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Our Monday Evening Chat/Film Viewing: "Dark Alibi"

FROM CHARLIE CHAN: “What is my reputation compared to man's life?”

FIRST: Hopefully, this message finds everyone and their family and friends in the affected hurricane areas safe and sound.

THIS WEEK, as we mark Patriot Day, we will be viewing and sharing “Dark Alibi,” starring Sidney Toler. In this case, Charlie Chan takes time off from his government duties to attempt to clear a man wrongly convicted of murder! Can the detective solve this mystery as the date of execution fast approaches?

As is our custom, we begin arriving at 7:30 Eastern Time, we will be sharing, before our featured presentation, an “extra” in the form of a an episode from “The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan,” a 1972 animated cartoon series with Keye Luke as the voice of Charlie Chan! Following our “extra,” we will collectively run our feature at 8:15!

OUR PRESENTATIONS:

“The Crown Jewel Caper“ (1972; Runtime: 20:25)
“Dark Alibi” (1946; Runtime: 61 minutes)
FEATURE SUMMARY: Ex-convict Thomas Harley is arrested for robbing a bank and killing a bank guard. He claims that he was summoned to a theatrical warehouse by a note that sent to him by a former cell mate named James Wyatt and was subsequently locked inside at the time the robbery and killing took place. The police do not believe his alibi because Wyatt has been dead for eight years. Fingerprints belonging to Harley are found at the crime scene, and he is put on trial, found guilty, and condemned to death. Desperate to prove her father innocent, Harley's daughter, June asks Charlie Chan to help her and her father.

FILM NOTES: The film's working titles were “Fatal Fingerprints,” “Fatal Fingertips,” and “Charlie Chan in Alcatraz.” Stock footage used in “Dark Alibi” shows California's San Quentin State Prison. The opening title card reads: "Charlie Chan in 'Dark Alibi.'" The Call Bureau Cast Service Lists Minerva Urecal as "Mrs. Foss." However, production information included in the file on the film at the American Motion Picture Arts and Sciences library states that she was replaced by Edna Holland, who is listed in the onscreen credits.

TIME: We begin with arrivals and greetings at 7:30 EASTERN TIME. Then, we share our “extra,” which will be followed at exactly 8:15 (EDT) when we share our featured presentation, “Dark Alibi.”

LOCATION: Our Charlie Chan Family Chat Room, which is accessed at http://www.charliechan.info/id17.html.

IF YOU LACK A COPY OF OUR FEATURE: Often our features can be found available online. GOOD NEWS! Our feature for this week, “Dark Alibi,” is available online at: http://www.retrovisionmedia.com/2017/01/05/charlie-chan-dark-alibi-1946/

NEXT WEEK: “Shadows Over Chinatown” starring Sidney Toler.

PLEASE accept this invitation share part of your Monday evening with us as we view together, enjoy, and comment on “Dark Alibi.”

Sincerely,

Rush Glick