Here’s why this ad would be considered racist by many people:

If you were of Chinese descent and living in 1950s America, the rare times you would see a Chinese person portrayed in the media the portrayal would mostly likely be of a Coolie-like character. In mainstream advertising, people of Asian descent were never portrayed as average Americans.

THAT is why this Chung King character would be considered racist. In the context of the 1950s, that little cartoon character is representative of the one-dimensional portrayal of an entire ethnic group.

chun_king_ad_1953

Reference: http://pzrservices.typepad.com/vintageadvertising/