The Movies of Anna May Wong

Anna May Wong was a famous actress from the early motion picture industry. She's famous for her roles in movie hits like Piccadilly and The Thief of Bagdad, but also because she was the first Chinese-American to light up the silver screen. Like her contemporary Josephine Baker, Wong had to cross some pretty thick racial lines in the 1920s and 1930s, and managed to succeed and thrive.

The Museum of the Moving Image starts a deep retrospective of Wong's roles this Saturday, screening 18 films in the next seven weeks. Several of the silent films will be enhanced by live music. My pick is The Thief of Bagdad (3/18), which launched Wong to stardom, and was written by leading man Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. Oh -- And the best title has got to be The Pavement Butterfly (3/11), in which Wong flees to the Riviera and cavorts as a 1920s flapper.

• Anna May Wong - Film Retrospective
• March 4 - April 16, 2006; Film schedule
• With museum admission $10/$7.50 seniors/$5 ages 5-18, reduced rates for groups
• Museum of the Moving Image, 35th Ave at 36th St, Astoria