Earl Derr Biggers

Earl Derr Biggers (1884–1933) was born in Warren, Ohio, went to Harvard, and worked as a humor columnist and drama critic in Boston before Seven Keys to Baldpate (1913) became a bestseller and a Broadway hit. Remembering a Honolulu vacation, and a newspaper story about a real detective there, Chang Apana, he created Charlie Chan, who appeared in six novels and dozens of films.