The Chinese cook and sidekick, like the black mammy and faithful Indian companion, was for generations a stock character in American popular culture. By examining the evolution of the Chinese character of Chop-Chop in the Blackhawk comic books, one can chart America's increasing awareness of and sensitivity to the issue of ethnic and racial stereotyping. In the years of Blackhawk's existence, 1941- 1984, Chop-Chop evolved from the original, faithful and subservient cook/assistant (1941-1955), to a nondescript quasi-Caucasian (1956- 1966), to a master in the martial arts (1967-1969, 1976), and finally to the only non-Caucasian member in a multi-national team (1982-1984).

The Blackhawks were introduced in the August, 1941 issue of "Military Comics." Drawn by Chuck Cuidera, and later Reed Crandall and other artists, the Blackhawks were an international band of volunteers whose mission was to fight the Nazis. Each volunteer brought a special talent to the team that complemented strengths of the other members. They were a finely tuned fighting machine as ruthless and efficient as their Nazi foes. The characters' physical features, language, and personalities tended to be stereotyped by nationality. Their leader was Blackhawk, a native of Poland until the United States entered the war, at which point he became the handsome, authoritative American. Joining him were Andre, the suave and romantic Frenchman; Olaf, a large, "dumb Swede;" Hendrick, also known as Hendrickson, an older, stout Dutchman; Stanislaus, the Pole, who was the only member given any notable degree of individuality--perhaps because his namesake, comic artist Stan Powell, was himself of Polish extraction; Chuck, another American added to the Blackhawk team after the United States entered the war; and finally, the loyal, subordinate Chinese sidekick, Chop-Chop.

Fig. 38, 155K Though stereotyped by nationality, all of the Blackhawk characters were drawn in a realistic style with the exception of Chop-Chop, who was drawn as an obvious comic book character in an animal-like style, Chop- Chop was, depicted as short and round, with huge ears, heavily slanted eyes, a small button nose, and a broad, frozen, tooth-filled grin that never closed or changed in position. A latter day representative of the stereotypical Chinese cook of American popular culture, Chop-Chop sported the shaved-head, queue, and loose silk costume of the 19th century Chinaman. With his broken English and silly antics, Chop-Chop was intended to provide comic relief to the grim and dirty war that the Blackhawks carried out against the Nazis (fig. 38). Fig. 39, 218K Chop-Chop made his Blackhawkdebut in the third issue, when he sought the aid of the fearless fighting team to save "Missee Ann," a nurse whose infirmary was under attack by the Germans. After the rescue Chop-Chop remained with the Blackhawks as their cook on Blackhawk Island. In time he was permitted to go along on the "less dangerous" missions, riding behind Blackhawk in the leader's plane (fig. 39). Chop-Chop's gross caricaturization and seat behind Blackhawk were symbolic of the second class status still held by Chinese-Americans during the 1940's. They had long been subject to discrimination and ridicule. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, designed to stop the immigration of the Chinese to the United States, was national policy until 1943 when the American alliance with China against the Japanese caused a reassessment of American attitudes and national policies. Fig. 40, 54K From the 1940's to the mid-1950's, Chop-Chop remained the comic foil. His few utterances typically consisted of a fearful question, expression of admiration for Blackhawk's intelligence, or some other childlike enthusiasm, prefaced by an "Oh wobbly woes!", "Gollies!", or "Yipsee Doodle!". Funny and subservient, Chop-Chop spent most of his time in a crouch and walked behind the other Blackhawks. While the others wore the Blackhawk uniform, Chop-Chop dressed in a garish green, yellow, and red costume. He had no real name, being called instead by a nickname that means "hurry-up" in anglicized Chinese. As Blackhawk's "Man Friday" his primary role was to act as an assistant, not a fellow soldier (fig. 40). Though often in the thick of the action, as Mark Evanier, writer of the 1980's Blackhawk, has written, "He was not a full-fledged Blackhawk; he was more of a mascot . . . a comedy relief character who came in and fell down a lot" (#263, October 1983). Fig. 41, 66K In the 1950's America's involvement in Korea against Communist China presented a serious problem to the writers. Even though long domesticated as a comical sidekick and servant, Chop-Chop's Chineseness became increasingly problematic. Blackhawk's creators adjusted by employing a number of stratagems, including the anglicization of his features and speech, drawing him more often from behind, and ultimately, cutting down on his dialogue and number of appearances (fig. 41). As other ethnic characters disappeared from or were anglicized in the comics of the 1950's, Chop-Chop became a nondescript, culture-less being. Though the slanted eyes, buck teeth, and queue were replaced by features and bodily proportions that were more realistic, the refashioning made him appear almost Caucasian, but with a yellowish/orange complexion, similar to that of Green Lantern's sidekick Pieface. It wasn't just Chop-Chop who was suffering. The whole Blackhawkformula was becoming stale and outdated, and in 1967 "the New Blackhawk Era" began. The team, now dubbed "The Magnificent Seven," went about the globe conquering evil and righting injustice. In an attempt to mirror the nonconformity and individualism of the late 1960's, the old leather uniforms were replaced by costumes that set each member apart. Team members spoke with a new irreverence, as Blackhawk slung names like "Marblehead" and "bonebrain" at his teammates. New talents further individualized the members as Stanislaus, now Stan, the "Golden Centurian," acquired the ability to fly and cover objects with gold; and Olaf, an acrobat when he joined the team in 1941, now leapt and bound with superhuman agility. Chop-Chop too was reconstructed as "Dr. Hands," the karate king with hands of steel. Fig. 42, 72K The new Dr. Hands wore a tuxedo and spoke with Confucian-like wisdom. At long last, Chop-Chop was depicted as an equal member of the team. The old Asian stereotype of the Chinese servant was replaced with a more vital, contemporary image of the martial arts expert. However limited and stereotypical the kung fu master may seem in retrospect, it did represent a major step forward in the popular portrayal of the Chinese and Chinese-Americans as both manly and wise (fig. 42). Fig. 43, 136K In spite of these changes "Blackhawk" comics ended its twenty- eight year run in 1969. In 1976 it was revived with a new angle: the Blackhawks were now mercenaries fighting injustice for money. Each member led his own life and was called in only for assignments, All wore chest-baring uniforms and flew their own planes, including Chop-Chop, now called "Chopper," who was again pegged as a master of martial arts. In spite of their new facelift, the Blackhawk mercenaries did not do well and the comic was discontinued early in 1977 (fig. 43). The return of Blackhawkto the comics in 1982 is evidence of the basic popularly of the Blackhawk formula. In tune with the social conservatism and renewed patriotism of the 1980's, this version returned the story to the early days of the Second World War, before the United States had entered the conflict. But while returning many elements of the original formula, the new Blackhawks did not reincarnate the old, superficial stereotypes of the team members. Artist Dan Spiegle created a real, Asian looking Chop-Chop without resorting to Caucasian features; he actually looks Chinese! As a full-fledged member of the team with his own plane and special missions, Chop-Chop continued as the martial arts expert. But there were still reminders of his previous inferior status and the new creators were acutely aware of the need to further redefine Chop-Chop's character. In issue #256 (March 1983), writer Mark Evanier opened the question of Chop-Chop's green and yellow clothing, long symbolic of his ambivalent position in the team, for public debate. "We dressed him that way because he always dressed that way, way back on another Earth where they found humor in racial caricatures. But should Chop-Chop have a new wardrobe?" This question brought in a flurry of opposing responses. One Filipino-American praised their sensitivity toward Asian characters (#263, October 1983), while a newspaper editorial insisted that the 1940's-1950's version was more accurate and that "it was all great fun" (#263, October 1983). Fig. 44, 128K Fig. 45, 92K The December 1983 issue of Blackhawk(#265) was devoted to Chop- Chop's changing role. The story dealt with his mixed feelings about being with the Blackhawks, his ill-defined position on the team, and his unhappiness at not being treated as an equal (fig. 44). The conundrum was resolved when his companions, finally realizing his unhappiness and the inequity of their own treatment of him, presented Chop-Chop with an official black leather uniform. Honored and addressed by his real name, Wu Cheng climbs into his airplane and sets off to fight for his homeland's freedom (see fig. 45). It took forty years for Chop-Chop to become Wu Cheng. Forty years filled with ridicule, laughter, apprehension, and misunderstanding. Not until 1983 had the awareness of and respect for cultural differences reached a sufficient level of sophistication to grant Chop-Chop full recognition and equality. In doing so Blackhawkcomics presented a lesson to their readers that was a long time coming and, judging from the fan mail, very well received. Carla Zimmerman has a Master's degree in Anthropology and a certificate in Museum Studies from New York University. She is currently Assistant Archivist in the Library Department of The Balch Institute. Previous Article | Table of Contents | Next Article