The Sky Dragon
Cast & Crew
Lesley Selander
Roland Winters
Keye Luke
Mantan Moreland
Noel Neill
Tim Ryan
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Inside the cockpit of a commercial jetliner, pilots Tim Norton and Don Blake talk with insurance couriers Ben Edwards and Ed Davidson, who are carrying a $250,000 settlement. Tim walks to the back of the cabin for some coffee, just as flight attendant Marie Burke begins serving the passengers. Marie, a former racketeer whose real name is Connie Barrett, notices that two of her accomplices, Andy Barrett and follies star Wanda LaFern, are among the passengers. When they accuse her of stealing $60,000 from them, Marie denies it and begs them not to ruin her chance at a new life. Minutes after drinking the coffee, everyone on board the plane falls asleep, including the crew. Passenger Lee Chan, the first to awaken, notices a limp hand protruding from the cockpit door, then discovers that Davidson has been knifed to death and the insurance money stolen. After Lee's father, Charlie Chan, the renowned detective, is awakened, passenger John Anderson introduces himself as an investigator for the insurance company. When the plane lands in San Francisco, police lieutenant Mike Ruark and the owner of the insurance company, William E. French, question the passengers and crew. Later, at the theater where Wanda performs, Tim and Don eavesdrop as Wanda accuses Marie of stealing the insurance money. Meanwhile, Chan, Lee, Ruark and Chan's chauffeur Birmingham Brown go to the theater, where they find Don, whose skull has been fractured. When Ruark sees Tim running away, he arrests him, while Don is rushed to the hospital. After being questioned by Chan, Barrett breaks into the detective's house, but is shot by Anderson, who had been following him. Later, Chan and Lee go to the home of Jonathan Tibbetts, the justice of the peace who officiated at the Barretts' wedding. They ask to see the negatives of the wedding photos, but when Tibbetts goes into the garage to get them, a shadowy figure knocks him out, then lights the negatives on fire. After Chan and Lee rescue Tibbetts, he checks his order book and notes that he sent prints to the LaFern sisters, Connie and Wanda. Later, Chan and Lee find a photograph of the LaFern sisters in the newspaper and recognize Connie as Marie. With Ruark's help, Chan summons all of the remaining suspects back onto the plane. Chan then asks Connie, Wanda and Tim to take their places next to the coffee cart, where they had been standing just prior to the robbery. After Chan tells them about Don's attack, a heavily bandaged Lee impersonates Don and boards the plane. As he raises his arm to point toward the thief, Connie grabs a gun from her purse. Before Connie can fire, however, Anderson shoots her, then Chan reveals that Anderson passed the money to French, his accomplice, after the plane landed. When Ruark tries to arrest them, French also draws his gun. Anderson, an experienced pilot, locks the cabin door and takes off. With the plane's sole parachute on his back, Anderson shuts off the plane's fuel and locks the cockpit door. Realizing that he has been double-crossed, French struggles with Anderson, but both are grabbed by the police. After the cockpit key is found and fuel restored to the engines, the plane lands safely.
Director
Lesley Selander
Cast
Roland Winters
Keye Luke
Mantan Moreland
Noel Neill
Tim Ryan
Iris Adrian
Elena Verdugo
Milburn Stone
Lyle Talbot
Paul Maxey
Joel Marston
John Eldredge
Eddie Parks
Louise Franklin
Lyle Latell
Gaylord Pendleton
Emmett Vogan
Edna Holland
Joe Whitehead
Lee Phelps
Charlie Jordan
Suzette Harbin
George Eldredge
Bob Curtis
Frank Cady
Crew
Wesley Barry
Raymond Boltz Jr.
James S. Burkett
Robert J. Campbell
Lela Chambers
Oliver Drake
Bud Graybill
Ace Herman
Clint Johnston
Clint Johnston
Edward J. Kay
John Kean
Tom Lambert
Harry Lewis
Roy Livingston
John Martin
Ray Mercer
David Milton
Ed Morey Jr.
Webb Overlander
William Sickner
Ilona Vas
Allen K. Wood
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working title of this film was Murder in the Air. The film's title card reads: "Charlie Chan in The Sky Dragon." Although Roy Livingston is credited onscreen as editor, Hollywood Reporter production charts credit Ace Herman as editor. For additional information on the "Charlie Chan" series, please consult the Series Index and see Charlie Chan Carries On in AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1931-40; F3.0663.
