Jack Ong

Jack Ong (November 6, 1940 – June 13, 2017) was an American actor, writer, activist and marketing professional. Early life Ong was born in Mesa, Arizona, the seventh of eight children of Chinese immigrant parents, Kam Fong and Jeung Shee Ong. His family owned and operated a small grocery store, where he received an early education in the business world. Growing up as a part of a very small minority, he quickly realized the benefits of escaping reality and delving into the world of the film industry. Ong earned his B.A. at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. He worked his way through college as a staff reporter-photographer with the Mesa Daily Tribune, which had recruited him before his high school graduation. He moved to Los Angeles after college. Military service Ong served as a Navy photojournalist during the Vietnam War, assigned to the Commander, Seventh Fleet, in the Philippines. His reporting and photography were published in Stars and Stripes and frequently circulated by the global wire services. Marketing/advertising After his stint in the Navy, Ong worked as an advertising executive, writing and creating print, radio, TV, point-of-purchase and billboard campaigns for the International Hotel (now the Hilton) in Las Vegas, where he also worked on publicity for such entertainers as Elvis Presley, Barbra Streisand, Peggy Lee and Bill Cosby. He also worked on marketing and promotional campaigns for Galpin Motors, the largest and most successful automobile enterprise in the world; and Topanga Plaza, America's first mega-shopping mall.