The six men on stage included a poet, a break dancer and a filmmaker. They pounded rhythms on the dhol drum, modeled fresh fashions, slathered whipped cream on bare skin and discussed their passion for community service. This is the "Mr. Hyphen" contest, a faux pageant in the San Francisco Bay area aimed at redefining the image of Asian-American men beyond nerdy, sexless stereotypes. Conspicuously absent from the stage were computer experts, doctors, lawyers or dry cleaners. There were, however, martial arts — with a twist. Pahole Sookkasikon, an American-born graduate student partial to drawing, cooking, and "flirting for free...