A place to explore all things surrounding Detective Charlie Chan, his creator Earl Derr Biggers, and their connection with Hawaii, Ohio and mystery fiction. – LOU ARMAGNO
(HAPPY 141st BIRTHDAY EARL - August 26th, 1884) What's that you say! Did Charlie Chan really investigate a mystery in Cleveland, Ohio? Cleveland, where his creator Author Earl Derr Biggers once worked as a night crime reporter on Cleveland's newspaper, The Plain Dealer. Cleveland an hour's drive from Warren, Ohio, where Biggers was born and … Continue reading Charlie Chan and the Unsolved Cleveland Caper!
Had it not been for George M. Cohan's complete enthusiasm for Earl Derr Biggers' first novel, Seven Keys to Baldpate (1913), I've often wondered if Biggers' would have been as successful with mystery writing, or even--who knows--gone on to create our hero Charlie Chan! So with this year being the Centennial of Detective Charlie Chan's … Continue reading A Panama hat tip to George M. Cohan: Earl & Charlie couldn’t have done it without ya!
By now everyone should be aware this year marks the 100th anniversary of Earl Derr Biggers' novel, The House Without a Key, 1925. And that the story was first serialized in seven editions of The Saturday Evening Post, beginning with the January 24, 1925 edition. However, it was not until the next week, January 31, … Continue reading January 31, 1925, The Saturday Evening Post, Chapter 7 – Enter Charlie Chan!
HAU'OLI MAKAHIKI HOU or Happy New Year everyone! Especially those born in the Year of The Snake. And a special year indeed for Detective Charlie Chan fans! That first novel (in the title above) was serialized in the Saturday Evening Post over seven-weekly editions, beginning January 24th, 1925. Later that year it was released as … Continue reading A Centennial: The House Without a Key (1925) and Charlie Chan are turning 100!
I want to thank Author John L. Swann and Nicholas K. Burns Publishing, Utica New York, for the read ahead copy to Mr. Swann's second Charlie Chan novella, The Tangled String. It was released November 25th, 2024 available wherever books are sold and just in time for Christmas. The story takes place in Boston, where … Continue reading Book Review: The Tangled String, A Charlie Chan Mystery by John L. Swann
Happy 140th Birthday wishes to Earl Derr Biggers this month, August 26, 1884. OK, take a deep breath now and let it out slowly. If you are a serious Charlie Chan fan your initial reaction might be to pommel me with innuendos, barbs, insults and possibly a face slap or two. But wait! If only … Continue reading Oh No! Could it be his name was actually “Charles” and not “Charlie” Chan?
Here's some exciting news for mystery buffs, who've longed for someone to dare follow up with a true Charlie Chan novel. A new mystery to carry on with Author Biggers' storyline. We have it now in: Death, I Said: A Charlie Chan Mystery by John L. Swann" Nicholas K. Burns Publishing, NY, 2023 Both I, … Continue reading We finally have one! A Charlie Chan Pastiche true to Earl Derr Biggers original novels.
This month we celebrate Ohio Author and Charlie Chan creator Earl Derr Biggers' 139th birthday (August 26, 1884) heading to Waikiki Beach on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, and the Halekulani Hotel's newest edition: Earl's Beachside Bar inside their famed House Without A Key Restaurant. House Without A Key Oceanside bar & restaurant, photos courtesy … Continue reading Celebrate Earl Derr Biggers’ birthday at “Earl’s,” the new Halekulani beachside bar!
History doth repeat itself! Once upon a time Author Earl Derr Biggers wrote a novel, The Chinese Parrot (1926). This second in the Detective Charlie Chan series featured an Australian Gray Parrot named "Tony," who spoke--you guessed it--Chinese. And in more recent times Biggers' biographer, Author Barbara Gregorich, wrote about another bird: the sensation of … Continue reading Birds of a feather: Tony the Parrot & Cookie the Cockatoo.
HAPPY 2023 everyone...we made it! As previously reported last year (my August 2022 Biggers' Birthday post), in 1925 the Honolulu Tourism Bureau presented Author Earl Derr Biggers with an honorary Key to The City of Honolulu. This was in appreciation for the overwhelming good will and publicity his first Charlie Chan novel, The House Without … Continue reading One other “Earl” was gifted a Key to The City of Honolulu.
The Postman on Holiday 