FLOWER DRUM SONG Novelist C.Y. Lee Passes Away At Age 102

Novelist C.Y. Lee passed away last month at age 102.

Lee's debut novel, Flower Drum Song, was adapted for the stage by Joseph Fields and composers Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II.

Their musical adaptation of the novel ran for two years on on Broadway from 1958-60, in a production directed by film and dance legend Gene Kelly. The musical was revived in 2002, with a book by acclaimed playwright David Henry Hwang.

The story was again adapted as a feature film in 1961 and was among the first major Hollywood productions to feature an Asian cast. Despite receiving five Academy Award nominations, the film was derided as being a showcase for harmful stereotypes of Asian culture.

Lee is among the first Asian novelists to achieve commercial success in the United States. His other novels include "China Saga" and "Gate of Rage". A native of China, Lee immigrated to the United States during World War II.

His work often reflected scenes from his reality, including political upheaval in China, and the plight of Asian immigrants and their more assimilated children in the United States.

Flower Drum Song centers on San Francisco Chinatown in the late '50s, where nightclub owner Sammy Fong's traditional family has ordered him a picture-bride from China, hoping to end his pursuit of an enticing dancer. Mei Li arrives, shy and at sea in a world she doesn't understand, and it's clear that she's the wrong gal for the totally assimilated Sammy. However, she may be just the ticket for Sammy's buddy, whose traditionalist father is fighting a losing battle with his kids against rock `n' roll, baseball, sports cars and the typical trappings of the modern American life-style. By turns raucous and heartfelt, the solution to this delightful Chinese puzzle of properly matching the young people while reconciling the old is a celebration of American ingenuity.