Japanese American National Museum To Take "A Sentimental Journey" To World Famous Hollywood Palladium For Annual Dinner March 3

The Japanese American National Museum will hold its 2001 Annual Dinner at the world-famous Hollywood Palladium under the theme A Sentimental Journey on Saturday, March 3, 2001. Festivities will include the honoring of Asian American Broadway pioneer Pat Suzuki and animator Iwao Takamoto, who is credited with the creative design of “Scooby-Doo” and other famous cartoon characters; a black-tie dinner dance; and a silent auction.

The theme, A Sentimental Journey, recalls the days when couples would dress up to go out to their favorite club featuring a “big band” and spend the evening dining and dancing. The Japanese American National Museum is offering everyone another opportunity to recreate that form of entertainment with its Annual Dinner. Once more, everyone will be encouraged to dress up in their best, have a wonderful dinner and dance the night away, listening to the music by George Yoshida and his 18-piece J-Town Jazz Ensemble.

The historic Hollywood Palladium adds to the ambiance of the evening. Opened in 1940 with the Tommy Dorsey Band, the Palladium could hold 6,000 dancers at one time. Besides being a popular venue for Big Band entertainment and dancing, the Palladium has a direct Japanese American connection. It was used more than once as the site for the annual Nisei Week Coronation Ball.

The National Museum will honor Suzuki and Takamoto for their achievements in American entertainment. Suzuki grew up in Cressey, part of the California Central Valley. Like many Japanese Americans, Suzuki and her family were unconstitutionally forced by the U.S. government to live in an American concentration camp in Colorado during World War II. After the war, Suzuki began singing at dances and finally nightclubs. In Seattle, she was spotted by Bing Crosby, which led to a recording contract.

Suzuki made history by starring in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song on Broadway. The success of the musical led to Suzuki and co-star Miyoshi Umeki gracing the cover of Time Magazine in 1958. Suzuki recorded several record albums and appeared on television on The Ed Sullivan Show.

Takamoto also was forced to live in a World War II U.S. concentration camp. After getting out of the Manzanar camp, Takamoto eventually applied for a job as an animator at the Walt Disney company. Impressed by Takamoto’s ability, Disney studios hired him on the spot and he worked on animated films such as Cinderella, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp and Sleeping Beauty.

In the 1960s, Takamoto moved to Hanna-Barbera, which specialized in TV animated series. He began working on such shows as The Flintstones and The Jetsons. When Hanna-Barbera pitched the idea for an animated mystery show, Takamoto drew Scooby-Doo and his teenage friends. Takamoto is credited with designing a number of characters, including other dogs like Muttley and Astro.

George Yoshida and the J-Town Jazz Ensemble are known for playing swing music that was popular with Japanese Americans during their incarceration in camps during World War II. According to Yoshida, swing music “was, I think, something that really helped to keep our spirit going in terms of being in camps.” Yoshida organized the J-Town Jazz Ensemble in San Francisco in 1989.

Jozu Restaurant, owned and operated by Andy Nakano, will cater the dinner. Jozu catered the gala opening dinner celebrating the dedication of the National Museum’s Pavilion in 1999 and Nakano organized a group of prominent chefs to prepare different courses for the 2000 Annual Dinner.

Chairing the Annual Dinner is National Museum Trustee Ernie Doizaki, head of American Fish and Seafood Company. The National Museum’s Annual Dinner is one of two major fundraisers for the institution. Funds raised at this event support programming and education. The silent auction adds another dimension to this aspect while providing dinner guests the opportunity to bid on special packages, including vacations and unique tours.

Sponsorships for the 2001 Annual Dinner are available at a variety of levels. The Platinum Sponsor ($10,000) receives 10 tickets to the dinner, silent auction and VIP reception and a full-page ad in the Dinner Journal. A Gold Sponsor ($5,000) receives 10 tickets to the dinner, silent auction and VIP reception and a half-page ad. A Silver Sponsor ($3,000) receives a dinner table for 10 and invitations to the silent auction and general reception plus a quarter-page ad. A Bronze Sponsor ($2,000) receives a dinner table for 10 and invitations to the silent auction and general reception. Community Sponsors ($1,500) receive a dinner table for 10 and invitations to the silent auction and reception.

Individual dinner tickets are available, but historically, the Annual Dinner sells out. For more information, call the Japanese American National Museum at (213) 625-0414.