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How Does A Detective Find the Missing Fans of Charlie Chan?

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Chris Ellis

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And Charlie Chan at Treasure Island (1939)...very nice design and a favourite film...

John Cucinotta

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"CC at Treasure Island" is my favorite Chan film, and it usually ranked #1 or #2 in surveys that we conducted on this site in years past.  I seldom see lobby cards for this movie on eBay.  Since Cesar Romero is also in the movie, the lobby cards for this film probably have a broader appeal, and I suspect they are less often available for sale or at auctions.

Chris Ellis

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Hi John: yes, other than Honolulu (first so more in demand), Wax Museum (another highly rated entry) and for some reason, Dead Men Tell (because Chan not in title?), I always found Treasure Island cards the hardest to find. Here is next Chan title card, City in Darkness (1939)...film is usually not rated highly in Chan canon but the Title card is a nice design! Chris.

John Cucinotta

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"City in Darkness" was usually not highly rated in most of the surveys we took on this site years ago.  Speculation for this observation usually centered on the police assistant Marcel whose dialog and antics seemed to ruin some of the scenes, and also due to lack of a Chan son or daughter in the story line.  However, I found this film enjoyable, and when I first saw this film I did not spot the killer until revealed by Charlie at the end. 

Chris Ellis

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Hi John:  I agree that it is better than some suggest and also that the killer is well hidden and a real surprise. Also, for what it is worth, I think it had, and captured, the real foreboding atmosphere that pervaded Europe at this time on the eve of the war...I also always liked Lynn Bari who showed up not only in this Chan film but  other series detective films at Fox such as Sleepers West (a favourite Michael Shayne film of mine and always liked the title card, which was one of the first ones I owned), Mr. Moto's Gamble, which at least had Keye Luke as Lee Chan, and even The Falcon Takes Over. Chris.
Last Edit: May 16, 2019, 03:38:37 pm by Chris Ellis

Chris Ellis

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Charlie Chan in Panama (1940) title card….

Chris Ellis

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Charlie Chan's Murder Cruise (1940): a title card which I have found to be quite rare and hard to find...

Chris Ellis

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Charlie Chan at the Wax Museum (1940). Nice design and a favourite film of mine...

Chris Ellis

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Murder over New York (1940) -- I believe cards from this title are the most common of Fox Chan films along with Chan in Rio (1941) -- I have seen many cards over the years from those entries....

OldMovieFan

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Hi

I enjoyed  both these last cards... for years I corresponded with Marc Lawrence (he played  such a great role as a bad guy in many films) and the supporting cast  in Murder over New York  was very good. Those planes were beautiful back then too. My favorite CC film is Black Camel

Oldmoviefan

Chris Ellis

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Yes, Marc Lawrence had a very long career...must be only actor to appear in a Chan and a James Bond film! -- that would be a trivia question! Here is next title card for Dead Men Tell (1941), which for some reason was a hard title for me to find cards on....

Chris Ellis

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Charlie Chan in Rio (1941)...as noted above, cards from this entry seem to be more common than for most other Fox Chan films...

Chris Ellis

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And Castle in the Desert (1942)….guess one could tell it was the end of the Fox series as Charlie Chan is mot mentioned in any sizeable way (only in the very fine print!)….

Chris Ellis

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I figure I will go for broke and show the Monogram cards too....Charlie Chan in the Secret Service (1944)...
Last Edit: May 24, 2019, 01:53:31 pm by Chris Ellis

John Cucinotta

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I remember The first time I saw "CC in the Secret Service", and I was very disappointed with the quality of this film.  There is a shallow, boring story line with several odd characters that don't seem like they could be friends with the scientist.   Also, there are other aspects of the plot that are unrealistic.  For example, the magnetic device used by the killer makes no scientific sense, because a magnet that strong would attract every piece of metal in the room, and not just the gun.  There is also a big blooper in the film (don't read beyond this point if you haven't yet seen the film) - the man who is supposedly crippled in the wheelchair is briefly seen standing up next to the piano in an early scene in the movie, long before Chan tricks him into showing that he is not really crippled.   Fortunately, the Monogram films did improve after this first effort, which I think is one of the weaker Chan films.