Nobu McCarthy Biography

Fast Facts

• Became a successful model in Japan and was eventually named Miss Tokyo
• Was artistic director of the East West Players, the first Asian American theater company
• Received a lifetime achievement award from the East West Players in 1996
• Was spotted by an agent in the Little Tokyo neighborhood of Los Angeles and auditioned for her first film role with Paramount Pictures, the Jerry Lewis comedy "The Geisha Boy․"
• Trained in ballet at the Pavlova School in Kamakura, Japan and sang with choral groups on stage and radio
• Best known for her roles in the films "The Karate Kid, Part II" and "Pacific Heights" and in the TV movie "Farewell to Manzanar․"
• Taught drama at California State University at Los Angeles and at UCLA
• Starred opposite George Takei of "Star Trek" fame in his first television role, "Playhouse 90," in 1958, and later worked with him again on "Perry Mason" and "The Wash․"