Keye Luke

Keye Luke 陸錫麒
Luke in Charlie Chan publicity photo
Born	(1904-06-18)June 18, 1904 Guangzhou, China
Died	January 12, 1991(1991-01-12) (aged 86) Whittier, California, U.S.
Cause of death	Stroke
Resting place	Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier
Nationality	American
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1934–1991
Spouse(s)	Ethel Davis (1942–1979; her death)
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Keye Luke (Chinese: 陸錫麒, Cantonese: Luk Shek Kee; June 18, 1904 – January 12, 1991) was a Chinese-born American actor. He was known for playing Lee Chan, the "Number One Son" in the Charlie Chan films, the original Kato in the 1939–1941 Green Hornet film serials, Brak in the 1960s Space Ghost cartoons, Master Po in the television series Kung Fu, and Mr. Wing in the Gremlins films. He was the first Chinese-American contract player signed with RKO, Universal Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and was one of the most prominent Asian actors of American cinema in the mid-twentieth century.

Luke was born in Guangzhou, China, to a father who owned an art shop, but grew up in Seattle. He was part of the Luke family, a relative of Wing Luke, for whom Seattle's Wing Luke Asian Museum was named. He had four siblings who all emigrated from China to California during the Depression. His younger brother Edwin Luke also became an actor in the Charlie Chan series. In Seattle, Luke attended Franklin High School, where he contributed cartoons and illustrations to school publications. Keye Luke became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1944—in a moment fictionally recreated in Lisa See's novel Shanghai Girls.