Tamlyn Tomita is an American actress who was born in Okinawa, Japan, on January 27, 1966. Her movie debut was in the 1986 film ‘Karate Kid Part II’ in which she played the role of Kumiko. Just a year later, she played the role of Karren Saito in ‘Hawaiian Dream’. Since then, she has gone on to have a prolific acting career in both the television and movie industries. Her most recent leading role is Allegra Aoki in ‘The Good Doctor’. This is a new ABC medical drama series which is based on a South Korean television series. It aired for the first time on September 25, 2017. Here are five things you might not know about Tamlyn Tomita.
1. Winning a Pageant Led to Her Big Break
Before she became famous, Tamlyn Tomita entered beauty pageants. In 1984, she won the title of Queen at the Nisei Week Pageant which is held in Los Angeles. Once she had won this tile, she traveled to Hawaii and it was there that director John G. Avildsen selected her as part of a casting call to audition for the part in ‘Karate Kid Part II’. Prior to the release of this movie in 1986, Tomita continued to enter pageants and won the title of Miss Nikkei International in 1985.
2. She Once Released a Music Album
Tamlyn Tomita dreamed of a career in the performing arts from a young age. While she is best-known as an actress, she also briefly ventured into the music industry. In 1987, she signed with the record label Polydor. She released both a single and an album in Japan. Following only limited success, she decided to concentrate instead on her acting career.
3. Her Father Was a Police Sergeant
Tomita’s father, Shiro Tomita, was a distinguished man when he lived in Japan. During part of World War II, he was interned at Manzanar in California. He then joined the Los Angeles police department as a police officer. He eventually climbed the rank and became a sergeant at the LAPD. During in his time as a sergeant, he helped to develop the first Asian Taskforce. Sadly, he died of cancer in 1990.
4. She Played Two Characters in ‘Chicago Hope’
Tomita has appeared on the television series on two separate occasions playing two different characters. Her first appearance was in 1996 when she played Tina in one episode. Her second appearance was two years later in 1998 when she played the role of Jennifer Watanabe.
5. She Had a Role in the Movie ‘Tekken’
While Tamlyn Tomita has had roles in many successful movies, she has also played characters in movies that have been a box office flop. ‘Tekken’ is a 2009 martial arts movie that is based on the action video game of the same name. Tamlyn Tomita played the role of Jun Kazama and others starring in the movie included Jon Foo, Kelly Overton, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, and Ian Anthony Dale. As the video games were so successful, it was expected that this movie would emulate this success. However, despite a budget of $30 million, the movie took under one million dollars at the box office. It also received negative critical reviews and was even dismissed by the director of the video games series.
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