The 8 Nov 1927 Film Daily announced that a screen version of Owen Davis’s 1906 play, Chinatown Charlie, had been chosen as the next starring vehicle for comedian Johnny Hines. According to the 25 Nov 1927 Film Daily, Hines had been in New York City earlier that week to shoot “preliminary scenes,” along with producer C. C. Burr and the actor’s brother, director Charles Hines.
       Principal photography was scheduled to begin on 10 Dec 1927 at Tec-Art Studios in Hollywood, CA, as stated in the 7 Dec 1927 Var. The adaptation was credited to Charles Hines, George Amy, and C. C. Burr. An item in the 14 Jan 1928 Motion Picture News noted that sets modeled on New York City’s Chinatown had been reproduced on the studio lot, to be used in conjunction with authentic exterior footage. The 8 Jan 1928 Film Daily listed Edna May among the cast, although this may have been a misprint. A follow-up item in the 17 Jan 1928 edition included Anna May Wong in place of Edna May. Also featured on screen was “Dixie,” a dog Johnny Hines found during his visit to New York City, according to the Mar 1928 Photoplay. The 10 Mar 1928 Motion Picture News reported the late Feb 1928 close of production.
       Chinatown Charlie opened on 15 Apr 1928, followed by a Los Angeles, CA, debut at the Hillstreet Theatre in late Apr 1928. Critical notices were mixed. While the May 1928 Photoplay describing the picture as one of Hines’s best, the 17 Jun 1928 Film Daily denounced it as his worst.
       An article in the 4 Jul 1928 Var published a list of two cuts to the film recommended by Pennsylvania censors, and seven cuts recommended by New York censors. Examples included: “Reel 3.—Eliminate all views of woman’s dress blown up when it goes up above her knees and views of two men looking at her between views of her dress being blown up”; “Reel 4.—Eliminate all views of girl, bound and gagged in closet”; “Reel 6.—Eliminate underlined word in subtitle, ‘But, your Excellency—where the hell do I get off?’; Eliminate view of smuggler hitting policeman on head with iron bar”; “Reel 7.—Eliminate all views of white girl struggling to resist Chinaman.”