charliechan.seriesbooks.infoThe Books and Films Of Charlie Chan

Books and Films of Charlie Chan home early films warner oland sidney toler roland winters for sale books radio - tv links fan club Overview Loosely based on real-life Honolulu detective Chang Apana, Charlie Chan is a fictional Chinese-American detective created by Earl Derr Biggers in a series of six books from 1925 to 1932. Charlie resides in Hawaii and works for the Honolulu police, though most films feature Charlie traveling around the world investigating mysteries and solving crimes. Dozens of films featuring Charlie Chan were made starting in 1926. The character was first portrayed by Asian actors and these first three films met with little success. The Fox studio cast Swedish actor Warner Oland as Chan in "Charlie Chan Carries On" (1931). The film proved popular and Fox went on to produce 15 more Chan films with Oland in the title role. Oland’s last film in the series was "Charlie Chan at Monte Carlo" (1937). Many of the original negatives of Fox Pictures’ pre-1935 films were destroyed in a storage vault fire in 1937. Consequently, several of the earlier Oland pictures are now consider "lost" films. After Oland’s death, American actor Sidney Toler was cast as Charlie. Toler made 22 Chan films, first for Fox in "Charlie Chan in Honolulu" (1938). When Fox decided to produce no further Chan films, Toler purchased the film rights and went to Monogram Studios, starting with "Charlie Chan in the Secret Service" (1944). Toler’s last film was 1947’s "The Trap". Stricken with cancer during his last few films, Toler was so physically weak during filming that he often had difficulty walking or saying his lines coherently. After Toler’s death, Roland Winters took over for six more films beginning with "The Chinese Ring" (1947) and ending with "The Sky Dragon" (1949) You may find my other sites of Asian detectives and villians of interest: Mr. Moto - Mr. Wong - Fu Manchu Who is your favorite Charlie Chan? Warner Oland Sidney Toler Roland Winters pollcode.com free polls Warning: Plot summaries may contain spoilers! The Books The books were originally published by the New York publisher, Bobbs-Merrill. Over the years dozens of reprints in both hardcover and paperback have been made by many publishers. The House Without a Key - 1925 - For Sale There has been a murder of a former member of Boston society who has lived in Hawaii for a number of years. The victim’s nephew, a straitlaced young Bostonian bond trader, who came to the islands to try to convince his aunt Minerva, whose vacation has extended many months, to return to Boston. The nephew, John Quincy Winterslip, soon falls under the spell of the islands himself, meets an attractive young woman, breaks his engagement to his straitlaced Bostonian fiancee Agatha, and decides as the murder is being solved to move to San Francisco. In the interval, he is introduced to many levels of Hawaiian society and is of some assistance to Detective Charlie Chan in solving the mystery. The Chinese Parrot - 1926 - For Sale A valuable string of pearls which is purchased by a wealthy and eccentric financier. The handsome young son of the jeweller is assigned to shepherd the transfer of the pearls to the financier’s vacation home in a desert area of California. Because of his long association with the owner of the pearls-before joining the police force, he was her houseboy-Charlie Chan travels from Hawaii to California with the pearls. After two mysterious deaths, first of a Chinese-speaking parrot and then of the household’s Chinese man-of-all-work, Charlie Chan masquerades as a pidgin-speaking cook named Ah Kim and works underground to solve a number of crimes. Along the way, the jeweller’s son meets a beautiful young woman who works as a location scout and decides to stay in the California desert. Behind That Curtain - 1928 - For Sale The former head of Scotland Yard is pursuing the long-cold trail of a murderer. Fifteen years previous, a London solicitor was killed in circumstances in which the only clue was a pair of Chinese slippers, which he apparently donned just before his death. Sir Frederic Bruce has been following the trail of the killer ever since. He has also been interested in what appears to be a series of disappearing women around the world, which has some connection to the disappearance of a woman named Eve Durand in rural India also fifteen years ago. Just when it seems he might finally solve the murder case, at a dinner party to which a number of important and mysterious guests have been invited, Inspector Bruce is killed-and was last seen wearing a pair of Chinese slippers, which have vanished. It is left to Chan to solve the case and tie up all loose ends. The Black Camel - 1929 - For Sale "Death is the black camel that kneels unbidden at every gate." This is what Charlie Chan tells the guests of the unfortunate Shelah Fane, a glamorous Hollywood movie star who has been murdered while on location beach side in Honolulu. Here the detective confronts his most perplexing case of his long and illustrious career. Chan is aided by a mysterious fortune teller named Tarneverro the Great. It appears that Miss Fane had summoned Tarneverro to Honolulu as she strongly believes in his mystical powers. A number of bystanders do not have alibis in this case, and it takes every bit of Chan’s considerable powers to untangle this intricate web of deception and murder. Charlie Chan Carries On - 1930 - For Sale Inspector Duff, a Scotland Yard detective and friend of Chan’s, first introduced in Behind That Curtain, is pursuing a murderer on an around-the-world voyage; so far, there have been murders in London, France, Italy and Japan. While his ship is docked in Honolulu, the detective is shot and wounded by his quarry; though he survives, he is unable to continue with the cruise, and Chan takes his place instead. Eventually, after more murders, Chan finds the killer before the next port of call. Keeper of the Keys - 1932 - For Sale In rural California, where Chan has been invited as a houseguest, he meets a world-famous soprano, Ellen Ladona, who is murdered not too long after the meeting. Chan does not have far to look for suspects-the host is her ex-husband, as are three of the other house guests. Her servants, entourage and husbands all come under suspicion. Once again, Chan is expected to solve the murder, which he does by understanding the key clues-the actions of a little dog named Trouble, two scarves, and two little boxes. When he understands how the murder is committed, he learns the role of elderly house servant Ah Sing-the keeper of the keys. Radio - TV Charlie Chan was heard in several different series on three networks (NBC Blue, Mutual, ABC) between 1932 and 1948. Walter Connolly initially portrayed Chan on Esso Oil’s Five Star Theater, which serialized adaptations of Biggers novels. Ed Begley, Sr. had the title role in N.B.C.’s The Adventures of Charlie Chan (1944-45), followed by Santos Ortega (1947-48). Leon Janney and Rodney Jacobs were heard as Lee Chan, Number One Son, and Dorian St. George was the announcer. Radio Life magazine described Begley’s Chan as "a good radio match for Sidney Toler’s beloved film enactment." Dumb.com has many episodes to listen to free! The New Adventure of Charlie Chan - For Sale 1957 TV series starring J. Carrol Naish. Chinese-American detective Charlie Chan is called in to help solve baffling cases, aided by his #1 son. The first five episodes were filmed in the US, then production switched to the UK for the rest of the series. Episodes: (All 1/2 hour) Your Money or Your Wife, The Secret of The Sea, The Lost Face, Blind Man’s Bluff, The Great Salvos, The Counterfeiters, The Death of a Don, Charlie’s Highland Fling, The Patient in Room 21, The Rajput Ruby, The Final Curtain, Death at High Tide, Circle of Fear, Exhibit in Wax, Backfire, Patron of the Arts, Hamlet in Flames, Dateline: Execution, The Sweater, The Noble Art of Murder, Three Men on a Raft, No Holiday for...