China Bound (1929)

Although both of their starring careers would be cut short by the talkie revolution, MGM house comedians Karl Dane and George K. Arthur were still riding high in 1929 with such silent vehicles as China Bound. In this outing, the towering Dane and the diminutive Arthur find themselves smack in the middle of a Chinese revolution. Endeavoring to escape, our heroes disguise themselves as "typical Orientals," buck teeth, pigtails, and all (which may be why this film isn't revived very often these days). Polly Moran, who appeared in most of the Dane-Arthur comedies, is back again in this adaptation of a screenplay by Sylvia Thalberg (sister of MGM head-honcho Irving Thalberg). After his fall from stardom, George K. Arthur went into the production end of the business, but Karl Dane was not so lucky; despondent over his dormant career, he committed suicide in 1934. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi