Reiko Sato (; December 19, 1931 – May 28, 1981) was an American dancer and actress.

Early life

Sato was born in

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, ...

, California, to an

issei are Japanese immigrants to countries in North America and South America. The term is used mostly by ethnic Japanese. are born in Japan; their children born in the new country are (, "two", plus , "generation"); and their grandchildren are ...

Zen Buddhist priest, Ken-ichi Sato and his wife Chieko. She and her family were incarcerated at the

Gila River War Relocation Center The Gila River War Relocation Center was an American concentration camp in Arizona, one of several built by the War Relocation Authority (WRA) during the Second World War for the incarceration of Japanese Americans from the West Coast. It was lo ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

following the signing of

Executive Order 9066 Executive Order 9066 was a President of the United States, United States presidential executive order signed and issued during World War II by United States president Franklin D. Roosevelt on February 19, 1942. "This order authorized the fo ...

. Her mother became a real estate investor after the war; Reiko also had an older brother, Keiichiro, and a younger brother, Koji. She graduated from Belmont High School in 1949, later attending

Los Angeles City College Los Angeles City College (LACC) is a public community college in East Hollywood, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard on the former campus of the U ...

where she continued her studies in ballet.

Career

Sato is best known for playing seamstress Helen Chao in the 1961 feature film ''

Flower Drum Song ''Flower Drum Song'' was the eighth musical theatre, musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on the 1957 novel, ''The Flower Drum Song'', by Chinese-American author C. Y. Lee (author), C. Y. Lee. It premiered on Broadway the ...

''. She also had a dramatic role in '' The Ugly American'', receiving personal coaching from actor

Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Widely regarded as one of the greatest cinema actors of the 20th century,''Movies in American History: An Encyclopedia''

with whom she had a relationship. She had been on contract with

Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

and

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 ...

, but nothing materialized, and she retired from Hollywood. She had performed as the original Princess of Ababu in the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

production of '' Kismet'', as well as the movie. In 1955, she played the female lead of Lotus Blossom in the second national tour of John Patrick's play '' The Teahouse of the August Moon'' opposite

Larry Parks Samuel Lawrence Klusman Parks (December 13, 1914 – April 13, 1975) was an American stage and film actor. His career arced from bit player and supporting roles to top billing, before it virtually ended when he admitted to having been a memb ...

. She was also in the Broadway play, ''

Destry Rides Again ''Destry Rides Again'' is a 1939 American Western comedy film directed by George Marshall and starring Marlene Dietrich and James Stewart. The supporting cast includes Mischa Auer, Charles Winninger, Brian Donlevy, Allen Jenkins, Irene Her ...

'', having two roles. Sato was scheduled to return to Broadway as part of a 1966 musical ''

Chu Chem ''Chu Chem'' is a musical with a book by Ted Allen, lyrics by Jim Haines and Jack Wohl, and music by Mitch Leigh. Background Allen's inspiration was a trip to Kaifeng Fu (''prefecture''), China, the site of a major Jewish migration in the 10th ...

'', but its chaotic Philadelphia tryout led to the production being cancelled before reaching New York. She participated in regional theater as well, performing in the Valentina Oumansky Dramatic Dance Ensemble on September 24, 1970, in Hilo, Hawaii. Her last film was ''Now It Can Be Told'', which was never completed and remains lost.

Final years

Sato spent her final years involved in various organizations promoting equality for Asian-American performers. She lived on

Mulholland Drive Mulholland Drive is a street and road in the eastern Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California. It is named after pioneering Los Angeles civil engineer William Mulholland. The western rural portion in Los Angeles and Ventura counties is n ...

. She died of a

brain aneurysm An intracranial aneurysm, also known as a cerebral aneurysm, is a cerebrovascular disorder characterized by a localized dilation or ballooning of a blood vessel in the brain due to a weakness in the vessel wall. These aneurysms can occur in an ...

on May 28, 1981. Half of her ashes were sent to a Buddhist temple. The other half were "spirited away" to Marlon Brando's private island.

Filmography

References

External links

* * 1931 births 1981 deaths Actresses from Los Angeles American film actresses American stage actresses Japanese-American internees Belmont High School (Los Angeles) alumni 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American women singers American actresses of Japanese descent American dancers of Asian descent 20th-century American dancers {{US-screen-actor-1930s-stub