Kato is a fictional character from ''The Green Hornet'' franchise. This character has appeared with the

Green Hornet The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of me ...

in radio, film, television, book and comic book versions. Kato is the Green Hornet's crime-fighting sidekick, and Britt Reid's manservant in civilian life, and has been played by a number of actors. On radio, Kato was initially played by Raymond Hayashi, then Roland Parker who had the role for most of the run, and in the later years Mickey Tolan and Paul Carnegie.

Keye Luke Keye Luke (; June 18, 1904 – January 12, 1991) was a Chinese-born American actor, and a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild. He portrayed Lee Chan, the "Number One Son" in the Charlie Chan films, the original Kato in the 1939–1941 ...

took the role in the movie serials, and in the

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

, he was portrayed by

Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was an American-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and philosopher. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy which was formed from ...

Jay Chou Jay Chou Chieh-lun ( zh, s=周杰伦, t=周杰倫, first=t, p=Zhōu Jiélún; born 18 January 1979) is a Taiwanese singer-songwriter, actor, director, and businessman. Regarded as one of the most influential artists in the Chinese-speaking worl ...

played Kato in the 2011 Green Hornet film.

Character history

Kato is

Britt Reid The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of me ...

's valet, who doubles as The Green Hornet's

mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment, and often employed for rituals and rites. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practical purposes, ...

ed driver and partner to help him in his vigilante adventures, disguised as the activities of a racketeer and his chauffeur/

bodyguard A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects an very important person, important person or group of people, such as high-ranking public offic ...

/enforcer. According to the storyline, years before the events depicted in the series, Britt Reid saved Kato's life while traveling in the Far East. Depending on the version of the story, this prompts Kato to become Reid's assistant or friend. In the anthology book, ''The Green Hornet Chronicles'' from

Moonstone Books Moonstone Books is an American comic book, graphic novel, and prose fiction publisher based in Chicago focused on pulp fiction comic books and prose anthologies as well as horror and western tales. The company began publishing creator-owned com ...

, author

Richard Dean Starr Richard Dean Starr (born March 6, 1968) is an American entrepreneur, editor, screenwriter, and author of fiction, comics, and graphic novels. He is also a former journalist and film critic who has written for newspapers and magazines. Starr is ...

's story "Nothing Gold Can Stay: An Origin Story of Kato" explores the character's background and how he ends up living in America, suggesting that Kato met Britt Reid on a later trip back to his homeland while in search of his mother.

Radio program

George W. Trendle, the owner of radio station WXYZ in Michigan first created and produced "

The Green Hornet The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell (director), James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas i ...

" show in 1936, with the scripts being written by Fran Striker. The show became so popular it ran for nearly two decades and spun off at least two films. This was Trendle and Striker's second big radio hit; their first was "The

Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in a ...

Nationality

In the 1936 premiere of the radio program, Kato was presented as being Japanese. By 1939, the invasion of China by the

Empire of Japan The Empire of Japan, also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on January 3, 1868, until the Constitution of Japan took effect on May 3, 1947. From Japan–Kor ...

made this bad for public relations, and from that year until 1945 "Britt Reid's Japanese valet" in the show's opening was then simply identified by the announcer as his "faithful valet". The first of

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company that is a subsidiary of Comcast ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of N ...

's two movie serials, produced in 1939 but not released to theaters until early 1940, referred in passing to Kato being "a

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, people from the Korean peninsula or of Korean descent * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Korean **Korean dialects **See also: North–South differences in t ...

". By 1941, Kato had begun to be referred to as Filipino. In the comics published by Harvey Comics, Kato was also described as Filipino. A long-standing, but false, urban legend maintained that the switch from one to the other occurred immediately after the 1941 bombing of

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

. In serials, Kato was played by Chinese-born

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

actor

. In the 2011 film, Kato (played by Taiwanese

) tells Britt Reid that he was born in the Chinese city of

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

; Reid replies by saying that he "love Japan".

Abilities

Kato applies judo moves in Green Hornet Fights Crime 42

In several versions of the story, Kato is also a

mechanic A mechanic is a skilled tradesperson who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially engines. Formerly, the term meant any member of the handicraft trades, but by the early 20th century, it had come to mean one who works w ...

, with the creations of both the special automobile, the Black Beauty, and the Hornet's trademark sleeping gas and the gun that delivers it attributed to him. In the TV series, Kato (portrayed by

) is not at all a mechanic but a professional servant, a highly skilled driver, and a master of the art of war. In the television series, he also becomes an expert in martial arts, which was implied in the first film serial with his use of a tranquilizing "chop" to the back of a thug's neck. In ''The Green Hornet Strikes!'' of the

Big Little Book series The Big Little Books, first published during 1932 by the Whitman Publishing Company of Racine, Wisconsin, were small, compact books designed with a captioned illustration opposite each page of text. Other publishers, notably Saalfield, adopted t ...

, published in 1940, it is said that Kato was a practitioner of

jiujitsu Jujutsu ( , or ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu (both ), is a Japanese martial art and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponent ...

,in the Helnit comics, Britt Reid said that she learned jiujitsu from Kato. In the Harvey Comics, Kato shows knowledge of

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

.Green Hornet Fights Crime #42 (November 1948) The comic book published by

Gold Key Comics Gold Key Comics was an imprint of American company Western Publishing, created for comic books distributed to newsstands. Also known as Whitman Comics, Gold Key operated from 1962 to 1984. History Gold Key Comics was created in 1962, when its ...

says that the Kato in the TV series practiced

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 other media

Television series

The televised series of "

" was created and produced by William Dozier, the owner of Greenway Productions, for ABC. It ran from September 1966 to March 1967 and was then canceled after that one season. Van Williams played the Green Hornet and

played Kato. Dozier was also the creator of the more popular "

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 ...

" television series. Even though he had the Green Hornet and Kato appear on "

" three times, they never acquired a large audience. It was due in part to

's portrayal of this character that the Green Hornet became more well-known, and that martial arts became more popular in the United States in the 1960s. Indeed, Lee refused to follow the American director's expectation of fisticuff fights and insisted that he be allowed to use his martial arts skills. They became so popular with the audience that Van Williams, who played the Green Hornet, asked to be taught some moves. In a crossover episode of ''

'' from the same time and companies, Kato has a battle with Robin that ends in a draw (the same thing happens simultaneously with their senior partners). This was in part because Lee refused to participate in a fight that showed Asian-style martial arts being defeated; the original script had the Green Hornet and Kato being beaten by Batman and Robin. The popular impression Lee made at the time is demonstrated by one of the TV series tie-in coloring books produced by Watkins & Strathmore. It is titled ''Kato's Revenge Featuring the Green Hornet''. ''The Green Hornets success in Hong Kong, where it was popularly known as ''The Kato Show'', led to Lee starring in the

feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...

s that would make him a pop culture icon. This show launched

's adult television and film career.

Comic book adaptations

All ''Green Hornet'' comic book adaptations have included Kato. These were produced by Helnit (later

Holyoke Holyoke is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, that lies between the western bank of the Connecticut River and the Mount Tom Range. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 38,247. Loca ...

), Harvey,

Dell Dell Inc. is an American technology company that develops, sells, repairs, and supports personal computers (PCs), Server (computing), servers, data storage devices, network switches, software, computer peripherals including printers and webcam ...

and, tied into the television version, Gold Key. Beginning in

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

one, published by

NOW Comics NOW Comics was a comic book publisher founded in late 1985 by Tony C. Caputo as a sole-proprietorship. During the four years after its founding, NOW grew from a one-man operation to operating in 12 countries, and published almost 1,000 comic bo ...

, established a continuity between the different versions of the story. In this comic, the TV/Bruce Lee version of Kato is the son of the Kato from the radio stories and has the given name Hayashi as an homage to the character's first radio actor. The comic also establishes a new Kato, a much younger half-sister of the television-based character, Mishi. This female Kato also insists on being treated as the Hornet's full partner rather than a sidekick. However, the Green Hornet, Inc., soon withdrew approval and this character was replaced with the 1960s version after Vol. 1, #10. Her removal was explained by having the Kato family company, Nippon Today, needing her automotive designing services at its Zurich, Switzerland facility. Mishi returns in Volume 2, appearing sporadically in the new costumed identity of the Crimson Wasp, on a vendetta against the criminal, Johnny Dollar. She eventually reveals (in ''The Green Hornet'' Vol. 2, #s 12 & 13, August & September 1992) that he had been an embezzling executive at the Swiss plant, whose actions she unwittingly began to expose. Consequently, he had murdered her fiancé and his daughter in an attack that also caused the unknowingly pregnant Mishi, the main target, to miscarry. In #34, July 1994 issue of that run, she appears in her "Hornet's partner" guise one additional time, as the masked Paul Reid attends a gangland meeting; the rules stated that each "boss" is allowed two "boys". During this period, Hayashi becomes romantically involved with District Attorney Diana Reid, daughter of the original Hornet, who even thinks for a while that she conceived his child. In the final issue, Diana discusses their wedding plans with Mishi. In the last two issues, yet another Kato, a nephew to both of these named Kono, is brought in to allow the aging Hayashi to retire from crime-fighting, but the publisher's ceasing of operations prevents much of him being seen. The Bruce Lee-based Kato is also featured in two of his own spin-off miniseries, written by

Mike Baron Mike Baron (born July 1, 1949) is an American comic book writer and novelist. He is the creator of ''Badger (comics), Badger'' and the co-creator of ''Nexus (comics), Nexus'' with Steve Rude. He is also well known as the first writer on Marvel Co ...

. The first has him defending a Chinese temple, where he studied

, from the Communist government, while in the second he takes the job of bodyguarding a heroin-addicted rock star. A third solo adventure, also by Baron, was announced and promoted first as another miniseries, then as a graphic novel (now subtitled "Dragons in Eden"), but was left unpublished when NOW folded. The line featured one other version of the character. The three-issue mini-series ''The Green Hornet: Dark Tomorrow'' (June–August 1993) is set approximately one hundred years in the future, and has an Asian-American Green Hornet, real name Clayton Reid, who is corrupted by power and truly becomes the crime boss he is supposed to only pretend to be, fighting a Caucasian Kato. Beyond the reversal of ethnicities, the latter adds the claim that he and the future Hornet are cousins, and the art's depiction of this Hornet's unnamed paternal grandparents resembles Paul Reid and Mishi Kato. Although the future Kato is not further identified here, a later "Reid/Kato Family Trees" feature (in ''The Green Hornet'', Vol. 2, #26, October 1993) gives him the first name Luke. This comic book incarnation gives a degree of official status to a long-standing error about the character, that in his ''masked'' identity he is known as Kato. The name is restricted to his private persona in the original radio series, the two movie serials, and most of the television version (there are two slips in this last medium, one on the ''

'' appearance, the other in the last filmed episode of the ''Hornet'' series itself, "Invasion from Outer Space, Part 2"; this story is well out of sync with the rest of the run, and the writer, director, and even the line producer are people with no other credits on the program). But the NOW comic version made a big point of having the masked assistants called Kato, with the woman at one early point telling the equally new Hornet during their first adventure, "While I'm in this funky get-up, call me Kato. It's part of the tradition". In the

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. He came to prominence with the low-budget buddy comedy film ''Clerks (film), Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co-produced, and acted i ...

's 2010 revamp of the continuity, Kato is depicted, in modern times, as the elderly but still physically fit valet of the late Britt Reid, killed by a yakuza mobster going by the ''Black Hornet'' sobriquet. The elder Kato, in this version a Japanese, forced to act Filipino to avoid the suspicions and the racist charges against his people during WWII, retires his identity along with Britt Reid, and both men decide to devote themselves to their families, respectively raising their offspring Britt Reid Jr. and Mulan Kato. After Britt Reid's death, Kato returns in America with Mulan, now the second Kato, to act out the ''Secret Testament'' of Britt Reid Sr., who wished, in the event of his death, Kato to destroy every Green Hornet paraphernalia still in his possession and whisk Britt Reid Jr. to Japan, for his safety. However, both offspring refuse Reid's and Kato's will: Mulan Kato, now clad in a close variation of her father's original outfit, storms off to confront the Yakuza, and Britt Reid Jr. manages to steal a Green Hornet costume to help her, despite having little training on his own. As the new Kato, Mulan is a strong, physically fit, silent warrior woman, able to perform amazing feats with uncanny strength and precision. Despite having been shown, in her late teens, as a peppy, lively, cheery ''social butterfly'', the adult Mulan Kato is a darker, brooding character who never speaks (despite physically able to do so, Mulan prefers speaking as little as she can to prevent the much talkative Britt Reid Jr., and seemingly everyone else, from talking back) and shows little, if no interest at all, for any form of socialization, a thing that seems to distress the second Green Hornet, every bit the suave socialite his father was. In addition, the limited series ''Green Hornet: Parallel Lives'' by writer Jai Nitz, served as a prequel to the 2011 Green Hornet film, exploring the backstory for the film's version of Kato. In 2013, an eight-issue miniseries called ''Masks'' brought together famous heroes from the pulp era. It stars

The Shadow The Shadow is a fictional character created by American magazine publishers Street & Smith and writer Walter B. Gibson. Originally created to be a mysterious radio show narrator and developed into a distinct literary character in 1931 by Gibs ...

, the Green Hornet, Kato,

The Spider The Spider is an American pulp-magazine hero of the 1930s and 1940s. The character was created by publisher Harry Steeger and written by a variety of authors for 118 monthly issues of '' The Spider'' from 1933 to 1943. ''The Spider'' sold well ...

and

Zorro Zorro ( or , Spanish for "fox") is a fictional character created in 1919 by American Pulp magazine, pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo de Los Ángeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashin ...

, and was written by Chris Roberson with art by

Alex Ross Nelson Alexander Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an American comic book creator, comic book writer and artist known primarily for his painted interiors, covers, and design work. He first became known with the 1994 miniseries ''Marvels'', on which ...

and

Dennis Calero Dennis Calero is an American comic book artist and illustrator, known for his work on titles such as '' X-Men Noir'', '' Spider-Man Noir'', ''X Factor'', '' Legion of Superheroes'', and '' Kolchak''. Career Calero's work includes Acclaim Comics' ...

. In a 2018 series written by

Amy Chu Amy Chu (born 1968) is an American comic book author who runs the comic imprint Alpha Girl Comics as well as writing comics for other publishers. She wrote the six-issue miniseries '' Poison Ivy: Cycle of Life and Death'' and a few Wonder Woman ...

, Mulan Kato becomes the Green Hornet after Britt Reid Jr. mysteriously disappears.

Films

Serials

''The Green Hornet'' was adapted into two

movie serials A serial film, film serial (or just serial), movie serial, or chapter play, is a motion picture form popular during the first half of the 20th century, consisting of a series of short subjects exhibited in consecutive order at one theater, gene ...

, 1940's ''

'' and, in 1941, ''

The Green Hornet Strikes Again! ''The Green Hornet Strikes Again!'' is a 1941 Universal black-and-white 15 chapter movie serial based on ''The Green Hornet'' radio series by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker. It is a superhero-themed story about the eponymous superhero, ...

'' Disliking the treatment

Republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

gave ''

The Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in a ...

'' in two serials, George W. Trendle took his property to

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

, and was much happier with the results. The first serial, titled simply ''

'' (1940), stars Gordon Jones in the title role, albeit dubbed by original radio Hornet

Al Hodge Albert E. Hodge (April 18, 1912 – March 19, 1979) was an American actor best known for playing space adventurer Captain Video and His Video Rangers, Captain Video on the DuMont Television Network from December 15, 1950, to April 1, 1955. He pla ...

whenever the hero's mask was in place, while ''

'' (1941) stars

Warren Hull John Warren Hull (January 17, 1903 – September 14, 1974), known professionally as Warren Hull, was an American actor, singer and television personality active from the 1930s through the 1960s. He was one of the most popular serial actors in t ...

. Keye Luke, who played the "Number One Son" in the

Charlie Chan Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu Police Department, Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels. Biggers loosely based Chan on Hawaiian detective Chang Apana. The benevolent and heroic Chan ...

films, plays Kato in both. Also starring in both serials are

Anne Nagel Anne Nagel (born Anna Marie Dolan; September 29, 1915 – July 6, 1966) was an American actress. She played in adventures, mysteries, and comedies for 25 years. She also appeared in television series in the 1950s. One book described her as "one ...

as Lenore Case, Britt Reid's secretary, and

Wade Boteler Wade Boteler (October 3, 1888 – May 7, 1943) was an American film actor and writer. He appeared in more than 430 films between 1919 and 1943. Biography He was born in Santa Ana, California, and died in Hollywood, California, from a heart ...

as Mike Axford, a reporter for the ''Daily Sentinel'', the newspaper that Reid owns and publishes.

Ford Beebe Ford Ingalsbe Beebe (November 26, 1888 – November 26, 1978) was a screenwriter and Film director, director. He entered the film business as a writer around 1916 and over the next 60 years wrote and/or directed almost 200 films. He specialized ...

directed both serials, partnered by Ray Taylor on ''The Green Hornet'' and John Rawlins on ''The Green Hornet Strikes Again!'', with George H. Plympton and

Basil Dickey Basil Dickey (November 23, 1880 – June 17, 1958) was an American screenwriter. He wrote for more than 140 films between 1916 and 1958. He was born in Illinois and died in Long Beach, California. His brother was playwright and screenwriter P ...

contributing to the screenplays for both serials. ''The Green Hornet'' runs for 13 chapters while ''The Green Hornet Strikes Again!'' has 15 installments, with the Hornet and Kato smashing a different racket in each chapter. In each serial, they are all linked to a single major crime syndicate which is itself put out of business in the finale, while the radio program had the various rackets completely independent of each other.

''The Green Hornet'' (2006)

A 10-minute 2006 French

short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...

titled ''Le frelon vert'' is based on the Green Hornet. Sony Pictures announced plans for a feature film of the superhero in 2008. Released on January 14, 2011, the film starred

Seth Rogen Seth Aaron Rogen (; born April 15, 1982) is a Canadian actor, comedian, and filmmaker. Known primarily for his comedic Leading actor, leading man roles in films, the accolades he has received include nominations for three Golden Globe Awards, ...

, who took on writing duties along with ''

Superbad ''Superbad'' is a 2007 American coming-of-age teen buddy comedy film directed by Greg Mottola, written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, and produced by Judd Apatow. It stars Jonah Hill and Michael Cera as Seth and Evan, two teenagers about ...

'' co-writer

Evan Goldberg Evan D. Goldberg (born September 15, 1982) is a Canadian screenwriter, film producer and director. He has collaborated with his childhood friend Seth Rogen on a variety of films, including '' Superbad'', '' Pineapple Express'', '' This Is the En ...

Stephen Chow Stephen Chow Sing-chi (; born 22 June 1962) is a Hong Kong filmmaker and former actor, known for his mo lei tau comedy. His career began in television, where he gained recognition through variety shows and TV dramas. Chow's breakthrough came in 1 ...

had originally signed to play Kato, but then dropped out. Taiwanese actor

replaced Chow as Kato for the film. In this version, Kato is Chinese and grew up as a poor runaway from his orphanage in Shanghai. He was originally employed by Britt Reid's father James as a car mechanic (also making his coffee with a specially designed machine he had created for the purpose) before joining Britt on the steps that lead to him becoming the Green Hornet as Britt concluded that they had both been wasting their potential. Kato's martial art skills in this version of the series are so exceptional that he claims that time literally slows down for him when he gets an adrenaline rush in a dangerous situation, as well as his traditional role as mechanic and driver. Although he and Britt have a temporary falling-out when they argue over their respective importance to the "Green Hornet" concept – Kato acting as the actual action man of the Hornet while Britt is the public face as Kato is too fast for any cameras to see him – they patch up their differences in time to destroy the gang of crime lord Chudnofsky. In 2016,

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

and

Chernin Entertainment Chernin Entertainment is an American film and television production company owned by The North Road Company that is based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on February 24, 2009 by producer and former media executive Peter Chernin, who is ...

acquired the rights to The Green Hornet and started preliminary work on developing a reboot with Gavin O'Connor attached to produce and direct the film and

Sean O'Keefe Sean Charles O'Keefe (born January 27, 1956) is a university professor at Syracuse University Maxwell School, former chairman of Airbus Group, Inc., former Secretary of the Navy, former Administrator of NASA, and former chancellor of Louisiana ...

as writer. In 2020, Amasia Entertainment has gained the rights of the Green Hornet and officially teamed with

for the reboot titled ''Green Hornet and Kato''.

Video games

Kato appears in ''The Green Hornet: Wheels of Justice'' (2010) for

iPhone The iPhone is a line of smartphones developed and marketed by Apple that run iOS, the company's own mobile operating system. The first-generation iPhone was announced by then–Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs on January 9, 2007, at ...

, based on the film.

In other popular culture

Art, entertainment, and media

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

's 1967 album "

I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You ''I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You'' is the tenth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin, released on March 10, 1967, by Atlantic Records. It was Franklin's first release under her contract with the label, following her departur ...

" contains the song "Save Me" which includes the lyric "Calling the Caped Crusader, Green Hornet, Kato, too / I'm in so much trouble I don't know what to do". * The 1960s cartoon series '' Batfink'' is a

parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...

of both Batman and the Green Hornet. Batfink rides in a pink vehicle called the Battilac, which is driven by his assistant Karate who is a martial artist. *

Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American retired comedian, actor, and media personality. Often cited as a trailblazer for African Americans in the entertainment industry, Cosby was a film, television, and stand-up comedy ...

parodied The Green Hornet in his c. 1970 syndicated five-minute daily radio program, '' The Brown Hornet'', which he revived in the late 1970s for his ''

Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids ''Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids'' (often referred to simply as ''Fat Albert'') is an educational American animated television series created, produced, and hosted (in live action bookends) by comedian Bill Cosby, who also lent his voice to a nu ...

'' cartoon show. * Kato appears in

Bruceploitation Bruceploitation (a portmanteau of "Bruce Lee" and "exploitation") is an exploitation film subgenre that emerged after the death of martial arts film star Bruce Lee in 1973, during which time filmmakers from Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea cast ...

films:

Bruce Li Bruce Li (; born Ho Chung-Tao; 5 June 1950) is a Chinese martial artist and actor who starred in martial arts films from the Bruceploitation movement. Career Ho Chung-Tao went to play a stuntman in Taiwan and Hong Kong under the name of James ...

played Bruce Lee as Kato in ''Bruce Lee Against Supermen'' (1975) and

Bruce Leung Bruce Liang (28 April 1948) is a Hong Kong martial artist and actor who has appeared in many Hong Kong martial arts movies. He often appeared billed as "Bruce Leung", "Bruce Liang", "Bruce Leong", or "Bruce Leung Siu-lung", and is thus generally g ...

plays Lee and Kato in '' The Dragon Lives Again'' (1977). * The 1993 American semi-fictionalized film biography '' Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story,'' in which

Jason Scott Lee Jason Scott Lee (; born November 19, 1966) is an American actor and martial artist. He played Mowgli in Disney's 1994 live-action adaptation of ''The Jungle Book'' and Bruce Lee in the 1993 martial arts film '' Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story''. P ...

(no relation) portrayed Bruce Lee, featured scenes involving the filming of the TV series ''

''.

Van Williams Van Zandt Jarvis Williams (February 27, 1934 – November 28, 2016) was an American actor best known for his leading role as Kenny Madison in both Warner Bros. television detective series '' Bourbon Street Beat'' (1959–1960) and its sequ ...

, who starred in that TV series, appeared in the film as the show's director. * A 1994 Hong Kong film, ''

'' (Qing feng xia), starred Kar Lok Chin as a Kato-like masked hero called the Green Hornet. In one scene, he is reminded of his predecessors, one of whom is represented by a mannequin of Bruce Lee in his TV Kato costume. The film's director, Lam Ching Ying, was a friend of Bruce Lee. * '' Black Mask'' is a

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

starring

Jet Li Li Lianjie (courtesy name Yangzhong; born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese-born Singaporean Martial arts, martial artist and actor. With a Jet Li filmography, film career spanning more than forty years, Li is re ...

. The film is an adaptation of the

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

manhua () are Chinese-language comics produced in Greater China. Chinese comics and narrated illustrations have existed in China throughout its history. They are usually graphic and can be written for a myriad of genres, including romance, fanta ...

''Black Mask'' by

Li Chi-Tak Li Chi-Tak () (b. June 24, 1965) is a Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is t ...

. In the film, in homage to ''

'', Black Mask wears a domino mask and chauffeur's cap in the same style as Kato from the series. The Black Mask is even compared to Kato in one scene. In 2002, it was followed by a sequel, '' Black Mask 2: City of Masks'' starring

Andy On Andy On () (born May 11, 1977) is an American actor and martial artist. Life and career On was born on May 11, 1977, in Providence, Rhode Island. He can speak English, Mandarin, and a bit of Cantonese. Andy On did not graduate from high school ...

. * The 2003 film Kill Bill: Volume 1 uses

Billy May Edward William May Jr. (November 10, 1916 – January 22, 2004) was an American composer, arranger and trumpeter. He composed film and television music for ''The Green Hornet (TV series), The Green Hornet'' (1966), ''The Mod Squad (TV series), T ...

's theme from the 1960s television series in a sequence where the Bride goes to Tokyo in search of O-Ren Ishii. The Crazy 88 wear masks resembling

's Kato mask. * Lee also appears as Kato in the biographical series ''

The Legend of Bruce Lee ''The Legend of Bruce Lee'' ('' Chinese'': 李小龍傳奇) is a 2008 Chinese biographical television series based on the life story of martial artist and actor Bruce Lee. The 50-episode series was produced and broadcast by CCTV and began airing ...

'' (2008), starring

Danny Chan Danny Chan Pak-Keung (; 7 September 1958 – 25 October 1993) was a Hong Kong singer, songwriter and actor. One of the first Cantopop idols in Hong Kong, he gained fame alongside performers Alan Tam, Anita Mui, and Leslie Cheung, who wer ...

. * In 2009, in the comic book anthology '' Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology'',

Gene Luen Yang Gene Luen Yang (; born August 9, 1973) is an American cartoonist. He is a frequent lecturer on the subjects of graphic novels and comics, at comic book conventions and universities, schools, and libraries. In addition, he was the Director of ...

and

Sonny Liew Sonny Liew (born 26 September 1974) is a Malaysia-born comic artist/illustrator based in Singapore. He is best known for '' The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye'' (2015), the first graphic novel to win the Singapore Literature Prize for fiction. ...

published the story ''Blue Scorpion and Chung''. In it, Chung, a character inspired by Kato, uses her martial arts skills to get her boss, Blue Scorpion, out of trouble when he is drunk. * In the film '' Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen'', released late September 2010 in Asia and early 2011 in the United States, there is a large feature of the Green Hornet. The subplot consist of the main character Chen Zhen (played by

Donnie Yen Donnie Yen Chi-tan ( zh, c=甄子丹, p=Zhēn Zǐdān, j=, first=j; born 27 July 1963) is a Hongkongers, Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and action director. He is the recipient of various accolades, including three Golden Horse Fi ...

) dressing up as a mask vigilante (based on Kato) to stop Japanese assassinations and to protect the people. The director has mentioned that since Bruce Lee played both Chen Zhen (in the 1972 film ''

Fist of Fury ''Fist of Fury'' () is a 1972 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Lo Wei and produced by Raymond Chow. The film stars Bruce Lee in his major role after '' The Big Boss'' (1971). Bruce Lee also worked as the film's action choreographer. ...

'') and Kato (in the 1960s television series The Green Hornet) before, the film was a tribute and dedication to Lee. * In 2016,

Season 6 A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and polar ...

of ''

The Venture Bros. ''The Venture Bros.'' is an American adult animated action comedy television series created by Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer for Cartoon Network's late night programming block Adult Swim. Following a pilot episode on February 16, 2003, the s ...

'' introduces parody characters of Green Hornet and Kato from 1960s television series in the form of the masked crime-fighter Blue Morpho and his assistant Kano in a flashback, the latter having later become a member of the original Team Venture. It is also revealed that Blue Morpho was the adoptive father of the orphaned villain The Monarch, and he and Henchman 21 later take on the roles of the Blue Morpho and Kano respectively. * The 2019 film ''

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood ''Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood'' is a 2019 comedy-drama film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. Produced by Columbia Pictures in association with Bona Film Group, Heyday Films, and Visiona Romantica, and distributed by Sony Pict ...

'' has a flashback scene in which stuntman Cliff Booth (

Brad Pitt William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. In a Brad Pitt filmography, film career spanning more than thirty years, Pitt has received list of awards and nominations received by Brad Pitt, numerous a ...

) has a confrontation with Bruce Lee (played by Mike Moh in full Kato gear) on the set of ''The Green Hornet''. In the scene, an impromptu two-out-of-three martial arts match between Booth and Lee takes place, with both men winning one match, but the fight is broken up before the deciding match can finish.

Notes

References

External links

''Kato of the Green Hornet''
at the

Grand Comics Database The Grand Comics Database (GCD) is an Internet-based project to build a database of comic book information through user contributions. The GCD project catalogues information on creator credits, story details, reprints, and other information use ...

*
Turning Japanese
" ''

Snopes ''Snopes'' (), formerly known as the ''Urban Legends Reference Pages'', is a fact-checking website. It has been described as a "well-regarded reference for sorting out myths and rumors" on the Internet. The site has also been seen as a source ...

''. February 1, 2011.
William Dozier papers
at the

American Heritage Center The American Heritage Center is the University of Wyoming's repository of manuscripts, rare books, and the university archives. Its collections focus on Wyoming and the Rocky Mountain West (including politics, settlement, Native Americans, and W ...

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