FROM CHARLIE CHAN: “If befriend donkey, expect to be kicked.”

GREETINGS… This week we share what is, perhaps, the greatest of all films in the Charlie Chan series…”Charlie Chan at Treasure Island.” Set at the “West Coast World’s Fair" of 1939 which was situated at the manmade Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay, Charlie Chan and Number Two Son, Jimmy are caught up in a deadly case of blackmail and murder, with psychic undertones!

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 at Treasure Island” (1939; 74 minutes) along with our “extra,” the SIXTH episode of “Lost City of the Jungle” with Keye Luke! (1946; 16 minutes [Begin viewing at the 9:55 mark, finishing at the 25:56 mark!]).

“Charlie Chan at Treasure Island” CAST:

CAST (as credited):

Sidney Toler: Charlie Chan
Cesar Romero: [Fred] Rhadini
Pauline Moore: Eve Cairo
Sen Yung: Jimmy Chan
Douglas Fowley: Pete Lewis
June Gale: Myra Rhadini
Douglas Dumbrille: Thomas Gregory (alias Stewart Salisbury)
Sally Blane: Stella Essex
Billie Seward: Bessie Sibley
Wally Vernon: Elmer Kelner
Donald MacBride: Deputy Chief J.J. Kilvaine
Charles Halton: Redley
Trevor Bardette: Abdul (called "The Turk")
Louis Jean Heydt: Paul Essex (alias Paul Ellison)

UNCREDITED CAST (alphabetical):

Jack Chefe: Audience Member

Heinie Conklin: First Taxicab Driver

Sayre Dearing: Audience Member

John Elliott: Backstage Doctor

Bud Geary: Police Officer at Station House

Harold Goodwin: Airline Steward

Edith Hallor: Toots

Fred Kelsey: Lead Detective in Taxi and Theater

Al Kikume: Hawaiian Village Waiter

Kay Linaker: Séance Apparition

Hank Mann: Second Taxicab Driver

Margaret Mann: Airline Passenger

Frank Meredith: Second Detective

Harold Miller: Audience Member

Bruce Mitchell: Police Desk Sergeant

Hans Moebus: Audience Member

Gerald Mohr: Dr. Zodiac

Bert Moorhouse: Audience Member

David Newell: Audience Member

Harry Owens: Band Leader

Imboden Parrish: Airline Passenger

Tom Quinn: Person at Arrival Gate

Arthur Rankin: Airline Official

Frank Rapport: Audience member

Gloria Roy: Airline Passenger

Jeffry Sayre: Man at Landing Gate

Harry Strang: Taxicab Dispatcher

Charles Tannen: Airline Passenger

Freddie Tavares: Steel Guitar Musician

Edwin Tuttle: Audience Member


FEATURE SUMMARY: Mary Whitman has gone to Reno seeking a divorce from her husband, Curtis. While there, she is arrested on suspicion of murdering a fellow guest at her hotel, an establishment that specializes in accommodating individuals who are awaiting finalized divorces. There are many others at the hotel who harbor strong feelings against the victim. At the request of Mary's estranged husband who is a friend of Charlie Chan, the detective travels from his home in Honolulu to solve the murder.

FEATURE NOTES: According to ‘Hollywood Reporter’ news items and production charts, John Carradine and Joyce Compton were to be included in the cast of this film, but their participation in the completed picture is doubtful. It is of interest, however, to note that two photographs, one that is certainly of John Carradine and another that is very possibly of Joyce Compton, can be seen on a wall in Rhadini's office in “Charlie Chan at Treasure Island.” According to Kay Linaker, Gerald Mohr was the voice of Dr. Zodiac. An April 19, 1939 ‘Hollywood Reporter’ news item refers to the film as "Charlie Chan at the World's Fair." The Golden Gate International Exposition, held on Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay February 1939 to October 1940, provided the backdrop for some of the picture's action.

TRIVIA: It is believed that this film may have partially inspired the "Zodiac Killer" in San Francisco during the late 1960s

THIS WEEK’S TERM: chin fest - (Slang) A lengthy conversation.

Deputy Chief J.J. Kilvane: "You and I are going to have an old fashioned chin fest, Charlie."

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 MAY 2020 POLL, found as you scroll down our Entrance Page (http://www.charliechan.info/index.html)! This month’s question: Which of these two Charlie Chan films better exemplifies the current coronavirus threat that we are now experiencing in our time?

OUR APRIL POLL RESULT:

QUESTION: Which of these two Charlie Chan films better exemplifies the current coronavirus threat that we are now experiencing in our time?

The threat of the bubonic-infected rats in Dr. Grosser's laboratory (Charlie Chan in Panama) 79%

The threat of an enemy poison gas attack on Paris (Charlie Chan in City in Darkness) 21%

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, May 18, for a shared viewing of “Charlie Chan in City in Darkness.”

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." Updated each month, it can be found at this address: https://thepostmanonholiday.com/

THE CHARLIE CHAN FAMILY NEWSLETTER FOR THE YEAR 2019 REMAINS 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 join “Charlie Chan at Treasure Island.”

THANK YOU SO MUCH…

Sincerely,

Rush Glick

For anyone who might not have watched one of the two featurettes on this DVD, "The Real Treasure Island," there's a stock picture of Caesar Romero at the World Fair--in beard! He was probably filming the movie. Also, Tyrone Power and a few others are shown. It's really a great featurette to watch (maybe 15 mins)!

Treasure Island is a good movie and a lot more fun to watch than Darkness, Cruise or Rio.
Good start with Charlie and Jimmy, atmosphere with Dr. Zodiac and Eves mind reading and so on.

For me it looks, like the role of Rhadinis servant was originally created for Eddie Collins. Don't know the dates of film production and his death.

There are 2 problems:
Its a bit to convenient to find all of Zodiacs secrets and destroying them within three minutes.
The climax scene is nicly done, but is it a trap or what is it? Did the culprit act clever here? If he wanted to kill Charlie he had enough time before.

And why on earth did Charlie need Eve to repeat his thougts? I'm pretty sure we've heard him talk before by himself. Once or twice ... ;-)

I like the movie and its greatest fault is that it is too short (like most Chans ;-)

M.H. some good points. I think that Charlie was using Eve because with her "actual" psychic ability to read everyone's thoughts, she could "name" the murderer/Dr. Zodiac. So Charlie...er, um, set her up as bait to draw him out!

Dr. Zodiac/Rhadini, was probably trying to kill her, not Charlie, with that pistol and silence her from "mystically" revealing his true identity. Although probably only circumstantial, it would penetrate his disguise and cause suspicion--he couldn't take that chance.

Lot of hiccups as you mentioned, but a great production.