Charlie Chan at the Circus Poster
MOVIEmeter
SEE RANK
Down 9,496 this week

Charlie Chan at the Circus (1936)

APPROVED 72 min  -  Comedy | Crime | Mystery  -   27 March 1936 (USA)
7.1
Your rating:
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 -/10 X  
Ratings: 7.1/10 from 842 users  
Reviews: 20 user | 6 critic

While visiting the circus with his family, Charlie is recruited by the big top's co-owner to investigate threatening letters that he's received.

Director:

Harry Lachman

Writers:

Robert Ellis, Earl Derr Biggers (character), and 1 more credit »

Stars:

Warner Oland, Keye Luke and George Brasno
 Loading+Watchlist
View Watchlist »
New List »
1 photo | full cast and crew »

Watch it

Buy it from Amazon »

Quick Links:

Create a list  »

Related Lists

image of title
The Circus
a list of 24 titles by Alex DuVon created 1 month ago
 
image of title
The 26 Circus Movies That I know
a list of 25 titles by evelynn-delgado created 11 May 2011
 
image of title
My Top 10 Favorite Charlie Chan Mystery Films
a list of 10 titles by classicsoncall created 11 months ago
 
image of title
The best Charlie Chan films
a list of 10 titles by Hunley created 07 Jan 2011
 
image of title
Zoological Horror Movies.
a list of 430 titles by emertens created 5 months ago
 
See all 22 related lists »

Connect with IMDb

Pre-Order the Kindle Fire
Edit

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Warner Oland ...
Keye Luke Keye Luke ...
George Brasno George Brasno ...
Colonel Tim
Olive Brasno Olive Brasno ...
Lady Tiny
Francis Ford Francis Ford ...
John Gaines
Maxine Reiner Maxine Reiner ...
Marie Norman
John McGuire John McGuire ...
Hal Blake
Shirley Deane Shirley Deane ...
Louise Norman
Paul Stanton Paul Stanton ...
Joe Kinney
J. Carrol Naish J. Carrol Naish ...
Tom Holt
Boothe Howard Boothe Howard ...
Dan Farrell
Drue Leyton Drue Leyton ...
Nellie Farrell
Wade Boteler Wade Boteler ...
Lt. Macy
Shia Jung Shia Jung ...
Su Toy
Full cast and crew »
Edit

Storyline

Charlie receives fourteen free passes to the circus for him and his entire family but soon realizes that there are strings attached as the big top's co-owner asks his guest to investigate threatening letters that he's received. Before the famous detective can, the man is murdered. Charlie soon finds out that the co-owner was not a particularly pleasant or well-liked individual, and among the many suspects are his partner, a snake charmer and the menagerie's gorilla. Son Lee, usually an enthusiastic assistant for his father, is distracted by the show's beautiful contortionist. Written by Gabe Taverney (duke1029@aol.com)  

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

Circus | Threatening Letter | Snake Charmer | Gorilla | Snake  | See more »

Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Mystery | Thriller

Parents Guide:

Add content advisory for parents »
Edit

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

(USA) See more »

Also Known As:

Charlie Chan im Zirkus See more »

Filming Locations:

El Monte, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation See more »
Show detailed company contact information on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1
See full technical specs »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

The action occurs entirely at the Kinney & Gaines Combined Circus. See more »

Goofs

Factual errors: The ape is shown peeling the banana from the top. Primates, except for humans, peel them from the bottom, thus doing away with those pesky stringy bits. See more »

Quotes

Charlie Chan: One grain of luck sometimes worth more than whole rice field of wisdom.
See more »

Connections

Followed by Dark Alibi (1946) See more »