Am I, then, a Chinese? After Oland's death, American actor Sidney Toler was cast as Chan; Toler made 22 Chan films, first for Fox and then for Monogram Studios. and seven TV movies. Contemporary reviews were unfavorable; in the words of one reviewer, speaking of The Chinese Parrot, … "[12], In 1929, the Fox Film Corporation optioned Charlie Chan properties and produced Behind That Curtain, starring Korean actor E.L. He is met by his Number One Son, Lee Chan, as well as Philip Nash and his fianceé, Diana Woodland. The film is an adaptation of the 1926 Earl Derr Biggers novel The Chinese Parrot.It is considered a lost film.. [21] Producers Philip N. Krasne and James S. Burkett of Monogram Pictures produced and released further Chan films, starring Toler. The unfinished Oland-Luke film Charlie Chan at the Ringside was completed as Mr. Moto's Gamble (1938), with Luke now opposite Peter Lorre. Three Spanish-language Charlie Chan films were made in the 1930s and 1950s. RKO Radio Pictures used Luke in its The Falcon series and Mexican Spitfire. Chan first appeared in Biggers' novels and then was featured in a number of media. Archie Kao starred as Edwin Luke, Keye Luke's brother. He was also known for his role of Master Po in the television series Kung Fu (1972–75). More relevant, though I don't know if it belongs in the filmography or somewhere else in the article, is Mr. Moto's Gamble (1938), which started off as a Chan film and in a fictional crossover does have Keye Luke in a supporting role playing "Number One Son" Lee Chan. Keye Luke left the Charlie Chan series in 1938, shortly after Oland died. His younger brother Edwin Luke also became an actor in the Charlie Chan series. "[20][50], Other critics, such as Yen Le Espiritu and Huang Guiyou, argue that Chan, while portrayed positively in some ways, is not on a par with white characters, but a "benevolent Other"[51] who is "one-dimensional. He sees Lee Chan and Su Toy having some romance together wondering if any future grandchildren will be able to see the circus, too. It overwhelms me with sadness to admit it … for he is of my own origin, my own race, as you know. [27] The film followed essentially the same script as the Anglophonic version, with minor additions such as brief songs and skits and some changes to characters' names (for example, the character Elmer Benbow was renamed Frank Benbow). [3] He was part of the Luke family, a relative of Washington assistant attorney-general Wing Luke, for whom Seattle's Wing Luke Asian Museum was named. [21] For the first time, Chan was portrayed on occasion as "openly contemptuous of suspects and superiors. The original cast album captures his singing of the part of Mr. Wang, the family patriarch. Their scenes together are … Unless otherwise noted, information is taken from Charles P. Mitchell's A Guide to Charlie Chan Films (1999). [35] Walter Connolly initially portrayed Chan on Esso Oil's Five Star Theater, which serialized adaptations of Biggers novels. Luke made his film debut in The Painted Veil (1934), and the following year gained his first big role, as Charlie Chan's eldest son, Lee Chan, in Charlie Chan in Paris (1935). "[43], Some argue that the character's popularity is dependent on its contrast with stereotypes of the Yellow Peril or Japanese people in particular. Layne Tom Jr. (born Richard Layne Tom, Jr.) (June 19, 1927 – January 14, 2015) was an American actor. The first five episodes were made by Vision Productions in the United States, before production switched to the United Kingdom under ITC Entertainment and Television Programs of America. The character was not central to the novel and was not mentioned by name on the dust jacket of the first edition. Chan".[3]. Keye Luke was a successful actor, starring as the "Number-One Son" Lee Chan in the popular Charlie Chan films, as well as the original Kato in the 1940s Green Hornet, and Detective James Lee Wong in Phantom of Chinatown (1940), a role previously played by the English actor Boris Karloff. Charlie Chan in the Secret Service is a 1944 mystery film starring Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan.It is the first film made by Monogram Pictures after the series was dropped by 20th Century Fox, and it marks the introduction of Number Three Son (Benson Fong) and taxi driver (later Chan's chauffeur), Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland). A Charlie Chan comic strip, drawn by Alfred Andriola, was distributed by the McNaught Syndicate beginning October 24, 1938. [32] Actress Lucy Liu was slated to star in and executive-produce a new Charlie Chan film for Fox. With Warner Oland, Boris Karloff, Keye Luke, Charlotte Henry. In the 1970s, Gold Key Comics published a short-lived series of Chan comics based on the Hanna-Barbera animated series. Luke played Governor Donald Cory in an episode of the original Star Trek entitled "Whom Gods Destroy" (1969), and was going to play Doctor Noonien Soong in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Brothers" but illness prevented him from doing so; Brent Spiner ultimately took over the role. Before becoming an actor, he was a local artist in Seattle and, later, Hollywood, working on several of the murals inside Grauman's Chinese Theatre. The two films were made concurrently and followed the same production schedule, with each scene filmed twice the same day, once in English and then in Spanish. 1. Charlie Chan and his two eldest sons, investigate a murderous gang who is forcing an archaeologist to search for a treasure in Mexico. He receives a warning aboard ship not to stop in Shanghai. 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