Jimmy O. Yang says his character Jian Yang on HBO’s “Silicon Valley” is just a younger version of himself. At age 13, he immigrated to Los Angeles from Hong Kong. He learned English and American culture by watching BET. He gave up a finance job to pursue comedy. Along the way, he worked as a strip club DJ and a used car salesman. He tells his story in a new memoir “How to American.”
Comedian and actor Jimmy O. Yang at KCRW. Photo by Amy Ta.