Chu-Chin-Chow (1925 film)
Encyclopedia
Chu-Chin-Chow is a 1925 British
-German
adventure film
directed by Herbert Wilcox
and starring Betty Blythe
, Herbert Langley
and Randle Ayrton
.
It was produced and directed in 1923 in Germany by Wilcox with financial assistance from the German UFA company. Wilcox may have had Erich Pommer
also as a financier on the production. It is based on the extraordinarily successful stage musical
Chu Chin Chow
by Oscar Asche
, with music by Frederic Norton
, that ran in London from 1916 to 1921.
The film starred American actress Betty Blythe
fresh from her scantily clad triumph in 1921's The Queen of Sheba at Fox. Sources state this film had early experimental synchronised sound but this process could only be viewed at the special theaters outfitted for the sound equipment. This film was released in the United States by MGM two years after its production with a drastically reduced footage count by almost half.
A sound film Chu Chin Chow
, with the score intact, was made by the Gainsborough Studios in 1934, with George Robey
playing the part of Ali Baba
, Fritz Kortner
as Abu Hassan, Anna May Wong
as Zahrat Al-Kulub and Laurence Hanray
as Kasim.
Cinema of the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has had a major influence on modern cinema. The first moving pictures developed on celluloid film were made in Hyde Park, London in 1889 by William Friese Greene, a British inventor, who patented the process in 1890. It is generally regarded that the British film industry...
-German
Cinema of Germany
Cinema in Germany can be traced back to the late 19th century. German cinema has made major technical and artistic contributions to film.Unlike any other national cinemas, which developed in the context of relatively continuous and stable political systems, Germany witnesses major changes to its...
adventure film
Adventure film
Adventure films are a genre of film.Unlike pure, low-budget action films they often use their action scenes preferably to display and explore exotic locations in an energetic way....
directed by Herbert Wilcox
Herbert Wilcox
Herbert Sydney Wilcox was a British film producer and director.-Early life:Wilcox's mother was from County Cork, Ireland, but he was born in Norwood and attended school in Brighton...
and starring Betty Blythe
Betty Blythe
Betty Blythe was an American actress best known for her dramatic roles in exotic silent films such as The Queen of Sheba .-Career:...
, Herbert Langley
Herbert Langley
-Selected filmography:* The Wonderful Story * Flames of Passion * Chu-Chin-Chow * Southern Love * Carmen * Cupid in Clover 1929)* Number Seventeen * Letting in the Sunshine...
and Randle Ayrton
Randle Ayrton
Randle Ayrton was a British actor, producer and director.-Career:Ayrton was educated at the King's School in Chester and Geneva University. In 1890 he made his stage debut at the Old Avenue Theatre in London and has been successful on stage in London and in America into the late 1930s...
.
It was produced and directed in 1923 in Germany by Wilcox with financial assistance from the German UFA company. Wilcox may have had Erich Pommer
Erich Pommer
Erich Pommer was a German-born film producer and executive. He was involved in the German Expressionist film movement during the silent era as the head of production at Decla, Decla-Bioscop and from 1924 to 1926 at Ufa responsible for many of the best known movies of the Weimar Republic such as...
also as a financier on the production. It is based on the extraordinarily successful stage musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
Chu Chin Chow
Chu Chin Chow
Chu Chin Chow is a musical comedy written, produced and directed by Oscar Asche, with music by Frederic Norton, based on the story of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves...
by Oscar Asche
Oscar Asche
John Stange Heiss Oscar Asche , better known as Oscar Asche, was an Australian actor, director and writer, best known for having written, directed, and acted in the record-breaking musical Chu Chin Chow, both on stage and film, and for acting in, directing, or producing many Shakespeare plays and...
, with music by Frederic Norton
Frederic Norton
Frederic Norton born George Frederic Norton on 11 October 1869 in Broughton, Salford, England. Died on 15 December 1946 in Holford, England. British composer, most associated with the record breaking Chu Chin Chow, which opened in 1916....
, that ran in London from 1916 to 1921.
The film starred American actress Betty Blythe
Betty Blythe
Betty Blythe was an American actress best known for her dramatic roles in exotic silent films such as The Queen of Sheba .-Career:...
fresh from her scantily clad triumph in 1921's The Queen of Sheba at Fox. Sources state this film had early experimental synchronised sound but this process could only be viewed at the special theaters outfitted for the sound equipment. This film was released in the United States by MGM two years after its production with a drastically reduced footage count by almost half.
A sound film Chu Chin Chow
Chu Chin Chow (1934 film)
Chu-Chin-Chow is a 1934 British musical film directed by Walter Forde and starring George Robey, Fritz Kortner and Anna May Wong. It was an adaptation of the play Chu-Chin-Chow by Frederick Norton and Oscar Asche.-Cast:* George Robey - Ali Baba...
, with the score intact, was made by the Gainsborough Studios in 1934, with George Robey
George Robey
Sir George Edward Wade , better known by his stage name, George Robey, was an English music hall comedian and star. He was marketed as the "Prime Minister of Mirth".-Early life:...
playing the part of Ali Baba
Ali Baba
Ali Baba is a fictional character from medieval Arabic literature. He is described in the adventure tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves...
, Fritz Kortner
Fritz Kortner
Fritz Kortner was an Austrian-born stage and film actor and theatre director.Kortner was born in Vienna as Fritz Nathan Kohn. He studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. After graduating, he joined Max Reinhardt in Berlin in 1911 and then Leopold Jessner in 1916. Also in that year...
as Abu Hassan, Anna May Wong
Anna May Wong
Anna May Wong was an American actress, the first Chinese American movie star, and the first Asian American to become an international star...
as Zahrat Al-Kulub and Laurence Hanray
Laurence Hanray
Laurence Hanray , sometimes credited as Lawrence Hanray, was a British film actor born in London, England.-Partial filmography:* Beyond the Cities * Her Reputation * The Faithful Heart...
as Kasim.
Cast
- Betty BlytheBetty BlytheBetty Blythe was an American actress best known for her dramatic roles in exotic silent films such as The Queen of Sheba .-Career:...
- Zahrat - Herbert LangleyHerbert Langley-Selected filmography:* The Wonderful Story * Flames of Passion * Chu-Chin-Chow * Southern Love * Carmen * Cupid in Clover 1929)* Number Seventeen * Letting in the Sunshine...
- Abou Hassan - Randle AyrtonRandle AyrtonRandle Ayrton was a British actor, producer and director.-Career:Ayrton was educated at the King's School in Chester and Geneva University. In 1890 he made his stage debut at the Old Avenue Theatre in London and has been successful on stage in London and in America into the late 1930s...
- Kasim Baba - Eva MooreEva MooreEva Moore was an English actress. Her career on stage and in film spanned six decades, and she was active in the women's suffrage movement.-Early life and career:...
- Alcolma - Judd GreenJudd GreenJudd Green was a British film actor of the silent era. He was sometimes credited as R. Judd Green. He was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire in 1866 and made his first screen appearance in 1914.-Selected filmography:* Thelma...
- Ali Baba - Olaf HyttenOlaf HyttenOlaf Hytten was a Scottish film actor. He appeared in over 280 films between 1921 and 1955.He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and died in Los Angeles, California from a heart attack...
- Mukhill - Jeff Barlow Jeff Barlow-Selected filmography:* Rupert of Hentzau * Bonnie Mary * The Splendid Coward * Castles in Spain * Beyond the Dreams of Avarice * The Further Exploits of Sexton Blake: The Mystery of the S.S...
- Mustafa - Jameson ThomasJameson ThomasJameson Thomas was an English film actor. He appeared in 82 films between 1923 and 1939.He was born in London and died in Sierra Madre, California, it is said from Tuberculosis....
- Omar - Dora Levis - Mahbubah
- Dacia - Dancer