A genial, laid back, slumber-eyed character player especially adept at the relaxed wisecrack or dry comment, Japanese-American actor Jack Soo was born in Oakland, California, in 1917, his real name being Goro Suzuki. In the post-WWII years, he entertained as a stand-up performer in nightclubs and had made a reasonable dent on the Midwest circuit by...
In the late 1940s he had a nightclub comedy act with Joey Bishop.
2
According to his daughter, speaking on camera in the 2009 documentary You Don't Know Jack: The Jack Soo Story (2009), his parents wanted him to be born in Japan. But he was actually born on board the ship en route to Japan from Oakland.
3
Cast as the show M.C. and comedian Frankie Wing ("Gliding through my memoree") in the 1958 Broadway cast of "Flower Drum Song", and Larry Blyden was Sammie Fong. Jack moved up to the Sammie Fong role for the 1961 film.
4
His last words to Hal Linden as he was being wheeled into the operating room before his death were "It must have been the coffee." This was a reference to the running gag of his character Nick Yemana from Barney Miller (1974) having the reputation for making horrible coffee.
5
Was interned in a camp for Japanese-Americans in Utah during WWII.
6
In the late 1940s, he first met Barney Miller (1974) creator Danny Arnold while sharing the nightclub stages in the mid-West early in their show business careers.
7
The cast of Barney Miller (1974) stepped out of character on a retrospective episode that aired in May of 1979 to offer a tribute to Jack, who had died a few months earlier during the show's fifth season. The episode recalled some of his best moments on the show.
Actor
Title
Year
Status
Character
Barney Miller
1975-1979
TV Series
Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana
Return from Witch Mountain
1978
Mr. Yokomoto
Busting Loose
1977
TV Series
Hoofat
Police Woman
1975
TV Series
Red Star
M*A*S*H
1972-1975
TV Series
Kim Chung Quoc / Charlie Lee
Amy Prentiss
1975
TV Series
Dr. Atsumi
Police Story
1974-1975
TV Series
Bruce Chan / Taiske
Ironside
1974
TV Series
Joe Lee / Sing-Ho
She Lives!
1973
TV Movie
Dr. Osikawa
The Odd Couple
1972
TV Series
Chuk Mai Chin
The Jimmy Stewart Show
1971
TV Series
Woodrow Yamada
Julia
1968-1971
TV Series
Judge Warren Wazaku / Tree Man
The Name of the Game
1971
TV Series
Sergeant George Kwan
Hawaii Five-O
1970
TV Series
Sam Quong
The Monk
1969
TV Movie
Hip Guy
The Red Skelton Hour
1964-1969
TV Series
Narrator / Chinese Drama / Jimmy Howe
The Green Berets
1968
Col. Cai
Thoroughly Modern Millie
1967
Oriental #1
Summer Fun
1966
TV Series
Sidney
The Oscar
1966
Sam
The Wackiest Ship in the Army
1965
TV Series
Shiru
Valentine's Day
1964-1965
TV Series
Rockwell 'Rocky' Sin
Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?
1963
Yoshimi Hiroti
The Jack Benny Program
1962
TV Series
Jack Soo, the Japanese Agent
Flower Drum Song
1961
'Sammy' Fong
Soundtrack
Title
Year
Status
Character
Thoroughly Modern Millie
1967
performer: "The Japanese Sandman" - uncredited
Flower Drum Song
1961
performer: "Sunday", "Don't Marry Me"
Self
Title
Year
Status
Character
The Hollywood Squares
1978
TV Series
Guest Appearance
All-Star Family Feud Special
1978
TV Series
Himself - Celebrity Contestant
Family Feud
1978
TV Series
Himself
The Mike Douglas Show
1977
TV Series
Himself - Actor
Dinah!
1976
TV Series
Himself
Laugh-In
1971
TV Series
Himself - Guest Performer
The Movie Game
1970
TV Series
Himself
The Joey Bishop Show
1968
TV Series
Himself
The Moviemakers
1968/II
Documentary short
Himself (uncredited)
The Ed Sullivan Show
1962
TV Series
Himself
Archive Footage
Title
Year
Status
Character
You Don't Know Jack: The Jack Soo Story
2009
Documentary
Himself
The Walt Disney Comedy and Magic Revue
1985
Video short
Mr. Yokomoto
Barney Miller
1979-1982
TV Series
Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana
Known for movies
Barney Miller (1975-1982) as Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana
$850,000
