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Kahn Souphanousinphone (Lao: ຂອງ ຂ້ອຍ "ຄານ" ສຸພານຸສິນພອນ; age 41[1]) is one of the Hills' neighbors who lives with his wife Minh and daughter Connie. He is voiced by Toby Huss.

Appearance[]

Kahn is a 41 year old Laotian man with a skinny build, tan skin, and short black hair styled into a pompadour. He also has toned abdominal muscles which form a six-pack on his chest.[2] He commonly wears a light blue dress shirt, brown pants, and auburn dress shoes.

Biography[]

Kahn lives with his wife Minh and his daughter Connie next door to the Hill Family. Kahn works in the information technology industry as a systems analyst. He originates from Luang Prabang, Laos. He first moved to Anaheim, California but left due to "neighbor problems" as told by Minh, as she tells him to get along with the neighbors - saying she was tired of "running" so much, first from Laos, then from California. He attends the Nine Rivers Country Club, which is comprised of almost all Asian members. In Season 3, Kahn claimed that he has been married to Minh for 13 years.[3]

Kahn is known to frequently "suck-up" to Ted Wassanasong, a fellow Laotian on the membership committee of Nine Rivers, who is not particularly fond of him at all. Kahn usually tries to push Connie to date Ted's son, Chane, rather than her dating Bobby, as he fears Bobby will drag her down from her studies and future. Kahn has a love-hate relationship with his Rainey Street neighbors, often insulting them by calling them "Rednecks" and "Hillbillies" and displaying a superiority complex, and other times showing kindness. He doesn't especially have friends in the neighborhood, most wanting to avoid him completely (even Bill) and being delighted when something bad happens to him. He does seem to be neutral to Boomhauer, as Boomhauer usually isn't the ringleader or causes problems. He also will come to Hank for advice at times. Kahn has been known to live with an unspecified form of bipolar disorder (referred to, at the time, as manic depression). In the episode "Lost in MySpace" and in "Just Another Manic Kahn-Day", Kahn has been shown to struggle with taking his medication.

Kahn works as a systems analyst in the Arlen area for seasons 1-3. In season 3 he is fired for leaking confidential information about a contract with the U.S. Army in an attempt to impress Hank. After a brief period of intermittent employment at minimum-wage jobs during which his family's entire savings are drained, Kahn secures a new job that pays $20,000 more per year than his former position, but is located in Houston, which is a three-hour commute from Arlen and a city that Kahn personally hates. In season 12, Kahn's job allows him to begin working from home. It is never explained how he handles the six-hour round trip to work in the meantime, though the fact that he is rarely seen in the alley in the evenings may indicate that he stays in Houston during the week and only returns to the family home on weekends.

Kahn was born and raised in Laos and subsequently spent time in Cambodia before immigrating to the United States. Due to growing up under two repressive Communist regimes, Kahn is the most conservative and patriotic of the regular characters, often exceeding even Hank in his staunch pro-Americanism. His chief recreational activity appears to be singing along passionately to popular American songs of the 1970s and 80s, a behavior which appears in multiple episodes and reaches a culmination in "Pour Some Sugar on Kahn" when he becomes involved in karaoke.

Personality[]

Kahn is often portrayed as an extremely proud and obnoxious man. He often looks down on his neighbors for any reason he wants and will usually address them as hillbillies or rednecks. This behavior has been said to have caused problems with neighbors in other states and be the reason Kahn and his family had to move so much since Kahn refused to get along with others.

One of Kahn's best known personality traits is that he is easily enraged and/or annoyed by even the simplest of things and will often start yelling in his native language. Despite his good job, Kahn wishes to live a life like Ted Wassanasong but does not wish to put the full effort into working toward that goal. As such, he often resorts to a 'kiss-up' manner when around Ted in order to be friends with him and obtain a membership at the Nine Rivers Country Club. Kahn will even use Connie to cozy up to Ted's son, Chane, to bring their families closer. Despite these efforts, Kahn appears to know that Ted is not too fond of him but doesn't let this stop him from trying to earn Ted's favor.

He is implied to be the way he is when Minh's father, General Gum, reveals in "Pour Some Sugar on Kahn" that Kahn is the son of a man employed with catching and selling fish; employment possibly considered low level/looked down on either by Gum or all around in Laos. If so, Kahn possibly puts immense pressure on himself and his family to escape from or hide that he was not a great success or of great importance/status in his home country.

Being of Asian ethnicity, Kahn is well aware of the stereotypes portraying Asians. Instead of being upset at this, Kahn both enjoys and encourages what is believed to be expected of Asians: being that they are smart/genius level in intelligence, have attractive appearances, excellent jobs, etc. He is so into this belief that he has Connie on strict educational guidelines and forces her to partake in clubs and activities she does not enjoy so that she will look more favorable to colleges; at times being the most invested in her activities and approval status than Connie herself. Partially from this pride, Kahn does not like it when Connie hangs around Bobby as he believes Bobby does not offer Connie a good future and often drags her into chaotic, and sometimes dangerous, situations.

Throughout the series, Kahn is shown making some behavioral changes/improvement in certain areas and became better friends with his neighbors.

Relationships[]

  • Minh Souphanousinphone: Kahn's wife. He is deeply devoted to his wife but often engages in intellectual battles against her to prove his higher intelligence level. He usually ropes her into whatever scheme he gets involved with or when trying to get Connie into better school programs. He also supports many choices she makes as they will make them look better in the eyes of others. In the episode "The Year of Washing Dangerously", Kahn heavily implies his biggest reason for marrying Minh was thinking/being told (lied to) that she came from a wealthy and successful family.
  • Connie Souphanousinphone: Kahn's only daughter and child. He is a devoted and supportive father to Connie but is also very strict about her education and openly disapproving of her being friends with Bobby. While he hopes for her to have a good future, he is also not afraid to set her up on dates with Chane Wassanasong or use her friendship with him to become closer to his parents.
  • Hank Hill: Kahn's next-door neighbor and the person he admits is his best friend. While Hank appears to be the neighbor Kahn mocks most, Kahn acknowledges Hank as the most dependable of the neighbors and someone he can turn to if he needs help.
  • Bobby Hill: While Kahn admits to knowing Bobby is a good boy, he also openly dislikes Connie having any kind of relationship with him as he sees the lazy and underachieving Bobby not succeeding in life and does not want Connie caught up in that. He has tried to keep them apart several times but seems aware that his plans do not accomplish anything. He has since seemed to accept their relationship but still does not hesitate to threaten or blackmail Bobby when he wishes.

Trivia[]

  • Kahn's last name "Souphanousinphone" may be from Laotian politician Prince Souphanouvong, maybe with some influence from the Laotian surname "Somphone". It is also an instrumental pun on the wearable version of a tuba, fittingly called a sousaphone. Additionally, the most common sousaphones you will find across North America at the time Kahn's character was introduced made by Conn and King.
  • His name is an anagram of Hank's name.
  • Kahn's license plate says "king kahn", a possible homage to King Kong.
  • In the episode "Uh-oh, Canada", it was revealed that Kahn spent 2 years in the Killing Fields, a name given to the sites in Cambodia in which the notorious Khmer Rouge had killed and buried large numbers of people.
  • Kahn's mother, Laoma, refers to him as Kohng Koy Kahn (Lao: ຂອງ ຂ້ອຍ ຄານ), which translates to “My Kahn" in Lao. There is debate if this is his full first name, but it is more likely a pet name.
  • Kahn is very skilled in martial arts. In "The Redneck on Rainey Street", he defends himself using moves from Pencak Silat, a martial art originating in Indonesia. However, during other moments when he is nearly dragged into a fight, he appears to have no fighting skills whatsoever as he comes off as nervous and will run away from the situation.
  • For most of his on-screen appearances, Kahn drove a blue 1980s Toyota Ace Van. Exceptions are (1) in "Tankin' It to the Streets", where Kahn is seen driving a blue 1996 Chevrolet Suburban, (2) another episode where he is seen driving a grey/silver 2003 Nissan Maxima, and (3) the episode in Lucky's debut, driving a red 1980 Chevrolet El Camino. The Chevrolet Suburban was destroyed in its debut episode, and the silver car was destroyed by Lucky's friends in the debut of the El Camino. He has rented cars on several occasions such as when Minh ran for the school board and was given company cars. Kahn has no Ferrari in his garage; He was referring to himself when he mentioned this. The only time more than one car was seen at the same time was when he was towing the blue van with his silver car, about to commute to his new job in Houston.
  • The episode "Just Another Manic Kahn-Day" centers around Kahn's manic depression. However, it was first revealed in the episode "Lost in MySpace" when Peggy discovers the information on the titular website.
  • Connie states in the episode "The Bluegrass is Always Greener" that Kahn dyes his hair.
  • In the episode "Naked Ambition", it is revealed that Kahn owns a speedboat named "Laotian in Motion."
  • Kahn has special contempt for the Hills but appears to see them as his friends at times - as Minh is good friends with Peggy, Connie is one of Bobby's best friends / ex-girlfriends, and Kahn will sometimes go to Hank for advice or hangs out with the gang in the alley.
  • In the episode "Maid in Arlen", Kahn is playing a keyboard, suggesting he is possibly skilled in playing the instrument.
  • Kahn owns a car wash from an attempt to get rich, but now is stuck there in order to pay his second mortgage when Buck sold his (majority) share to another man when Hank was unable to put up with Kahn's behavior.
  • Kahn also started to make his own Tom Vu styled Get Rich Quick Videos with Minh as the Camera Operator and Director.
  • In "Just Another Manic Kahn-Day", he is also skilled in painting, as a self-portrait is seen during one of his manic episodes.
  • He has worked at numerous places, including Strickland Propane, where Hank recruited him to make large grills.
  • In the episode "Maid in Arlen", Laoma says that Kahns father died from a heart attack.
  • Kahn cooks hamburgers with mesquite as shown in the first season.
  • Kahn tends to reference The Beverly Hillbillies while insulting the Hills and their neighbors, often calling them "hillbillies" and even referring to Bobby as "Jethro" on occasion.

Episode Appearances[]

Season 1[]

Season 2[]

Season 3[]

Season 4[]

Season 5[]

Season 6[]

Season 7[]

Season 8[]

Season 9[]

Season 10[]

Season 11[]

Season 12[]

Season 13[]

Quotes[]

S01E07

  • "We are Laotian—From Laos, stupid! It's a landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It's between Vietnam and Thailand, okay? Population: 4.7 million."

S04E05

  • Minh: "Kahn, we have no nanny for Connie."
  • Kahn: "Oh, cruel, cruel fate! This Maui speech could be my stepping-stone from systems analyst to senior systems analyst!"

S12E07

  • "Tell kids, SpongeBob in front of school." "I don't know what kids like."

Gallery[]

References[]

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