We begin our Charlie Chan Film Tour 2016 with "Behind That Curtain"
FROM CHARLIE CHAN: “Begin at best place - beginning.” (“Charlie Chan in London”)
Greetings, as we reach a new year and begin our CHARLIE CHAN FILM TOUR 2016! As is our custom, we kick-off our journey with the oldest surviving “Charlie Chan” film adventure, “BEHIND THAT CURTAIN.” This film, based on the Earl Derr Biggers novel from 1928, premiered on June 28, 1929 at San Francisco’s Fox Theater. “Behind That Curtain” is nominally – VERY nominally – a Charlie Chan movie, as E.L. Park, who portrays the detective, appears only at the picture’s climax. The bulk of the story features Gilbert Emery as Sir Frederick Bruce of Scotland Yard who follows the trail of a killer around the world. Of note, we see Boris Karloff in a very early sound production as Colonel Beetham’s servant.
OUR FILM: “Behind That Curtain” (1929). Runtime: 91 minutes.
SUMMARY: Eve Mannering, daughter of a wealthy Englishman, marries Eric Durand, a fortune hunter, who kills the investigator hired by Eve's father to examine his past. Upon discovering the plot, Eve leaves him and joins an old family friend on a desert expedition from India to Persia. Later, fearing that she will implicate him in her affairs, Eve deserts him and travels to San Francisco. Sir Frederic Bruce of Scotland Yard is attracted to the case by a mysterious pair of slippers that were found on the victim's body - a gift from the explorer, John Beetham.
TIME: We begin with arrivals and greetings at 8:00 EASTERN TIME. 15 minutes later (8:15), we begin rolling our personal copies of this week’s movie, “Behind That Curtain.”
LOCATION: Our CCF Chat Room is accessed at http://www.charliechan.info/id17.html.
IF YOU LACK A COPY OF OUR FILM: You will find a copy online at Youtube at this address: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_rQbO0y5RA
OF NOTE: E.L. Park, who briefly appears as Charlie Chan in “Behind That Curtain,” was the father of Ivy Bo Ling, who appears in both “The Black Camel” (as the Chans’ eldest daughter, and in “Charlie Chan in Shanghai” (as Lee’s girlfriend over the telephone).
Have a wonderful Monday, and let’s gather tonight within the friendly confines of our Chat Room as we begin a new year together, journeying through the entire Charlie Chan film series that is available to us today! We will also be taking some fun detours along the way and we will also be encountering upcoming “extras”! See you there!
