Chang Apana, The Real Charlie Chan?

Ég heyrði fyrst um Chang Apana í featurette á einn af Charlie Chan DVD setur. I knew a real life detective inspired Earl Derr Biggers to create Charlie Chan. I did not know who the man was. Chang Apana was that man.

Chang Apana (Fæddur Ah Ping Chang) á desember 26, 1871 á eyjunni Oahu var sonur kínverska-Hawaiian foreldra, Chang moved back and forth between China and Hawaii as a child before returning to Hawaii for good as a teenager. He worked as a cowboy before becoming a humane society officer in 1894. Animal fullnustu var hluti af Honolulu Police, þar sem hann myndi þjóna fyrir næsta 34 ár.

Chang talaði Hawaiian, Hawaiian Pidgin og kínverska. Hann var líka eini kínverska meðlimur lögreglumanns. After a few years, he was promoted from animal enforcement to Chinatown patrol. Lokum, hann myndi verða einkaspæjara sem sérhæfir sig í fjárhættuspil og smygl. Ólíkt Charlie Chan, Hann vann sjaldan morð tilfelli.

Chang still holds the record for most arrests in one case, when he arrested 70 offenders. He walked the group down the main street to the police station. The local newspaper commented on being treated to “yesterday’s parade courtesy of Officer Apana”.

Chang Apana was well established as a detective, when Earl Derr Biggers visited the island in 1919 and was inspired to write House Without a Key. He continued to read the Honolulu newspapers after returning to New York.

He wrote a letter in 1932, which acknowledged Chang Apana as the inspiration for Charlie Chan. Derr Bigger’s wife said she always believed Charlie Chan was based on Derr Bigger’s himself. The truth is probably somewhere in between.

Chang Apana was a thin, tough man, who carried a bull whip instead of a gun. His face bore the marks of his profession as he had been slashed on the face a couple of times and stabbed more than five time.

The Charlie Chan eðli virðist líkjast Derr stærri er physique og greint staf. Ég held Derr Biggers blandað eigin eiginleika sína með hetjudáð Chang Apana og eðli til að búa Charlie Chan.

Athyglisvert, 1933 myndi vera ár bæði karlar bíða lægri hlut til veikinda. Derr Biggers, sem fæddist í ágúst 26, 1884, orðið banvæn hjartaáfall á apríl 5, 1933. Hann var látinn 48 ára.

Á Desember 8, 1933, Chang Apana dó úr áhrifum drep. Hann hafði verið meiddur í bílslysi í 1932. Fótur hans var neðan hnés desember 7, 1933 en hann dó næsta dag. Hann var 61 ára.

Chang Apana og Earl Derr Biggers bæði vinstri varanleg arfleifð. Charlie Chan was part of this legacy.

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