Hi Tanya,
Welcome aboard!! Glad you found us and hope you'll stick around awhile. I'm drawing a blank on your movie description. Are you sure Mantan was playing Birmingham? He's done many other films, including some involving a haunted house or other such scenes.
In the Chan films he played opposite Ben Carter in a few rountines but they were part of their stage show. He also did a scene with Willie Best in "Shanghai Chest" at the jail. You might check Mantan Moreland's listing at the IMDb website.
Also you can check my blog (see link above) I have Mantan listed as Spotlight Actor of the Week a couple months ago.
The film you describe sounds to me to most closely resembel "Black Magic," more popularly known today as "Meeting at Midnight." It is possible that over the years the scenes have blended a little.
There are a good many people who sell Charlie Chan films, and you might look through the list at our "Links" page. Also, last summer, MGM Home Entertainment released six Monogram Chan films on DVD in a very nicely packaged set. This set is available from many sellers as well as many more on eBay at fairly low prices, and it includes the film mentioned above.
Again, welcome to our humble home, and...happy exploring...and happy collecting!
In doing some research about your question I too recollect a movie with Mantan Moreland and another black actor Willie Best. They were in the movie with Laurel and Hardy titled A Haunting We Will Go...which takes place in a haunted house. This film was made in 1942 when Laurel and Hardy were with Fox Studios.
