''Charlie Chan in Honolulu'' is a 1939 American

mystery film A mystery film is a film that revolves around the solution of a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur Detective, sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means of clues, ...

directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, starring

Sidney Toler Sidney Toler (born Hooper G. Toler Jr., April 28, 1874 – February 12, 1947) was an American actor, playwright, and theatre director. The second non-Asian actor to play the role of Charlie Chan on screen, he is best remembered for his portrayal ...

as the fictional Chinese-American detective

Charlie Chan Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu Police Department, Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels. Biggers loosely based Chan on Hawaiian detective Chang Apana. The benevolent and heroic Chan ...

. The film is the first appearance of both Toler as Chan and

Victor Sen Yung Victor Sen Yung (born Victor Cheung Young or Sen Yew Cheung; ; October 18, 1915 – body discovered November 9, 1980) was an American character actor, best known for playing Jimmy Chan in the Charlie Chan films and Hop Sing in the western seri ...

as "number two son" Jimmy.

Plot

Detective Chan rushes to the hospital to be with his daughter as she prepares to give birth to his first grandchild. While Charlie Chan waits at the hospital, his "number two" son Jimmy intercepts a message intended for Charlie about a murder on board the freighter ''Susan B. Jennings.'' The freighter is on its way from Shanghai to Honolulu under the leadership of Captain Johnson (

Robert Barrat Robert Harriot Barrat (July 10, 1891 – January 7, 1970) was an American stage, motion picture, and television character actor. Early years Barratt was born on July 10, 1891 in New York City, and educated in the public schools there. He left ...

). Jimmy wants to prove his investigative skills to his father and so boards the Jennings pretending to be Charlie Chan, with his younger brother Tommy ( Layne Tom Jr.) in tow. The ruse doesn't last long and soon the real Chan arrives on board, interrogating a motley assortment of crooks, heiresses and crew as he works to solve a crime whose only witness is secretary Judy Haynes (

Phyllis Brooks Phyllis Brooks (July 18, 1915 – August 1, 1995) was an American actress and model. She was born Phyllis Seiler in Boise, Idaho. Some sources have also inaccurately cited 1914 as her year of birth, but 1915 is the correct year according to So ...

). Captain Johnson is eager to unload his cargo, which is mostly a shipment of "big cats" destined for the San Francisco Zoo.Deckhand Al Hogan is fond of walking his pet lion Oscar on the main deck, to nobody's pleasure. Even more of a frightening sight is eccentric scholar Dr.Cardigan, who claims to have kept a human brain alive in formaldehyde for 6 months and is always on the lookout for new subjects. It develops that a suitcase with $300,000.00 is missing, the cash being involved in a tug-o'-war divorce settlement between Mrs.Carol Wayne and the murder victim. Carol Wayne is found strangled to death in Judy Hayes' cabin, where the dead woman and Dr.Cardigan had argued shortly before. Criminal Johnny Mc Coy is allegedly being extradited to the USA in the custody of Detective Joe Arnold, but Chan exposes them as fellow criminals wanted for murder in Shanghai who were trying to sneak back into the USA. Jimmy starts a "controlled fire" on the ship, hoping to panic the killer in grabbing the hidden money and making a run for it. Charlie's anger is cooled when Jimmy shoves him out of the way of an assassin's bullet. The handgun ends up in the hands of Hogan, who returns it to Chan. Chan announces the murderer will be revealed by the fingerprints on the gun. The lights go out and the gun is missing when they come back on. But in stealing the gun, the guilty party triggered an infra-red camera that reveals his guilt beyond all doubt. We close with the remaining passengers gathered around the ship-to-shore phone, listening to the coos and cries of Charlie Chan's first grandchild.

Cast

* Sen Yung as Jimmy Chan *

as Judy Hayes *

Eddie Collins Edward Trowbridge Collins Sr. (May 2, 1887 – March 25, 1951), nicknamed "Cocky", was an American professional baseball player, manager and executive. He played as a second baseman in Major League Baseball from to for the Philadelphia Athle ...

as Al Hogan *

John 'Dusty' King John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

as Randolph *

Claire Dodd Claire Dodd (born Dorothy Arlene Dodd; December 29, 1911 – November 23, 1973 ) was an American film actress. Early life Dorothy Arlene Dodd was born on December 29, 1911, in Baxter, Iowa, to Walter Willard Dodd, a farmer whose family w ...

as Mrs. Carol Wayne *

George Zucco George Zucco (11 January 1886 – 27 May 1960) was a British character actor who appeared in plays and 96 films, mostly American-made, during a career spanning over two decades, from the 1920s to 1951. In his films, he often played a suave vill ...

as Dr. Cardigan *

as Captain Johnson *

Marc Lawrence Marc Lawrence (born Max Goldsmith; February 17, 1910 – November 28, 2005) was an American character actor who specialized in underworld types. He has also been credited as F. A. Foss, Marc Laurence and Marc C. Lawrence. Early life Lawrence w ...

as Johnny McCoy * Richard Lane as Joe Arnold * Layne Tom Jr. as Tommy Chan *

Philip Ahn Philip Ahn (; March 29, 1905 – February 28, 1978) was an American actor and activist of Korean descent. With over 180 film and television credits between 1935 and 1978, he was one of the most recognizable and prolific Asian-American char ...

as Wing Foo *

Paul Harvey Paul Harvey Aurandt (September 4, 1918 – February 28, 2009) was an American radio broadcaster for ABC News Radio. He broadcast ''News and Comment'' on mornings and mid-days on weekdays and at noon on Saturdays and also his famous ''The Rest o ...

as Inspector Rawlins * James Flavin as Desk Cop in Homicide (uncredited) * Oscar The Lion Rest of the Chan Family * Eugene Hoo as Chan Son * Frances Hoo as Chan Daughter * Hippie Hoo as Chan Son * Florence Ung as Ling Chan * Barbara Jean Wong as Chan Daughter (uncredited) * Grace Lem as Mama Chan

References

External links

*
TMC article on "Charlie Chan in Honolulu"
* *
''Charlie Chan in Honolulu'' Film details
a
The Charlie Chan Family Home
{{DEFAULTSORT:Charlie Chan In Honolulu 1938 films Charlie Chan films American black-and-white films Films set in Hawaii 1938 crime films 20th Century Fox films American crime films Films scored by Samuel Kaylin 1930s English-language films 1930s American films English-language crime films