The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan was an American Saturday morning animated cartoon series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions in 1972, based upon the Charlie Chan movie series of the 1930s and '40s. The voice of Mr. Chan, Keye Luke (who played the part of Chan's son in some of the original movies), is the only actor of Chinese descent to play the title character.
[edit] Overview
In this series, Mr. Chan (whose first name is never given, except in one episode title), his ten children and their dog Chu Chu solve mysteries around the world, with the children helping their father in every episode (or at least trying to). They traveled in a van which could be transformed into other vehicles (much like Hong Kong Phooey's Phooeymobile) with the push of a button.
The older children also had their own music group, The Chan Clan; every episode featured a song, either being played over the action or with the characters playing instruments and performing. Vocals for the group were provided by former Archies lead singer Ron Dante, with music supervision by Don Kirshner (who had supervised the music for The Archie Show).
The voices of the children were recast almost immediately, as it was deemed that their (original) thick accents would be too confusing for young viewers to understand. With the new cast in place, old episodes were re-dubbed using the new voices. Prolific voice actor Don Messick, the voice of Scooby-Doo and many other well known cartoon characters, provided the voice of the Chan family dog, Chu Chu. Gene Andrusco, who provided the (redubbed) voice of "Flip," went on to be a successful record producer and musician fronting the band Adam Again.
Sixteen episodes were made in all. The show lasted for one season (and was then rerun for a second season) in 1972 on CBS, and is today often rerun on Cartoon Network's sister network, Boomerang.
[edit] Cast of Characters
- Mr. Chan: Famous Detective and father of the ten Chan children.
- Henry Chan: Oldest son of the Chan children. Presumably in his late teens, he is the hunky mature and natural leader of his siblings.
- Stanley Chan: Second oldest son, he is Henry's impulsive, comic sidekick.
- Suzie Chan: Presumably in her midteens, Suzie is portrayed as sweet and pretty.
- Tom Chan: Also in his midteens, he is portrayed as the most intellectual of the Chan children.
- Alan Chan: Another midteen, he is the inventor/engineer of the Chan children.
- Anne Chan: Last of the midteens, she is a wisecracking tomboy.
- Flip Chan: Older preteen, usually called "Chief" by Scooter.
- Nancy Chan: Another older preteen, slightly overweight, and has a ponytail.
- Scooter Chan: Youngest and most boyish of the Chan children.
- Mimi Chan: Along with Scooter, she is the youngest and most little girlish.
- Chu Chu: Chan children's pet dog that assists in solving cases.
[edit] Episodes
| No. | Title | Airdate | Prod. code |
| 1 | "The Crown Jewel Caper" | September 9, 1972 (1972-09-09) | ACC-1 |
| The Crown Jewels have disappeared from their case. |
| 2 | "To Catch a Pitcher" | September 16, 1972 (1972-09-16) | ACC-2 |
| A famous pitcher is missing and feared kidnapped. |
| 3 | "Will The Real Charlie Chan Please Stand Up?" | September 30, 1972 (1972-09-30) | ACC-3 |
| The Chan Clan must find the impostor who is framing Mr. Chan for the hotel robberies. |
| 4 | "The Phantom Sea Thief" | September 30, 1972 (1972-09-30) | ACC-4 |
| A mysterious thief steals a painting during the Chan Clan's performance aboard a cruise ship. |
| 5 | "Eye of the Idol" | October 7, 1972 (1972-10-07) | ACC-5 |
| A thief uses a smoke bomb to distract the Chan Clan and everyone in the room while he steals a jeweled idol's eye. |
| 6 | "Fat Lady Caper" | October 14, 1972 (1972-10-14) | ACC-6 |
| Dimples the fat lady seems to disappear when a bank robber is on the loose. |
| 7 | "Captain Kidd's Doubloons" | October 21, 1972 (1972-10-21) | ACC-7 |
| While in Trinidad, the Chan Clan must solve the theft of the doubloons. |
| 8 | "Bronze Idol" | October 28, 1972 (1972-10-28) | ACC-8 |
| A con artist uses the idol to trick the villagers into giving it more pearls. Also, a prince is kidnapped and then replaced by an impostor. |
| 9 | "Double Trouble" | November 4, 1972 (1972-11-04) | ACC-9 |
| Prince Hareem, who plans to be in an auto race, is kidnapped and replaced with an impostor. |
| 10 | "The Great Illusion Caper" | November 11, 1972 (1972-11-11) | ACC-10 |
| A magician's dog has been stolen and the Chans help find her. |
| 11 | "The Mummy's Tomb" | November 18, 1972 (1972-11-18) | ACC-11 |
| A golden coffin of a famous pharaoh is stolen. |
| 12 | "The Mardi Gras Caper" | November 25, 1972 (1972-11-25) | ACC-12 |
| A valuable ring has been stolen. |
| 13 | "The Gypsy Caper" | December 2, 1972 (1972-12-02) | ACC-13 |
| A mural has been stolen. While on the case, Stanley accidentally makes Henry swallow a clock. |
| 14 | "The Greek Caper" | December 9, 1972 (1972-12-09) | ACC-14 |
| A statue of the winged goddess Athena is stolen in Greece and replaced by a plaster copy. Mr. Chan enlists Alan's help to find it. |
| 15 | "White Elephant" | December 16, 1972 (1972-12-16) | ACC-15 |
| The Maharaja's white elephant Sing Ha disappears from the elephant enclosure when they are feeding it, and is feared stolen. |
| 16 | "Scotland Yard" | December 30, 1972 (1972-12-30) | ACC-16 |
| A priceless stone called the Stone of Scone is stolen and the Chan Clan must help get it back. |
[edit] Voices
[edit] Original voices
- Debbie Jue — Nancy Chan
- Jay Jay Jue — Flip Chan
- Leslie Juwai — Mimi Chan
- Leslie Kumamota — Anne Chan
- Virginia Ann Lee — Suzie Chan
- Michael Takamoto — Tom Chan
- Robin Toma — Scooter Chan
- Stephen Wong — Stanley Chan
[edit] Redubbed voices
[edit] Comic book
At about the same time that the show came out, Gold Key Comics produced a comic book series based on the program, with artwork by Warren Tufts; it only lasted four issues.
[edit] Other media
- In an episode of Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law, a Japanese band called "Shoyu Weenie" sued another band ("The Neptunes" from the Jabberjaw animated series) for plagiarism. "Shoyu Weenie" was based on the Chan Clan, with Mr. Chan as their semi-tyrannical band manager. Unlike the actual show the Chan Clan only speak Japanese.
- In the Krypto the Superdog episode, "Up, Up, and Away!", Mimi Chan is in Kevin's class on the field trip to Lex Corp.
[edit] External links
