Shecky Wong is one of the godfathers of Asian American standup comics.
He has been on the comedy scene since the 1980's, appearing on numerous
TV shows and on the national comedy club circuit.
Shecky Wong was born in New York City to immigrant Chinese parents and
worked as a waiter during the summer months at several famous Catskills
Mountain resorts in upstate New York. Watching all the famous Jewish
comedians perform over the years, Shecky soon aspired to become a comedian
himself. One day he performed stand up at the employees's talent show,
where he won first prize and caught the attention of the talent booking
agent, and was soon offered a regular slot on the midnight shows. He
spent the next five years shuttling between the mountain resorts and
New York City comedy clubs honing his act. Later he was signed to a
long term contract which kept him busy performing at the mountain resorts
and on cruise ships for the next several years. By the late '90s, Shecky
was beginning to burn out mentally and suffer gastrointestinal problems
from the rich food served on the cruise ships. "Turns out I'm lactose-intolerant,
it was just gas!", Shecky now realizes.
In 2001 Shecky's friend, Eddie Mui, an Asian American Elvis impersonator,
asked Shecky to perform at the East West Players Theatre benefit titled,
"East West Goes Vegas". Shecky leaped at the chance to get
back on stage. He was a big hit that night and George Takei (Mr. Sulu
on Star Trek) was the first to congratulate him backstage. Shecky Wong
knew right away that he belonged under the stage lights again.
Shortly after, Shecky was getting booked all over, playing in front
of Asian, Latino and White audiences. He opened for Tommy Davidson at
the Commerce Casino and hosts the Comedy Zen show at the Bicycle Casino.
He performed with Dat Phan (winner, Last Comic Standing) at the Improv
at the Sandia Casino in New Mexico. In July 2004, Jami Gong, comedian
and producer of the TakeOut Comedy Tour, invited Shecky to join the
tour in Asia (Singapore, Hong Kong) in March 2005 and the U.S. in May
2005. When asked if he would ever perform on cruise ships again, Shecky
adds, "Sure, I'd love to...I just have to avoid dairy products."


