Gedde Watanabe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gedde Watanabe
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Watanabe in 2014
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| Born |
Gary Watanabe
June 26, 1955 |
| Education | American Conservatory Theater |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1976–present |
Gary "Gedde" Watanabe (born June 26, 1955) is an American actor. He is famous for lending his voice to the character of Ling in the animated movie Mulan (1998) and its follow-up Mulan II (2004). He also played Long Duk Dong in the film Sixteen Candles (1984) and Takahara "Kaz" Kazihiro in Gung Ho (1986). From 1997 to 2003, he was known as Nurse Yosh Takata in the TV show ER. Gedde Watanabe was also part of the first cast of the musical Pacific Overtures.
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Early Life and Learning
Gedde Watanabe was born and grew up in Ogden, Utah. His family is Japanese-American. During World War II, his mother was held in a special camp, and she later worked as a seamstress. In high school, Gedde acted and sang in many plays. After finishing school, he moved to San Francisco. There, he played music on the street and worked on his acting skills.
Acting Career Highlights
Gedde Watanabe started his acting career in 1976. His first big role was on Broadway in the musical Pacific Overtures. He played several characters in this show. After that, he appeared in many movies and TV shows. His first film was The Long Island Four in 1980.
Many of Gedde's roles have been characters from East Asia with strong accents. However, he does not speak Japanese himself.
He had a main role in the movie Gung Ho and its TV show version. In the 1989 movie UHF, he played Kuni. Kuni was a karate teacher and the host of a TV game show called Wheel of Fish. Gedde later played Kuni again on The Weird Al Show.
From 1988 to 1991, Watanabe was on Sesame Street as Hiroshi. He also had a regular role as Nurse Yosh Takata on the TV drama ER from 1997 to 2003. In the 1990s, he studied acting in Hollywood. He also voiced different Japanese characters on The Simpsons. In 1998, he voiced Ling in Disney's Mulan. He returned as Ling for the sequel Mulan II in 2004 and the video game Kingdom Hearts II in 2005.
Notable Film Roles
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Sixteen Candles | Long Duk Dong |
| 1986 | Gung Ho | Oishi Kazihiro |
| 1989 | UHF | Kuni |
| 1990 | Gremlins 2: The New Batch | Mr. Katsuji |
| 1998 | Mulan | Ling |
| 2004 | Mulan II | Ling |
| 2008 | Forgetting Sarah Marshall | Hotel Manager |
| 2009 | Scooby-Doo! and the Samurai Sword | Kenji |
| 2024 | Kung Fu Panda 4 | Badger Crime Boss |
| 2024 | Ultraman: Rising | Hayao Sato/Ultradad |
Television Appearances
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1986–1987 | Gung Ho | Kaz Kazuhiro |
| 1988–1992 | Sesame Street | Hiroshi |
| 1996 | Seinfeld | Mr. Oh |
| 1997–2003 | ER | Nurse Yosh Takata |
| 1998–1999 | Rugrats | Zack / Kangaroo |
| 1999–2000 | Batman Beyond | Dr. Suzuki / Principal |
| 2001 | The Proud Family | Mr. Min |
| 2002–2007 | Kim Possible | Professor Bob Chen |
| 2006 | Family Guy | Long Duk Dong |
Video Game Voice Roles
| Year | Title | Voice role |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Disney's Animated Storybook: Mulan | Ling |
| 2005 | Kingdom Hearts II | Ling |
Stage Performances
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Pacific Overtures | Boy, Girl, Priest, Sailor and Townsperson |
| 2001 | A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum | Pseudolus |
| 2008 | Pippin | Grandmother Berthe |
| 2016 | La Cage aux Folles | Albin |
See also
In Spanish: Gedde Watanabe para niños
