Yesterday afternoon, I had the good fortune of attending the matinee showing of "Charlie Chan at the Circus" at the Old Town Music Hall in El Segundo, CA. Sadly, the Keye Luke family was to attend the later show, which I could not do.
However, following the matinee, I had the pleasure of sharing dinner with two friends, including Gene Lue, a gentlemen who has been very kind in his donations of Charlie Chan material and images to this humble site. Following dinner, which was accompanied by very pleasant conversation, Gene said that he had something of interest to share. "Interesting," indeed! What he had was a vintage brochure from the 1968 showing of 21 Charlie Chan movies at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City!
The old saying: "My, how times have changed!" certainly applies here. The brochure's language conveys the excitement and enthusiasm that surrounded the presentation of the collection of fine mysteries featuring the then-as-today world famous Chinese detective. Just under forty years ago, there were not the sad and misguided attempts by some to undermine this American cultural icon. Rather, he was rightly revered as the hero he had been for millions of moviegoers over several decades by that time. A TV renaissance of Charlie Chan's adventures was just about to dawn, and a new audience was soon to meet the sleuth for the first time. Again, how things have changed; but, through the recent releases of Charlie Chan films on DVD, there could be yet another, albeit quiet, rebirth taking place...
But, I digress. For those who would like to take a look at this nice and informative brochure, please go to our Study - located here, at our Charlie Chan Family Home. Then, go to the last listing in "Miscellaneous Items," and there you will find it.
Re: Charlie Chan at the Museum of Modern Art - 1968
Rush:
Thank you so much for posting the brochure of this event on the Chan Family website. A couple of the stills I don't believe I've seen before, which is a gem in and of itself. However, I took special note of the commentary by Mr. Carey on the 4th page of the brochure "It is not the Oriental that is being laughed at in the Chan movies any more than it is the French in Miss Christie's Poirot novels; rather it is our cliche-ridden ideas of the Oriental, the French, that are being given back to us in their proper - ridiculous - perspective. We are laughing at ourselves". I think many of us on this board can attest to that truth.
Thank you again for sharing this interesting bit of Chan history with all of us.
