He had hidden a dagger and he took it out and stabbed himself three times. [1], That's why I want to tell the world, "Do not gamble." It actually made national, if not international, news about the kindness of these people in Orange County. [5] Having grown up in Los Angeles, she was doubtful when her children's nanny made a reference to "Cambodian" donuts; she thought all donuts were simply "American. But it was really the immigrant story. Under the Khmer Rouge leadership of Pol Pot people were forced to work on communal farms, and those with money or education were tortured and killed. Will Orange County's Fledgling Clean Power Agency Survive? "But what shall we do in the morning? When the couple recovered, her parents finally allowed them to marry. Channy also wholesales doughnuts to other minimarts. He would have no more donuts to sell so he could be with his wife for the rest of the day. I cry. After cry, go back gambling." "The more you chase, the more it's gone," he says in a new documentary about his rise and fall, called The Donut King. Streaming now on PBS. He found a second job at a gas station. Christy was in the front and made a lot of inroads with the community and built a lot of bridges. He saw an opportunity to expand his business and help the large number of poor, unassimilated Cambodians who had fled the Khmer Rouge to the United States. "She was so beautiful," he remembers. Suganthini smuggled him food at night, and after many days she said she loved him too. [3] Ngoy worked at various jobs, including as a travel agent and tour guide, before joining the military in 1970. After setting up a sweet shop of his own, he helped fellow . Her daughter, Mayly Tao, has taken over the reigns of DK's. Ngoy was one. I instantly found the Realtor, the listing agent and arranged to go and have Ted walk through his old house. The premise of family in the film is how hard your parents work and the sacrifices they make so that you can have a life better than they did. One of Ngoy's first jobs in the US was as a service station attendant. The Donut King Ted Ngoy is a Cambodian American entrepreneur and former owner of a chain of donut shops in California, earning him the nickname the "Donut King." . It was hurtful. His mother raised him in a rural village near Cambodias border with Thailand. Until then, she was kept sheltered. He began placing bets with Cambodian bookies on football and basketball games. In doing the research and finding that it was President [Gerald] Ford who issued the executive order to receive the refugees, a Republican president that was a huge surprise to me given that during the time that we were making this film we were hearing Donald Trumps rhetoric. One of their sons is a financial consultant; another is a computer-networking technician. He also sponsored more than 100 Cambodian refugee families and established a path of financial opportunity for them in America. You cannot resist against it.. To Christy, this was the final betrayal. [citation needed] Ngoy's political career ended in 2002 after breaking with two powerful allies, the commerce minister and the head of the Cambodian Chamber of Commerce, Teng Bunma. "This story sheds light on refugees in a positive way, about what happens when they're given an opportunity," she says. When he was working in the donut shop, he went to his sponsor and said he was having a hard time. But then one of Suganthini's servants appeared at his door with a reply. Okay, you guys can' It was a whole Romeo and Juliet story," Gu says. Suganthini's family insisted Ted break it off by telling her he didn't love her. I go to borrow. According to Gu, Christy's family brought her into the room and Ted started reciting his speech. "He was afraid of being shunned and feeling lonely - but I forced him!" called "He was a little uneasy," Gu says. He was ready to be taken by a new passion. Ngoy ended his political career abruptly in 2002, breaking with two powerful allies, the commerce minister and the head of the Cambodian Chamber of Commerce. At a news conference, he dissolved his party and accused the government of corruption. At school, Ngoy fell in love from afar with a beautiful girl. He subsequently received training through an affirmative action program to increase minority hiring within the Winchell's chain of doughnut shops, and managed a store in Newport Beach where he employed his wife and nephew. That same year, President Gerald Ford signed the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act, allowing 130,000 people from Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia to come to the U.S. California's Governor at the time, Jerry Brown, opposed the move, saying, in a clip that's featured in The Donut King, "When we have a million people out of work, when we have our own people taxed to the hilt, I'm just very slow to just open the floodgates and say come on in unless we provide a way to put Americans to work.". "I never back down. One by one, Ted lost all of his donut shops. He had to guess which room was hers. He did as he was told, but then pulled out a knife and stabbed himself, declaring he would rather die than live without her. Ted Ngoy is a Cambodian American entrepreneur and former owner of a chain of donut shops in California, earning him the nickname the "Donut King." While working a second job at a gas station, Ngoy took notice of a busy local donut shop and inquired of its operators about learning the business. And she let me in to take a shower. He has found his way to be wealthy again. Theres this portion in the film that goes into Ted and his ex-wife Christys experiences in Orange County during the 70s. Huge numbers of Cambodian refugees were arriving in California. You will end up destroying the whole family and no more relationship with the world, just finished. Driving back with $85,000 cash in the boot of the car, they were stopped by the police; they had fallen behind with payments, so the car showed up as stolen. [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. The following month, US President Gerald Ford insisted the US should welcome 130,000 refugees from Vietnam and Cambodia, telling any critics: "We're a country built by immigrants from all areas of the world, and we've always been a very humanitarian nation.". 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. You just have to see the opportunity and go for it. Those are the wise words of Ted Ngoy. Over four years nearly two million Cambodians were either executed, or died of starvation, disease and overwork. Ted Ngoy made a fortune in doughnuts. Ted became known as the Donut King - or Uncle Ted, because of the many Cambodian immigrants he'd sponsored. Once, he enjoyed the warmth of family and the respect of his community. When he lost he would lash out, smashing doors, breaking furniture and frightening the children. Ted did try to curb his habit. Those are the sounds of a man in love, her mother said. The Donut King is a documentary directed by Alice Gu that covers the life of Ted Ngoy, one of the primary reasons behind the Cambodian American donut shop boom. 'How I got rich beating men at their own game'. In this condensed and edited conversation, Gu talks about the American dream, Cambodian American Republicans, 1970s Orange County and the best donut she ate during filming. The family were housed in a hastily erected refugee camp on a marine training base, Camp Pendleton. In 1978 Vietnamese troops invaded and in 1979 Pol Pot was overthrown, leading to another wave of Cambodian refugees. But the situation at home was increasingly dangerous and on his last trip, in April 1975, the capital fell. One day in 2018, she cold-called Ted joined the Republican Party, held fundraisers for George H.W. The family also still had the Winchell's so now they had two stores to run. I dont think you dare come to my room, she responded. buy a ticket Eventually Cambodians owned so many doughnut shops in California that they dominated the market, pushing Winchell's into second place. Then he flew to a monastery in the Thai countryside. 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. I'm not famous. Despite the villa's armed security guards and guard dogs, one rainy night Ted climbed up a coconut tree and over the barbed wire and made his way in through a bathroom window. The other discovery for me was what I called Donut Generation 2.0, the kids who go to take over the parents mom and pop shops. He has converted to Christianity, he said, and prays often, asking God for help. So I decided to change.". 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. Tao did everything in her power to help Gu. They saw Elvis Presley perform, and Ted played a little blackjack. Christy has remarried and lives in the US, Listen to Ted Ngoy on Outlook on the BBC World Service, Download the podcast for more extraordinary stories, The Donut King, is available in the US now in theatres and online and will be coming to the UK in 2021, Listen to Ted Ngoy on Outlook: How the Donut King lost his crown. Read about our approach to external linking. A daughter owns a 1950s-style hamburger restaurant in Orange County. This is my own speculation, but it seemed like he had come to some peace with his dad and childhood. 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. His story begins in the early 1970s when Ngoy was a commander in the Royal Cambodian Army, training soldiers in Thailand. Because of the Ngoys, a Cambodian refugees first American job was often in a doughnut shop. The Donut King She belonged to a high ranking officer, you know like a princess in Cambodia, very rich and very powerful family. Ted managed to escape on the last flight out of Phnom Penh but Suganthini's parents were left behind. , some of the dough (see what we did there?) , to name a few outlets), but Alice Gu is the first to put it on film. Twice he joined a Buddhist monastery. It provided a path for refugees to settle and was a profitable business model. Phnom Penh Post Few foods are as universally adored as fried dough. "It's a crazy story, but it's true," says Ted, now 78. I did not have time to expand. He credits his Christian faith with finally curing his gambling addiction, although he confesses he liked to bet on football games until last year. It was on the market. It was helping his community and it was a bit of a cautionary tale.". He sat on the roof of his apartment and played his flute, the music sweeping over the neighborhood. Ngoy attempted Gamblers Anonymous, but denied it helped with his situation, stating that when he went to meetings "I cry, everybody cry. When he lost big, he would sign the stores over to them. And a new figure emerged on the California business landscape: the Cambodian doughnut-shop owner. Ted remembers hiding from her behind the slot machines. A week later, Suganthini wrote back, and the two began a secret correspondence. A child of immigrants herself, she had become curious why Californian doughnut shops were so often run by Cambodians, and why there were so many of them. He suggested that Ted hang out in the back and to put Christy in the front. They cried and prayed for the family they had left behind. When Christy's parents eventually discovered the ruse, they were furious. [5], Ngoy was hesitant to return to California for the film; he was estranged from his children and former friends. By 1987, Ngoy owned 32 Christy's Donuts locations, largely accomplished by living out of a motorhome allowing him and his family to travel up and down the state of California establishing new locations. After a year of running two shops they had saved $40,000 and Ted decided to expand. All three were taken to the police station but they were too scared to mention the cash in the boot. "Using money to provide for others is a feeling as powerful as any drug," he later wrote. Oh, and stop for a donut and say "hi.". Distraught, she took an overdose of sleeping pills and fell into a coma. In 1975, Ted Ngoy fled the war in Cambodia with his wife and three kids and arrived in America as a penniless refugee. 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. Ngoy told Suganthini that he didnt love her. His tenants opened their own stores and leased them out. An immigrant story unlike any other, Alice Gu's "The Donut King" follows the twisty, unexpected journey of Cambodia refugee Ted Ngoy, who arrived in California in the 1970s and, through a. At the height of his success in the US he had been an ardent Republican, and an enthusiastic fundraiser for the party. Ted was dismayed. It was love at first bite. Ted Ngoy (born Bun Tek Ngoy; 1942) is a Cambodian American entrepreneur and former owner of a chain of doughnut shops in California. But with great riches come great temptations. What drew you to Teds story at the start?Finding out about his story, its fascinating a guy who comes here penniless and becomes a Donut King. By 1976, Ted had saved up enough money to buy his own shop, which he named Christy's. Everybody cry, he said. Cambodian Americans control an estimated 80 percent of the donut market in California thanks largely to one man- Ted Ngoy, otherwise known as The Donut King. LAist.com/radio. Suganthinis father ran out from hiding and called an ambulance. So, I just did it. Oklahoma-style smash burgers and Georgian dumplings make for some excellent cheap bites in Glendale, Husband and wife Felix Agyei and Hazel Rojas combine food from their heritages, creating a marriage of West African and Filipino cooking. The next day, he flew back to Los Angeles. Once, he was a millionaire who met three U.S. presidents. Instead, she told him about a training programme run by the doughnut chain, Winchell's. Heres a list, Greek transportation minister resigns over train collision as death toll keeps rising, Ohios senators to unveil rail safety bill in wake of East Palestine derailment, After months of pounding, Ukrainian official says military may pull back from Bakhmut, Elizabeth Holmes cites her new baby as a reason she should avoid prison for Theranos scam. DK's Donuts 60? After earning a communications degree at UC San Diego, Tao worked for a while at a news station but wasn't enthused about that career path. A bank had foreclosed on his mansion on Lake Mission Viejo. Ted and a lot of the Asians who came aligned themselves with the Republican party. The family were housed in a hastily erected refugee camp on a marine training base, Camp Pendleton. What you've done is incredible.' Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975, and the Cambodian genocide began. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Suspected shooter in attacks on Jewish men was on FBIs radar, LAPD chief says, Caregiver accused in Manhattan Beach child sexual abuse case believed to be in Philippines, Prosecution presents closing arguments in Alex Murdaugh murder trial, Intel agencies say theres no sign adversaries were behind Havana syndrome, Before and after photos from space show storms effect on California reservoirs, Dramatic before and after photos from space show epic snow blanketing SoCal mountains, Its really bad up here. Stranded residents in San Bernardino Mountains brace for more snow, Jaguars, narcos, illegal loggers: One mans battle to save a jungle and Maya ruins, Dr. Simi is a TikTok star. I ate the whole thing. That phrase Donut King is already so eye-catching right off the bat. Before sunrise, they would climb back into her room. He is nicknamed the "Donut King. Tell me more about how they connected to the local community.Ted came in the 70s and it was quite homogeneously white in Orange County at the time and a lot of people had never seen an Asian person, much less heard of a place called Cambodia. "I did not have time to take care of business, so business was going down. That's a disaster," he says. Soon, Cambodians began copying the Ted Ngoy business model. Ted became deeply religious. Ted's story is told in a new documentary. Yes, you read that right. Hes really funny. When you get to the table, youre so emotional, evil in your body, he said. "Ted, again, is Mr. Nine Lives. In the early 1970s, Cambodia was in the midst of a brutal civil war that displaced two million people, more than a quarter of the country's population. Ted was a poor boy from a poor family while Christy was the daughter of a high-ranking official. They both drank and vowed to be faithful. To make sure he went through with it, they insisted on hiding behind a curtain while he said his spiel. in Pasadena, He believed he could show others the path to wealth and opportunity. "[8] Giving it three-out-of-four stars, Nick Allen of RogerEbert.com called the The Donut King "a heartwarming albeit scattered documentary from director Alice Gu," and praised the film for "its balance of poppy visuals and detailed history. "She was powerful, like your royal princess," says Ted. They were moving their capital and know-how into liquor stores, markets and fast-food restaurants. Then he would return to Vegas in an attempt to win back what he had lost. I gave her my spiel, and she said, 'Well, you've called the right person. But within weeks he was back on a plane to Vegas. I shared love, my heart. Ted and Christy are divorced. All the latest on Orange County from Orange County. TED NGOY HAD an unrelenting obsession during his 1975 plane ride from Southeast Asia to Southern California. Suganthini replied, "Well be careful, if you don't jump into my room, you'll jump into my mum's room.". He left behind his new wife and their two children, and what he had seen as his last chance at redemption. Most importantly, the trip allowed him to mend relations with Christy, who has now remarried, and with their grown-up children. "I learned to bake, to take care of payroll, cleaning, sales - everything," he says. Then, after falling out with a powerful political rival he feared for his life and fled to the US. By the mid-1980s, he was a millionaire. One night, during his shift at a gas station, the scent of freshly baked goods wafted toward him. And then I hate the gambling and then I hate that I treat Christy so badly, treat my children so badly, because of the gambling, so I hate myself," he says. He formed the Free Development Republican Party (ahead of the countrys UN-backed elections), believing that he could show others the path to wealth and hoping that being a politician might stymy his gambling addiction. Los Angeles Times "[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. "They forgive me fully. He landed in LA with less than $100 in his pocket - all the money he had left. Doughnut revenue put their children through college. This is an incredible story of how he helped people. The stranger who crept into her room more than 35 years ago is a stranger again. Everybody went to the gold mine, Ngoy said. A cinematographer who has worked on commercials and movies with Rory Kennedy, Werner Herzog and Stacy Peralta, she stumbled onto the subject after her nanny brought her some "Cambodian donuts. As word of Ted's success spread, Cambodian immigrants started seeking him out when they arrived in Southern California. People love her and shes beautiful. There were some hurt relationships. He wrote a note, telling her that he lived in the building opposite and was the flute player. Ted negotiated well and got a good commission. His gesture went unreciprocated for days. Ted Ngoy was born in Sisophon, Cambodia. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Following his time in the nation's capital, Ngoy spent time in a monastery in the Thai countryside where he spent his morning begging for alms. 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. Ted had met Ronald Reagan, George Bush Sr., [Richard] Nixon. 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His spiel US he had been an ardent Republican, and Ted played little. Had been an ardent Republican, and Ted played a little blackjack he helped people out! And three kids and arrived in America as a penniless refugee was afraid of shunned. A penniless refugee I dont think you dare come to my room, she cold-called Ted joined Republican... Own shop, which he named Christy 's to Vegas his dad and childhood Khmer came. Others is a stranger again a few outlets ), but it seemed like he had an... Did everything in her power to help Gu lived in the Thai countryside or died of starvation, disease overwork...
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