Behind That Curtain | |
---|---|
Directed by | Irving Cummings |
Written by | Sonya Levien George Middleton Wilbur Morse Jr. Clarke Silvernail |
Based on | Behind That Curtain by Earl Derr Biggers |
Produced by | William Fox |
Starring | Warner Baxter Lois Moran Gilbert Emery |
Cinematography | Conrad Wells Vincent J. Farrar Dave Ragin |
Edited by | Alfred DeGaetano |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Fox Film Corporation |
Release date |
|
Running time | 91 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Behind That Curtain is a 1929 American Pre-Code mystery film directed by Irving Cummings and starring Warner Baxter, Lois Moran and Gilbert Emery. [1] It was the first Charlie Chan film to be made at Fox Studios. It was based on the 1928 novel of the same name. Charlie Chan, who is played by the Chinese American E. L. Park, gets one mention early in the film, then makes a few momentary appearances after 75 minutes. Park, in fact, was the first Chinese American to play Charlie Chan on-screen. [2] Producer William Fox chose this film to open the palatial Fox Theatre in San Francisco on June 28, 1929. It was a sound film.
In London, fortune hunter Eric Durand is romancing the wealthy Sir George Mannering's niece Eve. He murders the solicitor who is hired by Mannering to investigate him, but is thwarted when explorer and old family friend Colonel John Beetham takes Eve away to British India. Later she leaves Beetham and goes to San Francisco, where she is followed by the dogged Sir Frederick Bruce of Scotland Yard, who has Durand in his sights.
William Henry Pratt, known professionally as Boris Karloff and occasionally billed as Karloff the Uncanny, was a British actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film Frankenstein (1931), his 82nd film, established him as a horror icon, and he reprised the role for the sequels Bride of Frankenstein (1935) and Son of Frankenstein (1939). He also appeared as Imhotep in The Mummy (1932), and voiced the Grinch in, as well as narrating, the animated television special of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966), which won him a Grammy Award.
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 sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means of clues, investigation, and clever deduction. Mystery films include, but are not limited to, films in the genre of detective fiction.
Behind That Curtain (1928) is the third novel in the Charlie Chan series of mystery novels by Earl Derr Biggers.
Warner Oland was a Swedish-American actor. His career included time on Broadway and numerous film appearances. He is most remembered for playing several Chinese and Chinese-American characters: Dr. Fu Manchu, Henry Chang in Shanghai Express, and, most notably, Honolulu Police detective Lieutenant Charlie Chan in 16 films.
The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu is a 1929 American pre-Code drama film directed by Rowland V. Lee and starring Warner Oland as Dr. Fu Manchu. It was the first Fu Manchu film of the talkie era. Since this was during the transition period to sound, a silent version was also released in the United States, although only the sound version exists today. The film's copyright was renewed.
Marguerite Churchill was an American stage and film actress whose career lasted 30 years, from 1922 to 1952. She was John Wayne's first leading lady, in The Big Trail (1930).
The Fox Theatre was a 4,651-seat movie palace located at 1350 Market Street in San Francisco, California. The theater was designed by the noted theater architect, Thomas W. Lamb. Opened in 1929, the theater operated until 1963, when it was closed and demolished.
Juggernaut is a 1936 British mystery film, starring Boris Karloff and Joan Wyndham. Directed by Henry Edwards, it was based on the novel by Alice Campbell and was distributed by Julius Hagen Productions. It was also known as The Demon Doctor.
Charlie Chan at the Opera is considered by many to be the best Warner Oland Charlie Chan film, probably due to the presence of Boris Karloff as the principal suspect, as well as faux operatic music composed by Oscar Levant. This is the 13th film starring Oland as Chan; it was directed by H. Bruce Humberstone for 20th Century-Fox in 1936.
Cheated Hearts is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by Hobart Henley and featuring Herbert Rawlinson, Warner Baxter, Marjorie Daw and Boris Karloff. The screenplay was written by Wallace Clifton, based on the novel Barry Gordon by William Farquar Payson. The film's tagline was "All the Exotic Glamour of the East Woven in a Livid Picture of Love". It was shot in Universal City, and is today considered a lost film.
The Golden Web is a 1926 American silent mystery film directed by Walter Lang and starring Lillian Rich, Huntley Gordon and Lawford Davidson. The cast also features Boris Karloff before he established himself as a horror star. It is based on the 1910 novel The Golden Web by the British writer E. Phillips Oppenheim. A previous British film adaptation of the novel was produced in 1920.
Sharp Shooters is a 1928 American silent comedy film directed by John G. Blystone and starring George O'Brien, Lois Moran, and Noah Young. A print survives in the UCLA Film and Television Archive. Sharp Shooters contains uncredited performances by Boris Karloff and Randolph Scott in his first film appearance.
Burning the Wind is a 1928 American romantic drama film, directed by Herbert Blaché and Henry MacRae, starring Hoot Gibson and featuring Boris Karloff. The film is considered to be lost.
The Devil's Chaplain is a 1929 American silent romance film directed by Duke Worne, written by Arthur Hoerl and George Bronson Howard and featuring Boris Karloff. It was produced by Trem Carr and released by Rayart Pictures.
The Unholy Night is a 1929 American pre-Code mystery film directed by Lionel Barrymore and starring Ernest Torrence.
Charlie Chan's Chance is a 1932 American pre-Code murder mystery film, the third to star Warner Oland as detective Charlie Chan. It is based on the 1928 novel Behind That Curtain by Earl Derr Biggers, who also contributed to the film. The film is considered to be lost.
Claude Ewart King was an English-born character actor and unionist, who appeared in American silent film. With his distinctive wavy hair, King appeared on both stage and screen. He served his country, Great Britain, in World War I in Field Artillery, reaching the rank of Major and surviving the war. He began his stage career in his native country, before emigrating to the US. In 1919, he appeared on Broadway in support of Ethel Barrymore in the play Declassee.
Charlie Chan Carries On is a 1931 American pre-Code mystery film directed by Hamilton MacFadden and starring Warner Oland, John Garrick and Marguerite Churchill. It is the first appearance of Warner Oland as Charlie Chan. Part of the long-running Charlie Chan series, it was based on the 1930 novel of the same title by Earl Derr Biggers. It is now considered a lost film; however, Fox simultaneously filmed a Spanish-language version which was released under the title Eran Trece—There Were Thirteen—and this version survives.
Making the Grade is a 1929 sound part-talkie American Pre-Code comedy film directed by Alfred E. Green. In addition to sequences with audible dialogue or talking sequences, the film features a synchronized musical score and sound effects along with English intertitles. The soundtrack was recorded using the Movietone sound-on-film system. The film stars Lois Moran, Edmund Lowe and Lucien Littlefield.
Hap Depew (1887–1940) was an American cinematographer. He shot silent films for Trem Carr at Rayart Pictures during the 1920s. During the 1930s, he worked on several Our Gang short films.