Noel Toy Young, a Chinese-American fan dancer whose nude performances brought her renown at some of the hottest clubs in San Francisco and New York, died Dec. 24, five days after having a stroke. She was 84. Mrs. Young ' s performances during which she danced in nothing more than ostrich plumes turned a San Francisco Chinese nightclub called Forbidden City into one of the nation ' s most famous clubs. She often was called the " Chinese Sally Rand " because of her performances with fans and a huge, transparent plastic bubble. Mrs. Young packed in crowds at New York clubs like the Stork Club, Maxie ' s, the 18th Club, Lou Walter ' s Latin Quarter and Leon & Eddie ' s. She also appeared in movies, alongside Clark Gable and Susan Hayward in " Soldier of Fortune " and Humphrey Bogart and Gene Tierney in " How to Be Popular. " In later years, she appeared on the TV show " M*A*S*H " and in the 1986 film " Big Trouble in Little China, " starring Kurt Russell. Born in San Francisco, Mrs. Young was the first of eight children born to parents who immigrated to California from Canton, China. Mrs. Young ' s parents opened a laundry in Inverness, where they were said to be the only Chinese residents. Mrs. Young was just months away from receiving a journalism degree from the University of California Berkeley when she accepted an offer to perform in a show at the World ' s Fair on Treasure Island in 1939. Later that year, businessman Charlie Low invited Mrs. Young to work at his club, Forbidden City. Business tripled within three months. Mrs. Young later decided to change her name to Noel Toy, because she loved Christmas. Mrs. Young met and married a soldier and actor named Carleton Young in 1945, who became spellbound after seeing her perform at Latin Quarter in New York. They remained married until he died in 1994. Mrs. Young lived in Los Angeles until moving to Antioch last year. She is survived by two sisters, Lotus Now of Rio Vista and Alyce Wu of Walnut Creek; three brothers, Ken Hom of Hercules, Joe Hom of El Cerrito and Henry Hom of Oakland, and a nephew.
Published in the San Diego Union-Tribune on 1/31/2004. (volunteer submission)