We have reached the end of August, and with it, summer draws closer and closer to its final curtain…

Our film for this week’s Monday Evening Chat and Film Viewing will be “The Jade Mask” starring Sidney Toler and featuring Edwin Luke as Number Four Sun, Edward (Eddie) Chan. In this adventure we shall see Edward and Birmingham assist Charlie Chan on one of his weirdest cases: the murder count climbs amidst a houseful of strange characters, all of whom are valid suspects! Can Chan and company unravel this tangle of intrigue before one or all of them fall victim to the unknown killer in their midst?

FILM NOTES: The working title of this film was “Mystery Mansion.” The title card on the print reads: “Charlie Chan in ‘The Jade Mask.’” Early ‘Hollywood Reporter’ production charts include Russell Simpson in the cast, but it is unlikely that he appeared in the released film. The ‘Variety’ review mistakenly identifies Edwin Luke's role as Tommy. Edwin Luke, in the role of Edward Chan, was the younger brother of actor Keye Luke, who had previously played son Lee Chan in numerous films in this series.

Please join us in our Chat Room which is located at our Charlie Chan Family Home: www.charliechan.info, and use any of the “Chat Room” links to join us. We begin with arrivals and greetings at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, and we roll our personal copies of our film exactly 15 minutes later (8:15).

Even if you cannot access a copy of the above-noted film, please do join us anyway, as you will NOT be left out of our ongoing chat and festivities. Also, as is our custom, newcomers are offered the seat of honor at our humble table. Many of our films, such as this week’s entry, may be found available for viewing online through such outlets as YouTube, etc. Again this week we have HAPPY NEWS! A check at YouTube reveals that “The Jade Mask” IS available (with Spanish subtitles!) online at YouTube for viewing. You may find it at this address: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zw5sXfBpRf0

NEXT WEEK we will be viewing “The Scarlet Clue” starring Sidney Toler.

CC ON DVD: If you have not already done so, please consider ordering your copy of the new “Charlie Chan Collection” Warner Brothers box DVD collection! The best price I have found thus far is from Amazon.con at $28.79 with FREE postage! Hawaii Steve notes that this collection may be purchased at Oldies.com for $21.80 plus postage! So, get yours now!

Take care, and let’s all get together for another Chan-filled evening of fun and sharing as we watch “The Jade Mask.”

Sincerely,
Rush Glick

August 26th is the 129th anniversary of the birth of Earl Derr Biggers, the creator of Charlie Chan. Between 1925 and 1932, Mr. Biggers wrote six mystery novels about the Honolulu detective.

Of the 47 Hollywood-produced Charlie Chan films, Biggers lived to see six Chan films released before his untimely death in April 1933.

With the casting of Warner Oland as Chan in "Charlie Chan Carries On," Biggers wrote to Fox Films executives stating that "they finally got it right." Biggers felt that Warner Oland was the perfect actor to play Charlie Chan. So did the American movie-going public.

88 years after the release of the novel, "The House Without a Key," people are still reading Biggers' books and still watching the Chan films.

To family and fans of Earl Derr Biggers, we remember you, and celebrate your creation, the immortal Charlie Chan.

Tonight's Monday Evening Chat and Film Viewing will also be a celebration of Earl Derr Biggers' birthday. As Steve noted, Mr. Biggers lived to see but a handful of Charlie Chan films, and the first efforts certainly fell short of his concept of Mr. Chan. I doubt that he could have imagined the lasting quality of his creation and the evolution of the character onscreen through 1949, not to mention the 1957 TV drama series, and more, as Charlie Chan became permanently weaved into the fabric of our culture.

Happy birthday, Mr. Biggers...and "thank you so much!"

Sincerely,
Rush Glick

Happy 129th Birthday Mr. Biggers! And a big "Mahalo Nui Loa" (T.Y.S.M.) for giving us your wonderful detective and bringing a little more "Murder & Mayhem" to the world and for everyone to enjoy!

There is another little piece of Chan Memorabilia that relates to this past weekend. In the movie "CC in Monte Carlo", in an early scene at the casino Lee Chan mentions that it is August 25th and that he is 25 years old.

Dear John,

So true! Lee Chan's birthday! A double celebration this evening...

Sincerely,
Rush