Sometimes when you read an obit of a showbiz figure, you are propelled back in time to movies you truly loved in your formative years. That’s what happened to me when I read about the death of dancer Patrick Adiarte at age 81. The name itself meant nothing to me. But when I read Adiarte’s credits, I realized that he had featured roles in two of my long-ago favorite musicals, one released in 1956 and the other in 1961. Now I can still see him in my mind’s eye, adding immeasurably to movies in which, as a teenaged actor, he shone brillliantly.
Born in the Philippines, Adiarte inherited his mother’s gift for dance. The two of them performed together on Broadway in The King and I (in which they were supposed to be Thai) as well as Flower Drum Song (where they portrayed Chinese Americans). (All Asian-American performers know that, while there aren’t many stage or screen roles specifically intended for those of their ethnicity, they are allowed by custom to slip into any part requiring an “exotic” look.)
Though young Patrick was a well-trained dancer, his role in the stage and screen version of The King and I hardly required him to bust out the dance moves. He played Prince Chulalongkorn, the King’s number one son and potential heir to the throne. What I remember from the screen version of this role is the tremendous dignity with which he conveyed his royal status. Just by noticing the shoulders-back chest-up manner in which he stood and walked. I grasped that this young prince was determined to serve his people to the very best of his ability, whenever it was his fate to assume the throne. Those who love The King and I will remember the important role Prince Chulalongkorn plays at the story’s end, while his father (Yul Brynner) is languishing on his deathbed and it falls to this young boy—in a moment of intense grief—to take command.
Flower Drum Song provided Adiarte with quite a different role. In this romantic story set in San Francisco’s Chinatown, the older brother (James Shigeta in the movie) is caught between his yen for a sexy nightclub dancer (Nancy Kwan) and his growing appreciation for the picture-bride who has been imported for him from the Old Country (Miyoshi Umeki). Adiarte’s role was that of Shigeta’s impish brother, Wang San. Too young to be concerned about the prospect of an arranged marriage, he’s an All-American scamp, outraging the tradition-minded older family members and generally having boyish fun. Throughout most of the film, I recall him decked out in a Little League baseball uniform. In Flower Drum Song Adiarte gets full opportunity to sing and dance (notably in a comic number called “The Other Generation”), and he makes the most of it.
Adiarte was featured in five movies in all, and made many TV appearances, most of them capitalizing on his “exotic” appearance. He played a Middle Eastern prince in the comic film, John Goldfarb, Please Come Home, a Native American on Bonanza, and an islander on Hawaii Five-O His best TV role was as a Korean, Ho-Jon, on seven episodes of M*A*S*H. He must have especially enjoyed his guest appearance on a Gene Kelly TV special, one that occurred around the time of Flower Drum Song. There’s no ethnic cuteness here, just some bravura tap-dancing alongside Kelly. Am I allowed to say it? I think Pat outshines the master.
When he was no longer young and cute, Adiarte retired from performing, going on to teach dance.. Surely a life well lived.
Dedicated to my fellow dance enthusiast, Barbara Trainin Blank.
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