Sammee Tong
Sammee Tong (April 21, 1901 – October 27, 1964) was an American film and television character actor. He was best known for his starring role as John Forsythe's live-in houseboy/valet Peter Tong on the sitcom Bachelor Father, which aired on all three national networks from 1957 to 1962.
Tong signed with Columbia Pictures, and made his film debut in a bit part in the comedy film The Captain Hates the Sea (1934). In 1939 he returned to his home town as director of entertainment at the Chinese Village of San Francisco's World's Fair, and began the first Chinese radio hour on KSAN. Throughout the 1940s, he had small, usually uncredited, roles in films. He returned to Hollywood in the early 1950s and took roles on television.
Tong made his television debut in a 1953 episode of You Are There. He had a recurring role as George the cook the first two seasons of the Mickey Mouse Club serial The Adventures of Spin and Marty (1955 - 1956). In 1957, he landed a co-starring role in the sitcom Bachelor Father, starring John Forsythe and Noreen Corcoran. In the series, Tong portrayed "Peter Tong", Bentley Gregg's (Forsythe) live-in houseboy and valet. Although he was playing a servant, Tong enjoyed the role stating, "Houseboys in movies and the theater always bow low, mutter a few sing song words and disappear, but not on this show. I get dialogue and laughs." After Bachelor Father's cancellation in 1962, Tong was cast as Sammy Ling in the ABC sitcom Mickey (1964 - 1965), starring Mickey Rooney. Despite low ratings, Tong's character had a solid fanbase thanks to his role in Bachelor Father. Tong's death effectively ended any chance for the series' survival, and ABC canceled Mickey in its first season.
His final screen appearance was as "Cook" in the film Fluffy (1965), starring Tony Randall and Shirley Jones. The film was released after Tong's death in October 1964 from an intentional barbiturate overdose.
| Known For | Acting |
|---|---|
| Most Rating | 0.8861 |
| Birthday | 1901-04-21 |
| Place of Birth | San Francisco, California, USA |
| Also Known As | Sammy Tong, |
1957
Hell Bound
5.538/13
After WW2, a Los Angeles crime ring uses a complex scheme, involving a freight ship, a junkie, and a corrupt health officer, to smuggle drugs into the...
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Hell Bound
1963
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
6.972/658
A group of strangers come across a man dying after a car crash who proceeds to tell them about the $350,000 he buried in California. What follows is t...
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It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
1937
Youth on Parole
2.8/6
Two strangers, a man and a woman, are framed for a jewel robbery and thrown in jail. After they get out, they join forces to track down the real thiev...
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Youth on Parole
1964
For Those Who Think Young
5.25/10
A wealthy young man tries to woo a university student, while her two uncles work to popularize a local club.
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For Those Who Think Young
1945
God Is My Co-Pilot
6.9/8
Robert L. Scott has dreamed his whole life of being a fighter pilot, but when war comes he finds himself flying transport planes over The Hump into Ch...
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God Is My Co-Pilot
1958
Suicide Battalion
4.5/2
Second World War drama, set in the Philippines about a group of men recruited for the dangerous mission of destroying an American base to keep strateg...
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Suicide Battalion
1939
Only Angels Have Wings
7.256/264
A traveling performer arrives at a remote South American port town where the head of an air freight service must risk his pilots' lives to earn a majo...
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Only Angels Have Wings
1936
Love Before Breakfast
5.8/12
Scott is a very rich businessman who hangs out with a snooty, silly Countess, but has the hots for Kay who is already engaged to Bill. Scott pursues K...
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Love Before Breakfast
1956
Godzilla, King of the Monsters!
6.5/274
During an assignment, foreign correspondent Steve Martin spends a layover in Tokyo and is caught amid the rampage of an unstoppable prehistoric monste...
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Godzilla, King of the Monsters!
1957
The Midnight Story
6.05/30
Beloved priest Father Thomasino is murdered in a San Francisco alley, and the police have few clues. But traffic cop Joe Martini becomes obsessed with...
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The Midnight Story
1943
China
6.8/13
Shortly before Pearl Harbor, American opportunist Jones and partner Johnny are in China to sell oil to the invading Japanese army. Cynical about the s...
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China
1936
The Accusing Finger
4.7/3
A proud, pro-capital punishment district attorney with a 90% execution rate, finds himself wrongly convicted of murdering his estranged wife and sente...
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The Accusing Finger
1950
Woman on the Run
6.74/104
Frank Johnson, a sole witness to a gangland murder, goes into hiding and is trailed by Police Inspector Ferris, on the theory that Frank is trying to...
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Woman on the Run
1937
Daughter of Shanghai
5.133/15
A Chinese-American woman tries to expose an illegal alien smuggling ring.
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