That's a disaster," he says. He had no way of making a living until a Chinese contact from better days asked him to help out with a real estate deal. Ngoy doesnt remember how many stores he started or bought -- 40? The family members worked 17 hours a day and saved for a year. Suganthinis parents kept her locked in her room for days. Monks cannot help me, he said. Despite never really being a huge success under the previous owners, Christy's became popular under the ownership of the Ngoys. That really broke the ice for us. and California landscape with a familiar coat yellow strip mall signs with red lettering reading Christys Donuts. 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. Hes really funny. Her parents and cousins hid behind curtains so they could hear him break off the relationship. But Cambodians were leaving the business, tired of working 17-hour days and squeezing a 13-cent profit from every 65-cent doughnut. [2], In 1967, Ngoy was sent by his mother to study in the capital, Phnom Penh, where he met and married Suganthini Khoeun, the daughter of a high-ranking government official. Eventually he and Christy were left with just one doughnut shop, which they decided to sell. And a new figure emerged on the California business landscape: the Cambodian doughnut-shop owner. Rose Donuts and Cafe He has converted to Christianity, he said, and prays often, asking God for help. Then when dinner is ready, she knocks on the door and I open the door to have dinner.". The film flashes back to the horror of life in 1970s Cambodia, a tragic offshoot of the Vietnam war that eliminated thousands of lives. It was love at first bite. Also Jerry Brown, who weve seen in California as our beacon of hope and morality, in 1975 was actually the opposite. For the next 45 days, he lived in her room. Never surrender. Ted Ngoy (born Bun Tek Ngoy; 1942) is a Cambodian American entrepreneur and former owner of a chain of doughnut shops in California. Ted Ngoy in The Donut King documentary. They have social media and know how to work it to innovate their parents old donut shops with a worldwide following. , to name a few outlets), but Alice Gu is the first to put it on film. Huge numbers of Cambodian refugees were arriving in California. A bank had foreclosed on his mansion on Lake Mission Viejo. [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." [5] Upon looking into the matter, she learned about Ted Ngoy and became fascinated with the topic. But within weeks he was back on a plane to Vegas. She divorced him and didnt return to Cambodia. "She was so beautiful," he remembers. , the Over the next few years, he went back every month or so, seeing Tom Jones, Diana Ross and Wayne Newton -- and betting ever-larger sums. She later discovered that they were among the first to be executed by the Khmer Rouge. By 1976, Ted had saved up enough money to buy his own shop, which he named Christy's. Instead, she told him about a training programme run by the doughnut chain, Winchell's. Now, he is in real estate development," Gu says. In 1978 Vietnamese troops invaded and in 1979 Pol Pot was overthrown, leading to another wave of Cambodian refugees. He and his family barely escaped and were among. He enjoyed meeting the younger generation of doughnut makers, who are innovating and inventing new flavours. By 2002 Ted was broke. Until then, she was kept sheltered. The entire family Christy and the three kids worked alongside him. I gave her my spiel, and she said, 'Well, you've called the right person. LAist is part of Southern California Public Radio, a member-supported public media network. And it was actually a donut that I refused at first from Mayly Tao, the Donut Princess. His gesture went unreciprocated for days. And she said she knew a lot of people in her parents generation who are lifelong Republicans and thats why they hate the Democratic party. There were some hurt relationships. Ted kept a low profile until the LA filmmaker Alice Gu got in touch a couple of years ago. Did working on this film change or contribute to your perspective of the American dream or immigrant stories?It seems like these days the American dream is harder and harder to attain. 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. He moved from church to church, until an elderly Cambodian woman allowed him to live on the covered porch of her mobile home. I'm not famous. "This friendly voice picks up the phone, a young voice in that perfectly American accented English. until 2014 Phnom Penh Post "It made me homesick," says Ted. And I thought, How could that be? Hes passed away now so I cant talk to him about it, but it was a learning experience for me about my parents relationship with politics. His tenants opened their own stores and leased them out. COVID origins? All night long Ted would watch people buying coffee and doughnuts, and he realised it was a good business. It also reminds us that several U.S. presidents welcomed a flood of refugees with open arms. Christy and Ted bought a $1-million, three-story, 7,000-square-foot house with palm trees and a three-car garage on Lake Mission Viejo in Orange County. Whenever Ted won, the family would rejoice with him. This caused tension in the Ngoy household, being the center of many arguments between Ngoy and his wife. To understand the politics, the Republican party at the time was a very anticommunist party. Your tax-deductible financial support keeps our stories free to read, instead of hidden behind paywalls. What was it like?I spoke with him and he was in Cambodia. The donut business isnt easy. I said, 'Because it's incredible, for one. 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. I ate the whole thing. How did those scenes end up happening?I asked him to travel to California again. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot. "Growing up, when you look on the screen, there's not a lot of Asian representation. As many as I could.". Alongside doughnuts, they sell imported American goods - everything from Pop-Tarts to Starbucks Frappucinos. He was raised by his mother, who was from Shantou, Guangdong, and who only spoke Chinese. When you hook up with gambling, your life's finished. In 1967, his mother sent him to study in Phnom Penh, the capital. One of them being my interview with Michael Krondl, the food historian. Then, after falling out with a powerful political rival he feared for his life and fled to the US. Ngoy became a trainee and took over a Winchell's in Newport Beach. Ted began to look for more doughnut shops to buy and lease to fellow refugees. Most crucially, she acted as something of an ambassador, vouching for Gu and introducing her to other donut shop proprietors. "We were happy - until the gambling came to wreck my life. Ted became known as the Donut King - or Uncle Ted, because of the many Cambodian immigrants he'd sponsored. Designers Andrew Hem and Charlie Le were awarded a SWSW Film special jury recognition for their poster design of The Donut King in 2020. The Donut King was directed by Alice Gu, and is her first feature film. 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. [4], Despite the wealth he had amassed and his importance within his community, Ngoy felt dissatisfied, remarking that he had "No political life, no religious life, just work, work. Every time I met them I said, 'Sorry son, sorry my daughter, sorry Christy. He became tired running doughnut shops on his own and decided to train and lease shops to his relatives and employ Cambodian refugees. [5], The film received 69/100 on Metacritic, receiving "generally favorable reviews. The first few times he and Christy visited, on early family holidays, everything went well: they watched a magic show, they saw Elvis perform. How to get the best eggs in town without leaving your yard. Christys Doughnuts in La Habra never did great business. It led many voters to assume, incorrectly, that he was against Cambodia's royal family, and he didn't win a seat. He slept under the bed and hid when the maids came to clean. In most of America there's an average of about one doughnut shop for every 30,000 people - in LA, there's one for every 7,000 people. Abcarian: Mask mandates? Ted Ngoy made a fortune in doughnuts. Theres this portion in the film that goes into Ted and his ex-wife Christys experiences in Orange County during the 70s. [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. Ted had met Ronald Reagan, George Bush Sr., [Richard] Nixon. So Ngoy snuck into her family's heavily guarded compound and climbed through her bedroom window. He had no home and no money, and his country had been overrun by a gang of pitiless thugs. Ngoy joined the army. He had to guess which room was hers. And she was heavily chaperoned. I think there's nothing wrong for them to lie to the embassy because everybody needs a chance to survive. I wanted to tell this story in a way that was inspirational and optimistic. "New documentary 'The Donut King' follows Cambodian refugee Ted Ngoy's journey to multi-million dollar empire", "Review: A Shakespearean SoCal tragedy, 'The Donut King' charts the rise and fall of Ted Ngoy", "Director Alice Gu Wants You to Meet The Donut King", "The Donut King who went full circle - from rags to riches, twice", "Review: The Donut King, a sweet documentary that doesn't tell the hole truth", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Donut_King&oldid=1131760803, This page was last edited on 5 January 2023, at 16:51. She thought it might have been a tall tale, "But when I was in Cambodia, [Ted] lifted his shirt and I saw the puncture wounds," Gu adds. That is a lie, he cried, and plunged the blade into his belly. Her parents wanted nothing to do with him. But the situation at home was increasingly dangerous and on his last trip, in April 1975, the capital fell. Maybe Its Time To Raise Backyard Chickens, Catch A Wave In The Booming South Bay Food Scene: Here Are 11 New Restaurants To Try, Don't Celebrate Thanksgiving? He found a second job at a gas station. People love her and shes beautiful. I always thought of it as a Plan B to come back and now, it has become the Plan A and more," Tao says. He hosted Dan Quayle and Pete Wilson at his house. And she let me in to take a shower. Hes friends with Dana Rohrabacher. His story has been told through different angles in a couple of articles. Still homeless, he moved to the coastal town of Kep, on the Gulf of Thailand. Within a decade, he had become a multimillionaire with a lakeside mansion . When you get to the table, youre so emotional, evil in your body, he said. BC Donuts Ngoy's gambling had progressed from the card tables to placing bets on sports games with Cambodian bookies. I shared love, my heart. Mag's Donuts They wont trust you, he said. [11], Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 19:19, "Rise and fall of Cambodian refugee 'Donut King' charted in award-winning film", "A TASTE OF CAMBODIA: A Real Horatio Alger Story: Refugee Built Empire on Doughnuts", "VOICES FROM THE FIRST GENERATION: The Ngoy Family", "Asians Looking to Broaden Horizons: Immigrants Prosper but Hope to Venture Outside the 'Business Ghetto', "The Donut King who went full circle - from rags to riches, twice", "The story of the man they called the doughnut king", "Review: A Shakespearean SoCal tragedy, 'The Donut King' charts the rise and fall of Ted Ngoy", "Lessons from the Donut King & Science Fiction's Golden Age", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ted_Ngoy&oldid=1140980965, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 19:19. 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. More and more relatives came forward for sponsorship. Then he opened his first independent shop in La Habra, eventually covering the rest of O.C. Once, he was a millionaire who met three U.S. presidents. When there was an overrun of pink doughnut boxes Ted bought them cut-price, and the pink boxes became his trademark. They both drank and vowed to be faithful. Volcanic tiki drinks. Doing this film was really an exploration for me of understanding where you come from. Once, I said I would die if something happened to him, Christy said of her ex-husband. It's something Ted feels a bit bad about. 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. It's so amazing, so touching.' Still penniless, after nearly four years of exile, Ted flew back to Cambodia. The film details how Ngoy fled Cambodia with his family during the Vietnam War and later went on to build a donut shop empire, only to lose it all because of a gambling addiction. He did not fare well in either the 1993 or 1998 parliamentary elections, but his friend, Prime Minister Hun Sen, made him an advisor on commerce and agriculture. Ted Ngoy, who was known as the doughnut king, lives in Phnom Penh. I cry. Then he would return to Vegas in an attempt to win back what he had lost. Refugees who had sought his advice now avoided him, fearing he would ask for a loan. Broke, Ted and Christy returned to Cambodia. He is nicknamed the "Donut King." He is nicknamed the "Donut King." He would forge her signature on checks and even borrow money from relatives who leased stores from him. He hired his wife and nephew. He turned down a job as a security guard because it required standing for eight hours. So he named his own political party the Free Development Republican Party. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. I'm no good. Christy always forgave him, but word got around that Ted could no longer be trusted. [6] Gu persuaded him to and, ultimately, he regarded his return as a 'healing experience,' and his ex-wife and children have forgiven him. He wrapped the note around a stone, and threw it down. He had sold what few shops remained. Ngoy's epic rags-to-riches-to-rags story has been chronicled before (in the It was hurtful. Mismanagement, Sloppy Hiring Practices, Lack Of Transparency. Peace Lutheran Church I just first hurt my wife, Christy, my children and hurt many, many other people, too, because, when we needed money. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber. When the couple recovered, her parents finally allowed them to marry. Once back in Orange County, he bet more than ever. And that's what he did. Doughnut revenue put their children through college. Gambling is a devil. Ngoy bought his first doughnut shop from a couple who was retiring. 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. They went to Europe twice. Ted became their first South East Asian trainee. He believed he could show others the path to wealth and opportunity. Alice found it hard to persuade Ted to return to California for filming. And he saw an opportunity. 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. The family worked 12 to 17 hours a day, with all hands on deck. "That's why I want to tell the world, 'Do not gamble.' Ted Ngoy was born in Sisophon, Cambodia. He also apologised to many of those he hurt. If you can dream it, they're probably mixing it somewhere on property. Ted Ngoy had served in the Cambodian army as a major fighting communists that were trying to take over that country's government in the 1970s. The couple and their three toddlers arrived penniless at Camp Pendleton, part of the first wave of Cambodian refugees. Ngoy also involved himself in American politics, joining the Republican Party and hosting fundraisers for George H. W. Bush and encouraged fellow Cambodian immigrants to support the GOP. You will end up destroying the whole family and no more relationship with the world, just finished. He sat on the roof of his apartment and played his flute, the music sweeping over the neighborhood. Christy's parents said they would let Ted live if he told Christy that he was a dog who had romanced other girls and had never loved her. Suganthini's family insisted Ted break it off by telling her he didn't love her. Gu didn't know about any of that before she started developing this project. They saw Elvis Presley perform, and Ted played a little blackjack. They had a vacation home in Big Bear and a time share in Acapulco. Once again Suganthini was the friendly face welcoming customers, and when she became a US citizen she took the name Christy as her own. Theyre savvy, young, hip. The Donut King is a 2020 American documentary film which tells the life story of California donut shop owner Ted Ngoy. He wanted to buy more, but he was exhausted running the five he owned. We believe when reliable local reporting is widely available, the entire community benefits. Everybody cry, he said. Bush, met former Presidents Reagan and Nixon, and urged other Asian immigrants to support the GOP. Ngoy had become an example to other Cambodian immigrants, who began to follow his business model for their own entrepreneurial endeavors. At 16, she had no friends, could not talk to boys and was forbidden to leave home alone. Never give up. Everybody went to the gold mine, Ngoy said. Even in gambling. DK's Donuts Ted soon got a job working at Winchell's, which was then the dominant donut chain on the West Coast. Gambling is a devil. In less than two years, while working on other jobs and projects, Gu directed and shot the 94-minute documentary. 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. She was lucky that Mayly Tao, whose mom, Chuong Lee, owns the shop, answered the phone. Then he pulled a knife. 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. Suganthini replied, "Well be careful, if you don't jump into my room, you'll jump into my mum's room.". And then we opened second store in Fullerton, and when they opened, I also train people and my wage, Christi, also . Beautiful views aren't the only thing drawing Angelenos to the region. He says he hid in her room for 45 days until he was discovered. This is an incredible story of how he helped people. Ngoy told Suganthini that he didnt love her. L.A. became the country's epicenter of donut culture when Ted Ngoy, a Cambodian immigrant, arrived in California during the 1970s. ', "If you could turn the clock around, I would do that. After cry, go back gambling." Her father was a high-ranking government official. "The note said, 'I appreciate you blowing the flute. 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. Streaming now on PBS. "He was a little uneasy," Gu says. This is my own speculation, but it seemed like he had come to some peace with his dad and childhood. Los Angeles Times "It is the purest form of risk-taking, the distilled anxiety and thrill behind every business decision and bold declaration of love," he writes in his autobiography. Don't die. The Donut King comes out Friday, Oct. 30, online, and when you Ted and Christy are divorced. He cut his chest sliding under barbed wire. Soon, Cambodians began copying the Ted Ngoy business model. One of the tricks he learned was to bake doughnuts in small batches throughout the day to keep them fresh - and because the smell of baking was the best form of advertising. After a civil war broke out and Phnom Penh fell to the communist Khmer. Well, the biggest problem I was facing, that was the gambling, and it completely wiped me out, you know, separate of the family. buy a ticket I dont know who I am right now, he said. I go to borrow. Hes also a sign of Mexicos healthcare crisis, Black residents of Jackson, Miss., blast plans by white-dominated Legislature for more state control, Spain approves menstrual leave, teen abortion and trans laws. Christy would search for him in the casinos, the children in tow. Ngoy is Cambodian and he was in Phnom Penh when it fell. (Elina Shatkin/LAist). "[10], Whittaker said that "as Asian Americans face increasing racism, its closing message about how immigrant communitiesdefine America has only become more timely."[8]. Ted Ngoy: Yeah. Some of his relationships didnt end well. "[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. I instantly found the Realtor, the listing agent and arranged to go and have Ted walk through his old house. He took a real estate class but said he couldnt retain the details. Once, he was a poor boy who carried away one of Cambodias wealthiest daughters. Director Alice Gu makes her film debut with The Donut King, following the life of Ted Ngoy. It took longer than 40 years. He returned to a refugee community in transition. His doughnut fortune was almost gone. Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975, and the Cambodian genocide began. Few foods are as universally adored as fried dough. [3] Ngoy worked at various jobs, including as a travel agent and tour guide, before joining the military in 1970. For a year and a half, I struggled with how I was going to get access to that Mission Viejo mansion. Tell us about your wife. in Irvine, Those are the sounds of a man in love, her mother said. One of their sons is a financial consultant; another is a computer-networking technician. He built a donut empire and $20 million in wealth, but his fortune built on donuts would crumble and he would lose it all. The family were among the many tens of thousands of . . He was bleeding out and her parents were like, 'Oh, God. Long-lost ship found at the bottom of Lake Huron, confirming story of tragic collision, TikTok to set default daily time limit of up to 60 minutes for minors, 19 cafes that make L.A. a world-class coffee destination, The chance of a lifetime: Five friends ski the tallest mountain in Los Angeles, TikTok faces bans in a number of countries over security fears. People made fun of his accent. 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. 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