Tsuru Aoki on AllMovie

The only Japanese actress to star in American silent films, the dainty Tsuru Aoki preceded her more famous husband Sessue Hayakawa's ascent onto theater screens. In fact, she was the nominal star of his first American film, The Wrath of the Gods(1914). Aoki and Hayakawa would appear in 20 more films together, including Hell to Eternity(1960), Aoki's only sound film, but beginning with The Cheat (1915), in which she did not appear, Hayakawa became the top breadwinner in the household. Sadly, the name Tsuru Aoki barely registers today, whereas her husband remains a movie legend.