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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: More thanks to Douglas Wulf...

Rush:

I think we can safely say that in The Pearl Shirt, Murder at the Taiwan National University Radio Station, and The Great Charlie Chan Breaks the Stealth Technique that Ziyuan Xu plays Charlie Chan and Meijun Gu plays his daughter, Meina Chan.

It would be like seeing that Warner Oland and Keye Luke were in some unknown film in which the plot synopsis describes the adventures of Charlie Chan and his Number One Son and then wondering what parts Oland and Luke may have played.

I can't tell what roles the rest of the cast played with certainty, but these two actors must be in these roles.

Ziyuan Xu and Meijun Gu are also in Lan Guifei’s Corpse (1937) and Clairvoyance (1942). Also, Ziyuan Xu is in Lady Body's Revenge (1941). However, since I don't have plot synopses of these films or the names of the actor's roles, I can't tell if any of these are Chan films too.

Re: Re: Re: More thanks to Douglas Wulf...

Rush:

The reason I list 'Lan Guifei's Corpse' as a possible is that the cast list includes both Ziyuan Xu (who plays Chan in these films) and Meijun Gu (who plays Chan's daughter Meina in the early part of this series). It was also made in 1937, which is just one year before 'The Pearl Shirt' in (1938). The screenwriter/director for both films was Xinfu Xu and it was the same photographer and production company. Also, the film is described on one website as some sort of mystery film.

All of these points of similarity seem to suggest that 'Lan Guifei's Corpse' was perhaps a Chan film, but there is no confirmation of this to be found. It could also be a mystery film that starred these two individuals and that inspired Xinfu Xu to have these two actors play Charlie Chan and his daughter in a series of Chan films.

The fact that Charlie Chan and his daughter arrive in China from overseas at the start of 'The Pearl Shirt' gives me the impression that perhaps this is the first Charlie Chan film in the series of Chinese-made films and that this and not 'Lan Guifei's Corpse' is the film that is perhaps also known as 'Charlie Chan in the Homeland'.

Doug

Re: Re: Re: More thanks to Douglas Wulf...

This rather blurry still photograph is from Hero of Our Time (1948) if you can use it:

http://www.cnmdb.com/upload/images/title/2005/12/31/101538134_s.jpg

Re: Re: Re: Re: More thanks to Douglas Wulf...

And this is from The Net of Divine Retribution, if you can use it...

http://www.cnmdb.com/upload/images/title/2005/12/30/171522178_s.jpg

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: More thanks to Douglas Wulf...

And this is from The Pearl Shirt...

http://www.cnmdb.com/upload/images/title/2006/07/21/211051362_s.jpg

Maybe these could be added alongside the descriptions.

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: More thanks to Douglas Wulf...

I suspect that Ziyuan Xu is the man on the left in this photo, but this is a still from a non-Chan picture:

http://www.cnmdb.com/upload/images/title/2005/08/22/144744951_s.jpg