Which American author created the detective Charlie Chan?

Earl Derr Biggers created the detective Charlie Chan. The American author introduced Chan in The House Without a Key, a mystery novel published in 1925 and set in Hawaii.

Biggers conceived Charlie Chan after reading about Honolulu police officers Chang Apana and Lee Fook. Chan was designed as a law-abiding, intelligent Chinese-American detective who challenged the “Yellow Peril” villain stereotype common in popular fiction of the period. The character became Honolulu’s most famous fictional investigator, although later books and films also sent him around the world.

Biggers wrote six Charlie Chan novels, ending with Keeper of the Keys in 1932. More than four dozen films followed, helping make Chan internationally recognizable. Modern discussions also note that some dialogue and portrayals in the adaptations rely on racial stereotypes, even though Biggers originally intended Chan as a positive alternative to racist caricatures.