- Born
- Died
- Birth nameSammy Tong
- Sammee Tong was born on April 21, 1901 in San Francisco, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Godzilla (1954), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) and General Electric Theater (1953). He died on October 27, 1964 in Palms, California, USA.
- In his 1991 autobiography, "Life Is Too Short", Mickey Rooney wrote that Tong was devastated by the cancellation of the TV show Mickey (1964) in which he was featured. According to Rooney, Tong was a compulsive gambler and owed money to the Mafia. Facing the fact that he now couldn't pay off his debts, Tong committed suicide, leaving a note stating, "I have taken my own life. No one is to blame".
- Performed in Chinese nightclubs in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco where he sang and did comedy routines.
- Raised and educated in California and Honolulu.
- Changed the spelling of his name to "Sammee" because he said "It looked better in print.".
- Buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.
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