History Literature / FuManchu

He has been played in over forty films by over a dozen different actors, including H. Agar Lyons (an Irishman), Warner Oland (a Swede), Creator/BorisKarloff (an Englishman with some Indian ancestry, with Irish-American Myrna Loy as his daughter, here called Fah Lo Suee), Creator/ChristopherLee (an Englishman with a bit of Italian in him, see page image), and Creator/PeterSellers (also English) -- but [[{{Yellowface}} never yet by an actual Asian actor]], although Fu Manchu's daughter has been played by two Asian actresses: The Chinese American Anna May Wong as Ling Moy in Daughter of the Dragon and the Chinese Tsai Chin as Lin Tang in Lee's version. In fact Sellers' take, ''Film/TheFiendishPlotOfDrFuManchu'' (1980), is the last movie centered around the character to date, and a parody at that.

* ''Daughter of the Dragon'' (1931)

His actual public domain status is complicated. The first three Fu-Manchu[[note]]so spelled in the first three novels[[/note]] books were published prior to 1922 and are public domain in the USA; however, some characters are not public domain since they were introduced later, particularly his daughter Fah Lo Suee, who was introduced in the third book but not named until the fourth book, published in 1931. This has caused problems for Creator/MarvelComics, who for years could not reprint ''Master of Kung Fu'', which uses not only Fu Manchu (his renegade [[SpinOffspring son]] Characters/ShangChi is the series' protagonist) but other characters from the series. In 2016, Marvel reprinted ''Master of Kung Fu''; however, Shang-Chi's father and sister don't use the Fu Manchu name anymore and are named differently in current stories (Zheng Zu and Zheng Bao Yu, respectively). (The [[Film/ShangChiAndTheLegendOfTheTenRings film adaptation]] instead utilizes [[Characters/MCUTheMandarin Xu Wenwu]] as CompositeCharacter of ''ComicBook/IronMan'' villain -- The Mandarin -- and Fu Manchu), Wenwu's daughter, Xu Xialing, bears similarities to Fah Lo Suee. Also, Fu Manchu is not in the public domain in Europe (Rohmer died in 1959), and Creator/AlanMoore could not name him in ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''.

He has been played in over forty films by over a dozen different actors, including H. Agar Lyons (an Irishman), Warner Oland (a Swede), Creator/BorisKarloff (an Englishman with some Indian ancestry, with Irish-American Myrna Loy as his daughter, here called Fah Lo Suee), Creator/ChristopherLee (an Englishman with a bit of Italian in him, see page image), and Creator/PeterSellers (also English) -- but [[{{Yellowface}} never yet by an actual Asian actor]], although Fu Manchu's daughter has been played by two Asian actresses, Chinese American Anna May Wong as Ling Moy in Daughter of the Dragon and Chinese Tsai Chin as Lin Tang in Lee's version. In fact Sellers' take, ''Film/TheFiendishPlotOfDrFuManchu'' (1980), is the last movie centered around the character to date, and a parody at that.

His actual public domain status is complicated. The first three Fu-Manchu[[note]]so spelled in the first three novels[[/note]] books were published prior to 1922 and are public domain in the USA; however, some characters are not public domain since they were introduced later, particularly his daughter Fah Lo Suee, who was introduced in the third book but not named until the fourth book, published in 1931. This has caused problems for Creator/MarvelComics, who for years could not reprint ''Master of Kung Fu'', which uses not only Fu Manchu (his renegade [[SpinOffspring son]] Characters/ShangChi is the series' protagonist) but other characters from the series. In 2016, Marvel reprinted ''Master of Kung Fu''; however, Shang-Chi's father and sister don't use the Fu Manchu name anymore and are named differently in current stories. (The [[Film/ShangChiAndTheLegendOfTheTenRings film adaptation]] instead utilizes an ''ComicBook/IronMan'' villain -- The Mandarin -- as a CompositeCharacter.) Also, Fu Manchu is not in the public domain in Europe (Rohmer died in 1959), and Creator/AlanMoore could not name him in ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''.

He has been played in over forty films by over a dozen different actors, including H. Agar Lyons (an Irishman), Warner Oland (a Swede), Creator/BorisKarloff (an Englishman with some Indian ancestry, with Irish-American Myrna Loy as his daughter, here called Fah Lo), Creator/ChristopherLee (an Englishman with a bit of Italian in him, see page image), and Creator/PeterSellers (also English) -- but [[{{Yellowface}} never yet by an actual Asian actor]], although the daughter of Lee's version was played by Tsai Chin, an actual Chinese actress. In fact Sellers' take, ''Film/TheFiendishPlotOfDrFuManchu'' (1980), is the last movie centered around the character to date, and a parody at that.

* LoveAtFirstSight: Endemic to the series in pretty much every single romantic subplot. Even Fu Manchu's daughter claims to have developed a case of this when she first saw Nayland Smith. [[FoeYay When he was pointing a gun to her head and she left him to die of thirst in a prison cell.]]

He has been played in over forty films by over a dozen different actors, including H. Agar Lyons (an Irishman), Warner Oland (a Swede), Creator/BorisKarloff (an Englishman, with Irish-American Myrna Loy as his daughter, here called Fah Lo), Creator/ChristopherLee (an Englishman with a bit of Italian in him, see page image), and Creator/PeterSellers (also English) -- but [[{{Yellowface}} never yet by an actual Asian actor]], although the daughter of Lee's version was played by Tsai Chin, an actual Chinese actress. In fact Sellers' take, ''Film/TheFiendishPlotOfDrFuManchu'' (1980), is the last movie centered around the character to date, and a parody at that.

* HighHeelFaceTurn: Karamaneh, who starts out as one of Fu Manchu's henchwomen but eventually falls in love with Dr Petrie.

* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: In ''The Drums of Fu Manchu'' "Marcel Delibes" represents Leon Blum, "Monaghani" is Mussolini, and "Rudolph Adlon" is a [[ValuesDissonance creepily sympathetic]] portrait of [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler that other guy with a moustache]]. In ''President Fu Manchu'', Huey Long and "radio priest" Father Coughlin appear as "Harvey Bragg" and "Abbot Patrick Donegal".

* VillainBasedFranchise: There's a reason why the titles of nearly every novel, film, and show in the franchise contain the name "Fu Manchu" instead of "Nayland Smith."
* ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend: Karameneh asserts her credentials as an ActionGirl by shooting two of Fu Manchu's assassin's when they are about to catch Petrie and Nayland Smith. Later, Fu Manchu uses LaserGuidedAmnesia to subdue her back into his service. She regains her memory just in time to realize that her master is psychologically torturing Petrie in the next room. [[BoomHeadshot She doesn't like that.]] And if it weren't for JokerImmunity, [[HoistByHisOwnPetard that]] would have been the end of Dr. Fu Manchu.

* WifeHusbandry: Attempted. A year after Dr. Petrie marries Fu Manchu's former servant Karameneh, their daughter is born, but she supposedly dies when she's just three weeks old. Book 6 reveals her existence and that she was kidnapped by Fu Manchu or one of his servants, and raised under the name Fleurette for the purpose of bearing a son for him when she's old enough (he specifically states that no romance is intended, and he is just using her to bear his child). This is thwarted when she meets and falls for Alan Sterling (the narrator of ''The Bride of Fu Manchu'') instead, and Fu Manchu, seeing his plan has effectively been sabotaged (however unintended), releases her to be with him. While he later abducts Fleurette again in the very next book, he is more concerned with using her as a hostage against his foes until he can achieve his actual goal [[spoiler:of preparing one more dose of the formula that keeps him young and alive]].

* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: How many film adaptations treat Fu Manchu's daughter Fah Lo Suee. Because she's one of the characters created after the original novels went into public domain (see above), she can't be included in any adaptations without the direct permission of the Rohmer estate. To avoid the hassle, many film adaptations usually create a similar character with a different name -- Ling Moy in ''Daughter of the Dragon'', Karamaneh (who is actually named after a different Sax Rohmer character) in ''The Adventures of Dr. Fu Manchu'', and Lin Tang in the Creator/ChristopherLee films.
* YellowFace: Every onscreen incarnation of Fu Manchu has been played by a white man. In Christopher Lee's case, this got pretty laughable, as Lee -- with that big aquiline nose -- looked about as non-Chinese as it's possible to get.

His actual public domain status is complicated. The first three Fu-Manchu[[note]]so spelled in the first three novels[[/note]] books were published prior to 1922 and are public domain in the USA; however, some characters are not public domain since they were introduced later, particularly his daughter Fah Lo Suee, who was only named in a later book. This has caused problems for Creator/MarvelComics, who for years could not reprint ''Master of Kung Fu'', which uses not only Fu Manchu (his renegade [[SpinOffspring son]] Characters/ShangChi is the series' protagonist) but other characters from the series. In 2016, Marvel reprinted ''Master of Kung Fu''; however, Shang-Chi's father and sister don't use the Fu Manchu name anymore and are named differently in current stories. (The [[Film/ShangChiAndTheLegendOfTheTenRings film adaptation]] instead utilizes an ''ComicBook/IronMan'' villain -- The Mandarin -- as a CompositeCharacter.) Also, Fu Manchu is not in the public domain in Europe (Rohmer died in 1959), and Creator/AlanMoore could not name him in ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''.

[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0d19bc8d_d0a4_4086_a0b2_66a321121fbe.jpeg]]

His actual public domain status is complicated. The first three Fu-Manchu[[note]]so spelled in the first three novels[[/note]] books were published prior to 1922 and are public domain in the USA; however, some characters are not public domain since they were introduced later, particularly his daughter Fah Lo Suee, who was only named in a later book. This has caused problems for Creator/MarvelComics, who for years could not reprint ''Master of Kung Fu'', which uses not only Fu Manchu (his renegade [[SpinOffspring son]] Characters/ShangChi is the series' protagonist) but other characters from the series. In 2016, Marvel reprinted ''Master of Kung Fu'', however, Shang-Chi's father and sister don't use the Fu Manchu name anymore and are named differently in current stories. (The [[Film/ShangChiAndTheLegendOfTheTenRings film adaptation]] instead utilizes an ''ComicBook/IronMan'' villain -- The Mandarin -- as a CompositeCharacter.) Also, Fu Manchu is not in the public domain in Europe (Rohmer died in 1959), and Creator/AlanMoore could not name him in ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''.

* [[BadGuysDoTheDirtyWork Big Damn Villains]]: "Daughter of Fu Manchu" features a climax where the eponymous character, having dug up her father's stash of superweapons and reformed the Si Fan, has captured both our narrator Shan and series hero Nayland Smith, evades a possible last minute rescue, and is preparing to make the former victim of a gender reversal of the ScarpiaUltimatum, when Fu Manchu simply walks in the room and immediately takes over the resurgent Si Fan and release the prisoners. A rare case where TheBadGuyWins, so long as we consider Fu Manchu the BigBad of the series, is also a happy ending.

* CharacterDevelopment: Fu starts out as an extreme Nationalist seeking the sovereignty of China and developed into one who seeks personal world domination. Moreover, as the series progresses Fu becomes more and more the NobleDemon type of character, a [[IGaveMyWord Man of Honor]] who occasionally even [[EnemyMine joins the heroes]] (as in ''The Island of Fu Manchu'') to fight a [[EvenEvilHasStandards greater evil]].

* GoodHairEvilHair: You will never, ever see a good character with a Fu Manchu moustache. Unless he's a [[Franchise/StarTrek Klingon]].

* XanatosGambit: Fu Manchu is a master of them. Even when his main scheme is foiled by the heroes, he'll find some way to gain something of value he can use for future schemes.

* TheEndOrIsIt: The '60s film series (produced by Harry Alan Towers and starring Creator/ChristopherLee) would always end with Fu Manchu saying "The world shall hear from me again".

His actual public domain status is complicated. The first three Fu-Manchu[[note]]so spelled in the first three novels[[/note]] books were published prior to 1922 and are public domain in the USA; however, some characters are not public domain since they were introduced later, particularly his daughter Fah Lo Suee, who was only named in a later book. This has caused problems for Creator/MarvelComics, who for years could not reprint ''Master of Kung Fu'', which uses not only Fu Manchu (his renegade [[SpinOffspring son]] ComicBook/ShangChi is the series' protagonist) but other characters from the series. In 2016, Marvel reprinted ''Master of Kung Fu'', however, Shang-Chi's father and sister don't use the Fu Manchu name anymore and are named differently in current stories. (The [[Film/ShangChiAndTheLegendOfTheTenRings film adaptation]] instead utilizes an ''ComicBook/IronMan'' villain -- The Mandarin -- as a CompositeCharacter.) Also, Fu Manchu is not in the public domain in Europe (Rohmer died in 1959), and Creator/AlanMoore could not name him in ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''.

* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: How many film adaptations treat Fu Manchu's daughter Fah Lo Suee. Because she's one of the characters created after the original novels went into public domain (see above), she can't be included in any adaptations without the direct permission of the Rohmer estate. To avoid the hassle, many film adaptations usually create a similar character with a different name - Ling Moy in ''Daughter of the Dragon'', Karamaneh (who is actually named after a different Sax Rohmer character) in ''The Adventures of Dr. Fu Manchu'', and Lin Tang in the Creator/ChristopherLee films.

* YellowFace: Every onscreen incarnation of Fu Manchu has been played by a white man. In Christopher Lee's case, this got pretty laughable, as Lee - with that big aquiline nose - looked about as non-Chinese as it's possible to get.

His actual public domain status is complicated. The first three Fu-Manchu[[note]]so spelled in the first three novels[[/note]] books were published prior to 1922 and are public domain in the USA; however, some characters are not public domain since they were introduced later, particularly his daughter Fah Lo Suee, who was only named in a later book. This has caused problems for Creator/MarvelComics, who for years could not reprint ''Master of Kung Fu'', which uses not only Fu Manchu (his renegade [[SpinOffspring son]] ComicBook/ShangChi is the series' protagonist) but other characters from the series. In 2016, Marvel reprinted '' Master of Kung Fu '', however, Shang-Chi's father and sister don't use the Fu Manchu name anymore and are named differently in current stories. Also, Fu Manchu is not in the public domain in Europe (Rohmer died in 1959), and Creator/AlanMoore could not name him in ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''.

* YellowFace: Every onscreen incarnation of Fu Manchu has been played by a white man. In Christopher Lee's case, this got pretty laughable, as Lee - with that big aquiline nose - looked about as non-Chinese and it's possible to get.

* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: How many film adaptations treat Fu Manchu's daughter Fah Lo Suee. Because she's one of the characters created after the original novels went into public domain (see above), she can't be included in any adaptations without the direct permission of the Rohmer estate. To avoid the hassle, many film adaptations usually create a similar character with a different name - Ling Moy in ''Daughter of the Dragon'', Karamaneh (whose actually named after a different Sax Rohmer character) in ''The Adventures of Dr. Fu Manchu'', and Lin Tang in the Creator/ChristopherLee films.

* {{Expy}}: of Literature/SherlockHolmes

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Fah Lo, in ''Film/TheMaskOfFuManchu'' is ''clearly'' getting off on beating the hell out of Terry ("Shan" in the novel), and it's all but stated that the only reason she doesn't rape him outright is because her father would rather use him as a bargaining chip. According to one story, her actress, Myrna Loy, responded to seeing the finished footage with "Say -- this is ''obscene!''" The year ''Mask of Fu Manchu'' was made? ''1932''. Before UsefulNotes/TheHaysCode. The Spirit of TheRoaringTwenties was still -barely- breathing.

* YellowFace: Every onscreen incarnation of Fu Manchu has been played by a white man.

* ''Re-Enter Fu Manchu'' (1957)[[note]]The fourth novel using a third-person narrative rather than a first-person one.[[/note]]
* ''Emperor Fu Manchu'' (1959)[[note]]The fifth novel using a third-person narrative rather than a first-person one, and the last novel published before Rohmer's death.[[/note]]

His actual public domain status is complicated. The first three Fu-Manchu[[note]]so spelled in the first three novels[[/note]] books were published prior to 1922 and are public domain in the USA; however, some characters are not public domain since they were introduced later, particularly his daughter Fah Lo Suee, who was only named in a later book. This has caused problems for Creator/MarvelComics, who for years could not reprint ''Master of Kung Fu'', which uses not only Fu Manchu but other characters from the series (the main character was Fu Manchu's renegade son ComicBook/ShangChi, created for the comics). In 2016, Marvel reprinted '' Master of Kung Fu '', however, Shang-Chi's father and sister don't use the Fu Manchu name anymore and are named differently in current stories. Also, Fu Manchu is not in the public domain in Europe (Rohmer died in 1959), and Creator/AlanMoore could not name him in ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''.

His actual public domain status is complicated. The first three Fu-Manchu[[note]]so spelled in the first three novels[[/note]] books were published prior to 1922 and are public domain in the USA; however, some characters are not public domain since they were introduced later, particularly his daughter Fah Lo Suee, who was only named in a later book. This has caused problems for Creator/MarvelComics, who for years could not reprint ''Master of Kung Fu'', which uses not only Fu Manchu but other characters from the series. In 2016, Marvel reprinted '' Master of Kung Fu '', however, Shang-Chi's father and sister don't use the Fu Manchu name anymore and are named differently in current stories. Also, Fu Manchu is not in the public domain in Europe (Rohmer died in 1959), and Creator/AlanMoore could not name him in ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''.

* TheOtherDarrin: The long-running nature of the various Fu Manchu film series mean that certain cast members get replaced midway through. The Creator/ChristopherLee series has three different Nayland-Smith (Nigel Green in ''Face'', Douglas Wilmer in ''Brides'' & ''Vengeance'', and Richard Greene in ''Blood'' & ''Castle'').

* ''The Drums of Fu Manchu'' (1939)[[note]]The first of two novels narrated by Mr. Bart Kerrigan.[[/note]]

* EvenEvilHasStandards / NobleDemon: Fu, despite his willingness to mind-control, murder, and torture to gain his ends, nevertheless refuses to indulge in ''unnecessary'' cruelty and is always scrupulously a [[IGaveMyWord man of his word]]. He gives Nayland Smith wedding presents and sincere congratulations in the epilogue of ''The Drums of Fu Manchu''.

* CensorshipBureau: The production of Fu Manchu movies was halted during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII at the request of the US State Department as China was an ally against Japan. Rohmer's publisher also voluntarily stopped publishing Fu Manchu novels during the war. Also in 1936 all of Sax Rohmer's books, Fu Manchu included, were banned by the Nazis, on the grounds that they thought that Rohmer was Jewish, he was actually Irish.

* ''President Fu Manchu'' (1936)[[note]]The second novel using a third-person narrative rather than a first-person one, and the first ever not to have Dr. Petrie appear in person. Features Dr. Mark Hepburn as a main character.[[/note]]

* ''The Trail of Fu Manchu'' (1934)[[note]]The first novel using a third-person narrative rather than a first-person one.[[/note]]
* ''President Fu Manchu'' (1936)[[note]]The second novel using a third-person narrative rather than a first-person one.[[/note]]
* ''The Drums of Fu Manchu'' (1939)
* ''The Island of Fu Manchu'' (1940)
* ''The Shadow of Fu Manchu'' (1948)
* ''Re-Enter Fu Manchu'' (1957)
* ''Emperor Fu Manchu'' (1959)[[note]]The last novel published before Rohmer's death.[[/note]]

* ''President Fu Manchu'' (1936)

The villain of various novels by [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sax_Rohmer Sax Rohmer]], this DiabolicalMastermind is the archetypical YellowPeril villain. He has made his way into many media, including film, radio, TV, and comics.

Fu Manchu's [[ArchEnemy arch-nemeses]] are Sir Denis Nayland Smith, an agent of the British government, and Dr. Petrie, Smith's [[TheWatson Watson]]. Likely [[FollowTheLeader inspired by]] the ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' series, Sax Rohmer had Petrie narrate each of the novels as Smith combated Fu Manchu's latest evil plot.

* ''The Mystery of Dr. Fu-Manchu'' (1913). A number of 1912 stories were combined into this novel.
* ''The Return of Dr. Fu-Manchu'' (1916).
* ''The Hand of Fu Manchu'' (1917).
* ''Daughter of Fu Manchu'' (1931).
* ''The Mask of Fu Manchu'' (1932).
* ''The Bride of Fu Manchu'' (1933).
* ''The Trail of Fu Manchu'' (1934).
* ''President Fu Manchu'' (1936).
* ''The Drums of Fu Manchu'' (1939).
* ''The Island of Fu Manchu'' (1940).
* ''The Shadow of Fu Manchu'' (1948).
* ''Re-Enter:Fu Manchu'' (1957).
* ''Emperor Fu Manchu'' (1959).
* ''The Wrath of Fu Manchu'' (1973). Actually a combination of the previously published stories:
** ''The Wrath of Fu Manchu'' (1952)
** ''The Eyes of Fu Manchu'' (1957)
** ''The Word of Fu Manchu'' (1958)
** ''The Mind of Fu Manchu'' (1959)

* WifeHusbandry: Attempted. A year after Dr. Petrie marries Fu Manchu's former servant Karameneh, their daughter is born, but she supposedly dies when she's just three weeks old. It turns out she was kidnapped by Fu Manchu or one of his servants, and raised for the purpose of bearing a son for him when she's old enough (he specifically states that no romance is intended, just using her to bear his child). This is thwarted when she meets and falls for Alan Sterling (the narrator of ''The Bride of Fu Manchu'') instead, and Fu Manchu, seeing his plan has effectively been sabotaged (however unintended), releases her to be with him.