After winning four Grey Cups with the Stampeders and Edmonton, Kwong became Alberta’s 16th lieutenant-governor — the first of Chinese heritage. The life and legacy of Calgary's Norman Kwong are the focus of a new Heritage Minute documentary, 75 years after he became the first Chinese-Canadian professional football player.
Kwong's oldest son Greg said spending time on the film set during production this week made him emotional. Previous mini-docs in the series include a profile of Joseph Tyrrell, who discovered dinosaur bones in the Alberta Badlands, and the town of Myrnam, Alberta's non-denominational hospital, described as "an early effort at universal healthcare."
"We like to tell stories about people and events who, in one way or another, help shape the Canada in which we live today," he said.New Heritage Minute profile of B.C. town highlights history of South Asian Canadians for first time "My father was always one that said 'Listen, let's just be people, let's give people credit where credit is due. Who cares what skin colour is,'" said Kwong's son, Greg.
While playing for Edmonton in 1955, Norman Kwong's team defeated my grandfather Tex Coulter's Montreal Alouettes in the Grey Cup final. Film crews are recreating that game for the Heritage Minute video. television series, said he recognizes similarities between his upbringing and that of his character.