The rise & fall of The Donut King. Besides, he reasoned, as a politician he would not be able to gamble. Theres also the moment where Ted revisits his former home in Mission Viejo. We were taxed to the hilt, unemployment was high and he was very reluctant to give refugees a home here when Californians were out of work. His few shirts and pants hang from a clothesline. It smelled delicious and when he first tasted one it reminded him of something from home - a fried pastry, also circular, called nom kong. I could have made a special piece just on the history of donuts. One night, he. "[7] In a positive review, Richard Whittaker with The Austin Chronicle said that "Gu does stellar work compiling and constructing Ngoys life story through interviews and archive and contemporary footage," and added "the animation sequences by Chapeau Studios and 1881 Animation that make the perfect drizzle of icing. [5], Ngoy was hesitant to return to California for the film; he was estranged from his children and former friends. But one night, he had an idea. Eventually Cambodians owned so many doughnut shops in California that they dominated the market, pushing Winchell's into second place. You see some of these families and their stores in The Donut King He had spent all his money on electioneering and on a failed attempt to introduce a new type of hybridised rice, which he believed would improve yields. When Christy's parents eventually discovered the ruse, they were furious. In a year Ted had saved enough to put down a deposit on a second doughnut shop, a "mom-and-pop" shop called Christy's. Word spread. And he said he saw her heart break before his very eyes. The whole community banded together and they all agreed to sell him out of donuts every morning by 9 a.m. One of Ngoy's first jobs in the US was as a service station attendant. And that's what he did. Ngoy believes he is suffering Gods punishment for having betrayed the blood vow he made as a young man under the moonlight in Phnom Penh. she says. They wont trust you, he said. Near the station was a doughnut shop. Every evening, he sat by his open window and played the flute. "He's like, 'You know what? Over the years, Ted and Christy sponsored more than 100 families, often hosting them before setting them up with homes, loans, and doughnut shops. Ngoy lived in an attic apartment a few blocks from the Khoeun familys mansion. You will end up destroying the whole family and no more relationship with the world, just finished. In 1975, Ngoy fled the Khmer Rouge with his wife and three children to Camp Pendleton. Doing this film was really an exploration for me of understanding where you come from. Before sunrise, they would climb back into her room. until 2014 They did business on a handshake, he said, and his tenants always paid. He also apologised to many of those he hurt. The second time Ted came back to California, Chet took all this time off of work, took him to his timeshare in Oceanside and drove his dad around all over Southern California. He had sold what few shops remained. Ted, Christy and their two kids fled to Thailand. When he lost he would lash out, smashing doors, breaking furniture and frightening the children. Late at night, Ngoy would put Suganthini on his back and climb down the roof, then down the coconut tree. It was here that Ngoy had his first taste of gambling while placing bets at the blackjack tables. Im also, again, the daughter of Chinese American immigrants and my dad was a big Republican party supporter. Eager to learn the business, Ngoy approached the shop owners. [5], The film received 69/100 on Metacritic, receiving "generally favorable reviews. Ngoy and his family enjoyed the fruits of their labor and at one point moved into a 7,000-square-foot mansion in Mission Viejo. But on a later trip Ted had a go on the blackjack tables, and soon he was hooked on the glamour and the adrenaline. NICK STREET Channy is a stocky man in his mid-forties, and he runs USA Donut in Boeung Keng Kang with his wife. LAist is part of Southern California Public Radio, a member-supported public media network. Alice found it hard to persuade Ted to return to California for filming. A week later, Suganthini wrote back, and the two began a secret correspondence. And she let me in to take a shower. [8], Author Ryka Aoki describes Ngoy as legend in our Asian-American community and inspiration for her award-winning novel Light From Uncommon Stars for both his stealing books process and the legacy of Cambodian-American donut shops in Southern California. During the week they went to school, where sometimes they were so hungry they stole snacks from other kids' lunchboxes. The ubiquity and low overhead of these Cambodian mom-and-pop donut shops helped drive Dunkin' Donuts out of California in the late '90s. 2023 BBC. These are all people who present day you dont associate with welcoming refugees with open arms. The family also still had the Winchell's so now they had two stores to run. Bush, met former Presidents Reagan and Nixon, and urged other Asian immigrants to support the GOP. Theyre savvy, young, hip. It really helped put some perspective on the journey to get here from somewhere else and the struggles that people go through when they arrive in a new, strange and foreign land. He hosted Dan Quayle and Pete Wilson at his house. Ngoy asked to visit. Peace Lutheran Church in Tustin hired Ngoy as a janitor. But then one of Suganthini's servants appeared at his door with a reply. Chuong Lee, who has run DK's Donuts since 1988, is officially retired although she occasionally helps out at the shop. When there was an overrun of pink doughnut boxes Ted bought them cut-price, and the pink boxes became his trademark. Money, doughnuts, sleep.. And she was heavily chaperoned. At the peak of his success, Ted owned something like 65 donut stores many of them named Christy's and was bringing in about $100,000 per month. So he named his own political party the Free Development Republican Party. It was really wonderful. He said that we didnt have room for these refugees here. Perpetually in need of cash, he'd ask the people running his donut shops for loans. [3] Ngoy worked at various jobs, including as a travel agent and tour guide, before joining the military in 1970. California Sunday "Cambodian people owe them a lot.". The United States alone is home to more than 25,000 donut shops and they produce more than 10 billion donuts each year. In The Donut King, we learn that a teenage Ted won over his wife, Christy (ne Suganthini), by spending 45 straight days laying under her bed. As far as the immigrant experience and my parents what it really did for me is open my eyes and I just cut them some slack about growing up here in conflict with wanting to be an American kid and their Chinese ways of raising me. He had lost the respect of his family and community. She later discovered that they were among the first to be executed by the Khmer Rouge. He began to disappear off to Las Vegas for days, losing $5,000, $7,000 a game, and neglecting his family and his doughnut empire. I gave her my spiel, and she said, 'Well, you've called the right person. The entire family Christy and the three kids worked alongside him. "It's a crazy story, but it's true," says Ted, now 78. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Something else about Orange County that I found so beautiful and touching while we were making this film, there was a man who owned a donut shop in Seal Beach and his wife was stricken with cancer. Ted was a poor boy from a poor family while Christy was the daughter of a high-ranking official. Ngoy would make a habit of returning monthly to watch performers such as Tom Jones, Diana Ross, and Wayne Newton and indulging in the incentives pit bosses of major casinos offered all the while spending even larger sums at the card tables. His gesture went unreciprocated for days. "Well, it is because I've fallen in love with you," Ted replied. Christys Doughnuts in La Habra never did great business. His doughnut fortune was almost gone. "[9] In a mixed review, Brad Wheeler of The Globe and Mail said the film is "well worth watching" while saying there "are holes in this doughnut story. He was fortunate to escape with his wife, two kids and some relatives, arriving in California where he and his family were housed in a. The Ngoys drove a motor home around California, opening shops in Los Angeles, Modesto, Fresno, San Jose, the Bay Area city of Brisbane, Sacramento and San Diego. Every weekday, you'll get fresh, community-driven stories that catch you up with our independent local news. "It was a different take on a refugee story,". Ngoy would often visit Las Vegas for a period of a week, unbeknownst to his wife. After Ted revealed his presence to Christy, he hid under her bed until he was eventually discovered and her family allowed them be together. "I did not have time to take care of business, so business was going down. He is nicknamed the "Donut King. Boozy Dole Whips. [1], In 2013, he was living in Phnom Penh working in real estate. "'You want to tell my story? "Before I'd never gambled, but like all the compulsive gamblers in the world, first you throw in a couple of bucks, $10, $20. in Irvine, In 1985, Ngoy and his wife became American citizens assuming the American names of Ted and Christy, respectively, and were enjoying a lavish lifestyle including a million dollar home at Lake Mission Viejo, a vacation home in Big Bear, expensive cars, and vacations to Europe. He wanted to buy more, but he was exhausted running the five he owned. Mismanagement, Sloppy Hiring Practices, Lack Of Transparency. He also sponsored more than 100 Cambodian refugee families and established a path of financial opportunity for them in America. Oh, and stop for a donut and say "hi.". Ted Ngoy (born Bun Tek Ngoy; 1942) is a Cambodian American entrepreneur and former owner of a chain of doughnut shops in California. But the name was misleading. He did as he was told, but then pulled out a knife and stabbed himself, declaring he would rather die than live without her. It provided a path for refugees to settle and was a profitable business model. "It's a devil, it's a monster. People made fun of his accent. At loose ends, she returned to Los Angeles and, once again, started helping with the family business. For a year and a half, I struggled with how I was going to get access to that Mission Viejo mansion. [7][3], Ngoy's fortunes improved dramatically, such that by the mid-1980s Ngoy had amassed millions of dollars through his expanding doughnut shop empire, reported as 50 locations throughout California. 'How I got rich beating men at their own game'. He paid for their airfare and, when they arrived, "Uncle Ted" let them stay at his house while he taught them the ropes of the donut business. Those are the sounds of a man in love, her mother said. Buddha cannot help me.. That phrase Donut King is already so eye-catching right off the bat. Because he was a high roller the casinos put him up in $2,000-a-night suites and offered him VIP tickets to the best shows. Streaming now on PBS. Ted now sees that the same character traits that made him take bold risks in life also made it easy for him to fall prey to gambling. The Donut King is told through archival footage, animation, and interviews with family members alongside Ted Ngoy, who has tried to make peace with those who he's hurt including Mel Allison, a 91-year-old baker still at it at Winchell's. Tao did everything in her power to help Gu. Whenever Ted won, the family would rejoice with him. A bank had foreclosed on his mansion on Lake Mission Viejo. In 1993 Ted and Christy moved back to Cambodia. Each morning, he walked with the monks, begging for food from peasants, crying as the rocky roads tore at his bare feet. Ngoy had become an example to other Cambodian immigrants, who began to follow his business model for their own entrepreneurial endeavors. Ngoy bought stores in Fullerton, Anaheim, Anaheim Hills and Buena Park over the next year. He went on to marry Suganthini Khoeun, the daughter of a high-ranking government official. I instantly found the Realtor, the listing agent and arranged to go and have Ted walk through his old house. While working a second job at a gas station, Ngoy took notice of a busy local donut shop and inquired of its operators about . Next to the petrol station there was a doughnut shop called DK Donuts. In 1985, he and Suganthini became U.S. citizens. Night after night, he watched customers come and go. According to Tao, the servants caught on to Ted's presence after a few days but didn't say anything. Eventually, her parents discovered Ngoy and threw him out. He bought a bigger doughnut shop, and offered to lease the original Christy's to a family of Cambodian refugees, who had been working in fast food outlets on low wages. He was bleeding out and her parents were like, 'Oh, God. "[5] Upon looking into the matter, she learned about Ted Ngoy and became fascinated with the topic. Los Angeles Times He found a second job at a gas station. Devastated that he had broken their pact, she filed for divorce. Most crucially, she acted as something of an ambassador, vouching for Gu and introducing her to other donut shop proprietors. When he lost their money he would just sign over the shop to them - without telling Christy, whose signature he forged. In The Donut King, we learn that a teenage Ted won over his wife, Christy (ne Suganthini), by spending 45 straight days laying under her bed. Director Alice Gu makes her film debut with The Donut King, following the life of Ted Ngoy. Ngoy wrote to her. Phnom Penh Post buy a ticket Ngoy managed to escape just as Phnom Penh was falling and brought his wife, Suganthini, and their three children to America in the mid-1970s. Ngoy joined the army. Ted worked as the church janitor but he soon realised earning $500 a month wouldn't be enough to support his family. He was, however, invited to become a government adviser on commerce and agriculture. [5] She reached out to Ngoy and other Cambodian families who ran donut shops, and within six weeks began principal photography. Her name was Suganthini Khoeun. He tasted his first donut at a Tustin gas station, trained as a baker in a La Mirada Winchells and ran his own Winchells store in the Balboa Peninsula. He had no home and no money, and his country had been overrun by a gang of pitiless thugs. Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber. How did those scenes end up happening?I asked him to travel to California again. The Donut King comes out Friday, Oct. 30, online, and when you Some of the interviews in the film seemed that way.It was actually really wonderful to speak with particularly his older kids Chet and Savy, who until that interview, they didnt have much to do with him. Doughnut revenue put their children through college. Naturally he agreed, and set his sisters up with doughnut shops. According to Gu, Christy's family brought her into the room and Ted started reciting his speech. I never loved you.' Interestingly, largely because of Democratic policy we got a grant for our camera and it came from this girl, who was the daughter of Vietnamese refugees who landed in Arkansas. The stranger who crept into her room more than 35 years ago is a stranger again. Ted encouraged others to do the same. When the Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia in 1975, they knew they couldn't go home. At the end, I win. He dissolved his party and accused the government of corruption. And he saw an opportunity. 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