Actress. Often typecast as a Chinese beauty, she had a brief but significant film career that saw her become the only Oriental WAMPAS Baby Star. Though there are gaps in her life story it is known that she was born Toshia Ichioka, was rasied somewhere in the United States from age 10, and made her silver screen bow in the 1927 silent "Mr. Wu." After following with "Streets of Shanghai" (1927) and 1928's "The Man Without a Face" she transitioned into talkies with 1932's "The Hatchet Man" and "Roar of the Dragon." Named a WAMPAS Baby Star of 1932 she landed her most significant role as the Chinese concubine Mai-Li in 1933's "The Bitter Tea of General Yen." Toshia had roles in a few more films including 1934's "The Painted Veil," "Charlie Chan at the Circus" (1936) and the 1937 "Charlie Chan on Broadway," earned her final credit with 1939's "Port of Hate," then essentially dropped from view, a move that may or may not have been related to the hostilities brewing between America and Japan at the time. In later years she is thought to have worked as a researcher for Robert Ripley of "Believe It or Not" fame. She was variously credited as Toshia or Toshiye Ichioka, as Toshia Mori (her name as a WAMPAS Baby Star), and following her marriage to Chinese actor Allen Jung as Shia Jung. A few of her films including her contributions to the Charlie Chan series have been preserved.
Actress. Often typecast as a Chinese beauty, she had a brief but significant film career that saw her become the only Oriental WAMPAS Baby Star. Though there are gaps in her life story it is known that she was born Toshia Ichioka, was rasied somewhere in the United States from age 10, and made her silver screen bow in the 1927 silent "Mr. Wu." After following with "Streets of Shanghai" (1927) and 1928's "The Man Without a Face" she transitioned into talkies with 1932's "The Hatchet Man" and "Roar of the Dragon." Named a WAMPAS Baby Star of 1932 she landed her most significant role as the Chinese concubine Mai-Li in 1933's "The Bitter Tea of General Yen." Toshia had roles in a few more films including 1934's "The Painted Veil," "Charlie Chan at the Circus" (1936) and the 1937 "Charlie Chan on Broadway," earned her final credit with 1939's "Port of Hate," then essentially dropped from view, a move that may or may not have been related to the hostilities brewing between America and Japan at the time. In later years she is thought to have worked as a researcher for Robert Ripley of "Believe It or Not" fame. She was variously credited as Toshia or Toshiye Ichioka, as Toshia Mori (her name as a WAMPAS Baby Star), and following her marriage to Chinese actor Allen Jung as Shia Jung. A few of her films including her contributions to the Charlie Chan series have been preserved.
Bio by: Bob Hufford
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