Hey, it was 1958. There are hints in the movie, in that No's most trusted minions are Chinese. (Forevermore, the word 'minion' is going to make people think of yellow fire plugs.)
Thinkof what the original Ompha lompas were in Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
They were changed from pygamies to orange faced midgets, er, short people, that is, vertically challenged, Aw, to heck with it!