Ngoy would open more shops and lease them to fellow refugees. "What happens if I decide to jump into your room?" At school, Ngoy fell in love from afar with a beautiful girl. In the 1980s and '90s, when Dunkin' Donuts tried to establish itself on the West Coast, his frosted, deep-fried empire sent the company packing. , the Ngoy is Cambodian and he was in Phnom Penh when it fell. Ted Ngoy, his wife and family pick up the story and walk us through their unbelievable experience, flying to a . COVID origins? In English, Mandarin and Cambodian with English subtitles; Not rated, Playing: Regency South Coast Village, Santa Ana, and in limited release where theaters are open; available via virtual cinemas, including Laemmle Theatres. Eventually, her parents discovered Ngoy and threw him out. [1], That's why I want to tell the world, "Do not gamble." Ngoys wife hated his gambling. He trained them and handed over the keys. "[1] He says his Christian faith ultimately helped him abandon the habit. It's so amazing, so touching.' The first few times he and Christy visited, on early family holidays, everything went well: they watched a magic show, they saw Elvis perform. At the height of his success in the US he had been an ardent Republican, and an enthusiastic fundraiser for the party. Ted did a lot of the baking at night, with his youngest son, Chris, collecting a light dusting of flour as he slept beside him in the kitchen. When you hook up with gambling, your life's finished. 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." . 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. Ted Ngoy (born Bun Tek Ngoy; 1942) is a Cambodian American entrepreneur and former owner of a chain of doughnut shops in California. He would have no more donuts to sell so he could be with his wife for the rest of the day. Get the day's top news with our Today's Headlines newsletter, sent every weekday morning. At a news conference, he dissolved his party and accused the government of corruption. They saved money where they could, even washing and reusing coffee stirrers - until they were reprimanded by Winchell's. Eventually Cambodians owned so many doughnut shops in California that they dominated the market, pushing Winchell's into second place. They pricked their fingers and squeezed drops of blood into a cup of water. In 1993 Ted and Christy moved back to Cambodia. [6] Gu persuaded him to and, ultimately, he regarded his return as a 'healing experience,' and his ex-wife and children have forgiven him. Suganthini became the smiling face behind the counter, even though she hardly spoke any English. Ted Ngoy was born in Sisophon, Cambodia. 'How I got rich beating men at their own game'. He took a real estate class but said he couldnt retain the details. "But what shall we do in the morning? Naturally he agreed, and set his sisters up with doughnut shops. Chet and Savy, Ted Ngoys oldest children, sit down for an interview in The Donut King.. 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. But within weeks he was back on a plane to Vegas. After a year of running two shops they had saved $40,000 and Ted decided to expand. 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? "[1], Ted Ngoy was born in the Cambodian village of Sisophon near the country's border with Thailand. "I had true love for her.". He did as he was told, but then pulled out a knife and stabbed himself, declaring he would rather die than live without her. Over the years, Ted and Christy sponsored more than 100 families, often hosting them before setting them up with homes, loans, and doughnut shops. I believed him a thousand times, she said. He was bleeding out and her parents were like, 'Oh, God. Dear reader, we're asking you to help us keep local news available for all. 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. They would speed through Phnom Penh on his motorcycle, the couple recalled. Over the years, he says he sponsored more than 100 Cambodian families that wanted to come to the U.S. When you first reached out to Ted, it was a cold call. Peace Lutheran Church 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. 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. Buddha cannot help me.. These are all people who present day you dont associate with welcoming refugees with open arms. He had hidden a dagger and he took it out and stabbed himself three times. You will end up destroying the whole family and no more relationship with the world, just finished. To Christy, this was the final betrayal. Near the station was a doughnut shop. For the next 45 days, he lived in her room. When the couple recovered, her parents finally allowed them to marry. But while she was gone Ted had an affair. Twice he joined a Buddhist monastery. [6][3], Ngoy bought additional doughnut shops in Orange County. LAist.com/radio. One night, during his shift at a gas station, the scent of freshly baked goods wafted toward him. A week later, Suganthini wrote back, and the two began a secret correspondence. They both drank and vowed to be faithful. Gambling is a devil. Gu is working on developing a couple of music-themed film projects, both documentaries and narratives. He moved from church to church, until an elderly Cambodian woman allowed him to live on the covered porch of her mobile home. 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. The details that aren't in the movie are even crazier. For a year and a half, I struggled with how I was going to get access to that Mission Viejo mansion. (Courtesy of Greenwich Entertainment) When you first reached out to Ted, it. Ted became their first South East Asian trainee. [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. How did those scenes end up happening?I asked him to travel to California again. . "If I need the vote, I cannot gamble. Nearly every independent donut shop in every Southern California mini-mall hides a story and many of them start with an unlikely impresario, a Cambodian refugee named Ted Ngoy. When he lost big, he would sign the stores over to them. Two days after Gu's out-of-the-blue call to DK's Donuts, she was talking to Ngoy in Cambodia. He hosted Dan Quayle and Pete Wilson at his 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 . To understand the politics, the Republican party at the time was a very anticommunist party. He returned to a refugee community in transition. "'You want to tell my story? [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. You cannot resist against it.. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. 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. ", He communicates with them almost every day. Soon, Cambodians began copying the Ted Ngoy business model. [1], When his wife visited California for the birthday of their grandchild in 1999, Ngoy began an affair with a young woman; Christy divorced him soon after and has not since returned to Cambodia. "It's impossible to explain that money had nothing to do with it. This 2020s documentary film-related article is a stub. Ngoy would often visit Las Vegas for a period of a week, unbeknownst to his wife. 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. Refugees who had sought his advice now avoided him, fearing he would ask for a loan. (Courtesy of Greenwich Entertainment). He wrote a note, telling her that he lived in the building opposite and was the flute player. [1], In 2013, he was living in Phnom Penh working in real estate. until 2014 Ted's story is told in a new documentary. They told him Winchells Donuts trained store managers. Ngoy's gambling had progressed from the card tables to placing bets on sports games with Cambodian bookies. She thought Ted was joking, but he was serious. One night he asked the woman at the counter if saving $3,000 would be enough to buy a doughnut shop. I cry. 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. "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. When you get to the table, youre so emotional, evil in your body, he said. Her parents wanted nothing to do with him. That is a lie, he cried, and plunged the blade into his belly. In 1990, after disappearing for another disastrous trip to Las Vegas, he flew to Washington, D.C., and joined a Buddhist monastery. Then he would return to Vegas in an attempt to win back what he had lost. The film follows an immigrant tale of the American dream through Bun Tek Ted Ngoy, a Cambodian refugee whose charmed life is full of war, romance, entrepreneurship, racism and a caution about greed. Yeah, My Family Doesn't Either, Soup Dumplings, Kimchi Burritos And More Fast, Cheap Eats In Glendale, At Masarap Cafe, West African and Filipino Cuisines Find Their Pairing, Drinking At Disneyland? 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 am the flute player, he said in a note passed through the familys maid. Her parents and cousins hid behind curtains so they could hear him break off the relationship. Monks cannot help me, he said. Cambodia was having its first democratic elections since the war and he wanted to stand for office to help rebuild his country. Ted Ngoy in The Donut King documentary. "Ted, again, is Mr. Nine Lives. I called her when I found out and asked if she knew about Ford and Brown. Doughnut shops were easy to run. Ngoy attempted Gamblers Anonymous, but denied it helped with his situation, stating that when he went to meetings "I cry, everybody cry. He has to start a new life.. This caused tension in the Ngoy household, being the center of many arguments between Ngoy and his wife. Ted Ngoy By 1985, 10 years after arriving in the US as refugees, Ted and Christy were millionaires, owning around 60 doughnut shops. COVID-19 has hit her store and most other shops hard. And I feel so much hurt. He said hes Chinese Cambodian and we spoke Mandarin for a couple of minutes. That's a disaster," he says. When people know about the bad reputation, people are not going to vote for me. In 1975, Ngoy fled the Khmer Rouge with his wife and three children to Camp Pendleton. So, I just did it. His few shirts and pants hang from a clothesline. Then, after falling out with a powerful political rival he feared for his life and fled to the US. Doughnuts offered an escape from years of welfare dependency. 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. Theres a hustle to it, and director Alice Gu captures it in her debut documentary The Donut King.. Ted began to look for more doughnut shops to buy and lease to fellow refugees. He joined Gamblers Anonymous but was back at the tables in no time. Upon deeper glance, it was so personal for me. He dissolved his party and accused the government of corruption. "It's a devil, it's a monster. 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. Abcarian: Mask mandates? They went to Europe twice. They had lost their beautiful home and their chain of shops, but still had enough money to live comfortably. People love her and shes beautiful. In 1975, Ted Ngoy fled the war in Cambodia with his wife and three kids and arrived in America as a penniless refugee. They made a blood pact, promising to be forever faithful. Suganthini and her mother heard the music. "I did not have time to take care of business, so business was going down. L.A. became the country's epicenter of donut culture when Ted Ngoy, a Cambodian immigrant, arrived in California during the 1970s. Ted became deeply religious. I could have made a special piece just on the history of donuts. Phnom Penh Post Then he pulled a knife. The Donut King is a 2020 American documentary film which tells the life story of California donut shop owner Ted Ngoy. And then we started communicating, bringing back and forth the messages," Ted says. Cambodia was planning its first elections in 1993, and well-to-do emigres from California were returning to run for office. While working a second job at a gas station, Ngoy took notice of a busy local doughnut shop and inquired of its operators about learning the business. I think there's nothing wrong for them to lie to the embassy because everybody needs a chance to survive. But he admits he was also aware that conquering Suganthini's heart held out the promise of a better life. Their youngest son Chris drove them there to pick up the money - but it went horribly wrong. None of the people Ngoy helped get started lent him a hand, he said: I trained them. Most importantly, the trip allowed him to mend relations with Christy, who has now remarried, and with their grown-up children. The Top 5 newsletter catches you up with LAs top 5 stories in just 3 minutes. Ted now had a new passion - politics. After cry, go back gambling.. I told them I'm very sorry 1,000 times. So he named his own political party the Free Development Republican Party. She would discover big losses, and they would argue, sending their children running to their rooms. He found a second job at a gas station. 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. He also sponsored more than 100 Cambodian refugee families and established a path of financial opportunity for them in America. "[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. 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. He shaved his head and spent three months barefoot in Thailand, coming back emaciated and a changed man - or so he thought. 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. 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. While Ted was immersed in Cambodian politics, Christy flew to the US for the birth of a grandchild. Over the years, he led thousands of his countrymen into the business. By 2002 Ted was broke. I dont think you dare come to my room, she responded. It was really wonderful. He said that we didnt have room for these refugees here. Ted kept a low profile until the LA filmmaker Alice Gu got in touch a couple of years ago. It was helping his community and it was a bit of a cautionary tale.". More land deals followed and he has now worked his way back to being a millionaire. It was hurtful. I instantly found the Realtor, the listing agent and arranged to go and have Ted walk through his old house. , chronicles Ngoy's thrill-of-victory/agony-of-defeat rollercoaster ride through the American Dream immigration, capitalism, history, hubris, romance, addiction, family and food. 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. Your tax-deductible financial support keeps our stories free to read, instead of hidden behind paywalls. Suganthini was terrified, but she let the stranger stay. [10] Ngoy was hesitant to return to California for the film; he was estranged from his children and former friends. , some of the dough (see what we did there?) [5], Ngoy was hesitant to return to California for the film; he was estranged from his children and former friends. I say, Ted I dont think its that easy at all. And hell respond, Ive been rich three times. Suganthinis parents hoped she would marry well. He had gotten his first taste of that passion years earlier. This documentary tells Ted Ngoy's story that is one of fate, love, survival, hard knocks, and redemption. How to get the best eggs in town without leaving your yard. It led many voters to assume, incorrectly, that he was against Cambodia's royal family, and he didn't win a seat. Ngoy doesnt remember how many stores he started or bought -- 40? Sent to the city to study, Ngoy met the beautiful Suganthini Khoeun who was the daughter of a government. The doughnut king landed at LAX with $50 in his pocket. The Donut King [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. They have social media and know how to work it to innovate their parents old donut shops with a worldwide following. It also reminds us that several U.S. presidents welcomed a flood of refugees with open arms. He was ready to be taken by a new passion. All three were taken to the police station but they were too scared to mention the cash in the boot. An owner could keep costs low by employing his family. He is nicknamed the "Donut King. "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. Tell us about your wife. If you're enjoying this article, you'll love my daily morning newsletter, How To LA. In 1985, he and Suganthini became U.S. citizens. Chuong Lee, who has run DK's Donuts since 1988, is officially retired although she occasionally helps out at the shop. Why would anybody be interested in my story?' Then he opened his first independent shop in La Habra, eventually covering the rest of O.C. Money, doughnuts, sleep.. The family also still had the Winchell's so now they had two stores to run. That was super mind blowing for me to hear the political flip-flop and really insightful about another time when politics were more civil and there could be discussion. At 16, she had no friends, could not talk to boys and was forbidden to leave home alone. I told him that he has a story to tell. A new documentary chronicles the fascinating saga of Ted Ngoy, "The Donut King," who made a fortune and then lost it all to a gambling addiction. 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. 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. Ngoy and his wife became American citizens and were . At the end, I win. The gambling is sad, the saddest part of my life.". "When Alice called me, she described something that I have always wanted to tell but never thought that it would get picked up anywhere," Tao says. 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. 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. 2023 Southern California Public Radio - All Rights Reserved, Rising Egg Prices Are For The Birds. [5] By 1977 he was able to purchase his first doughnut shop, Christy's Donuts, in La Habra. They were moving their capital and know-how into liquor stores, markets and fast-food restaurants. Suganthini smuggled him food at night, and after many days she said she loved him too. In less than two years, while working on other jobs and projects, Gu directed and shot the 94-minute documentary. I think thats the American way the power of connections and people. Gu realized his story was also an epic romance. "But many of them were not related, they just lived in the same village or heard of my name. Ngoy returned to Cambodia without his wife (they would subsequently divorce) and mounted a failed political campaign. The Ngoys decided to keep uniformity amongst their shops, naming subsequent acquisitions Christy's. I never will be able to pay back. Never give up. Christy always forgave him, but word got around that Ted could no longer be trusted. Ngoy became a trainee and took over a Winchells in Newport Beach. Ted and Christy are divorced. If you walk into a doughnut shop in California, the chances are it's owned by a Cambodian family. We believe when reliable local reporting is widely available, the entire community benefits. He spends his evenings alone, reading the Bible. He subsists on small handouts from friends. When he couldn't pay them back because he had gambled the money away, Ted signed away his ownership stake in those stores. His mother raised him in a rural village near Cambodias border with Thailand. "He was a little uneasy," Gu says. [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. ], Ngoy bought additional doughnut shops in California that they dominated the ted ngoy second wife, pushing Winchell 's second. 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I want to tell the world, `` do not gamble. bought additional doughnut shops in Orange County bit!
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