FROM CHARLIE CHAN: “Man who ride on merry-go-round all the time, sooner or later must catch brass ring.”
This Monday we will be entering the Roland Winters era of the Charlie Chan film series with “The Chinese Ring.” Featured in this picture are Victor Sen Yung as Number Two Son, now called “Tommy,” and Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown.
Also, as our weekly “extra,” we will be sharing another of the cartoons from the 16-episode cartoon series from 1972 which featured KEYE LUKE as the voice of Charlie Chan, “The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan.” The episode we will be sharing is the sixth entry, “The Fat Lady Caper,” which can be found online at: http://watchcartoonsonline.eu/watch/the-amazing-chan-and-the-chan-clan-episode-6-fat-lady-caper/
OUR PRESENTATIONS: “The Chinese Ring” (1947; 68 minutes) …AND “The Fat Lady Caper” (1972; 20 minutes).
FILM SUMMARY: Mei Ling, a Chinese princess, arrives in San Francisco aboard the boat Shanghai Maid, and, several week later, visits Charlie Chan at his home. She gives Chan's butler and assistant, Birmingham Brown, an ancient Chinese ring, and while she is momentarily alone, an assailant kills her by shooting a poison dart through the window. As she is dying, the princess is able to write "Capt. K" on a piece of paper, but is unable to finish the full name. Chan, with the help of Number Two Son, Tommy, and Birmingham, soon finds himself in the midst of international intrigue and danger as he seeks to discover the identity of the mysterious Captain K and the murderer of Princess Mei Ling.
FILM NOTES: The title card on this film reads: “Charlie Chan in ‘The Chinese Ring’". The film's working titles were “The Mandarin's Secret,” “The Red Hornet,” and “Charlie Chan and the Chinese Ring.” ‘Independent Film Journal’ reviewed the picture as “The Red Hornet.” Although ‘Call Bureau Cast Service’ lists Valerie Ardis as "Stenographer," the Variety review and studio production files list Charmienne Harker in the role. This film marked the first Charlie Chan film to star Roland Winters, who was chosen to replace Sidney Toler who had died earlier in 1947.
TIME: We begin with arrivals and greetings at 7:30 EASTERN TIME. Then, we share our special short “extra” which will be followed at exactly 8:15 when we roll our feature for this Monday evening, “The Chinese Ring.”
LOCATION: Our Charlie Chan Family Chat Room, which is accessed at http://www.charliechan.info/id17.html.
IF YOU LACK A COPY OF OUR FILM: Often our features can be found available online. FORTUNATELY, our featured film is available online as this address (Unfortunately advertisements are included throughout, which can be skipped through.):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSRaYtryriU
And, again, for our Chan cartoon: http://watchcartoonsonline.eu/watch/the-amazing-chan-and-the-chan-clan-episode-5-eye-of-the-idol/
OUR MONTHLY POLL: Please take a moment to cast your vote in our October 2017 Poll, located at our Entrance Page (www.charliechan.info)!
NEXT WEEK: Join in the eerie fun at our Charlie Chan family Virtual Halloween Party as we join Charlie Chan in the very spooky Colby House in “Charlie Chan’s Secret.”
SO, please join in on an evening of fun and mystery fun as we share “The Chinese Ring.”
