FROM CHARLIE CHAN: “Money talks.”

GREETINGS! This week’s film, “Charlie Chan in London,” is the sixth entry of the Charlie Chan film series. The three films between it and “The Black Camel” (“Charlie Chan’s Chance,” “Charlie Chan’s Greatest Case,” and “Charlie Chan’s Courage”) are all lost to us at this time. We see in this picture, that Warner Oland, by now, has a firm grasp of his portrayal of Charlie Chan. This is also the first film in the series that was NOT based on a story by Earl Derr Biggers, who had passed away in 1933.

OUR CHAT ROOM: Our Chat Room can be accessed the same way that we accessed by going to our “Chat Room” link at charliechan.info, or use this direct link: http://www.charliechan.info/id17.html

THIS WEEK’S PRESENTATIONS: “Charlie Chan in London” (1934; 79 minutes) along with our “extra,” the fifth episode of “The Green Hornet“: “The Time Bomb” (20 minutes).

“Charlie Chan in London” CAST:
Warner Oland: Inspector Charlie Chan
Drue Leyton: Pamela Gray
Raymond Milland: Neil Howard
Mona Barrie: Lady Mary Bristol
Alan Mowbray: Geoffrey Richmond
Murray Kinnell: Phillips (alias Captain Seton)
Douglas Walton: Paul Gray (incorrectly billed as Hugh Gray)
Walter Johnson: Jerry Garton
E. E. Clive: Detective Sergeant Thacker
George Barraud: Major Jardine
Madge Bellamy: Mrs.[Betty] Fothergill
David Torrence: Sir Lionel Bashford
John Rogers: Lake
Paul England: Bunny Fothergill
Elsa Buchanan: Alice Perkins
Perry Ivans: Kemp
Claude King: RAF Commandant (not credited)
Reginald Sheffield: Commander King (not credited)
Helena Grant: Miss Judson (not credited)
Montague Shaw: Doctor (not credited)
Phillis Coghlan: Nurse (not credited)
Margarett Mann: Housemaid (not credited)
Carlie Taylor: Manor Guest (not credited)
Doris Stone: Manor Guest (not credited)
Harold Miller: Manor Guest (not credited)
Arthur Clayton: Warden (not credited)
Mary Gordon: Prison Matron (not credited)
J.C. Fowler: Fox Hunter (not credited)

FEATURE SUMMARY: When a young Englishman, Paul Gray, is convicted of murder and sentenced to hang, his sister, convinced of his innocence, asks Charlie Chan, who is visiting London, to investigate and find the real murderer. To that end, Chan visits a large country manor house in England where the killing occurred. There are a number of suspects among the large group of fox hunters who are staying at the manor, and it soon becomes clear that the killer is still actively trying to avoid capture. Charlie Chan must work fast to discover the real murderer's identity and save Paul Gray from the gallows.

FEATURE NOTES: This was the first film in the Charlie Chan series that was not based on a particular novel by Chan's creator, Earl Derr Biggers. The ‘New York Times’ commented that this film, written by Philip MacDonald, a noted detective novelist himself, "maintains the Chan tradition." “Charlie Chan in London” is the second-oldest film in the Charlie Chan series that we have available to us today for viewing as the intervening three following The Black Camel (at his time the oldest existing title in the Charlie Chan series, as the initial picture in the series, “Charlie Chan Carries On” is considered lost as are “Charlie Chan’s Chance” (1932), “Charlie Chan’s Greatest Case” (1933), and “Charlie Chan’s Courage” (1934).

TRIVIA: “Charlie Chan in London” is referenced in the 2001 mystery film “Gosford Park.” It is mentioned because a fictional Hollywood producer named Morris Weissman travels to Gosford Park to do research on British customs. Actor Alan Mowbray, a cast member in “Charlie Chan in London,” is also mentioned.

WORD OF THE WEEK: nappy - (Mainly British) Of a horse that is jumpy or irritable; nervy.

Geoffrey Richmond: "She's [the horse Hellcat] nappy.

TIME: We begin with greetings at 7:30 EASTERN TIME. Then, we share our “extra” presentation, the FIFTH chapter of the movie serial “The Green Hornet,“ which will be followed at exactly 8:15 when we roll our feature film for our Monday evening, “Charlie Chan in London.”

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 online. Fortunately, OUR FEATURE IS AVAILABLE ONLINE, so please use the link provided at our Chat Room.

OUR MONTHLY POLL: Please take a moment to cast your vote in our January 2020 POLL, found as you scroll down our Entrance Page (http://www.charliechan.info/index.html)! This month’s question: “How are you like Charlie Chan at times?” Ponder…then VOTE!

OUR JANUARY POLL RESULT:

For my sole Charlie Chan New Year's resolution in 2020, I will strive to:

Complete my personal collection of Charlie Chan movies 44%

Obtain The New Adventures of Charlie Chan 12%

Read a Charlie Chan story by Earl Derr Biggers 6%

Adopt a positive mannerism as exemplified by Charlie Chan 38%

DO YOU HAVE A POLL QUESTION? Please feel free to suggest a Monthly Poll question! Send your ideas to: charliechanfamily@lyahoo.com.

OUR CCF CHAT ARCHIVE: Please take a look at our growing collection of CCF Chat Texts from previous years and this year: http://www.charliechan.info/id630.html

NEXT WEEK: Please join us on Monday, February 10, for a shared viewing of “Charlie Chan in Paris.”

AND… DON’T MISS THIS GREAT CHARLIE CHAN BLOG!: Continuing strongly in 2020, great blog site, The Postman on Holiday, offered by our own Charlie Chan and Earl derr Biggers expert, Lou Armagno which is: "A place to explore all things surrounding Detective Charlie Chan, his creator Earl Derr Biggers, and their connection with Hawaii, Cleveland, and mystery fiction." It can be found at this address: https://thepostmanonholiday.com/

THE CHARLIE CHAN FAMILY NEWSLETTER FOR THE YEAR 2019 IS NOW AVAILABLE! HonoluLou has edited and produced this year's recap of the past year, 2019, for all things Charlie Chan. This tour de force issue can be accessed at: https://thepostmanonholidayhome.files.wordpress.com/2019/12/2019-newsletter-master1-dec-28.pdf ENJOY!

SO, PLEASE JOIN US for this week’s Monday Evening Chat and Film Viewing as we share “Charlie Chan in London.”

THANK YOU SO MUCH…

Sincerely,

Rush Glick