At their best, American success stories exceed fiction in drama and revealing detail. Few stories pack as much tragedy, triumph, whimsy and hard work as the documentary “The Donut King,” airing tonight on “Independent Lens” (9 p.m., PBS, TV-14, check local listings).
Born into poverty and raised by a single mother in Cambodia, Ted Ngoy became a captain in that country’s army only due to his wife’s family connections. After the 1975 takeover of Cambodia by the deranged and genocidal Khmer Rouge, Ted and his family fled to Thailand and then to a refugee center established at Camp Pendleton in California. An accountant and military officer, Ted took janitorial jobs before taking a training course at a local doughnut chain. Before long, he had opened his own shop and sponsored more Cambodian refugees, training them in the trade and allowing…
