MR. WONG DETECTIVE: The Complete Collection
Product Details
Format: DVD
Version: Full Screen
Rating: NR
Runtime: 403 minutes
Apsect: 1.33:1
Year: 1938, 1939, 1940
Item #: 8506
Region: NTSC
Audio: Dolby Digital
Color: B&W
Language: English
Country: USA
UPC: 089859850622
ISBN: 1-55739-008-8
Summary
'Cashing in on the success of both Charlie Chan and Mr. Moto, Monogram Pictures ushered in their own Oriental detective series in 1938 with Boris Karloff as Mr. Wong, Detective. With horror films temporarily in the doldrums and his career needing a fresh tangent, Karloff jumped at the chance to play the gentlemanly and dignified sleuth of Hugh Wiley stories. This turned out to be a lucky break for Monogram too. In 1939 horror films returned with a vengeance and Karloff who had been making more expensive thrillers for Universal and somewhat cheaper ones for Columbia, was suddenly a much bigger name than Monogram could have afforded were he not already under contract. Karloff went on to star in a total of five Mr. Wong films for Monogram between 1938 and 1940. The sixth and final film in the series, Phantom of Chinatown, was issued in 1940 and actually starred Keye Luke who replaced Karloff as a younger Mr. Wong.
Bonus
Scene Selection
Photo Gallery
Bonus Serial Chapter: Red Barry (1938) - Chapter 1
Classic Boris Karloff Movie Trailers
Classic Cartoons of the Era
Actors
MR. WONG DETECTIVE: Boris Karloff, Grant Withers, Maxine Jennings THE MYSTERY OF MR. WONG: Boris Karloff, Grant Withers, Dorothy Tree, Lotus Long
MR. WONG IN CHINATOWN: Boris Karloff, Grant Withers, Marjorie Reynolds THE FATAL HOUR: Boris Karloff, Marjorie Reynolds, Grant Withers, Charles Trowbridge DOOMED TO DIE: Boris Karloff, Marjorie Reynolds, Grant Withers PHANTOM OF CHINATOWN: Keye Luke, Grant Withers, Lotus Long, Charles Miller, Huntley Gordon
Directors
William Witney
Phil Rosen
Customer Reviews
"Karloff shines as Mr. Wong the Detective", 5/13/2008 6:21:20 PM
Reviewer: Mr. Jim
Karloff as Mr. Wong is still up there with the best of them for mysteries and suspense in the film annuals. In 1938-1940 Monogram series with suspenseful whodunit ask the question as the "how" in each of his cases to be solved. Although made up to look vaguely Asian, Karloff eschews the stereotypical cadences and one liner sayings of those rival Asian sleuths Mr. Moto and Charlie Chan and is more believable than both detectives. He is best known for his roles in horror films and his portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the 1931 film Frankenstein. In contrast to the characters he played on screen, Karloff was known in real life as a very kind gentleman who gave generously, especially to children's charities. Boris Karloff (born William Henry Pratt) was an English actor who emigrated to Canada in the 1910s. Karloff was also a charter member of the Screen Actors Guild, and was especially outspoken regarding working conditions on sets (some extremely hazardous) that actors were expected to deal with in the mid-1930s ---------- Bio: Boris Karloff (aka: William Henry Pratt) ---- Date of Birth: 23 November 1887 - Camberwell, London, England, UK ---- Date of Death: 2 February 1969 - Midhurst, Sussex, England, UK ----------- As usual Robert Blair and his staff at VCI Entertainment another job well done. VCI was named in Variety and Hollywood Reporter as the first company to produce and release motion pictures directly to the home marketplace.
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