The Monk Goes Hollywood

• Published in: Virtual Orientalism
• Main Author: Iwamura, Jane Naomi
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 14.01.2011
• Subjects: David Carradine; gender; television; Shaolin; China; race relations; Kung Fu; the Western; counterculture; hegemony
• ISBN: 9780199738601; 0199738602
• DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199738601.003.0004

This chapter looks at the figure of Kwai Chang Caine and his Shaolin monk teachers in the popular 1970s TV series, Kung Fu. At this moment, a fictional Monk takes his place alongside representations of historical figures, making the hyperreal effect discussed in previous chapters complete. Kung Fu also marks the rise of a new generation into cultural power, whose attempts to selectively wed their parents’ ideals with their own counter-cultural values are clearly seen in America’s first “Eastern Western.” The racial politics of the show are specifically discussed, from the casting of David Carradine as the “half-Chinese, half-American” fugitive priest to the storylines that often feature minority characters. The way in which racial minorities are scripted into each episode reveals a potent commentary on contemporary race relations in the early 1970s. Ultimately, the show individualizes the politics of race and ideally configures a spiritual approach to social oppression.