Hello Everyone, My name is Sam. I am a 45 year old Cook. I have been a big fan of Charlie Chan since I was 13 years old. Here is how I discovered Charlie Chan. In 1974, I woke up very early,(about 4:AM), and I turned on the TV to see if there was anything good on(everyone else was asleep ). At that time we did not have cable tv and there were only 6 channels(ABC, NBC,CBS and PBS affiliates as well as 1 Spanish and 1 Independent). Well the Independent was KTXL-TV 40 Sacramento(now a Fox Affiliate) and they were the only station on the air at the time(all others signed on after 6:AM). Well, guess what movie they were showing? Yes a Charlie Chan Movie movie. In fact the first Charlie Chan movie I saw was "Docks Of New Orleans" with Roland Winters. Well I watched it and fell in love with Charlie Chan. I know now that Roland Winters wasn't the best Chan, but when you are only 13 years old, you don't dwell on the imperfections.Well, from then on I always looked in the TV Guide to see if another Charlie Chan movie was playing, and it seemed at least 1 every 2 or 3 weeks, TV 40 would show one. They were all the later Monogram Chans but I still loved them. I also had a chance to see the Sidney Toler Chans and I thought he was the best Chan.I had later read in a book that said that Warner Oland was the best.After watching the movies I had to go to the school library to see if there were any Charlie Chan Novels, and believe it or not, they had ALL OF Earl Derr Biggers "Charlie Chan" novels(try to see if today's public schools have these books ?)Anyway, many many years later I was able to see the Warner Oland classics(on the old American Movie Classics channel), and yes he is good but my heart is still with Sidney Toler .Today I own both both the MGM Chanthology DVD's as well as Fox's new Oland Chan DVD Box set. I wonder if other Charlie Chan fans have similar experience like me? I always wondered as a kid, why they only showed Charlie Chan between 2 AM and 6 AM? And since this was before the VCR, I had to literally go to bed at 8 PM just to wake up early to see Chan.Great Memories! .

Dear Sam,

WELCOME to our very humble Message Board, and thank you for sharing your experiences with us! The stories of how, when, and where people "discovered" Charlie Chan number as many as there are Chan fans, and, I must say, I was taken by your story, and it was fun to learn that your first exposure to the detective was through a viewing of "Docks of New Orleans" starring Roland Winters at four in the morning. It seems that the legacy of that long ago morning continues to this day.

As to who was the "best" Charlie Chan, there is a pretty even split between Warner Oland and Sidney Toler, with Oland often edging out Toler slightly. I admit that I am an Oland fan, but I also greatly appreciate the work of Sidney Toler. I feel that his take on Charlie Chan fit the changing times very well, as the detective headed into the 'forties. It would be interesting to surmise how Oland's Chan might have evolved with the advent of the swing era.

I enjoy watching the six Roland Winters Chan films, as well. His take on Charlie Chan holds a certain appeal for me, and, in this, I know that I am not alone judging from what I have heard from others. Also, many of us have a special spot in our hearts for the Monogram Chans. There is a certain rawness to them, mixed with some period humor that results in a very entertaining experience, I feel. With the "Chanthology" DVD set, fans are able to purchase wonderful copies of the first six Monograms, and, it it rumored that the other eleven will be released in the fairly near future by Warner Brothers, who holds the rights to those movies.

I trust that you are enjoying the "Charlie Chan Collection, Vol. 1" from Fox. More to come on that front, too, anf, hopefully, that studio will eventually release all of their Charlie Chan material.

Again, welcome, Sam, and, please try to attend one of our Charlie Chan Monday evening Chats and Film Viewings. Beginning on Monday, July 3, with "Charlie Chan in London," we will be watching, together, the films featured in the Fox DVD collection.

Sincerely,
Rush Glick

Thanks Rush for responding. I am usually off work on Monday so I will try my best to watch it and respond later. Since I live in California I am assuming we will watch it using the Eastern Time Zone? While the Toler Monogram Chans are my favorites, so are the Winters Monogram Chans in my heart.I sure hope Warner Brothers will release the rest of the Monogram Chans on DVD as I am tempted to buy the bootleg DVD's provided by Vintage Theatre as I haven't seen the rest of the Monogram Chans in 30 years but I prefer to spend my money on legit releases. I also own the Roan Group DVD's of "Mr. Wong" collection, but he is a shallow imitation of Charlie Chan though it is neat to watch the one which was later remade as an authentic Charlie Chan movie "Docks Of New Orleans". But I think Roland Winters does a better Asian Detective than Boris Karloff. I'll probably buy the Fox Mr. Moto Collection, though I'm not that big on Mr. Moto as I am with Charlie Chan.I also own both Ken Hanke and Howard Berlin's Charlie Chan Books. Does anyone know if Earl Derr Bigger's novels are still being published?

Hi Sam:

Wow! Your first exposure to Charlie Chan somewhat parallels my experience. I was also around 13 when I first caught our favorite detective on late night TV. I saw a Charlie Chan film featured in my local Boston TV listings for early Saturday morning at 1:00 AM. I had enjoyed Sherlock Holmes films that were aired on a local independent station, and thought that I would catch another detective at work. I used to have an old 13" B&W Panansonic TV set of which I made sure to keep the volume down low so my parents wouldn't hear that I was watching TV so late at night (or early morning as the case actually was). The first film I saw was "Charlie Chan's Secret" featuring Warner Oland, and I was hooked from the start. I anxiously awaited the following week's feature on the weekly Charlie Chan Film Festival on WCVB-TV Channel 5 in Boston. Now it's like visiting an old friend each time I watch our favorite detective from Punchbowl Hill (whether it's Mr. Oland, or Mr. Toler, or Mr. Winters, it matters not).

Now that Fox has released their 1st volume of the first 4 Oland Chan's that they own (and are not considered lost), a new generation of folks can enjoy watching these old gems as we originally viewed them. In fact my 12 year old son has been watching the films with me of late, perhaps because I picqued his curiousity by bearing witness to Dad's excitement at the pending release of the Fox Chan set on DVD.

I read where you were considering purchasing the complete set of Chan films offered by the Vintage Theater. I had purchased their *Platinum edition* of Chan films last year before I was aware that Fox would *finally* release their films on DVD, and I must share with you that the audio and sound quality varies from film to film on the Vintage Theater set, taking away somewhat from the viewing experience. This is because the films were recorded from cable TV airings. However, the Fox Volume 1 edition as well at the Chanthology series (the first 6 Monograms tht MGM owns) are far superior in quality to the Vintage Theater set because these films were digitally re-mastered from original prints that the studios own.

Whatever you decide, it's always fun to read about how someone first got hooked on Charlie Chan, and all the more pleasureable when it's similar to your own experience.

Welcome aboard, and happy viewing!

Sincerly,

Roy Webber

Hi,

I'm also a Toler fan. Warner Oland just seems too polite for me. I've never even seen a Roland Winters as Chan. Toler's more interesting than Oland because he's more caustic. I especially enjoy the byplay between him and Jimmy.

"This is favorite offspring Jimmy, without whose assistance many cases would have been solved much sooner."

Hi Sam,

What a wonderful story you posted; thanks for sharing!

I have recollections of watching Chan movies in the mid 70s but it wasn't until my local PBS station ran a "Charlie Chan Theater" on weekend nights in the late 70s that I got hooked. This would generally start about 10:30 or 11:00 at night and the series alternated with the Rathbone Holmes films. The PBS station even hired an on air host to give background on the films.

The Fox films were the ones shown except for Black Camel and Paris (which was still lost at the time). I never saw Paris until the VHS came out in the late 80s and I never saw Black Camel until good old Doug Palmer provided me a copy in the late 90s. I had the first six Monogram Chans from their commercial release and another Chan board member provided me with copies of the remaining Monograms several years ago. For some reason, the Monograms were never aired regularly in my viewing area although I remember WGN in Chicago airing some of them at one time.

When I found the other Chan board in 1997 I was pleased to see that there were so many other fans of Chan plus they provided information/sources for other series that I had never seen or even heard of in some cases. When AMC did their first Chan marathon in 1998 or so it was the first time I'd been able to see a Chan in several years so it was like falling in love with the character all over again.

Steve

Thanks everyone for welcoming me to this nice board.Thanks for letting me know about Vintage Theatre. Does anyone else know a reputable dealer selling decent DVD copies of the Roland Winters Chans?Personally I'd rather wait until WB releaes them but who knows when that will be? I am looking foward to Monday Night.

DEar Sam,

Our Monday Evening Chat/Film Viewings begin at 8:00 P.M., Eastern Time (5:00, Pacific - as you mentioned being from California). We start off with arrivals, greetings, and preparation for the evening's simultaneous viewing of out film, which, this week, will be "Charlie Chan in London." At exactly 8:30 (5:30), we begin rolling our personal copies of the movie, which allows us to watch the picture together. During the movie, we speak on what we like, either regarding the on-screen goings-on, or otherwise!

You, or anyone else who might be interested, will be very much welcomed to our group which, I can guarantee, you will find to be very friendly - and fun!

Sincerely,
Rush Glick

Hi Sam and welcome to the Chan family. I "discovered" Chan at the age of 13 also. I'm the family night owl and my parents had finally given up hope that I would go to sleep at a decent hour. I turned out all the lights for The Late Late Show and on came "Murder Cruise." I was delighted. As the weeks progressed I discovered Chan wasn't an isolated film - there were more! As I started talking about them I found out they had always a favorite of my Dad also. He got to see the originals as they were released in the theater. He always wanted to stay up and watch them with me, but he would get tired waiting and go to bed. Toler is my favorite also, but there are some Olands in my Top Ten. Oops, time for Chan Chat - need to change rooms for that.