The collection documents Paul Ma's work as a chef and his efforts to popularize Chinese food in America.
Content Description:
The collection documents Paul Ma's work as a chef and his efforts to popularize Chinese food in America. Included in the collection are notes on food, recipes, letters, a photograph album, menus, brochures relating to courses Ma gave on Chinese cuisine, financial documents, examples of "double bookkeeping" (in Chinese and in English) used by Chinese restaurants.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into one series by chronological order.
Provenance:
Collection donated to the Archives Center by Paul and Linda Ma, 2018.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection documents Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company, a Portland, Oregon company that manufactures, packages and distributes frozen Chinese food from 1950-present.
Scope and Contents:
The records of a Portland, Oregon company that made, packaged and distributed frozen Chinese food. The collection includes the incorporation papers of the business, correspondence, photographs, product packaging, advertising and marketing materials, and business records.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into five series.
Series 1: Background and Biographical Materials, 1946-2005
Series 2: Business Records, 1931-2006
Series 3: Advertising, Packaging and Promotional Materials, 1956-[1995?]
Series 4: United States Department of Agriculture and Federal Food Administration Materials, 1959-2003
Series 5: Food Industry Materials, 1949-2006
Biographical / Historical:
Percy Wallace Loy (1920-2006) was born in Vancouver, Washington, to Kong (1867-1951) and Rose Loy (nee Fong), Chinese immigrants who were in the dairy business. Loy attended the Providence Academy in Portland, Oregon graduating in 1937. Loy enlisted in the Army (1943-1949) and became a navigator, bombardier, and pilot, serving during World War II. He retired as a lieutenant colonel, but was unable to find work with an airline after the war. He and his brother-in-law, Robert Wong, started the Kubla Khan Food Company, selling frozen Chinese entrees at a time when frozen foods had not yet caught on and the infrastructure to store, transport and distribute them didn't yet exist. The company popularized both frozen foods and Chinese food in the Northwest region of the United States. He was very active in the frozen foods industry in the Northwest, campaigning for the industry and working at convincing grocers of their profitability. He sold the manufacturing part of the company in the mid-2000s and died in 2006.
Though most food preservation practices (curing, smoking and canning) have their origins in Europe, the practice of freezing foods for consumer use was, for the most part, started and developed in America. Even today, frozen convenience foods are considered an American oddity and are not widely embraced in other countries.
In the 1920s Clarence Birdseye experimented with freezing food in small quantities, enabling them to reach a lower temperature faster. In the decades that followed, Birdseye tested and developed better packaging and ways of packing food more tightly inside the packaging. However, consumers remained skeptical about the safety and quality of this novelty, as were grocers about its profitability, in addition to concerns about the effects of the industrialization of food. It took about twenty more years to turn this situation around and to resolve problems with distribution and transport. Birdseye had to take huge risks to get there, beginning with enlisting the aid of a small number of stores, to which he supplied free freezers containing a variety of frozen foods sold on consignment, and hiring demonstrators to convince consumers that frozen foods were the future. Very slowly, frozen foods began to catch on. It wasn't until the 1950s, when frozen TV dinners were introduced, that frozen foods became popular with consumers.
Against this background, Percy Loy and Robert Wong started Kubla Khan in 1950 in the basement of a Chinese restaurant in Portland. Wong died a few years after the company was started. He supported his family by selling insurance for a short while, and then opened a small Japanese restaurant, eventually starting the Kubla Khan Company as a sideline, when he saw a hole in the market for frozen foods, the convenience of which he thought would appeal to consumers. He was active in getting freezers in stores that had not had them before.
While they were not the first to offer frozen Chinese food—Breyer's Ice Cream had its "Golden Pagoda" brand including frozen chow mein and chop suey—Kubla Khan had little other competition at the time, and most stores stored their frozen products in their ice cream cases. The introduction and popularity of TV dinners helped Kubla Khan's business thrive, as groceries added freezer cases to accommodate the TV dinners, and they now had space to add more frozen products. Kubla Khan kept up with the changing technology, but they held onto their cooking techniques, continuing to cook much of their food in woks or with steam, eschewing the automated, large batch vat cooking that other makers used. Loy said that this ensured uniform heating and an authentic taste. Mr. Loy built some of the equipment himself, with frozen food being so new that the machinery was not readily available in the Northwestern states. Kubla Khan exported its products to Asia, enabling the company to boast that it was so authentic it was served in the Orient. They also bottled their own sauces using their own recipes.
The Kubla Khan Company was not the largest Chinese food manufacturer, but it was a pioneer. They helped popularize something previously considered foreign and exotic—Chinese food. They helped popularize frozen food, something taken for granted now with probably (an unscientific estimate) 10% of the space in most grocery stores being devoted to frozen food. They did this not only with their products but with Mr. Loy's activism in promoting frozen foods. La Choy, by comparison, did not start making frozen foods until the 1960s.
Loy was a tireless activist in promoting frozen foods, campaigning for the industry and working at convincing grocers of their profitability. His goals were building consumer trust and making Chinese food accessible. He was also active in his community, trying to help other minorities start businesses. A strong believer in giving back to his community, he helped several colleges (Lewis and Clark, Willamette University and others) start up foreign exchange programs. He helped several former employees start their own businesses. He led the first trade delegation to China after Nixon's visit.
The Kubla Khan Company is still in business, but Mr. Loy sold the manufacturing part of the company in the mid-2000s. Loy married Irene F. Lee in 1949. The couple had six children children, Martin (d. 1958), David (d. 1965), Michael, Deborah, Marilyn, and Daria. Loy's daughter, Marilyn Loy now runs the company, which is limited to the import/export aspect.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Michael Loy and Daria Loy-Goto, 2013.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Social Security numbers are present and have been rendered unreadable and redacted. Researchers may use the photocopies in the collection. The remainder of the collection has no restrictions.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Festival Recordings: Peace Corps Home Cooking: Chinese Cooking (Julie Driver, B.J. Whetstine); Paraguayan Cooking (Dan Westerhof)
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
2011 July 9
Collection Restrictions:
Access by appointment only. Where a listening copy or viewing copy has been created, this is indicated in the respective inventory; additional materials may be accessible with sufficient advance notice and, in some cases, payment of a processing fee. Older papers are housed at a remote location and may require a minimum of three weeks' advance notice and payment of a retrieval fee. Certain formats such as multi-track audio recordings and EIAJ-1 videoreels (1/2 inch) may not be accessible. Contact the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections at 202-633-7322 or rinzlerarchives@si.edu for additional information.
Collection Rights:
Copyright and other restrictions may apply. Generally, materials created during a Festival are covered by a release signed by each participant permitting their use for personal and educational purposes; materials created as part of the fieldwork leading to a Festival may be more restricted. We permit and encourage such personal and educational use of those materials provided digitally here, without special permissions. Use of any materials for publication, commercial use, or distribution requires a license from the Archives. Licensing fees may apply in addition to any processing fees.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Mid-Atlantic: Chicken stuffed with fennel, lemon, thyme, and rosemary; potatoes with corn fritters (Todd Gray), Chinese cooking: Chinese noodles and gazpacho with Sahshimi (Kaz Okochi)
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
2005 June 25
Collection Restrictions:
Access by appointment only. Where a listening copy or viewing copy has been created, this is indicated in the respective inventory; additional materials may be accessible with sufficient advance notice and, in some cases, payment of a processing fee. Older papers are housed at a remote location and may require a minimum of three weeks' advance notice and payment of a retrieval fee. Certain formats such as multi-track audio recordings and EIAJ-1 videoreels (1/2 inch) may not be accessible. Contact the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections at 202-633-7322 or rinzlerarchives@si.edu for additional information.
Collection Rights:
Copyright and other restrictions may apply. Generally, materials created during a Festival are covered by a release signed by each participant permitting their use for personal and educational purposes; materials created as part of the fieldwork leading to a Festival may be more restricted. We permit and encourage such personal and educational use of those materials provided digitally here, without special permissions. Use of any materials for publication, commercial use, or distribution requires a license from the Archives. Licensing fees may apply in addition to any processing fees.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2005 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Festival Recordings: Hawaiian Foodways Area: Hawaiian Cooking; Okinawan Cooking; Portuguese Cooking; Chinese Cooking
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
1989 June 24
Collection Restrictions:
Access by appointment only. Where a listening copy or viewing copy has been created, this is indicated in the respective inventory; additional materials may be accessible with sufficient advance notice and, in some cases, payment of a processing fee. Older papers are housed at a remote location and may require a minimum of three weeks' advance notice and payment of a retrieval fee. Certain formats such as multi-track audio recordings and EIAJ-1 videoreels (1/2 inch) may not be accessible. Contact the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections at 202-633-7322 or rinzlerarchives@si.edu for additional information.
Collection Rights:
Copyright and other restrictions may apply. Generally, materials created during a Festival are covered by a release signed by each participant permitting their use for personal and educational purposes; materials created as part of the fieldwork leading to a Festival may be more restricted. We permit and encourage such personal and educational use of those materials provided digitally here, without special permissions. Use of any materials for publication, commercial use, or distribution requires a license from the Archives. Licensing fees may apply in addition to any processing fees.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 1989 Festival of American Folklife, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Festival Recordings: Hawaiian Foodways Area: Okinawan New Years Cooking; Chinese New Year Cooking; Portuguese Cooking
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
1989 June 25
Collection Restrictions:
Access by appointment only. Where a listening copy or viewing copy has been created, this is indicated in the respective inventory; additional materials may be accessible with sufficient advance notice and, in some cases, payment of a processing fee. Older papers are housed at a remote location and may require a minimum of three weeks' advance notice and payment of a retrieval fee. Certain formats such as multi-track audio recordings and EIAJ-1 videoreels (1/2 inch) may not be accessible. Contact the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections at 202-633-7322 or rinzlerarchives@si.edu for additional information.
Collection Rights:
Copyright and other restrictions may apply. Generally, materials created during a Festival are covered by a release signed by each participant permitting their use for personal and educational purposes; materials created as part of the fieldwork leading to a Festival may be more restricted. We permit and encourage such personal and educational use of those materials provided digitally here, without special permissions. Use of any materials for publication, commercial use, or distribution requires a license from the Archives. Licensing fees may apply in addition to any processing fees.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 1989 Festival of American Folklife, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Festival Recordings: Hawaiian Foodways Area: Okinawan Cooking; Chinese Cooking; Portuguese Cooking
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
1989 July 2
Collection Restrictions:
Access by appointment only. Where a listening copy or viewing copy has been created, this is indicated in the respective inventory; additional materials may be accessible with sufficient advance notice and, in some cases, payment of a processing fee. Older papers are housed at a remote location and may require a minimum of three weeks' advance notice and payment of a retrieval fee. Certain formats such as multi-track audio recordings and EIAJ-1 videoreels (1/2 inch) may not be accessible. Contact the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections at 202-633-7322 or rinzlerarchives@si.edu for additional information.
Collection Rights:
Copyright and other restrictions may apply. Generally, materials created during a Festival are covered by a release signed by each participant permitting their use for personal and educational purposes; materials created as part of the fieldwork leading to a Festival may be more restricted. We permit and encourage such personal and educational use of those materials provided digitally here, without special permissions. Use of any materials for publication, commercial use, or distribution requires a license from the Archives. Licensing fees may apply in addition to any processing fees.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 1989 Festival of American Folklife, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Festival Recordings: Ethiopian Cooking, Chinese Cooking
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
2000 July 4
Collection Restrictions:
Access by appointment only. Where a listening copy or viewing copy has been created, this is indicated in the respective inventory; additional materials may be accessible with sufficient advance notice and, in some cases, payment of a processing fee. Older papers are housed at a remote location and may require a minimum of three weeks' advance notice and payment of a retrieval fee. Certain formats such as multi-track audio recordings and EIAJ-1 videoreels (1/2 inch) may not be accessible. Contact the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections at 202-633-7322 or rinzlerarchives@si.edu for additional information.
Collection Rights:
Copyright and other restrictions may apply. Generally, materials created during a Festival are covered by a release signed by each participant permitting their use for personal and educational purposes; materials created as part of the fieldwork leading to a Festival may be more restricted. We permit and encourage such personal and educational use of those materials provided digitally here, without special permissions. Use of any materials for publication, commercial use, or distribution requires a license from the Archives. Licensing fees may apply in addition to any processing fees.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2000 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Chop suey and sushi from sea to shining sea : Chinese and Japanese restaurants in the United States / edited by Bruce Makoto Arnold, Tanfer Emin Tunç, and Raymond Douglas Chong
