OUR CCF MONDAY EVENING CHAT FOR March 4, 2024: “Charlie Chan at the Circus”
CHAT NUMBER: 1,245
FROM CHARLIE CHAN: “Curiosity responsible for cat needing nine lives.”
THIS WEEK: Join Charlie Chan and the family as we share “Charlie Chan at the Circus.”
OUR CHAT ROOM: Go to our “Chat Room” page, and, at the bottom of that page, click on the “Charlie Chan Family Chat Room ENTRANCE” link. You may then enter as a “Guest,” choosing the name you wish to use.
OUR FEATURE PRESENTATION: “Charlie Chan at the Circus” (1936; 71 minutes) Happily, this film IS available online for those who lack a personal copy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic6bBIQjH5I&t=16s
FEATURE SUMMARY: Charlie Chan brings his wife and twelve children, who are currently sightseeing on the mainland, to a circus owned by kindly John Gaines and his unscrupulous partner, Joe Kinney. Kinney had sent Chan free passes to bring him to the circus, and he tells the detective that he has been receiving threatening letters. Kinney, who is widely disliked by his co-workers and employees, is murdered, and virtually anyone might have killed him. Convinced to assist the investigation by circus performer Lady Tiny, Chan and Number One Son, Lee, travel with the circus seeking to unmask the killer.
FEATURE NOTES: According to ‘Hollywood Reporter’ news items and production charts, June Lang and John Dilson were to be in the cast, but their participation in the final film has not been confirmed. According to another ‘Hollywood Reporter’ news item, the film was shot “on location at the Al G. Barnes winter quarters,” and a ‘Motion Picture Herald’ pre-release article states that “the Barnes Circus [was] used as a background for production settings.” In a mid-1980s interview, Keye Luke mentioned that the winter home of the circus used in the film was in the eastern Los Angeles community of El Monte.
THIS WEEK’S EXTRAS:
EXTRA #1: Circus Day in Our Town (1949)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPc-M4vgmRo
Running time: 15:00
EXTRA #2: Circus Train - going through Richfield, Wisconsin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrYJY1hLht4
Running time: 3:11
OUR MESSAGE BOARD: Please consider visiting our Message Board. Feel free to add a message to a post or begin a conversation…or state a thought! Our Message Board has been there for YOU since 2004!
AS ALWAYS, WE BEGIN OUR EVENING at 7:30 Eastern Time with a 45-minute block of time for arrivals and greetings, and the sharing of an extra…or two...or even three! (please see above). Then, at precisely 8:15 ET, we begin running our feature film simultaneously starting our personal or online copies of this week’s feature!
AT OUR BULLETIN BOARD: THE CHARLIE CHAN FAMILY HOME 2023 NEWSLETTER is available for your enjoyment at our “Bulletin Board” and “Study” (under the “Charlie Chan” category) at our Charlie Chan Family Home!
OUR MARCH POLL is available on our Bulletin Board or directly at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7DLMVM6
NEXT WEEK: “Charlie Chan at the Race Track”
SO… Please join us as we share “Charlie Chan at the Circus.”
