Mission Improbable: Slovakia & The Czech Repubic to find the four lost Chan Films

Good morning Mr./Ms. (your name here.) Your mission is to take a team to Slovakia and The Czech Republic to locate and retrieve the remaining lost Charlie Chan films. The following was intercepted surrounding the film Charlie Chan in Paris on Rush Glick's Charlie Chan Family Home site and explains why: "...Charlie Chan in Paris was … Continue reading Mission Improbable: Slovakia & The Czech Repubic to find the four lost Chan Films →

Book review by Author Barbara Gregorich: Charlie Chan Carries On (1930)

Last month I suggested four summertime reads, but ended on this note, “should a reader prefer all his or her murders served-up on one delicious plate, just read the fifth Charlie Chan novel, Charlie Chan Carries On (1930.)”

Here is a wonderful review by someone who has read that novel at least four times, and hails from the same hometown as Chan creator Earl Derr Biggers: Author Barbara Gregorich. Barbara is an author, lecturer, mystery fiction and writing instructor, and not only has she written numerous children’s books, poetry, baseball history, mysteries and more; after extensive research she released Biggers’ biography, Earl Derr Biggers: Charlie Chan’s Poppa (2018).

Like Barbara, I too must say this is probably my favorite story in the Chan series. Wait! Or was it the sixth novel Keeper of the Keys (1932), where Charlie experiences snow for the first time? Some decisions are just too tough to make!

Barbara Gregorich

When I was sixteen years old and first read Earl Derr Biggers’ six Charlie Chan novels, I loved each and every one, but my favorite was the fifth book, Charlie Chan Carries On. However, I couldn’t really say why.

What was it about this book that made it my favorite? Was it the fact that the story took place on an around-the-world cruise, and that this setting appealed to me? Or perhaps I loved the novelty of having one detective be the protagonist for the first half of the book, and another detective take over for the second half of the story.

Back in the 1990s, after I had already read each book twice, and was about to embark on reading each a third time, I did a lot of research on Earl Derr Biggers. This included reading all the correspondence between Biggers and his editor, David Laurance Chambers of…

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Chan & Holmes, two sides of a coin – a comparison and contrast!

"Being from different eras and cultures, any 'rivalry' between the two detectives would probably be something akin to soccer (football) and baseball...both are popular across the globe, but are unique in their following!" -- Rush Glick, Webmaster The Charlie Chan Family Home The above statement by Mr. Glick is a good analogy and so true. … Continue reading Chan & Holmes, two sides of a coin – a comparison and contrast! →

Those loveable “Sidekicks!” Who’s your favorite?

The Sidekick, we all love them. Robinson Crusoe had his man Friday and Tom Sawyer had Huckleberry Finn. And while Batman had Robin, Tony Stark engaged a computer-interface language system, J.A.R.V.I.S.--Just A Rather Very Intelligent System (in case you didn't know.) But it can also get lonely when one is trying to solve those little … Continue reading Those loveable “Sidekicks!” Who’s your favorite? →

Ten ways to celebrate Ohio Author Earl Derr Biggers’ 135th birthday – August 26th, 2019!

“Where were you the night of August 26, 1884?” Personally, to borrow a line from Nora Charles, The Thin Man, 1934, “I was just a twinkle in my father’s eye.” (Though in my case it would be my grandfather’s eye!) In 1920, while vacationing in Honolulu, Hawaii, Author Earl Derr Biggers thought of the perfect … Continue reading Ten ways to celebrate Ohio Author Earl Derr Biggers’ 135th birthday – August 26th, 2019! →