JohnHowardReid Director: LESLEY SELANDER. Screenplay: Oliver Drake, Clint Johnston. Story: Clint Johnson. Based on the character, "Charlie Chan", created by Earl Derr Biggers. Photography: William Sickner. Supervising film editor: Otho Lovering. Film editor: Roy Livingston. Art director: David Milton. Set decorator: Raymond Boltz, junior. Make-up: Web Overlander. Special effects: Ray Mercer. Production manager: Allen K. Wood. Music director: Edward J. Kay. Assistant director: Wesley Barry. Sound recording: Tom Lambert. Producer: James S. Burkett. Copyright 1 May 1949 by Monogram Pictures Corp. No recorded New York opening. U.S. release: 1 May 1949. U.K. release through Associated British-Pathé: 24 September 1949. Australian release: 8 December 1949. 6,129 feet. 68 minutes. Alternative title: Charlie Chan and the Sky Dragon.SYNOPSIS: All the passengers and the crew of an airliner on which Charlie Chan is travelling, are drugged. The plane continues its journey on automatic pilot. When the great detective awakes, it transpires that the sum of $250,000 is missing. NOTES: 47th and last entry in the Charlie Chan series, and the 17th of the Monogram films. COMMENT: The last of the Charlie Chans boasts a reasonably impressive cast, a moderately intriguing mystery, competent enough direction and an extremely modest budget. Everyone agrees that this is not one of the better films, but all the same, it's a pity the series finished off just as Roland Winters was finally getting into stride.

Michael O'Keefe Also known as MURDER IN THE AIR, this is the sixth Chan film starring Roland Winters. To be exact, this is the last in the Charlie Chan franchise that began at Fox Films about 19 years earlier with Warner Oland playing the American-Chinese detective from Honolulu. The series pretty much began declining in substance and popularity when Winters took over for Sidney Toler as Chan in 1947. This film has Charlie on board a flight to San Francisco with #1 son Lee(Keye Luke)and his bug eyed chauffeur Birmingham Brown(Mantan Moreland). Before arriving at their destination passengers and pilots are drugged and upon waking up an insurance courier is found dead and the quarter-million-dollars he was carrying is missing. Winters is lackluster in performing his duties as the honorable detective. Moreland provides some rib splitting comic relief as usual and Luke gets to fly the plane to the closing credits. (Did they not plan this to be the end of the series? You would figure the lead character would close out the string of murder mysteries). Also in the cast: Milburn Stone, Noel Neill, Tim Ryan and Lyle Talbot. Ah so, Charlie Chan.

classicsoncall "The Sky Dragon" would be the last of the Charlie Chan mystery films, this one starring Roland Winters who appeared in a total of six films as the Oriental Detective. Keye Luke, who first appeared as Number #1 Son Lee in 1935's "Charlie Chan in Paris" opposite Warner Oland, appears here in a much more mature characterization. So much so, that this is the only film in which Charlie is called "Dad" instead of "Pop" by any of his offspring.The movie involves an insurance scam aboard a San Francisco bound airline flight, on which all the passengers are drugged, with the perpetrator making off with a two hundred fifty thousand dollar bundle. Chan must make his way through a host of suspects among the passengers, before ferreting out the guilty party with Lee's help impersonating an injured (actually dead) pilot.Notable among the cast are Tim Ryan in his third Chan appearance as Lieutenant Mike Ruark of the San Francisco Police Department; and future Daily Planet Reporter Noel Neill as an airline hostess. For trivia fans, her TV Superman counterpart George Reeves also appeared in a Charlie Chan film, 1941's "Dead Men Tell", as of all things, a newspaper reporter! For his last appearance in a Chan film, Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown doesn't have much to do, although he does get physical at one point, helping Lee wrestle down a gunman confronting Charlie.Like many Charlie Chan films, it helps to keep a scorecard to track the characters and their relationships. "The Sky Dragon" has enough going on to keep you guessing, although in the end it's a rather average entry in the Chan series.

admjtk1701 The last Chan film made by Monogram and Roland Winters is a sad final bow for the great detective and great film series. The supporting cast is good for a Monogram picture. The best thing about it is that Keye Luke is back as Lee Chan. Great title. Poor picture! Sorry Charlie!