Nobu McCarthy (, born Nobu Atsumi (渥美 延); November 13, 1934 – April 6, 2002) was a Canadian actress. She received a nomination for the
Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead
The Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead was one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards to honor an actress who has delivered an outstanding lead performance in an independent film. It was first presented in 1985 with Geraldine Page bei ...
for her performance in the film ''
The Wash
The Wash is a shallow natural rectangular bay and multiple estuary on the east coast of England in the United Kingdom. It is an inlet of the North Sea and is the largest multiple estuary system in the UK, as well as being the largest natural ba ...
''.
Early life
McCarthy was born Nobu Atsumi in
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...
,
Ontario
Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
, the daughter of Masaji and Yuki Atsumi. Her father was a Japanese
fashion designer
Fashion design is the Art (skill), art of applied arts, applying design, aesthetics, clothing construction, and natural beauty to clothing and its Fashion accessory, accessories. It is influenced by diverse cultures and different trends and has va ...
and diplomatic
attaché
In diplomacy, an attaché () is a person who is assigned ("to be attached") to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency. Although a loanword from French, in English the word is not modified ac ...
stationed in Canada at the time. She was raised in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, where she studied
ballet
Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...
. A
modeling career eventually led to a
beauty pageant
A beauty pageant is a competition in which the contestants are judged and ranked based on various physical and mental attributes. Per its name, beauty pageants traditionally focus on judging the contestants' physical attractiveness, sometimes sol ...
in which she won the title of "Miss Tokyo".
Career
Film
While shopping in the
Little Tokyo district of
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, McCarthy was discovered by
talent agent
A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various entertainm ...
Fred Ishimoto, which led to her film debut in the
Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian, with a career spanning seven decades in film, stage, television and radio. Famously nicknamed as "Th ...
film ''
The Geisha Boy'' (1958). In 1960, she appeared in the comedy film ''
Wake Me When It's Over''. In 1961 she starred alongside
Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine (born Shirley MacLean Beaty; April 24, 1934) is an American actress and author. With a career spanning over 70 years, she has received List of awards and nominations received by Shirley MacLaine, numerous accolades, including a ...
and
Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey (born Zvi Mosheh Skikne; 1 October 192825 November 1973) was a Lithuanian-born British actor and film director. He was born to Lithuanian Jewish parents and emigrated to Union of South Africa, South Africa at an early age, before ...
in the
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...
movie ''
Two Loves'' where she played a young
Maori woman. 1963 saw her appear in an uncredited background role in the comedy drama ''
Love with the Proper Stranger'' starring
Steve McQueen
Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...
and
Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood (née Zacharenko; July 20, 1938 – November 29, 1981) was an American actress. She began acting at age four and co-starred at age eight in ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (1947). As a teenager, she was nominated for an Academy Award f ...
. In the next decade, McCarthy continued acting in a small number of television films and making numerous appearances in television episodes throughout the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. She had some minor roles in a handful of movies including ''
The Karate Kid Part II'' (1986).
Television
She starred with
Lloyd Bridges
Lloyd Vernet Bridges Jr. (January 15, 1913 – March 10, 1998) was an American film, stage and television actor who starred in a number of television series and appeared in more than 150 feature films. He was the father of four children, includi ...
in a 1959 ''
Sea Hunt'' television episode as a Hawaiian woman fighting to protect pearl beds from poachers. She appeared in the 1960 episode "Princess of Crazy Creek" of the
syndicated western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
TV series ''
Pony Express
The Pony Express was an American express mail service that used relays of horse-mounted riders between Missouri and California. It was operated by the Central Overland California and Pikes Peak Express Company.
During its 18 months of opera ...
'', starring
Grant Sullivan. In 1961, she appeared as Haru in the ''Laramie'' TV series episode "Dragon at the Door". She also appeared in the
ABC adventure dramas ''
Adventures in Paradise'' and ''
The Islanders''. In 1962 she appeared in the television series ''
Wagon Train
''Wagon Train'' is an American Western television series that aired for eight seasons, first on the NBC television network (1957–1962) and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and reached the top of the ...
'' in the episode "The John Augustus Story" as Mayleen. She made two guest appearances on ''
Perry Mason'': in 1959 she played defendant Mitsou Kamuri in "The Case of the Blushing Pearls," and in 1965 she played Sally Choshi in "The Case of the Wrongful Writ".
She also guest starred on
ABC's ''
The Bing Crosby Show'' in the 1964–1965 season. In the final, 1966, season of ''
Mister Ed
''Mister Ed'' is an American television sitcom produced by Filmways that aired in syndication from January 5 to July 2, 1961, and then on CBS from October 1, 1961, to February 6, 1966. The show's title character is a talking horse which orig ...
'', she played Mei Ling, a Chinese restaurant manager and spy. She starred with
Robert Conrad
Robert Conrad (born Conrad Robert Falk; March 1, 1935 – February 8, 2020) was an American film and television actor, singer, and stuntman. He is best known for his role in the 1965–1969 television series ''The Wild Wild West'', playin ...
in the final episode of the first season of ''
The Wild Wild West
''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western (genre), Western, spy film, spy, and science fiction on television, science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 19 ...
'', dated April 22, 1966 "The Night of the Sudden Plague" as a Chinese woman "Anna Kirby", who is the daughter of a mad professor breeding bacteria for a serum that causes temporary paralysis. She also made appearances in ''
Batman
Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
'', ''
The Man From U.N.C.L.E.'', and ''
Hawaii Five-O''. In 1973, she appeared in a second-season episode of ''
Kung Fu
Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...
''. In 1976, she appeared in an episode of ''
Barney Miller
''Barney Miller'' is an American sitcom television series set in a New York City Police Department police station on East 6th Street in Greenwich Village (Lower Manhattan). The series was broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from Janu ...
'' as prostitute/robbery victim Dorothy Murakami. She then starred in the
television movie
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...
''
Farewell to Manzanar'', based on the novel of the same title. She made an appearance in an episode of the television
sitcoms
A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent setting, such as a home ...
''
Happy Days
''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marsha ...
'' and ''
Diff'rent Strokes
''Diff'rent Strokes'' is an American television sitcom, which originally aired on NBC from November 3, 1978, to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985, to March 7, 1986. The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and ...
''. She appeared in three episodes of ''
The Love Boat
''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television series created by Wilford Lloyd Baumes that originally aired on ABC from September 24, 1977, to May 24, 1986. In addition, three TV movies aired before the regular series pre ...
.'' In the 1980s she appeared in episodes of ''
T.J. Hooker
''T. J. Hooker'' is an American police drama television program starring William Shatner in the title role as a 15-year veteran police sergeant. The series premiered as a mid-season replacement on March 13, 1982, on ABC and ran on the network u ...
'', ''
Magnum P.I.'', and ''
China Beach''.
Theater and independent film
In 1971, McCarthy joined
East West Players, an
Asian American theatre group in Los Angeles. In
1986, she had a supporting role opposite
Pat Morita in the film ''
The Karate Kid Part II''.
Her starring role in the
indie feature ''
The Wash
The Wash is a shallow natural rectangular bay and multiple estuary on the east coast of England in the United Kingdom. It is an inlet of the North Sea and is the largest multiple estuary system in the UK, as well as being the largest natural ba ...
'', opposite
Mako
, better known by the mononym name Mako (sometimes stylised MAKO), is a Japanese Voice acting in Japan, voice actress, singing, singer and a member of the band Bon-Bon Blanco, in which her prominent role is as the maraca player. She has also perf ...
, earned her an
Independent Spirit Award
The Independent Spirit Awards, originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards, and later as the Film Independent Spirit Awards, are awards presented annually in Santa Monica, California, to independent filmmakers. Founded in ...
nomination in 1989. That same year she replaced Mako as
artistic director
An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogu ...
of East West Players, a position she held until 1993. During this time, McCarthy also taught theatre at
California State University, Los Angeles
California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degree programs, 122 m ...
and
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
. East West Players presented McCarthy with a lifetime achievement award in 1996, and the Visionary Award in 1999. McCarthy also did the voice-overs at the beginning and end of ''
Picture Bride
The term picture bride refers to the practice in the early 20th century of immigrant workers (chiefly Japanese, Okinawan, and Korean) in Hawaii and the West Coast of the United States and Canada, as well as Brazil selecting brides from their nat ...
.''
Personal life
In 1955, she married David McCarthy, with whom she had two children. They divorced in 1970. In 1976, she married William Cuthbert, though she kept McCarthy as her
stage name
A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...
.
Death
On April 6, 2002, McCarthy died at the age of 67 from a ruptured
aortic aneurysm
An aortic aneurysm is an enlargement (dilatation) of the aorta to greater than 1.5 times normal size. Typically, there are no symptoms except when the aneurysm dissects or ruptures, which causes sudden, severe pain in the abdomen and lower back ...
while she was on location in
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, filming ''
Gaijin - Ama-me Como Sou''.
Filmography
See also
*
Portrayal of East Asians in Hollywood
*
Stereotypes of East Asians in the United States
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCarthy, Nobu
1934 births
2002 deaths
Actresses from Ottawa
Canadian actresses of Japanese descent
Canadian expatriate actresses in the United States
Canadian film actresses
Canadian stage actresses
Canadian television actresses
Deaths from aortic aneurysm
Female models from Ontario