Liu Joining the Charlie Chan Clan Playing Police Sleuth's Grand-Daughter August 6th 2005 10:26pm | Posted by: Michael Stevens, HNR Senior Editor Actress Lucy "Kill Bill" Liu will executive produce and star in a new feature updating Charlie Chan. Liu will potray the grand-daughter of the famed Chinese super-sleuth. Chan will be produced by John Woo and Terence Chang's Lion Rock Prods. for 20th Century Fox. The character 'Charlie Chan' was created by pulp mystery writer Earl Derr Biggers, based on the experiences of a real Chinese detective, working out of Honolulu in 1919, named 'Chang Apana'. In 1925, Biggers introduced his Honolulu police sergeant 'Charlie Chan' in the novel "The House Without A Key" (1925), following up with six Chan novels, beginning with "The Chinese Parrot". The first film was adapted to the big screen as a 1926 silent. Then in 1931, 20th Century Fox cast Swedish-born Warner Oland as 'Charlie'. Following Oland's death in 1937, Sidney Toler took over the role. Fox eventually dropped the series in 1942 (owing to war-time sentiment). In 1944, low-budget Monogram studios (The Bowery Boys), revived the series with Toler resuming the lead. Roland Winters succeded Toler in 1947, until the film series was put to rest in 1949. To date there have been numerous "Charlie Chan" comic book publications and a Saturday morning cartoon series titled The Amazing Chan And the Chan Clan. Source: Sneak Peek: Charlie Chan In: Movie News |Visit the HNR Forums

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