Cobra Chan

THE SHANGHAI COBRA-1945-Charlie Chan is called in by an old friend to help stop “The Cobra Killer” who uses snake venom. All three victims worked for the same bank. Chan relates a flashback at the bombing of Shanghai when he assisted in the arrest of a murderer named Jan Van Horn who's disfigured during the bombings. Unfortunately Van Horn escaped and has a new face. The president of the bank Fletcher (Ray Gordon) seems a likely subject because of a white streak in his hair (Van Horn had one too). Chan also checks up on a stock of radium the bank has. 

Later he investigates PI Ned Stewart (James Cardwell) who was hired by a mysterious Mr. Rodgers to shadow a woman, Paula Webb (Joan Barclay) who seems to have some connection to a bank guard (Addison Richards). Then a police detective posing as a janitor (Cyril Delavanti) disappears. Morgan (Gene Roth) and Taylor (Joe Devlin) are two suspicious characters hanging around. Tommy (Benson Fong) and Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland) get into some trouble in the sewer beneath the bank but do help out a bit. After almost dying in a sewer cave-in Charlie exposes the ringleader. James Flavin and George Chandler have small roles.

Director Phil Karlson made DARK ALIBI the next year and KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL and THE PHENIX CITY STORY, a TV movie ALEXANDER THE GREAT with William Shatner & Adam West, two Matt Helm-Dean Martin entries and WALKING TALL.

Next up: DARK ALIBI:

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/4609335177952045780/7392331601685477603?hl=en

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Chan On The Air

THE SCARLET CLUE-1945-This time Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) is on the trail of spies who want to steal radar plans. While he and a local police Capt. Flynn (Robert Homans) find a spy they were tailing dead, it seems the murderer drove off in a stolen car belonging to radio actress Diana Hall (Helen Deveareaux) and her friend Gloria (Janet Shaw). A footprint leads Charlie to believe that the killer works at the radio station. He’s right! The manager Bret (I. Stanford Jolley) is the killer but he takes his orders from someone who communicates by a telegram machine. When Gloria tries to blackmail Bret she dies from poisoning. When Chan connects Bret to the murder the manager falls to his death from a trapdoor in an elevator! There's also a scientific contraption that simulates different types of weather. On an “experimental” TV program Jack Norton does a drunk routine but is poisoned before he can give Charlie any info. This story features a lot of science tech and talk about TV. 

THE SCARLET CLUE also features no. 3 son Tommy (Benson Fong) who messes up several times and Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland) who does 2 routines with his real life vaudeville partner Ben Carter. (They also do this in DARK ALIBI). Phil Rosen was once again in the director's chair. Followed by THE SHANGHAI COBRA.

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The Chinese Cat

CHARLIE CHAN IN THE CHINESE CAT-1944-The intrepid detective (Sidney Toler) and number 3 son Tommy (Benson Fong) investigate the murder of Thomas Manning at the request of his step-daughter Leah (Joan Woodbury). 6 months previously he was shot to death in a locked room. A famous doctor Paul Recknik (Ian Keith) has written a book about the case that implicates the girl’s mother (Betty Blythe). They are joined by taxi driver Birmingham Brown (the great Mantan Moreland) who says “Freedom of speech is gonna get me in trouble yet” and a police detective (Wendel Heyburn) who investigated the murder. Manning's business partner wants Chan off the case. It has to do with smugglers and stolen diamonds. The bad dudes hide out in a fun house so this provides several reasons for Birmingham to get scared. However he helps save Chan and Tommy when they are roughed up by the brutal thugs.

 This was director Phil Rosen's second Chan mystery in a row. Among his over 140 credits (!) are the underrated PHANTOM OF CHINATOWN, SPOOKS RUN WILD and two more Chan/Toler entries.

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Charlie Chan returns in BLACK MAGIC aka MEETING AT MIDNIGHT. 

Chan In Secret

CHARLIE CHAN IN THE SECRET SERVICE- 1944-A rocket scientist is killed in his home and his plans for a secret torpedo invention are stolen. As usual he has a whole houseful of guests as suspects (including the unbilled Gene Roth). Against his wishes Charlie (Sidney Toler) is assisted by son Tommy (Benson Fong) and daughter Iris (Marianne Quon), It's also the debut of Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland), Chan’s future chauffeur who says “Just ain't no future for a man in this house”. This Phil Rosen directed whodunit wasn't that interesting to me.

Next: CHARLIE CHAN IN THE CHINESE CAT. Thanks for reading!

Charlie Chan!

DARK ALIBI-1946-Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) is hired by June Hanley (Teala Loring, from BLACK MARKET BABIES the year before) to help clear her father of a robbery that has put him on death row. Most suspects reside in a local boarding house. The master detective assisted by son Tommy (Benson Fong) and chauffeur Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland, who despite being the victim of some racist humor steals every scene he's in). 

Tommy and Birmingham even manage to get locked up in jail where BB meets his brother Ben (Ben Carter) and they do their “unfinished sentence” routine (Moreland and Carter had been a team in Vaudeville). A private detective helps out and forged fingerprints figure into the frame up. As usual some familiar character actors appear: Milton Parsons, Tim Ryan, John Eldredge, Russell Hicks. 

The same year director Phil Karlson made BEHIND THE MASK starring Kane Richmond as The Shadow. In 1955 he made the film noir crime drama THE PHENIX CITY STORY, did some TV then in the '60's made THE SILENCERS and THE WRECKING CREW, both starring Dean Martin as Matt Helm. Two of his last movies (he died in 1985) were the WILLARD sequel BEN and WALKING TALL.

I've read screenwriter George Callahan (who penned many CC movies) later wrote the screenplay for THIS ISLAND EARTH but that film credits George O'Callahan so it could be someone else. I could find very little about either of them....

  

DARK ALIBI was number 40 of forty-seven movies made with the clever (fake) Chinese detective created by Earl Derr Biggers. It was followed by SHADOWS OVER CHINATOWN.

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War Is Crazy

5 GATES TO HELL-1959-Vietnam (French Indo China) 1950 is the setting for this crazy little war film!

More exploitation than propaganda, it tells the tale of a international medical team that's captured by some Asian rebels who want the doctor (Ken Scott) of the group to "heal" their dying leader. Second in command Chen Pamok (Neville Brand speaking pidgin English but not made up to look Asian!) takes a fancy to nurse Athena (Dolores Michaels) while the rest of the women (including THE FLY's Patricia Owens, Nobu McCarthy, future BEVERLY HILLBILLIES co-star Nancy Kulp and nun Shirley Knight) are abused by the army. The group (there's one other "western" male played by John Morley) stages an uprising where it seems Chen is killed but so are the doctors. The women escape but Chen somehow survives and pursues them. The women eventually have to fight it out in the climax.

Benson Fong hangs around as Chen's leering assistant. Irish McCalla (same year as SHE DEMONS) has a small role as a nun who's crucified (basically shown off screen).

5 was written produced and directed by James Clavell who later became much more famous for his novels like SHOGUN. He had written the screenplay to THE FLY and later directed TO SIR WITH LOVE. Some close-ups seem out of place but where else are you going to see TV's Miss Hathaway wearing an army helmet and fooling around with a grenade?

Thanks once again to my pal Tony for getting this to me and thanks to anyone who reads this!