The Charlie Chan Film Encyclopedia

This encyclopedia contains over 1,900 entries for characters, actors, crew members, plot devices, and facts, as well as film summaries and Charlie's famous aphorisms. Photographs accompany the text and the entries are arranged alphabetically for easy reference and access. Practically anything a fan of these films might want to know is thoroughly analyzed here.

This reference for film scholars and fans offers detailed coverage of the original series of movies about fictional Chinese detective Charlie Chan. Included are more than 1,900 alphabetically arranged entries on the films' characters, actors, crew members, and plot devices. Hundreds of Charlie's famous aphorisms are also quoted. The volume is illustrated with b&w movie stills and promotional photos. This paperback is a reprint of the library bound edition first published in 2000 by McFarland. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Library Journal

Fictional detective Charlie Chan appeared in more than 40 films, primarily during the 1930s and 1940s. This book provides capsule biographies of the stars and casts of the films, in addition to a detailed filmography and other Chan esoterica (including a section on Chan's proverbs). Berlin, an inventor and author who has written on a variety of subjects, supplies Chan fans with obscure details about the most popular films. He purposely excludes all mention of the Chan films and television series from the 1950s, 1970s, and 1980s. Instead, he concentrates largely upon the Warner Oland and Sidney Toler films because they were the two most popular actors to portray Chan and because they starred in more Chan films than any of the other actors. Massive, fact-filled, and entertaining, this is one of the most important Chan movie reference volumes to date. Not only does it present specific filmographies but it has entries on other actors and lots of trivial information about the movies, which sets it apart from two more general references on Chan: Ken Hanke's Charlie Chan at the Movies: History, Filmography, and Criticism (McFarland, 1989) and Charles P. Mitchell's A Guide to Charlie Chan Films (Greenwood, 1999). An exhaustive index and a useful bibliography round out this impressive book. A worthwhile purchase for most popular film collections.--David M. Lisa, Mercyhurst Coll., Erie, PA Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\

Retired college professor and inventor Howard M. Berlin lives in Wilmington, Delaware. He holds three United States patents for his inventions and is the author of over 30 books on diverse subjects, including World Monetary Units (2005) and The Coins and Banknotes of Palestine Under the British Mandate, 1927-1947 (2005).