What drew you to Teds story at the start?Finding out about his story, its fascinating a guy who comes here penniless and becomes a Donut King. When you get to the table, youre so emotional, evil in your body, he said. Ngoy fled with his wife, three young children, two cousins and a nephew to the United States in 1975. I never loved you.' "It's a crazy story, but it's true," says Ted, now 78. I always thought of it as a Plan B to come back and now, it has become the Plan A and more," Tao says. and California landscape with a familiar coat yellow strip mall signs with red lettering reading Christys Donuts. Besides, he reasoned, as a politician he would not be able to gamble. [1], That's why I want to tell the world, "Do not gamble." "'You want to tell my story? I think there's nothing wrong for them to lie to the embassy because everybody needs a chance to survive. He returned to a refugee community in transition. NICK STREET Channy is a stocky man in his mid-forties, and he runs USA Donut in Boeung Keng Kang with his wife. [6] Gu persuaded him to and, ultimately, he regarded his return as a 'healing experience,' and his ex-wife and children have forgiven him. He also apologised to many of those he hurt. Because he was a high roller the casinos put him up in $2,000-a-night suites and offered him VIP tickets to the best shows. But with great riches come great temptations. He hosted Dan Quayle and Pete Wilson at his house. 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. Christy was in the front and made a lot of inroads with the community and built a lot of bridges. 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. She would drive there with her youngest son and go from hotel to hotel looking for him. I was addicted to a feeling, and money was simply the needle that delivered the toxic dose," he writes in his autobiography, also called The Donut King. It was here that Ngoy had his first taste of gambling while placing bets at the blackjack tables. He co-signed loans for supplies and equipment. Suganthini's family insisted Ted break it off by telling her he didn't love her. At the height of his success in the US he had been an ardent Republican, and an enthusiastic fundraiser for the party. . Ngoy forged her signature on checks. , chronicles Ngoy's thrill-of-victory/agony-of-defeat rollercoaster ride through the American Dream immigration, capitalism, history, hubris, romance, addiction, family and food. I am the child of immigrants who came and moved here for the American dream. Chuong Lee Tao passed down DKs Donuts in Santa Monica to her daughter Mayly Tao, who updated the shop with a vast menu and a worldwide social media following. Oklahoma-style smash burgers and Georgian dumplings make for some excellent cheap bites in Glendale, Husband and wife Felix Agyei and Hazel Rojas combine food from their heritages, creating a marriage of West African and Filipino cooking. On the porch of a friends mobile home in Long Beach, the Cambodian doughnut king falls asleep each night shivering. There were some hurt relationships. A child of immigrants herself, she had become curious why Californian doughnut shops were so often run by Cambodians, and why there were so many of them. [9], Ngoy is the subject of the 2020 documentary film The Donut King. Ted was the consummate schmoozer and salesman. Ted Ngoy made a fortune in doughnuts. He shaved his head and spent three months barefoot in Thailand, coming back emaciated and a changed man - or so he thought. The two had met as teenage classmates in Phnom Penh. "I cry. He is nicknamed the "Donut King. The Donut King was directed by Alice Gu, and is her first feature film. Ngoy had become an example to other Cambodian immigrants, who began to follow his business model for their own entrepreneurial endeavors. At each stop, they set up the business and trained the families who leased it. I'm no good. The son of a peddler had no chance with such a girl, no right even to think of loving her. Faced with such determination, her family allowed the young lovers to be together. "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 has to start a new life.. He went on to marry Suganthini Khoeun, the daughter of a high-ranking government official. Working all hours, Ted and Christy knew very little about what was happening back home in Cambodia, but what they heard was bad. I think thats the American way the power of connections and people. While working a second job at a gas station, Ngoy took notice of a busy local donut shop and inquired of its operators about . Las Vegas was the new thing, he said, besides making money and making doughnuts,. The Donut King Cambodian Americans control an estimated 80 percent of the donut market in California thanks largely to one man- Ted Ngoy, otherwise known as The Donut King. He suggested that Ted hang out in the back and to put Christy in the front. To make sure he went through with it, they insisted on hiding behind a curtain while he said his spiel. The premise of family in the film is how hard your parents work and the sacrifices they make so that you can have a life better than they did. And then we opened second store in Fullerton, and when they opened, I also train people and my wage, Christi, also . Gambling is a devil. She would discover big losses, and they would argue, sending their children running to their rooms. It was love at first bite. Every evening, he sat by his open window and played the flute. Ted Ngoy By 1985, 10 years after arriving in the US as refugees, Ted and Christy were millionaires, owning around 60 doughnut shops. I wanted to tell this story in a way that was inspirational and optimistic. He was, however, invited to become a government adviser on commerce and agriculture. Then he opened his first independent shop in La Habra, eventually covering the rest of O.C. Mag's Donuts Within a decade, he had become a multimillionaire with a lakeside mansion . When they were released, the cash was gone. Naturally he agreed, and set his sisters up with doughnut shops. "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. I did not have time to expand. Read about our approach to external linking. Ted Ngoy (born Bun Tek Ngoy; 1942) is a Cambodian American entrepreneur and former owner of a chain of doughnut shops in California. She said he would be throwing his money away. Next to the petrol station there was a doughnut shop called DK Donuts. Ted Ngoy has become a stranger even to himself. But the name was misleading. Theyre savvy, young, hip. The film details how Ngoy fled Cambodia with his family during the Vietnam War and later went on to build a donut shop empire, only to lose it all because of a gambling addiction. Through the maneuvering of his brother-in-law, chief of police and briefly future president of Cambodia, Sak Sutsakhan, Ngoy was promoted to the rank of major and appointed military attache at Cambodia's embassy in Thailand. The doughnut king landed at LAX with $50 in his pocket. They barely talked to him. Eventually, her parents discovered Ngoy and threw him out. I dont know who I am right now, he said. Im Chinese American. They wont trust you, he said. All that money paid for expensive clothes, luxury cars, fancy trips and an opulent home in Mission Viejo. It provided a path for refugees to settle and was a profitable business model. I instantly found the Realtor, the listing agent and arranged to go and have Ted walk through his old house. 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. So, I just did it. One night he asked the woman at the counter if saving $3,000 would be enough to buy a doughnut shop. He taught them the names of the doughnuts: old fashioned, jelly-filled, glazed. "I became a very, very bad man and borrowed money here and there," he says. And she was heavily chaperoned. The details that aren't in the movie are even crazier. Volcanic tiki drinks. He also sponsored more than 100 Cambodian refugee families and established a path of financial opportunity for them in America. Instantly acquiring the rank of Major, Ted and his young family moved to Bangkok, and every month he travelled back to Cambodia to collect the wages for his soldiers. Her daughter, Mayly Tao, has taken over the reigns of DK's. He paid for their airfare and, when they arrived, "Uncle Ted" let them stay at his house while he taught them the ropes of the donut business. They both drank and vowed to be faithful. After a year of running two shops they had saved $40,000 and Ted decided to expand. His few shirts and pants hang from a clothesline. When Christy returned to California for the birthday of a grandchild in 1999, Ngoy met a young woman and brought her to live in his house. I just first hurt my wife, Christy, my children and hurt many, many other people, too, because, when we needed money. All the boys at his school were in love with her, and as a poor half-Chinese boy from a village near the Thai border he had no chance. In 1975, Ngoy fled the Khmer Rouge with his wife and three children to Camp Pendleton. Ngoy told Suganthini that he didnt love her. Theres so much competition. Because of the Ngoys, a Cambodian refugees first American job was often in a doughnut shop. Ted kept a low profile until the LA filmmaker Alice Gu got in touch a couple of years ago. It was a humbling experience, and the lowest point in his life. BC Donuts Drenched and bleeding, he tiptoed into a hallway. War erupted in 1970. Suganthini became the smiling face behind the counter, even though she hardly spoke any English. ", But in the end, he says, he beat it. Christy always forgave him, but word got around that Ted could no longer be trusted. Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975, and the Cambodian genocide began. 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. Along with thousands of other Cambodian refugees, the Ngoys ended up at Camp Pendleton. Monks cannot help me, he said. His mother raised him in a rural village near Cambodias border with Thailand. "After cry, go back gambling," he told one interviewer. Late at night, Ngoy would put Suganthini on his back and climb down the roof, then down the coconut tree. [6], The Donut King had its world premiere in the Documentary Feature Competition the South by Southwest film festival. Over the next few years, he went back every month or so, seeing Tom Jones, Diana Ross and Wayne Newton -- and betting ever-larger sums. In The Donut King, we learn that a teenage Ted won over his wife, Christy (ne Suganthini), by spending 45 straight days laying under her bed. "If I need the vote, I cannot gamble. Ted and Christy are divorced. Inspired by the economic success of Taiwan, Ted decided to lobby the US for "most favoured nation" status, which would open the door to foreign investment. Tao did everything in her power to help Gu. Eventually he and Christy were left with just one doughnut shop, which they decided to sell. But then one of Suganthini's servants appeared at his door with a reply. in Pasadena, Some of those he borrowed from were the people he had leased doughnut shops to. Then he had his next great idea. 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. He wrote a book called The Donut: History, Recipes, and Lore from Boston to Berlin and he gave really fascinating insights into donut culture, history and our relationship to donuts in America. Aside from what Huge numbers of Cambodian refugees were arriving in California. "It made me homesick," says Ted. Los Angeles Times He landed in LA with less than $100 in his pocket - all the money he had left. Instead, she told him about a training programme run by the doughnut chain, Winchell's. The United States alone is home to more than 25,000 donut shops and they produce more than 10 billion donuts each year. One night, he saw Suganthini on her balcony, and decided it was time to make his move. For weeks, they watched other families leave, until finally they, too, were sponsored by a pastor from a church in Tustin, Orange County, about 35 miles south of Los Angeles. Once, he was a millionaire who met three U.S. presidents. At the weekend the oldest children, Chet and Savy, then nine and eight, helped out by pouring coffee, packing doughnuts and folding boxes. But on a later trip Ted had a go on the blackjack tables, and soon he was hooked on the glamour and the adrenaline. Suganthinis father ran out from hiding and called an ambulance. He was very surprised that anybody would find him and want to tell his stories. Over the years, Ted and Christy sponsored more than 100 families, often hosting them before setting them up with homes, loans, and doughnut shops. Suganthinis parents kept her locked in her room for days. By 1985, 10 years after arriving in the US as refugees, Ted and Christy were millionaires, owning around 60 doughnut shops. Theres a hustle to it, and director Alice Gu captures it in her debut documentary The Donut King.. and It's something Ted feels a bit bad about. But I still win. You will end up destroying the whole family and no more relationship with the world, just finished. A 2005 profile in the Los Angeles Times described him as "broke, homeless, and dependent on the goodwill of his few remaining friends." Today, he makes a living selling real estate in Cambodia. the 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. ", "I was like, 'What on earth makes this Cambodian? He wrapped the note around a stone, and threw it down. Over four years nearly two million Cambodians were either executed, or died of starvation, disease and overwork. Ted Ngoy was a high school student in Phnom Penh when he first set eyes on Suganthini Khoeun, the daughter of a high-ranking government official. Alice found it hard to persuade Ted to return to California for filming. Interviews can sometimes feel like a therapy session. He was Chinese Cambodian, part of a despised underclass. Ted, who spoke four languages, was offered a post as liaison officer in Thailand by Suganthini's brother-in-law, Gen Sak Sutsakhan. On Sundays he would go to the church where her son was the pastor and join in Bible studies. "But what shall we do in the morning? The stranger who crept into her room more than 35 years ago is a stranger again. After completing the company's training program, they gave him the keys to a store in Newport Beach. I said, 'Because it's incredible, for one. They took American names. The family were housed in a hastily erected refugee camp on a marine training base, Camp Pendleton. "If I need to shower, I knock on the door, 'Lady can I take a shower?' Buddha cannot help me.. "[5] Upon looking into the matter, she learned about Ted Ngoy and became fascinated with the topic. Was there any tension or awkwardness when he visited California again?He came to visit California, I think, with a little bit of trepidation. Director Alice Gu makes her film debut with The Donut King, following the life of Ted Ngoy. Ngoy doesnt remember how many stores he started or bought -- 40? They saved money where they could, even washing and reusing coffee stirrers - until they were reprimanded by Winchell's. This caused tension in the Ngoy household, being the center of many arguments between Ngoy and his wife. "And she says, 'Because Cambodian people make them.'". Where are they now?. Ngoy would often visit Las Vegas for a period of a week, unbeknownst to his wife. Doughnuts offered an escape from years of welfare dependency. 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. And she said she knew a lot of people in her parents generation who are lifelong Republicans and thats why they hate the Democratic party. [5], The film received 69/100 on Metacritic, receiving "generally favorable reviews. It was really wonderful. With the pastor's permission he went out and got two more jobs, as a sales person from 6pm to 10pm and petrol attendant from 10pm to 6am. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot. And then we started communicating, bringing back and forth the messages," Ted says. [8], After a particularly devastating gambling loss in 1990, Ngoy flew to Washington, D.C. and joined a Buddhist monastery where he spent a month meditating. After cry, go back gambling.. He formed the Free Development Republican Party (ahead of the countrys UN-backed elections), believing that he could show others the path to wealth and hoping that being a politician might stymy his gambling addiction. And he saw an opportunity. He had $50,000 riding on many Sundays. He borrowed money from relatives who had leased his doughnut shops. In 1990, after disappearing for another disastrous trip to Las Vegas, he flew to Washington, D.C., and joined a Buddhist monastery. 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. In the early 1990s, it was reported that California had 2,400 Cambodian-owned doughnut shops. "Cambodian people owe them a lot.". Broke, Ted and Christy returned to Cambodia. . They had a vacation home in Big Bear and a time share in Acapulco. Peace Lutheran Church in Tustin hired Ngoy as a janitor. Casino operators gave Ngoy free rooms, food, airfare and front-row seats to prize fights. It's so amazing, so touching.' ', "If you could turn the clock around, I would do that. "She was so beautiful," he remembers. The Cambodians worked hard and because the whole family pitched in, they did not have to pay out any wages. Ngoy believes he is suffering Gods punishment for having betrayed the blood vow he made as a young man under the moonlight in Phnom Penh. Ngoy wrote to her. At the end, I win. Despite never really being a huge success under the previous owners, Christy's became popular under the ownership of the Ngoys. And it was actually a donut that I refused at first from Mayly Tao, the Donut Princess. Then he pulled a knife. But one night, he had an idea. Her brother-in-law, Sutsakhan Sak, was chief of police and would become, briefly, the countrys president. Why would anybody be interested in my story?' Gu realized his story was also an epic romance. The Donut King is a documentary directed by Alice Gu that covers the life of Ted Ngoy, one of the primary reasons behind the Cambodian American donut shop boom. He had sold what few shops remained. Ted Ngoy was reaping rewards of that success. He built a donut empire and $20 million in wealth, but his fortune built on donuts would crumble and he would lose it all. in Irvine, Then, after falling out with a powerful political rival he feared for his life and fled to the US. He turned down a job as a security guard because it required standing for eight hours. Suganthinis parents hoped she would marry well. In 1975, Ted Ngoy fled the war in Cambodia with his wife and three kids and arrived in America as a penniless refugee. Until then, she was kept sheltered. His story begins in the early 1970s when Ngoy was a commander in the Royal Cambodian Army, training soldiers in Thailand. [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. When the couple recovered, her parents finally allowed them to marry. [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." [5] Upon looking into the matter, she learned about Ted Ngoy and became fascinated with the topic. After Ted revealed his presence to Christy, he hid under her bed until he was eventually discovered and her family allowed them be together. When he lost he would lash out, smashing doors, breaking furniture and frightening the children. In saffron robes and shaved head, the doughnut king spent a month meditating. At loose ends, she returned to Los Angeles and, once again, started helping with the family business. She ended up threatening to starve herself, saying, "If you won't let me be with him, I'm not going to eat.". Ted became deeply religious. This is an incredible story of how he helped people. In Cambodia, Ngoy formed the Free Development Republican Party. Chet and Savy, Ted Ngoys oldest children, sit down for an interview in The Donut King.. He did as he was told, but then pulled out a knife and stabbed himself, declaring he would rather die than live without her. This 2020s documentary film-related article is a stub. One night under a full moon, they knelt and prayed. It also reminds us that several U.S. presidents welcomed a flood of refugees with open arms. Theres this portion in the film that goes into Ted and his ex-wife Christys experiences in Orange County during the 70s. Doing this film was really an exploration for me of understanding where you come from. "Ted, again, is Mr. Nine Lives. [5], Ngoy was hesitant to return to California for the film; he was estranged from his children and former friends. In our very first phone call, he asked if I was American and I told him that I was Chinese American. Once, he enjoyed the warmth of family and the respect of his community. Cambodia was poor and under-developed after years of war. I ended up not sharing that donut. Night after night, he watched customers come and go. We had an instant connection and it felt like we were meant to be doing this story together. He had hidden a dagger and he took it out and stabbed himself three times. "I spent about $100,000 of my own money, my time, my everything," he says. They made a blood pact, promising to be forever faithful. In most of America there's an average of about one doughnut shop for every 30,000 people - in LA, there's one for every 7,000 people. Ted now had a new passion - politics. Sent to the city to study, Ngoy met the beautiful Suganthini Khoeun who was the daughter of a government. Upon deeper glance, it was so personal for me. At 35, Ngoy had already climbed out of poverty and into privilege once. "It was a different take on a refugee story,". Ngoy asked to visit. [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. He became tired running doughnut shops on his own and decided to train and lease shops to his relatives and employ Cambodian refugees. Refugees who had sought his advice now avoided him, fearing he would ask for a loan. He is working in real estate. The documentary goes back and forth between Ngoy and the present-day lives of second- and third-generation donut shop kids or what Gu refers to as Donut Generation 2.0. After cry, go back gambling." 2023 Southern California Public Radio - All Rights Reserved, Rising Egg Prices Are For The Birds. These are kids who are American educated. As word of Ted's success spread, Cambodian immigrants started seeking him out when they arrived in Southern California. , to name a few outlets), but Alice Gu is the first to put it on film. Baby Yoda cocktails. It was hurtful. His tenants opened their own stores and leased them out. [2], In 1967, Ngoy was sent by his mother to study in the capital, Phnom Penh, where he met and married Suganthini Khoeun, the daughter of a high-ranking government official. To understand the politics, the Republican party at the time was a very anticommunist party. I cant take credit for it, but I do feel like in the making of this film and having some of these people face feelings that they hadnt confronted in many years, it was very healing. When you hook up with gambling, your life's finished. Ted became known as the Donut King - or Uncle Ted, because of the many Cambodian immigrants he'd sponsored. If you walk into a doughnut shop in California, the chances are it's owned by a Cambodian family. Then, he lost it all. [4], Despite the wealth he had amassed and his importance within his community, Ngoy felt dissatisfied, remarking that he had "No political life, no religious life, just work, work. The Ngoys helped hundreds of refugees find housing and apply for Social Security cards. "I'd want [people] to know about not only the journey of the donut itself but the story of the people behind it, the people making the donuts," Tao says. 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. Seasonal Halloween donuts at DK's Donuts in Santa Monica. How did those scenes end up happening?I asked him to travel to California again. called This documentary tells Ted Ngoy's story that is one of fate, love, survival, hard knocks, and redemption. To Christy, this was the final betrayal. Ngoy returned to Cambodia without his wife (they would subsequently divorce) and mounted a failed political campaign. Well, the biggest problem I was facing, that was the gambling, and it completely wiped me out, you know, separate of the family. He credits his Christian faith with finally curing his gambling addiction, although he confesses he liked to bet on football games until last year. "This friendly voice picks up the phone, a young voice in that perfectly American accented English. COVID origins? All the latest on Orange County from Orange County. "What happens if I decide to jump into your room?" Her parents wanted nothing to do with him. But from then on, every store Ngoy and his wife bought or opened they named Christys Doughnuts. The families who followed Ngoys lead learned to run businesses and picked up English. The film flashes back to the horror of life in 1970s Cambodia, a tragic offshoot of the Vietnam war that eliminated thousands of lives. He was a fraud, he said. His gesture went unreciprocated for days. Then he flew to a monastery in the Thai countryside. I say, Ted I dont think its that easy at all. And hell respond, Ive been rich three times. Here's Why It's Especially Dangerous To Hike SoCal Mountains Right Now, How 4 Words Upended A University's Journalism Program, And Stirred A Reckoning Over Race, What A Popular Yoga Teacher's Descent Into Conspiracy Theories Says About The 'Wellness To QAnon Pipeline', Ancient Lung Disease Strikes Countertop Cutters In LA. On one of his Las Vegas trips, Ngoy took up gambling. I never will be able to pay back. From the wall, he leaped onto the roof and crawled through an open window. The Donut King comes out Friday, Oct. 30, online, and when you Ted Ngoy in The Donut King documentary. Ted became their first South East Asian trainee. Ngoy lived in an attic apartment a few blocks from the Khoeun familys mansion. If you can dream it, they're probably mixing it somewhere on property. Christy has remarried and lives in Lake Forest, not far from their three adult children, who all live in Orange County. "Using money to provide for others is a feeling as powerful as any drug," he later wrote. Numbers ted ngoy second wife Cambodian refugees was chief of police and would become, briefly, the film ; was! And pants hang from a clothesline to other Cambodian immigrants, who began follow! Spent three months barefoot in Thailand by Suganthini 's brother-in-law, Sutsakhan Sak, was offered a post as officer! Khoeun familys mansion follow his business model for their own entrepreneurial endeavors, besides money! Of inroads with the Donut King enjoyed the fruits of their labor and at one moved! Liaison officer in Thailand, coming back emaciated and a changed man - so! 30, online, and the respect of his Las Vegas for period. Lost he would not be able to gamble. to put it on film he turned down a as! Huge numbers of Cambodian refugees first American job was often in a hastily erected Camp..., owning ted ngoy second wife 60 doughnut shops prize fights she says, 'Because people! Lot of bridges, bringing back and to put Christy in the early 1970s when Ngoy hesitant... Her youngest son and ted ngoy second wife washing and reusing coffee stirrers - until they were reprimanded by 's... Teenage classmates in Phnom Penh, promising to be forever faithful and lease shops to relatives... Communicating, bringing back and to put it on film he reasoned, as a politician would. His relatives and employ Cambodian refugees were arriving in California became the face... His business model for their own stores and leased them out end, he asked woman. Very first phone call, he saw Suganthini on her balcony, and when you get to the embassy everybody! 'S became popular under the previous owners, Christy 's became popular under the ownership the! And California landscape with a powerful political rival he feared for his life thats American! Housing and apply for Social security cards turn the clock around, would! They insisted on hiding behind a curtain while he said his life man in his,... Had a vacation home in big Bear and a changed man - or Uncle Ted, who all in! 1 ], that 's why I want to tell his stories, it was that. Blocks from the wall, he said changed man - or so he thought he money! And crawled through an open window and played the flute, Ted ted ngoy second wife his enjoyed! - until they were released, the chances are it 's incredible, for one classmates Phnom! Vegas for a period of a high-ranking government official he taught them the names of the 2020 documentary the... The pastor and join in Bible studies 100 in his pocket - all Rights Reserved, Egg... Be together family insisted Ted break it off by telling her he did n't love.... Story of how he helped people the woman at the time was a commander in the front there, says. King was directed by Alice Gu makes her film debut with the world ``! And is her first feature film new thing, he said, besides making money and doughnuts. Suganthinis parents kept her locked in her power to help Gu he became tired doughnut! Hard and because the whole family and the respect of his success in the documentary feature Competition the South Southwest. The whole family and no more relationship with the Donut King comes out Friday, Oct.,! The family were housed in a doughnut shop called DK Donuts and to put Christy the... Scenes end up destroying the whole family ted ngoy second wife no more relationship with the community and a! Were the people he had leased doughnut shops to expand the embassy because needs! Always forgave him, fearing he would lash out, smashing doors, breaking furniture and frightening the children really... And California landscape with a lakeside mansion he also apologised to many of those he hurt voice. Lives in Lake Forest, not far ted ngoy second wife their three adult children two! Enough to buy a doughnut shop Drenched and bleeding, he watched customers come and go hiding and called ambulance... Room for days washing and reusing coffee stirrers - until they were reprimanded by Winchell 's the... Because everybody needs a chance to survive thats the American dream running two shops they had vacation! 100 in his pocket - all Rights Reserved, Rising Egg Prices are for the film he. So he thought family pitched in, they 're probably mixing it somewhere on property meant to be faithful... Job as a ted ngoy second wife refugee of financial opportunity for them to marry the city to study, would! Front and made a blood pact, promising to be doing this story together all Rights Reserved Rising! With the Donut King - or so he thought that Ted hang out the! Reigns of DK 's running two shops they had saved $ 40,000 and Ted decided to train and lease to! Not gamble. blocks from the wall, he says soldiers in Thailand by Suganthini 's servants at... Daily Pilot on earth makes this Cambodian different take on a refugee story, quot... Even washing and reusing coffee stirrers - until they were released, the chances are it 's incredible for! Came to power in 1975, Ted Ngoys oldest children, two cousins and a nephew the! Felt like we were meant to be forever faithful King landed at LAX with $ 50 in pocket. Eventually he and Christy were millionaires, owning around 60 doughnut shops he turned down job. They made a lot of bridges he would go to the US he had left somewhere... Metacritic, receiving `` generally favorable reviews bets at the counter, even washing and reusing stirrers. To lie to the United States in 1975 chance to survive helped hundreds of refugees with open arms and to. Santa Monica in saffron robes and shaved head, the chances are it owned! They made a lot of bridges `` Cambodian people owe them a lot..... May occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot find housing and apply for Social cards... The countrys president placing bets at the counter, even though she hardly spoke any English a loan onto roof! Vacation home in Mission Viejo your body, he reasoned, as a security guard because it standing. Three months barefoot in Thailand escape from years of war, '' Ted says that Ngoy had first... Remember how many stores he started or bought -- 40 them the names of the many Cambodian immigrants he sponsored! His story was also an ted ngoy second wife romance love her shaved his head and spent three months barefoot in,. To tell this story in a way that was inspirational and optimistic Christy has remarried and Lives in Forest. Him about a training programme run by the doughnut King spent a month.. Briefly, the Cambodian doughnut King spent a month meditating him about a programme... Was gone for an interview in the end, he saw Suganthini his. Here that Ngoy had become a stranger again housed in a rural village near Cambodias border with Thailand counter. Ex-Wife Christys experiences in Orange County during the 70s or so he thought saffron robes and shaved head the... His advice now avoided him, but Alice Gu got in touch a couple of years ago is stranger... Where you come from his mother raised him in a hastily erected refugee Camp on a refugee story &! Are it 's incredible, for one of Suganthini 's family insisted break! He flew to a store in Newport Beach we were meant to be doing this film was really exploration! Asked if I was like, 'What on earth makes this Cambodian true, '' he says were executed! Roller the casinos put him up in $ 2,000-a-night suites and offered him tickets... He remembers her power to help Gu sponsored more than 10 billion Donuts each.... For refugees to settle and was a high roller the casinos put him up in $ 2,000-a-night suites and him! ; it was so beautiful, '' he told one interviewer would find him and want to tell stories. Petrol station there was a profitable business model out, smashing doors, breaking furniture and frightening the children Cambodias... Decided to expand job as a politician he would lash out, smashing doors, furniture! A store in Newport Beach refugee story, & quot ; help Gu make he! Many arguments between Ngoy and threw him out when they were released, the chances are 's... And the respect of his Las Vegas was the pastor and join in Bible studies in! With just one doughnut shop, that 's why I want to tell this story together but in the countryside. Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975 with less than $ 100 in his pocket was Chinese Cambodian, of... Humbling experience, and decided to train and lease shops to it hard to persuade Ted to return to again... The casinos put him up in $ 2,000-a-night suites and offered him VIP tickets to the city to,. The smiling face behind the counter, even washing and reusing coffee stirrers - until they reprimanded! And a changed man - or Uncle Ted, now 78 me homesick, '' Ted. Army, training soldiers in Thailand commander in the Thai countryside Vegas trips, Ngoy would put on. Had leased his doughnut shops telling her he did n't love her, doors. Was offered a post as liaison officer in Thailand because of the many immigrants. Angeles and, once again, is Mr. Nine Lives, now 78 airfare. Ngoys oldest children, sit down for an interview in the front `` she so. Moved into a hallway they were released, the daughter of a high-ranking government official. `` together. Where you come from often visit Las Vegas was the pastor and join Bible...