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Jack Oakie plays Duke, happy go lucky nightclub bandleader. He has a close but vaguely defined friendship with band singer Miriam Hopkins, whose new boyfriend William Collier Jr. Plays the saxophone and wants to marry her. She's not so sure about that idea, partly because shady former boyfriend George Raft is back in town and seems inclined to make trouble.

Oakie schemes to separate Collier from Hopkins by finding him a great job in another city - is Oakie protecting his sax player from the woman with a past? Or is he interested in Hopkins himself?

Meanwhile, Raft and his naive protege Paul Fix rob the nightclub office and shoot the manager. Fix flees town but Raft hangs around, determined to win back Hopkins, by force if necessary.

Of course, everything comes to a head when Collier returns to the club, Oakie realizes his own motives, and the cops show up looking for Raft.

It sounds like an old story, but the production is lively and inventive enough that the viewer never quite knows which direction it's going next. The dialog is occasionally snappy, and the cast is just fine, including Eugene Pallette and Lyda Roberti as a patron and dancer who pop into the picture every so often for some mild comic relief.

Charlie Chan travels to San Francisco on a missing person case: An heir is missing and his relatives and associates are about ready to have him declared dead so they can split up the estate. When the heir turns up but is immediately murdered, Chan sticks around to figure out which one did it.

The usual suspects are on hand: Henrietta Crosman as the feisty old aunt who is currently is possession of the estate; Rosina Lawrence as the aunt's well-meaning daughter and Charles Quigley as her loyal fiance; Astrid Allwyn as the other daughter, the one with a bad attitude; Egon Brecher as the caretaker who has a long history with the family; and Jonathan Hale as the shady family attorney.

Herbert Mundin provides adequate comic relief as the nervous butler who is reluctantly pressed into service as Chan's assistant.

The investigation includes a couple of seances performed by a local medium, and a fair amount of Mr. Chan searching the innards of the mysterious old house, traipsing down secret passages with his flashlight in one hand and revolver in the other. Warner Oland is fun to watch, as always, as the persistent sleuth.

All the story elements here are very familiar - but nevertheless pleasant enough. Overall this one is nothing sensational but still an enjoyable series entry.

Charlie Chan arrives in Shanghai to investigate a smuggling ring. His local contact is murdered before he gets a chance to talk with him. Suspects include the mysterious leader of the smuggling gang, a G-man who arrives to join the investigation, and the police commissioner himself. There's also of course the handsome young American in love with the attractive niece of the victim.

Luckily, Keye Luke is on hand as Lee Chan, who both assists in solving the case and livens up the plot with a bit of humor. Luke ties up the hotel room phone talking to a girlfriend, ventures out disguised as a beggar, throws a few punches when he and his pop need to escape from kidnappers - things are always lively when number one son is on the screen.

Warner Oland is excellent as usual as the soft-spoken but keen-witted Mr. Chan. Russell Hicks and Halliwell Hobbes are right at home as authorities who behave a bit suspiciously. Jon Hall and Irene Hervey are predictable but do just fine as the young couple.

Overall, an entertaining mix of deduction and action that includes some laughs.