Charlie Chan Vol. 3 in August!! (1 Viewer)

Dvd empire is listing this 5 film box set for an August for a US$ 50,00 list price.

Here are the titles for Volume 3 ---

Charlie Chan's Secret
Charlie Chan On Broadway
Charlie Chan At Monte Carlo
Behind That Curtain
Charlie Chan: The Black Camel


http://greenbriarpictureshows.blogspot.com/

Awesome News!

Excellent news!! Thanks to Fox for lowering the price $10 and adding another movie. Street price should be $35 or so (less at Costco).

The inclusion of BLACK CAMEL is a coup. Warners had rights to this and was planning on releasing it on their own. I suspect this may have to do with the fact that Fox is in possession of a very high quality uncut print with the original titles. (Some circulating prints are cut and have replaced titles).

Broadway is my personal favorite of the series because of the great cast and the 30s NYC atmosphere.

BEHIND THAT CURTAIN is not really a Chan film (he's a minor character), but Fox has a very good print of this and Karloff fans will want this due to his role, albeit minor.

This is one of those pieces of news that makes for a perfect day. Thanks to Rafael for alerting us to this!

Steve "Fox is now half done with this series..bring on the Tolers" O

(apologies to Gary OS)

This is the best news I've heard since THE FUGITIVE was officially announced for the same month of September. In fact this makes September a huge month for me! Steve has let us in on some of the details about how and why Fox was able to pry "Black Camel" away from WB. What a coup indeed!

Gary "and no need to apologize Steve, this is such great news who could blame you" O.

Fox has reduced the MSRP by $10 from the previous two boxset releases so they appear to be adjusting their prices down which I'm very happy about. Also, this appears to be trend with their other recent boxset offerings in comparison to how similar boxsets were priced a year ago. Good job, Fox!





Crawdaddy

For those who aren't familiar with BLACK CAMEL, it was shot on location in Hawaii and has some very good photography as a result. The cast includes Bela Lugosi, who gives a very good performance, and a very young Robert "Father Knows Best" Young in a fairly substantial role. Camel was released in the same year as Dracula so Lugosi was a hot commodity then. He also had the advantage of not yet being typecast in horror roles. It's really a revelation to see what a fine actor he could be before poor lifestyle choices and typecasting lessened his effectiveness.

I really hope Fox plays up the CAMEL inclusion. Other than a showing on AMC in the 1980s it has been absent from virtually all Chan TV packages over the past couple of decades. It's also, in my opinion, one of the two or three best films in the entire series.

Camel also provides a fascinating look into the character as Oland was still working through his characterization. It's not quite the same style as used in the later efforts. Because this is based on a Biggers book, there is no Lee Chan, but a Japanese sidekick (Kashimo) that is a couple of clowns short of a circus.

Hey Gary, you might want to check your calendar. Chan and Fugitive both come out in August. Same day as a matter of fact

Steve

Duh! I have no idea why I said September instead of August. I did the same thing on another board (which I'll now have to modify). I knew they were both coming out in the eighth month of the year, and that it was August. What possessed me to say September is anyone's guess.

Gary "August is going to be the month for dvd releases!!!" O.

According to a post at another thread, Warner loaned out THE BLACK CAMEL, which is interesting (if true) since they said they would be releasing it themselves.

Ken Hanke of Scarlet Street magazine indicated that this set will have commentaries for "Camel" and 'Secret" plus some new featurettes.

Movies Unlimited is reporting this as a 4 disc set (DVD Empire said 3). Frankly, 4 makes sense given the previous sets were 4. Their description also references photo galleries.

So....it appears that the series is doing well enough for Fox to expand the offering of bonus material and to pursue licensing Camel from Warner. Great news and it's already been hinted at Scarlet Street that a Vol 4 (presumably with Treasure Island*, Honolulu, Reno, City in Darkness), is coming as well. That bodes very well for the complete series being released.

Steve

* Treasure Island was described by AMC Host Bob Dorian as his favorite movie of the legendary Class of 1939.

Wow, the past sets must've sold really well to get a 3rd volume. I guess it doesn't look too good for a 2nd Betty Grable collection.

ON TREASURE ISALAND is my favorite Charlie Chan. It's well cast and has a surprising ending. Any word on the remaining Mike Shaynes?

Charles, the BITS published Fox's schedule through Q3 yesterday and there was no mention of Shayne Vol 2. I wonder if there will be one. Only two films remain and one of them may have rights issues. If Fox intended to release them I would have thought they would have added a third disc to the previous set and have been done with it. I'd love to be wrong on this. Vol 1 was highly enjoyable and I've never seen the two remaining titles.

Steve

Did the Alice Faye set fare any better?

I thought the Grable set was overpriced. The Faye set had the same number of films but was much more reasonably priced. If there was a difference in the number of copies purchased, that may have accounted for it.

MR. MOTO also must have been a good seller for Fox to have finished releasing the remaining films. I am grateful for that.

Here's the Fox press release below (courtesy of Scarlet Street). There are some very interesting extras listed including a recreation of one of the lost films, Charlie Chan's Chance. The release mentions a lower MSRP ($39.99) than what is listed at most e-tailers currently ($49.99). While it would be wonderful if Fox really did drop these $20 from Vol 1 and 2, my gut instinct tells me it is likely a typo below. Either way, kudos to Fox for continuing to put out attractive supplements to these films.

Steve


-------------------------------------

If Strength Were All, Tiger Would Not Fear Scorpion.”
- Charlie Chan, Charlie Chan’s Secret

THE CHARLIE CHAN COLLECTION
Volume Three

On August 14th, Fox Home Entertainment Cracks Four More
Of The Wise Detective’s Greatest Cases Four Disc Set Includes Charlie Chan’s Secret, Charlie Chan On Broadway, Charlie Chan At Monte Carlo, The Black Camel And Bonus Film, Behind That Curtain


CENTURY CITY, Calif. – “Hasty deduction like ancient egg. Look good from outside.” Fans of detective Charlie Chan’s suspenseful mysteries and fortune cookie wisdom will find joy as they dodge bullets with some of the Chinese policeman’s most thrilling and dangerous cases, coming to DVD for the first time in The Charlie Chan Collection – Volume Three August 14 from Fox Home Entertainment. A staple of 30s and 40s Hollywood, Charlie Chan’s profound wit and lighthearted counsel in the face of the criminal element has made him a cinematic icon, transcending generations and stereotypes to become one of film’s most beloved crime-solvers. Four of Charlie Chan’s most-ingenious cases make their DVD debut in The Charlie Chan Collection – Volume Three – starring the original and often-imitated but never equaled Warner Oland as the sage detective – including Charlie Chan’s Secret, Charlie Chan On Broadway, Charlie Chan At Monte Carlo and The Black Camel, which also stars Bela Lugosi (Dracula). The collection also includes the 1929 film Behind That Curtain – Charlie Chan’s premiere appearance in a sound film. Boasting all-new bonus materials, including commentaries, featurettes, restoration comparisons and more, The Charlie Chan Collection – Volume Three will be available for the suggested retail price of $39.98 U.S./$54.98 Canada.


DVD SPECIAL FEATURES

The Charlie Chan Collection – Volume Three is presented in English Mono sound, as well as Spanish and French subtitles, in the original full screen format. Bonus features include:

o Charlie Chan At Monte Carlo includes a Chan Is Missing: The Last Days Of Warner Oland, as well as a restoration comparison, original theatrical trailers, still gallery and “Warner Oland is Charlie Chan” poster gallery. Side two features the 1929 film Behind That Curtain featuring the earliest surviving onscreen appearance of the Charlie Chan character.

o Charlie Chan On Broadway includes featurettes The World Of Charlie Chan and Chanograms: The Aphorisms Of Charlie Chan, as well as a restoration comparison, original theatrical trailer and still gallery.

o Charlie Chan’s Secret includes a commentary by film critic Ken Hanke, featurettes Charlie Chan And The Rise of The Modern Detective and Dr. Henry Lee: The Modern Day Charlie Chan, as well as a restoration comparison, the original theatrical trailer and still gallery.

o The Black Camel includes commentary by film critic Ken Hanke, as well as a restoration comparison, the original theatrical trailers and still gallery. Side two includes Charlie Chan’s Chance: An Introduction and Charlie Chan’s Chance: A Recreation.

Re: Universal's Chinese Parrot...that would be interesting considering it was one of the few American works of Paul Leni and the cast featured names that are still remembered today by classic film fans (Edgar Kennedy, Anna May Wong, Slim Summerville). Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a lot of documentation about this film other than contemporary reviews.

Fortunately the 4 missing Olands left behind a lot of still and the scripts which can be read here Reading about these makes one pine for them even more.

Steve