Cay Van Ash (born in Sussex, England in 1918; died in Paris, France in April 1994) was a Professor of English Literature at Waseda University in Japan and a writer.
In 1935, the 17-year-old pedalled his bicycle to interview his literary hero Sax Rohmer. The two struck up a friendship. Van Ash lived with the Rohmers for 15 months, while Rohmer taught him the mechanics of writing.[1] He was employed as Rohmer's secretary for a number of years before moving to Japan in the 1950s. They continued to correspond until Rohmer's death in 1959.
In 1971, Rohmer's widow Elizabeth contacted Van Ash to help her complete a biography of her husband, Master of Villainy, which was published the following year.
Whilst teaching in Japan, Van Ash was licensed by the Rohmer estate to write a continuationFu Manchu novel, Ten Years Beyond Baker Street (1984). Set in April 1914 in Sussex, it featured Dr. Petrie calling Sherlock Holmes out of retirement after Nayland Smith is abducted. A second novel, The Fires of Fu Manchu, set during the First World War, followed in 1987. A third novel, The Seal of Fu Manchu, was announced in 1988. At the time of his death in 1994, Van Ash and his wife were living in Paris where he was researching the novel's setting. The manuscript was unfinished at the time of his death and is now believed lost.[2]
Van Ash taught at Waseda University from 1961 until his death.
Dr. Fu Manchu is a supervillain who was introduced in a series of novels by the English author Sax Rohmer beginning shortly before World War I and continuing for another forty years. The character featured in cinema, television, radio, comic strips and comic books for over 100 years, and he has also become an archetype of the evil criminal genius and mad scientist, while lending his name to the Fu Manchu moustache.
Arthur Henry "Sarsfield" Ward, better known as Sax Rohmer, was an English novelist. He is best remembered for his series of novels featuring the master criminal Fu Manchu.
The Yellow Peril is a racist color metaphor that depicts the peoples of East and Southeast Asia as an existential danger to the Western world.
The Mask of Fu Manchu is a 1932 American pre-Code film directed by Charles Brabin. Written by Irene Kuhn, Edgar Allan Woolf and John Willard, it was based on the 1932 novel of the same name by Sax Rohmer. The film, featuring Boris Karloff as Fu Manchu and Myrna Loy as his daughter, revolves around Fu Manchu's quest for the golden sword and mask of Genghis Khan. Lewis Stone played his nemesis.
Everybody's Favorite Duck is a 1988 parody of classic detective fiction and sensational crime stories. This short novel by cartoonist Gahan Wilson pits the detectives Enoch Bone and John Weston against the Professor, a British Napoleon of Crime; the Mandarin, a Chinese mastermind, and Spectrobert, a French rogue.
Denis Nayland Smith is a character who was introduced in the series of novels Dr. Fu Manchu by the English author Sax Rohmer. He is a rival to the villain Dr. Fu Manchu.
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.
Ethnic stereotypes in comics have evolved over time, reflecting the changing political climate.
Dr. Yen Sin was a short-lived pulp science fiction magazine published by the New York City-based Popular Publications during 1936. It superseded a similar magazine from the same publishers entitled The Mysterious Wu Fang, which had ceased publication in February 1936. The title characters of both magazines, Wu Fang and Yen Sin, were Yellow Peril villains in the mold of Fu Manchu.
Drums of Fu Manchu (1940) is a 15-chapter Republic serial film based on the character created by Sax Rohmer. Though using the title of the ninth novel in the series, it actually is based on numerous elements from throughout the series to that point, cherry-picked by the writers. It starred Henry Brandon, William Royle and Robert Kellard. It was directed by the serial team of William Witney and John English and is often considered one of the best serial films ever made.
The Mystery of Dr. Fu-Manchu (1913) is the first novel in the Dr. Fu Manchu series by Sax Rohmer. It collates various short stories that were published the preceding year. The novel was also published in the U.S. under the title The Insidious Dr. Fu-Manchu and was adapted into the film The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu.
Fah Lo Suee is a character who was introduced in the series of novels Dr. Fu Manchu by the English author Sax Rohmer (1883-1959). She is the daughter of Dr. Fu Manchu and an unnamed Russian woman, sometimes shown as an ally, sometimes shown as a rival. The character featured in cinema and comic strips and comic books alongside her father, sometimes using another names, and she has also become an archetype of the Dragon Lady.
Sumuru is a female supervillain created by Sax Rohmer, author of the Fu Manchu series of novels. She first appeared in a 1945-1946 BBC radio serial, which was rewritten as a novel in 1950. Four more novels were published between 1951 and 1956. Two movies were then made in the 1960s and one more in 2003.
The Barton Mystery is a 1920 British silent crime film directed by Harry T. Roberts, produced by Oswald Stoll and starring Lyn Harding, Hilda Bayley and Arthur Pusey It ran 72 minutes in length. The screenplay was written by R. Byron-Webber, based on the eponymous stage play by Walter C. Hackett, which was first staged in England in October, 1917. The cinematographer was E. Harvey Harrison.
Harry Agar Lyons was an Irish-born British actor. He was born in Cork, Ireland in 1878 and died in Wandsworth, London, England in 1944 at age 72.
The Yellow Claw is a 1921 British silent crime film directed by René Plaissetty and starring Sydney Seaward, Arthur M. Cullin and Harvey Braban. The film was shot partly at Cricklewood Studios and ran 68 minutes. It was based on the 1915 novel The Yellow Claw by Sax Rohmer, in which a French detective battles a notorious master criminal named Mr. King.
Zheng Bao Yu, is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is the daughter of Zheng Zu and the older half-sister of Shang-Chi.
The Mysterious Wu Fang was a pulp magazine which published seven issues in 1935 and 1936. Sax Rohmer's Fu Manchu, an oriental villain, was a "yellow peril" stereotype, and Popular Publications wanted to take advantage of the public's interest. The author of all seven lead novels was Robert J. Hogan, who was simultaneously writing the novels for G-8 and His Battle Aces, producing 130,000 to 150,000 words per month; Hogan was told not to rewrite, but to deliver his first drafts. The hero of the novels was a man named Val Kildare; other characters included a young assistant to Kildare, who was probably added to attract younger readers. The artist John Richard Flanagan, who had experience illustrating Fu Manchu, was hired, but in the opinion of pulp historian Robert Weinberg, "an imitation was an imitation, and the magazine did not sell well". There were short stories along with the lead novel in each issue, also with a "yellow peril" theme; the authors included Steve Fisher, Frank Gruber, O.B. Meyers, and Frank Beaston. The magazine was cancelled after seven issues in favor of a similar magazine with a different villain: Dr. Yen Sin. According to pulp historian Joseph Lewandowski, the decision to switch titles may have been because Wu Fang was too juvenile, and Dr. Yen Sin was supposed to be more mature.
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