gang leader and racketeer, for murder. Ruth Dale, who loves Bill, is concerned when her brother, Johnny, who witnessed the murder, proposes to testify against the racketeer. Meanwhile, Captain Antrim informs Bill that his father has just been released from prison and does not know his son is a policeman. On the way from prison, O'Brien (J. P.) meets Limo, a former cockney pal who recognizes Bill and keeps J. P. from seeing his son; later, J. P. arrives intoxicated and is enraged, forcing Bill to knock him unconscious. J. P. is arrested for robbery but returns the loot to save his son from disgrace; Johnny is killed before testifying against Patello, who is released but confronted by J. P., who proves his guilt and, when he struggles with the police, kills him. Bill plans to resign, but confident of Ruth's love, he decides to remain on the force.
Officer O'Brien
