The Tong Man is a 1919 American thriller film directed by William Worthington and produced by Haworth Pictures Corporation.[1][2]

The Tong Man
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Directed byWilliam Worthington
Written byRichard Schayer (scenario)
Based onThe Dragon’s Daughter
by Clyde Westover
Produced byGeorge W. Stout
StarringSessue Hayakawa
CinematographyFrank D. Williams
Production
company
Haworth Pictures Corporation
Distributed byRobertson-Cole Distributing Corporation
Release date
  • December 14, 1919 (1919-12-14)
Running time
5 reels
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)
The Tong Man

The Tong Man survives and is available on home video.[3] The film has long been preserved by the Library of Congress.[4]

Plot

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As described in a film magazine,[5] Luk Chen (Hayakawa), whose heart beats for Sen Chee (Eddy) and for her alone, is commissioned by the tong of which he is a member to murder her father for failure to deliver her to Ming Tai (Roberts), a power in San Francisco's Chinatown. His love proves stronger than his sense of duty and he fails to execute the command, so Ming Tai performs the duty in his stead. Ming Tai then abducts Sen Chee. Luk Chen effects a rescue and they conceal themselves in a dungeon belonging to Ming Tai. Their enemy discovers them and for a time it seems their end is only seconds away. They are then rescued and make their way by boat to China.

Cast

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References

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  1. ^ Miyao, Daisuke (28 March 2007). Sessue Hayakawa: Silent Cinema and Transnational Stardom. Duke University Press. p. 183. ISBN 978-0-8223-3969-4.
  2. ^ Haenni, Sabine (2008). The Immigrant Scene: Ethnic Amusements in New York, 1880-1920. University of Minnesota Press. p. 292. ISBN 978-0-8166-4981-5.
  3. ^ The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: The Tong Man
  4. ^ Catalog of Holdings The American Film Institute Collection and The United Artists Collection at The Library of Congress, (<-book title) p.186 c.1978 by The American Film Institute
  5. ^ "Reviews: The Tong Man". Exhibitors Herald. 10 (2). New York City: Exhibitors Herald Company: 62. January 10, 1920.
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