Daniel Dae Kim Raises $55,000 to Help Get James Hong a Hollywood Walk of Fame Star
“Lost” and “The Good Doctor” actor Daniel Dae Kim has successfully crowdfunded $55,000 in an attempt to get actor James Hong a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Hong, an American-born actor of Chinese descent, has over 600 film and television credits to his name over a career that has spanned nearly seven decades and counting. Hong’s credits include “Chinatown,” “Blade Runner,” “Wayne’s World 2,” voice roles in “Kung Fu Panda,” “Mulan,” and “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” and more. A CNN article published August 3 highlighting Hong’s prolific career as a working actor went viral and inspired Kim to launch a GoFundMe crowdfunding campaign to help get Hong a Hollywood Walk of Fame star.
“James Hong just might be the most prolific actor in Hollywood history,” Kim wrote in an introduction. “As of July 2020, he has a total of 672 credits, which include 469 TV shows, 149 feature films, 32 short films, and 22 video games… This man epitomizes the term ‘working actor,’ and that’s not even taking into account all he’s done to help further representation for actors of color.”
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Kim set the crowdfunding goal at $55,000 because “one of the most crucial steps is to raise $50,000 to pay for the creation and installation of the star, as well as general maintenance of the Walk of Fame.” An additional $5,000 was needed “to cover estimated GoFundMe service charges.” Kim’s campaign was live for only four days when it shut down after hitting a grand total of $55,307. Special donation perks included a zoom call with Kim, Ken Jeong, Ming Na Wen, and Randall Park for contributors who put forward $5,000 or more.
“It’s time James Hong was honored in the way he deserves,” Kim wrote. “And it’s time to show him how much he — and all the actors of color of earlier generations — have done to pave the way for us today.”
Now that the money has been raised, Kim will next submit a nomination application for Hong in April 2021. The actor is asking donors to let him hold onto the funds for two years in case the 2021 bid for Hong does not go through. Kim said that “if for some unimaginable reason his nomination is not accepted in either year, we will donate all proceeds to a charity in James’ honor.”
Head over to Kim’s GoFundMe page to read more about his campaign for Hong’s Walk of Fame star.
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