FROM CHARLIE CHAN: “Leisurely hunter have time to stalk prey, but hunter in haste must set trap.”

FROM BIRMINGHAM BROWN:

Jimmy: "You stay here. If anything happens, I'll hear you yell."

Birmingham: "You ain't kiddin'."

GREETINGS! This week it’s murder at a Malibu beach house! “The Trap” was sadly Sidney Toler’s final appearance as Charlie Chan, passing on to the embrace of his venerable ancestors several months after the completion of this movie.

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: “The Trap” (1946; 69 minutes) along with our “extra,” the FINAL episode of “Secret Agent X-9” with Keye Luke! (1945; 20 minutes).

FEATURE SUMMARY: The members of Cole King's variety troupe occupy a Malibu, California beach house. One of the showgirls disappears, and her body is discovered by San Toy, a Chinese member of the troupe. Because Lois has been strangled, a murder technique said to be favored by the Chinese and the French, both San Toy and Adelaide, who is French, are under immediate suspicion. San Toy, who is a friend of Jimmy Chan, asks his father to investigate.

FEATURE NOTES: Working titles for “The Trap” were “Murder in Malibu Beach” and “Charlie Chan in the Trap.” This is one of two Chan films in the series proper to have been filmed in large measure on location, the other being “The Black Camel” (1931). The Trap marked the final film appearance for Sidney Toler, who died on February 12, 1947. Roland Winters assumed the role of Charlie Chan in the 1947 film The Chinese Ring.

TRIVIA: Malibu Colony was one of the first areas with private homes after Malibu was opened to development in 1926. Malibu is located about 30 miles west of downtown Los Angeles.

TERM OF THE WEEK: Coast Highway - State Route 1 (SR 1) is a major north-south state highway that runs along most of the Pacific coastline of the California. It is the longest state route in California with a total length of over 600 miles. Several portions are designated as either Pacific Coast Highway, Cabrillo Highway, Shoreline Highway, or Coast Highway.

Charlie Chan: "We make-up time on Coast Highway."

THIS WEEK’S IMAGE: Having just crawled through a sooty heating duct, Jimmy Chan continues his investigation of the Malibu beach house with Birmingham Brown.



For a viewing of more than 500 images from ALL films in the Charlie Chan series, please visit our Gallery: http://www.charliechan.info/id448.html

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. Happily, OUR FEATURE IS AVAILABLE ONLINE! HOWEVER, it seems that there are occasional 5-second commercial intrusions. After the 5 seconds, click on “Skip Ad”.

CAST (as Credited):

Sidney Toler: Charlie Chan
Mantan Moreland: Birmingham Brown
Victor Sen Young: Jimmy Chan
Tanis Chandler: Adelaide
Larry Blake: Rick Daniels
Kirk Alyn: [California Highway Patrol] Sergeant Reynolds
Rita Quigley: Clementine
Anne Nagel: Marcia
Helen Gerald: Ruby
Howard Negley: Cole King (also called "the Maestro")
Lois Austin: Mrs. [Irene] Thorn
Barbara Jean Wong: San Toy
Minerva Urical: Mrs. Weebles
Margaret Brayton: Madge Mudge
Bettie Best: Winifred
Jan Bryant: Lois

UNCREDITED CAST:

Walden Boyle: George "Doc" Brandt

FOR DETAILED INFORMATION on this week’s feature, please visit: http://www.charliechan.info/id54.html

OUR MONTHLY POLL: Please take a moment to cast your vote in our September 2020 POLL, found as you scroll down our Entrance Page (http://www.charliechan.info/index.html)!

OUR AUGUST POLL RESULT:

QUESTION: Which Charlie Chan film offers the best "shipboard" murder(s)?

“Charlie Chan Carries On” (as seen through the Spanish language version, “Eran Trece”) 0%

“Charlie Chan at the Race Track” 11%

“Charlie Chan at the Olympics” 6%

“Charlie Chan in Honolulu” 6%

“Charlie Chan's Murder Cruise” 38%

“Dead Men Tell” 38%

“Dangerous Money” 6%

Please cast your vote in our SEPTEMBER Poll!! Poll ends SOON!!!

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, October 5 for “The Black Camel,” as we celebrate the birthday of WARNER OLAND!

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: thepostmanonholiday.com

SO, REMEMBER, PLEASE JOIN US for this week’s feature, “The Trap,” as we bid a fond "adieu" to Sidney Toler.
THANK YOU SO MUCH…

Sincerely,

Rush Glick