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April 2, 2013

Dr. Sammy Lee – No Longer Missing – FOUND (Breaking News April 2, 2013)

Filed under: Asian American issues,Children's Picture Books — Tags: , , , — paulayoo @ 8:14 pm

Dr. Sammy Lee, Olympic Gold Medalist

EDITED UPDATE AS OF APRIL 2, 2013: According to the Los Angeles Times’ investigative reporter Robert Lopez @LAJourno, Dr. Lee was found in Pico Rivera in good condition, albeit a little disoriented. His family on is on their way to him.  I will continue to blog any other details I find here. For now, latest details here: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-sammy-lee-found-in-pico-rivera-20130402,0,6052242.story 

and also here: 

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-sammy-lee-found-safe-20130402,0,6345514.story

and here: 

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/orange_county&id=9050535

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(NOTE: The blog below was posted earlier tonight…)

Olympic Gold Medalist, DR. SAMMY LEE, who was the subject of my very first published children’s picture book with Lee & Low Books, has been reported MISSING since 3 PM on Monday April 1, 2013. According to the police, he purchased gas in Mojave at 8:30 AM on Tuesday April 2nd. They determine he may be lost and confused.

Anyone with any information on Olympic Gold medalist Dr. Sammy Lee, missing since yesterday, please call Detective Ellis at (714) 536-5971 or the Huntington Beach Police Department at (714) 960-8811. More info at this link: http://www.hbindependent.com/news/tn-hbi-0404-missing-man-lee-20130402,0,6238470.story

I last wrote about Dr. Lee for a blog last year celebrating the Summer 2012 Olympics and my experience meeting him. You can read that here: http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=1357

Here is a photo of Dr. Lee, the illustrator of our book, Dom Lee, and I when we met him in 2004. It was an honor and privilege to meet him and to share his inspirational story with children everywhere.

L-R: Illustrator Dom Lee, Dr. Sammy Lee, and Paula Yoo

I will be monitoring the news and will keep everyone posted of any breaking news. You can also follow me on Twitter @paulayoo for more breaking news updates. Please keep Dr. Lee and his family in your thoughts and prayers for his safe return home. Thank you.

NOTE: I will post any live updates on this blog and also on my Twitter feed.

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LIVE UPDATES:

AS OF APRIL 2, 2013 (9 PM): More info: Video surveillance showed Dr. Lee was at the gas station in Mojave when he purchased the gas this morning. His wife is worried because he is on medication (he is diabetic) and may be confused and lost. He was driving a tan, four-door 2011 Mercedes-Benz 300 with “2GOLDS” license plate. Last seen wearing a dark blue velour sweat suit & sandals. Call Huntington Police w/tips at 714-960-8811 Details here: http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/orange_county&id=9050535

AS OF APRIL 2, 2013 (9:30 PM): Twitter’s @LAJourno tweets Dr. Lee was now reported in Studio City tonight. Police confirm he purchased gas around 5:30 PM there. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-sammy-lee-studio-city-20130402,0,2698540.story

AS OF APRIL 2, 2013 (10 PM): Twitter’s @LAJourno tweets Dr. Lee was found in Pico Rivera and his family is on their way to him. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-sammy-lee-found-in-pico-rivera-20130402,0,6052242.story

AS OF APRIL 2, 2013 (10:30 PM): LA Times plans to update its live reporting but @LAJourno tweeted “Sammy Lee was slightly disoriented but in good condition when he was found, #LASD says.” A happy ending to a nerve-wracking day. xo P.

AS OF APRIL 2, 2013 (11 PM): According to two-time Olympian @camari2 Cathy Marino (’88 & ’92 sprint kayaking), Dr. Lee is in “good spirits and telling jokes.” :) Now THAT’s the Sammy I know! :)

FINAL UPDATES: Los Angeles Times final report for tonight: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-sammy-lee-found-safe-20130402,0,6345514.story and ABC report here: http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/orange_county&id=9050535

 

March 11, 2013

March Update: JANM Panel, Nikki Grimes, and more!

Filed under: Asian American issues,Writing For Young People — Tags: , , , , , , , , — paulayoo @ 1:40 pm

I attended a poetry class by esteemed poet Nikki Grimes at the SCBWI March 2013 Writers Day conference! Read my blog for more details!

Hello from the writing batcave! I recently left the confines of my writing batcave to attend a wonderful class on “Novels in Verse” by esteemed poet NIKKI GRIMES for the March 9-10, 2013 SCBWI Writers Day conference. I also will be sneaking out of the batcave on Saturday March 23rd to be a panel speaker at the “BEYOND THE BAD & UGLY: STEREOTYPES AND ASIAN AMERICAN POP CULTURE – A SUMMIT” at the Japanese American National Museum. Keep reading below for more details…

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November 6, 2012

Happy Election Day! Please Vote! Nov. 6, 2012

Filed under: Asian American issues — Tags: , — paulayoo @ 1:14 pm

I voted! Oreo wishes he could vote. (He’s not a fan, however, of the “I Voted” sticker!)

Happy Election Day! This is just a quick blog to say I did my civic duty and voted this morning. My cat Oreo is sad that cats are not allowed to vote. :) Maybe we’ll start a proposition to change that… :) Now I’m glued to the TV coverage for the rest of the day…

Until the next blog, as always, please remember… HAPPY WRITING! WRITE (AND VOTE) LIKE YOU MEAN IT! :)

 

 

July 27, 2012

2012 Summer Olympics: Meet Dr. Sammy Lee, Gold Medalist (Diving)!

Filed under: Asian American issues — Tags: , , , , , , — paulayoo @ 12:27 pm

SIXTEEN YEARS IN SIXTEEN SECONDS: THE SAMMY LEE STORY (Lee & Low 2005) written by Paula Yoo and illustrated by Dom Lee

Today marks the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London! You know what that means… I will disappear into my Olympics batcave for the next two weeks! I’ve always been a HUGE Olympics fanatic (both summer & winter events). Although I’m not athletic and I don’t watch any sports, for some reason, I’m HOOKED on the Olympics. Which makes it fitting that my first children’s picture book, SIXTEEN YEARS IN SIXTEEN SECONDS: THE SAMMY LEE STORY (Lee & Low Books 2005, illustrated by Dom Lee), was about Olympic Gold Medalist diving champion Dr. Sammy Lee. (For more info on my book, go here: http://paulayoo.com/books-sixteen.html)

To celebrate the 2012 Summer Olympics, I am presenting a fun photo album of what it was like to meet Dr. Lee and write about his life for children. He is an amazing man – he’s surprisingly down to earth and funny, too! It was such a pleasure and privilege to meet him. I even got to see his Olympic medals and the torches he carried for later Olympics as well! Dr. Lee won gold medals in diving at the 1948 London Olympics and the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, becoming the first male diver to win back-to-back gold medals. He later coached diver Greg Louganis to the Silver Medal in the 1976 Olympics.

Dr. Sammy Lee, Olympic Gold Medalist!

(Keep reading after the jump for more stories and photos of Dr. Sammy Lee!)

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May 10, 2012

“Fact to Fiction: API Authors Panel” (2 PM) Saturday May 12, 2012

Filed under: Asian American issues — Tags: , , , , , , — paulayoo @ 4:57 pm

GOOD ENOUGH by Paula Yoo (HarperTeen paperback edition May 8, 2012)

Hi! Just a quick blog to remind everyone that I’m speaking on an author panel entitled, “Fact to Fiction,” this Saturday May 12th at 2 PM at the Japanese American National Museum’s author panel for their annual Asian Pacific American Heritage Month celebration!

MAY is the annual ASIAN-PACIFIC AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH. This month features nation-wide festivals and events celebrating the contributions of Asian-Pacific Americans to our country. (For more info on that, go here: http://asianpacificheritage.gov/) I will be one of the panel speakers at the Japanese American National Museum‘s family festival, “Target Free Family Saturday: Celebrate Asian Pacific Heritage” on Saturday May 12, 2012. The festival is all day from 11 AM to 4 PM.

The panel I’m speaking on is called, “Fact to Fiction: API Authors Panel.” It will be held at 2 PM.

The panel description: “Join a remarkable panel of novelists featuring New York Times bestselling author Jamie Ford (Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet), Kristina McMorris (Bridge of Scarlet Leaves), Margaret Dilloway (How to Be an American Housewife), and Paula Yoo (Good Enough). Topics will include the influence of Asian American history on today’s literature, weaving true and personal accounts into fiction, and cultural education through storytelling.”

To find out more about the other awesome authors on our panel, please visit their websites here:

JAMIE FORD (Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet): http://www.jamieford.com/

KRISTINA MCMORRIS (Bridge of Scarlet Leaves): http://www.kristinamcmorris.com/

MARGARET DILLOWAY (How to Be An American Housewife): http://margaretdilloway.com/

For more info on the event, please visit the Japanese American National Museum website here: http://www.janm.org/

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Hope to see you there! :) The rest of my May will be busy with the usual writing deadlines. I’ll be back to more regular blogging this summer, starting in June. You can always check out the YOO INK section of my main homepage to see the latest headlines/news updates. You can also follow me on Twitter: @paulayoo

Until the next blog, remember… HAPPY WRITING! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT! :)

December 5, 2011

MULTICULTURAL MONDAY: Are Asian American Students “Good Enough”?

Filed under: Asian American issues,Books — Tags: , , , , , , , — paulayoo @ 6:00 am

Infamous 1980s TIME Magazine cover that horrified me when I was in high school...

Welcome to my first MULTICULTURAL MONDAY blog! I saw a recent article over the weekend that had me seeing red, hence my decision to hop on my multicultural soapbox…

Once again, my YA novel GOOD ENOUGH (HarperCollins 2008) has been proven as being WAY ahead of its time. My novel came out in 2008, long before the phrase “TIGER MOM” became a household word. And now this – a recent news article that states Asian American students are choosing NOT to reveal their ethnicity on college applications out of fear of discrimination.

The link to that story is here: http://news.yahoo.com/asians-college-strategy-dont-check-asian-174442977.html

I’m depressed that even in 2011, we are STILL experiencing this sort of ridiculous racial discrimination. The whole point of my novel GOOD ENOUGH was to poke fun at the Asian American “Model Minority Myth” … but also to use humor as a way of examining the more serious issues of discrimination. (Pictured above is an infamous TIME Magazine cover story on “Those Asian American Whiz Kids” that horrified me as a teenager back in the mid ’80s. :( :P Gah!)

(If you’re curious to read more about my multicultural soapbox rant, please hit the MORE link and keep reading after the jump!)

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April 30, 2011

Angry Asian Man’s 10th Anniversary!

Filed under: Asian American issues — Tags: , — paulayoo @ 9:36 am

Just a quick shout out to the amazing Angry Asian Man!

He's Asian, he's Angry, and he's 10 years old! Happy Birthday, AAM!

April 30, 2011 marks the tenth anniversary of one of the most influential and important blogs created to keep people aware of Asian American news and issues and pop culture. Angry Asian Man is an amazing blogger with a great sense of humor and a keen eye for important Asian American trends and issues. He has done so much for our Asian American community, and has even written about my books as well as about my brother’s books (http://daveyoo.com/html/index.html). You can check out his blog here: http://angryasianman.com/ and follow him on Twitter @angryasianman. HAPPY TENTH ANNIVERSARY, ANGRY ASIAN MAN! :) Stay Angry!

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Shining Star: The Anna May Wong Story
Good Enough
Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds: The Sammy Lee Story
Books by Paula Yoo