Stereotypes of East Asians in the United States forms of racial discrimination or social issues in American society at large, and that their community is thriving, having "gained" socioeconomic success through their own merit. Fu Manchu and Charlie Chan are two important and well-known fictional East Asian characters in America's cultural history. Created by Sax Rohmer and Earl Derr Biggers in the early part of the 20th century, Fu Manchu is the embodiment of America's imagination of a threatening mysterious East Asian people while Charlie Chan is an apologetic submissive Chinese-Hawaiian detective who represents America's archetypal "good" East Asian. Both characters found widespread popularity in numerous novels and
Charlie Chan Liu is slated to star in and executive-produce a new Charlie Chan film for Fox. The film has been in preproduction since 2000; as of 2009 it is slated to be produced. On radio, Charlie Chan was heard in several different series on three networks (the NBC Blue Network, Mutual, and ABC) between 1932 and 1948. Walter Connolly initially portrayed Chan on Esso Oil's "Five Star Theater", which serialized adaptations of Biggers novels. Ed Begley, Sr. had the title role in N.B.C.'s "The Adventures of Charlie Chan" (1944–45), followed by Santos Ortega (1947–48). Leon Janney and Rodney Jacobs were heard