I. Y. Yunioshi

The introduction of Mickey Rooney's performance of I.Y. Yunioshi in the theatrical trailer for Breakfast at Tiffany's.

I. Y. Yunioshi is a fictional character in Blake Edwards' 1961 romantic/comedy Breakfast at Tiffany's, which was adapted for the screen by George Axelrod based on Truman Capote's 1958 novella of the same title. The character of Mr. Yunioshi in the film, as portrayed by Mickey Rooney, has been the subject of extensive critical commentary and review since its theatrical release.

Critical response

In 1961, the New York Times review of the film said that "Mickey Rooney's bucktoothed, myopic Japanese is broadly exotic." In 1990, The Boston Globe described Rooney's portrayal as "an irascible bucktoothed nerd and an offensive ethnic caricature". In 1993, the Los Angeles Daily News wrote that the role "would have been an offensive stereotype even played by an Asian; the casting of Mickey Rooney added insult to injury".

More recent characterizations include "cringe-inducing stereotype", "painful, misguided", "overtly racist", "inexcusable case of yellowface", "one of the most egregiously horrible 'comic' impersonations of an Asian (Mr. Yunioshi) in the history of movies", and a portrayal "border[ing] on offensive" that is a "double blow to the Asian community – not only is he fatuous and uncomplimentary, but he is played by a Caucasian actor in heavy makeup."

The portrayal was referenced in the 1993 film Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story as an example of Hollywood's racist attitudes about Asians that Bruce Lee's success as a movie star would challenge. Specifically, when Lee and his girlfriend Linda Emery (portrayed in the film by Jason Scott Lee and Lauren Holly, respectively) watch Breakfast at Tiffany's in the theater, where despite laughing at the character, Linda suggests they leave midway through the picture after she notices that Bruce is upset at Rooney's stereotypical depiction of an Asian man.

A free outdoor screening in Sacramento, California, scheduled for August 23, 2008, was replaced with the animated film Ratatouille after protests about the Yunioshi character. The protest was led by Christina Fa of the Asian American Media Watch.

A screening was shown August 11, 2011 at Brooklyn Bridge Park's "Movies with a View" series in New York. Due to protests from a multi-ethnic group organized by an online petition at Change.org, the screening also included a short statement by the organizers which acknowledged and validated community concerns about Yunioshi and a brief documentary about Rooney's character and the portrayal of Asian Americans in other films that was edited from a DVD extra for the anniversary DVD. An editorial in the New York Daily News by columnist Jeff Yang offered an alternative view regarding the protests: "Far from boycotting the movie or even begrudgingly accepting it, I think it should be mandatory viewing for anyone who wants to fully understand who we are as a culture, how far we've come and how far we still need to go."

Response to criticism

In a 2008 interview about the film, Rooney said he was heartbroken about the criticism: "Blake Edwards...wanted me to do it because he was a comedy director. They hired me to do this overboard, and we had fun doing it....Never in all the more than 40 years after we made it—not one complaint. Every place I've gone in the world people say, 'God, you were so funny.' Asians and Chinese come up to me and say, 'Mickey you were out of this world.'" Rooney also said that if he'd known people would be so offended, "I wouldn't have done it. Those that didn't like it, I forgive them and God bless America, God bless the universe, God bless Japanese, Chinese, Indians, all of them and let's have peace."

The 2009 DVD re-release of the film included "a brief and necessary featurette on the character of Mr. Yunioshi, offering an Asian perspective on 'yellow face'".

See also

• Portrayal of East Asians in Hollywood