Mr. Wong, Detective: The Complete Collection - DVD

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. MR. WONG, DETECTIVE When business magnate Simon Dayton is found dead inside his locked office moments after police detective Sam Street saw him at the window, renowned private detective James Lee Wong joins forces with the homicide squad to interpret the only clues found at the scene-tiny fragments of delicate glass. Soon sinister agents of foreign powers start appearing in the shadows, Dayton's business partners start dying under equally mysterious circumstances, and Wong and Street have to race against time to prevent more murders, including, possibly their own. 69 min, B&W, 1.33 1, NR, 1938 THE MYSTERY OF MR. WONG When a wealthy collector of Chinese antiques, with a list of enemies as long as a phone directory is accidentally shot during a game of charades, brilliant Chinese detective James Lee Wong immediately suspects foul play. His suspicions are confirmed when it is discovered that a valuable gem has been stolen from the collector's safe, and Captain St