Bowen Yang

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bowen Yang
Born
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
EducationNew York University (BA)
Occupation
  • Comedian
  • writer
  • podcaster
  • actor
Years active2013–present
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese楊伯文
Simplified Chinese杨伯文

Bowen Yang (Chinese: 楊伯文) is an Australian-born Chinese American actor, comedian, podcaster, and writer based in New York City. He co-hosts a comedy pop-culture podcast, Las Culturistas, with Matt Rogers. He also posts pop-culture lip-syncing videos on Twitter.[1][2] Since September 2018, he has been on the writing staff of Saturday Night Live (SNL). Yang was promoted to on-air cast for SNL's 45th season, in September 2019, becoming its first Chinese-American, third openly gay male,[a] and fourth-ever cast member of Asian descent.[b]

Early life and education[]

Yang was born in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, to a family that had emigrated from China in the 1980s.[1][3][4] His father, Ruilin, was raised in a rural part of the Inner Mongolia region of mainland China, growing up in a straw and mud hut.[5] Ruilin's parents were illiterate, but he read books for hours by candlelight and eventually got into university—a rarity so soon after the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), which effectively shut down universities.[5] Bowen's mother is an ob-gyn (obstetrician and gynaecologist).[5][6] The couple moved to Brisbane so Ruilin could earn his doctorate in mining explosives.[5]

Bowen has an older sister, Yang Yang. The children spoke Mandarin in their home, and attended Chinese Sunday school.[5] The family moved to Montreal, where Bowen first discovered Saturday Night Live (SNL). When he was nine, they moved again to Aurora, Colorado.[3][5][7] As a child, he was drawn to late-night comedians and hosts David Letterman and Conan O’Brien.[6]

Yang's high school calculus teacher, Adrian Holguin, was also his coach for Smoky Hill High School's improvisational comedy group, Spontaneous Combustion.[8] Yang graduated from high school in 2008 and was voted "Most Likely to Be a Cast Member on Saturday Night Live" in his yearbook.[9]

When he was seventeen, Yang's father found out Bowen was gay from an "open chat window" on the family's computer.[6] His parents were not receptive to the news, stating that such things did not happen in China.[10] Bowen's father cried often over the revelation and, being non-religious but wanting to "solve problems", arranged for Bowen to attend eight sessions of gay conversion therapy.[6][10] Bowen attended the conversion therapy to appease his parents, and recalls being immediately alarmed by the counselor's mix of religion and use of pseudo-scientific reasoning to explain away positive homosexual manifestations.[5][6] In an interview for The New York Times, Maureen Dowd questioned why his parents, both scientists, did not see the disconnection.[5] Bowen said, "It was a cultural thing for them, this cultural value around masculinity, around keeping the family line going, keeping certain things holy and sacred," he said "It was me wanting to meet them halfway but realizing it had to be pretty absolute. It was an either-or thing."[5]

He moved to New York in 2008 to attend New York University (NYU) like his older sister. His father assigned her to chaperone him during this period as Bowen tried "straightness on for size and failing miserably."[10][11] He came to accept being gay, incorporating it into his comedy, and hoped his parents would learn to accept that aspect of him.[10] They have since found a truce and enjoy a "great relationship."[6]

Yang was inspired by Sandra Oh's character Cristina Yang on Grey's Anatomy for her neurotic and relentless pursuits, and aspired to be a doctor.[5][12] He went to pre-med classes and graduated from NYU with a bachelor's degree in chemistry.[5][13][8] Yang's college major has been misreported as microbiology.[14] After realizing he was actually inspired by Oh for her acting ability, he decided to pursue a career in comedy instead.[12] At NYU, he met Matt Rogers [1], with whom he started Las Culturistas, a weekly comedy podcast where Yang "unapologetically expresses his personality, story and himself by sharing his experiences as a member of the LGBTQ community".[4][12]

Career[]

Early career[]

Yang taught himself Adobe Photoshop, graphic design software, and designing graphics at One Kings Lane, a luxury interior and home design website, from 2013 to 2018.[5] The company was woman-centered, and was flexible with Yang's time-off needs for comedy.[5] He was on the improv team Dangerbox.[15] Yang has also performed improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade.[16]

The podcast Yang co-hosts with Matt Rogers, Las Culturistas, is described by Vulture as both "delightfully screwy" and a "two-headed snark routine".[17] As of September 2019, the podcast has 170 episodes.[18] Each one opens with an interview with a pop culture guest, then goes to one-minute rounds of "I Don't Think So, Honey!" (IDTSH) where the hosts and guests each expound on pet peeves.[17] IDTSH has also morphed into its own live show.[17] Yang credits the Las Culturistas podcast with Rogers for building his fanbase, in 2018 It was nominated for a Shorty Award recognizing the best in social media.[1][19][20] Yang appeared in shows such as Comedy Central's Broad City, a Vimeo web series The Outs, and the HBO web comedy High Maintenance.[21][22][23] He was a supporting cast member in the 2019 film Isn't It Romantic. Yang performed stand-up on HBO's 2 Dope Queens.[22] He played fashion designer Alexander Wang in a sketch series on Comedy Central, Up Next.[24]

Yang also is known for his posts of "expertly-timed lip-sync videos of famous movie scenes", where he "reproduces dialogue from diva scenes" to Twitter and well-known moments in popular culture, such as a monologue by Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada, Tyra Banks yelling at contestant Tiffany Richardson on America's Next Top Model, and a viral video of Cardi B talking about the 2019 government shutdown.[5][12] Each garnered thousands of likes and retweets.[2][25]

In January 2019, he was named to Forbes magazine's 30 Under 30 Hollywood & Entertainment list.[21]

Yang plays Nora Lin's (portrayed by Awkwafina) mobile app-developer cousin, both being raised by her dad (BD Wong) and grandmother (Lori Tan Chinn) in the Comedy Central sitcom Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens, picked up in 2018, and premiered in January 2020; and renewed for a second season.[26][27][28]

Saturday Night Live[]

As writer: 2018[]

In 2018, Yang was hired as a staff writer on Saturday Night Live for the show's 44th season.[6] He said he "always loved SNL growing up, but had trouble imagining himself on the show, because he'd never seen people who looked like him associated with the series".[29] Yang has writing credits on twenty-one episodes of the show for the 2018–2019 season.[18] His writing included: "GP Yass", a play on a vehicle's GPS navigation device that utilizes drag queens to deliver driving directions; and two sketches co-written with Julio Torres, which features Yang's talent for infusing "drama, tension, and exquisite backstory" into an everyday activity like paying bills in "Cheques" with Sandra Oh, and an actress doing a cameo in a gay pornography film, "The Actress" with Emma Stone.[22] "The Actress" was hailed by Out as the "gayest SNL sketch of all-time," and featured Stone as an earnest method actress taking her role as a cheated-on housewife too seriously alongside real-life gay porn actor Ty Mitchell.[30][31] The pre-tape—so-called as it is filmed days ahead rather than acted live—was championed by Stone to be included on air.[30][31] SNL creator Lorne Michaels knew Yang would be an on-air talent but wanted him to be comfortable on their stage first.[6] Yang made a cameo appearance during the Sandra Oh/Tame Impala episode as North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un while Oh played his translator.[32]

As on-air cast: 2019–present[]

In September 2019, Yang was promoted to featured cast member for the 45th season, alongside improviser Chloe Fineman.[33] Yang is the show's first ever Chinese-American cast member, and third openly gay male cast member after Terry Sweeney and John Milhiser.[34][35]

SNL has had "little representation from Asian actors, as cast members or hosts" over several decades.[12][32] Up until Yang's promotion there had been only three cast members,[c] and six hosts who were of Asian descent.[d][12][29] A 2016 study of SNL revealed: 90% of 1975–2016's show hosts (826 total) were white, 6.8% were black, 1.2% were Hispanic, and 1.1% were labelled "other".[36] Similarly SNL has had comparatively low representation of LGBTQ on-air cast and guest hosts since the series started in 1975. Yang is the third openly gay male, and sixth LGBTQ cast member.[e] News of the Chinese and openly gay Yang's new job was reported internationally, but within hours was overshadowed by revelations that comedian Shane Gillis, who had been hired at the same time, aired homophobic and anti-Asian jokes.[42][43] Gillis issued an apology, but within days was let go by SNL.[44][43]

Yang's first episode as a regular cast member was the season's opening episode September 28, 2019, with host Woody Harrelson.[45] Notably he was included in the show's cold open playing Kim Jong-un giving advice to Trump on handling the Ukraine controversy including the whistleblower who helped trigger the 2019 impeachment hearings.[45] In other sketches he portrayed Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang in a parody town hall debate, and was an extra in a mock movie trailer for Downton Abbey.[45] In October 2019, Yang made his debut on Weekend Update (WU), as Chinese trade representative Chen "Trade Daddy" Biao in a segment about Donald Trump's trade war that was "brief, funny and took some clever satirical shots".[46][5] Yang's Biao character returned to WU as the newly appointed health minister for the COVID-19 pandemic which he unconvincingly tries to assure China has in control.[47] Perhaps his "filthiest" sketch, also co-written with friend Julio Torres, was for guest host Harry Styles as an incompetent Sara Lee Corporation social media manager who mixes up his own gay BDSM account on Instagram with the company's "wholesome bread brand".[5] In 2021, Yang was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. He is the first featured player to ever be nominated.

In 2021, Yang was applauded for speaking out on the recent surge in violence against Asian-Americans[48] during a Weekend Update segment. He told audiences to "fuel up" (using the Chinese cheer Jiayou) and do more for Asian Americans.

Other work[]

Yang is a writer on the Apple TV+ musical comedy series Schmigadoon! which stars his SNL castmate Cecily Strong.[49]

Personal life[]

Yang resides in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn.[5][21]

Filmography[]

Film[]

Year Title Role Notes
2019 Isn't It Romantic Donny's Guy

Television[]

Year Title Role Notes
2016 Broad City Sales Associate 2 episodes
2016 The Outs Jason 4 episodes
2018 High Maintenance Brian Episode: "Globo"
2019–present Saturday Night Live Various roles 38 episodes
2020 Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens Edmund 6 episodes
2020 Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Kim Jong-un Special: "Kimmy vs the Reverend"
2020 Archer Win Li Episode: "Bloodsploosh" (voice)
2021 Girls5eva Zander Episode: "Cease and Desist"
2021 Ziwe Himself 1 episode

Writer[]

Year Title Notes
2018–2019 Saturday Night Live 21 episodes
2019 76th Golden Globe Awards
2021 Schmigadoon!

Awards and nominations[]

Year Association Category Work Result Ref.
2019 Primetime Emmy Awards Saturday Night Live Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series Nominated [50]
2021 Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Pending

See also[]

Explanatory notes[]

  1. ^ Terry Sweeney (1985–1986) was the first openly gay male cast member, and John Milhiser (2013–2014) was the second. Danitra Vance (1985–1986), and Kate McKinnon (2012–present) are the other two known LGBTQ cast members.
  2. ^ Rob Schneider (1990–1994) is part Filipino, Fred Armisen (2002–2013) is part-Korean, and Nasim Pedrad (2009–2014) is Iranian.
  3. ^ Fred Armisen (2002–2013) had a Korean grandfather; Rob Schneider (1988–1994) had a Filipino grandmother; and Nasim Pedrad (2009–2014) was born in Tehran, Iran.[32]
  4. ^ The six hosts have been: Jackie Chan and Lucy Liu in 2000; Aziz Ansari and Kumail Nanjiani in 2017; Awkwafina in 2018; and Sandra Oh in 2019.[32][36]
  5. ^ Denny Dillon was a cast member during the 1980–1981 season, but was not out at the time.[37] For the 1985–1986 season, Terry Sweeney was their first openly gay male cast member,[38][39] John Milhiser was second, in the 2013–2014 cast;[40] he was the fourth LGBTQ cast member overall; Danitra Vance was also in the 1985–1986 cast but was in the closet, all three left after one season; Kate McKinnon has been an out lesbian before becoming a cast member in 2012 and has continued to the present.[41]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Berg, Madeline. "Get To Know 'SNL' Writer Bowen Yang". Forbes. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Wright, Megh. "Bowen Yang's Lip-Sync Videos Are Next-Level Art". www.vulture.com. Archived from the original on December 7, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Towle, Andy (December 17, 2019). "Seth Meyers Reveals That Bowen Yang's High School Classmates Predicted His SNL Future: WATCH". Towleroad Gay News. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b Chang, Stina (September 26, 2019). "Bowen Yang's Rise to Fame Cut Short by Ignorance". Study Breaks. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Dowd, Maureen (January 25, 2020). "Bowen Yang of 'S.N.L.' Is a Smash. And a Mensch". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h Gayomali, Chris (March 16, 2020). "Bowen Yang Is Making SNL a Little Bit Weirder". GQ. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  7. ^ "Bowen's dishes come from simple restaurants and make 'SNL' history". Press Insider Daily. June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b Goldstein, Adam (October 4, 2019). "Smoky Hill alum, Saturday Night Live cast member keeps up ties with former teacher". Denver Post. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  9. ^ "Bowen Yang, 'Saturday Night Live's' first Chinese-American cast member, is from Denver". Denver Post. September 13, 2019. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Wong, Curtis M. (January 27, 2020). "Bowen Yang Opens Up About His Experience In 'Gay Conversion' Therapy". HuffPost. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  11. ^ Macias, Ernest (January 21, 2020). "Fashion Mourns Opening Ceremony". Interview Magazine. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Liu, Jennifer (September 17, 2019). "Before his historic promotion to the SNL stage, Bowen Yang was voted 'most likely to be a cast member on Saturday Night Live' in high school". CNBC. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  13. ^ "Bowen Yang Was Fooled by Grey's Anatomy" (Podcast). Nancy. December 10, 2018. Retrieved January 20, 2019 – via WNYCStudios.org.
  14. ^ Rogers, Matt and Bowen Yang, hosts. "'The Zombies Ensue' (w/ Peppermint)." Las Culturistas, episode 216, iHeartRadio, October 7, 2020.
  15. ^ Voss, Erik (August 27, 2012). "12 Colleges with Great Improv Groups". Vulture. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  16. ^ "Bowen Yang". Upright Citizens Brigade. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
  17. ^ Jump up to: a b c Malin, Sean (September 19, 2019). "Want to Try Las Culturistas? Start Here". Vulture. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  18. ^ Jump up to: a b Jakiel, Olivia (September 13, 2019). "Bowen Yang: 5 Things To Know About 'SNL's First Asian Cast Member". MSN. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  19. ^ "These Queers of Comedy Are Anything But a Punchline". www.out.com. January 13, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  20. ^ "Las Culturistas – The Shorty Awards". Shorty Awards. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  21. ^ Jump up to: a b c "30 under 30 – Hollywood & Entertainment 2019". Forbes.com. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  22. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Who is Bowen Yang? Get to know the new 'Saturday Night Live' cast member". Entertainment Weekly. September 27, 2019. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  23. ^ Murphy, Eryn (September 19, 2019). "An Introduction to Bowen Yang and Chloe Finemen of 'Saturday Night Live'". Showbiz Cheat Sheet. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  24. ^ Wang, Jessica (October 7, 2019). "Here's Everything Bowen Yang Did Before His Breakout 'SNL' Role". Bustle. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
  25. ^ "Man Flawlessly Recreates Iconic 'The Devil Wears Prada' Scene". Time. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  26. ^ Greene, Steve (November 29, 2018). "Awkwafina Is Getting Her Own Comedy Central Series". IndieWire. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  27. ^ Pedersen, Erik (September 9, 2019). "Awkwafina's Comedy Central Series Gets A Title; Directors Set". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  28. ^ Lowry, Brian (January 31, 2020). "'Awkwafina is Nora From Queens' doesn't add to its star's current moment". WFSB via CNN. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  29. ^ Jump up to: a b Chan, Tim (September 16, 2019). "'SNL' Hired Bowen Yang, But It Still Has a Diversity Problem". Rolling Stone. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  30. ^ Jump up to: a b Street, Mikelle (September 22, 2019). "Emma Stone Fought for That Infamous 'SNL' Gay Porn Parody". Out. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  31. ^ Jump up to: a b Dommu, Rose (November 21, 2019). "Bowen Yang Is Bringing the Queer Agenda to Television". Out. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  32. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Coleman, Nancy (September 12, 2019). "'S.N.L.' Has Long Lacked Asian Players. One Just Joined the Cast". The New York Times. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  33. ^ Abad-Santos, Alex (September 13, 2019). "Racist jokes by new SNL cast member Shane Gillis prompt backlash — and a non-apology about "risks"". Vox. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  34. ^ "'Saturday Night Live' Adds Trio to Season 45 Cast". THR. September 12, 2019. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
  35. ^ Voss, Brandon (September 29, 2019). "Watch Gay Comedian Bowen Yang Shine in "SNL" Season Premiere". NewNowNext. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  36. ^ Jump up to: a b Kilkenny, Katie (October 5, 2018). "'SNL': Awkwafina to Become First Asian Woman to Host in 18 Years". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  37. ^ "Denny Dillon Reflects on Saturday Night Live's Infamous 6th Season". August 12, 2020.
  38. ^ Shales, Tom; Miller, James Andrew (2002), Live from New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live, Back Bay, p. 316, ISBN 0-316-73565-5
  39. ^
  40. ^ Milhiser, John (March 16, 2018). "John Milhiser on Twitter: "Hey, @thedailybeast I'm pretty sure that I was out and proud as a gay man when I was an SNL cast member for a hot sec. 2nd after Terry. There should be more though. Go see @lovesimonmovie !!! :)"". Twitter. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  41. ^ Pierce, Robbie X (August 22, 2016). "A Brief LGBT History of 'Saturday Night Live'". The Advocate. Here Media. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  42. ^ *Sims, David (September 13, 2019). "'Saturday Night Live' Made a Mistake Hiring Shane Gillis". The Atlantic. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  43. ^ Jump up to: a b Lewis, Sophie (September 13, 2019). "New "SNL" cast member Shane Gillis exposed in videos using racist and homophobic slurs". CBS News. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  44. ^ *Abad-Santos, Alex (September 13, 2019). "Racist jokes by new SNL cast member Shane Gillis prompt backlash — and a non-apology about "risks"". Vox. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  45. ^ Jump up to: a b c Seemayer, Zach (September 28, 2019). "New 'SNL' Castmembers Bowen Yang & Chloe Fineman Make Impressive Debut". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  46. ^ Andrews, Travis M. (October 6, 2019). "'We actually built our wall': SNL's Bowen Yang shines as Chinese trade representative on 'Weekend Update'". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  47. ^ Fredette, Meagan (February 2, 2020). "Worried About Coronavirus? "SNL" Is Not Here To Make You Feel Any Better". Refinery29. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  48. ^ "'Fuel up, do more': Bowen Yang of 'SNL' speaks out on anti-Asian hate". NBC News. March 29, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  49. ^ Cinco Paul [@cincopedia] (January 31, 2020). "I'm making a show called Schmigadoon. It's starring Cecily Strong. It's a musical. I wrote it w/ @KDaurio @allisonsilvermn @julieklausner @thekategersten & Bowen Yang. And I think you're gonna like it" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  50. ^ "Bowen Yang". Emmys.com. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved July 16, 2019.

External links[]

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