BlackHat Mystery BookstoreJudge Dee, Chinese Detective
 | short history |
Long before Western writers had even conceived the idea of writing detective stories, the Chinese had developed a long tradition of literary works
that chronicled the cases of important district magistrates. These judges held a unique position: at once judge and detective, responsible for all aspects
of keeping the peace and for discovering, capturing, and punishing criminals. One of the most celebrated historical magistrates was Judge Dee,
who lived in the VIIth Century A.D.
The real person of Judge Dee [Di Renjie, c. 630-c. 700] lived in the T'ang Dynasty of Ancient China, and was the subject of folk tales written down around 1500 AD and of the "Di Gong An (Tales of Judge Dee)" novel of the XVIIIth Century. Dutch Diplomat Robert van Gulik [1920-67] translated that document during World War II, and followed with 16 original Judge Dee books.
French author Frédéric Lenormand has written a series of Judge Dee novels not yet available in English. The Hong Kong martial arts epic "Detective Dee and The Mystery of The Phantom Flame" was released in 2010 in China and elsewhere, and in the U.S.A. in September 2011. The 'prequel' "Young Detective Dee: Rise of The Sea Dragon" followed in September 2013.
The XVIIIth Century Original
historical Judge Dee [Di Renjie, c. 630-c. 700]
official? website {in Chinese} •
Wikipedia
 | "Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee" [1949] translated by Robert van Gulik Three intertwined stories: "The Case of The Double Murder At Dawn", "The Case of The Strange Corpse", and "The Case of The Poisoned Bride". Dee is the newly-appointed Magistrate of Chang-ping in the Province of Shantung; he has four lieutenants on staff: Sgt. Hoong, Chiao Tai, Ma Joong, and Tao Gan Dover Publns pb [6/76] for $9.41 Dover Publns pb [6/76] for $9.80 |
Judge Dee Novels by Robert van Gulik
Robert Hans van Gulik [1910-67]
all books •
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
"The Chinese Maze Murders" [circa 670; 1957] written in 1950, published in Japanese in 1951
"The Chinese Bell Murders" [circa 668; 1958] written between 1953 and 1956
"The Chinese Gold Murders" [circa 663; 1959]
"The Chinese Lake Murders" [circa 666; 1960]
"The Chinese Nail Murders" [circa 676; 1961]
"The Haunted Monastery" [circa 667; 1961]
"The Emperor's Pearl" [circa 668; 1963]
"The Lacquer Screen" [circa 664; 1964]
"The Red Pavilion" [circa 668; 1964]
"The Monkey and The Tiger" [1965]
short stories "The Morning of The Monkey" [circa 667] and "The Night of The Tiger" [circa 676]
"The Willow Pattern" [circa 677; 1965]
"Murder In Canton" [circa 681; 1966]
"The Phantom of The Temple" [circa 670; 1966]
"Judge Dee At Work" [8 stories 1967]
includes "The Coffins of The Emperor" [circa 672], "Five Auspicious Clouds" [circa 664], "He Came With The Rain"
[circa 663], "Murder On New Year's Eve" [circa 674], "The Murder On The Lotus Pond" [circa 666], "The Red
Tape Murders" [circa 663], "The Two Beggers" [circa 668], and "The Wrong Sword" [circa 668]
"Necklace and Calabash" [circa 668; 1967]
"Poets and Murder" [circa 669; 1968]
Judge Dee Novels by Frédéric Lenormand
Frédéric Lenormand Bibliographie at Amazon.FR
Frédéric Lenormand Store at Amazon USA (books in French & German)
Frédéric Lenormand entry at French-language Wikipedia
Juge Ti entry at French-language Wikipedia
"Diplomatie en Kimono" []
http://www.amazon.fr/nouvelles-enqu%C3%AAtes-juge-Ti-Diplomatie/dp/2213651442/
"Divorce à La Chinoise" []
http://www.amazon.fr/nouvelles-enquêtes-Juge-Ti-chinoise/dp/2213662932/
"Dix Petits Démons Chinois" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Dix-Petits-D%C3%A9mons-chinois-Enqu%C3%AAtesdu/dp/2757823051/
http://www.amazon.fr/nouvelles-enqu%C3%AAtes-juge-Ti-chinois/dp/2213631972/
"Guide de Survie d'Un Juge en Chine" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Guide-survie-Chine-Nouvelles-enqu%C3%AAtes/dp/2757824988/
http://www.amazon.fr/Guide-survie-dun-juge-Chine/dp/2213636028/
"L'Art de Cuisiner le Suspect et Le Canard Laqué" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Lart-cuisiner-suspect-canard-laqu%C3%A9/dp/1543223567/
"L'Art Délicat du Deuil" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Lart-d%C3%A9licat-deuil-nouvelle-enqu%C3%AAte/dp/2213628513/
"L'Enigme du Dragon d'Or" []
http://www.amazon.fr/LEnigme-dragon-dor-nouvelle-enqu%C3%AAte/dp/1505620058/
"La Longue Marche du Juge Ti - Médecine Chinoise à L'Usage des Assassins" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Longue-Marche-juge-Ti-assassins/dp/275786873X/
http://www.amazon.fr/M%C3%A9decine-chinoise-lusage-assassins-nouvelle/dp/2213633568/
http://www.amazon.fr/Longue-Marche-juge-Ti/dp/2213671338/
"La Nuit des Juges" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Nuit-juges-Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric-Lenormand/dp/2213620105/
"Le Bon, La Brute et Le Juge Ti" []
http://www.amazon.fr/bon-brute-juge-Ti-nouvelle/dp/1517340462/
"Le Château du Lac Tchou-An" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Ch%C3%A2teau-Tchou-Nouvelles-Enqu%C3%AAtes-juge/dp/2757840746/
http://www.amazon.fr/nouvelles-enqu%C3%AAtes-juge-Ti-Tchou/dp/2757800485/
"Le Mystère du Jardin Chinois" []
http://www.amazon.fr/myst%C3%A8re-jardin-chinois-nouvelle-enqu%C3%AAte/dp/2213642915/
"Le Palais des Courtisanes" []
http://www.amazon.fr/palais-courtisanes-nouvelle-enqu%C3%AAte-juge/dp/2213622493/
http://www.amazon.fr/Palais-courtisanes-Nouvelles-Enqu%C3%AAtes-juge/dp/2757800507/
"Madame Ti Mène L'Enquête
http://www.amazon.fr/Madame-Ti-m%C3%A8ne-lenqu%C3%AAte-nouvelle/dp/2213624402/
http://www.amazon.fr/Madame-m%C3%A8ne-lenqu%C3%AAte-Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric-Lenormand/dp/2840577402/
"Meurtres sur Le Fleuve Jaune" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Meurtres-fleuve-jaune-Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric-Lenormand/dp/2213666733/
"Mort d'Un Cuisinier Chinois" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Mort-cuisinier-chinois-Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric-Lenormand/dp/2213626677/
http://www.amazon.fr/Mort-cuisinier-chinois-Nouvelles-Enqu%C3%AAte/dp/2757800531/
"Mort d'Un Maître de Go" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Mort-dun-ma%C3%AEtre-nouvelle-enqu%C3%AAte/dp/2213630887/
http://www.amazon.fr/Mort-dun-ma%C3%AEtre-nouvelles-enqu%C3%AAtes/dp/2757819550/
"Mort dans Un Champ de Lotus" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Mort-dans-champ-lotus-Nouvelles-ebook/dp/B07FN39253/
http://www.amazon.fr/Mort-dans-champ-lotus-nouvelle/dp/1723535559/
"Panique sur La Grande Muraille" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Panique-sur-Grande-Muraille-nouvelle/dp/2213637253/
"Petits Meurtres entre Moines" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Petits-meurtres-entre-moines-nouvelle/dp/2213622485/
"Thé Vert et Arsenic" []
http://www.amazon.fr/vert-arsenic-nouvelles-enqu%C3%AAtes-Juge/dp/2757836323/
"Un Chinois ne Ment Jamais" / "Diplomatie en Kimono" []
http://www.amazon.fr/Chinois-ment-jamais-Diplomatie-kimono/dp/2757852930/
"Un Thé Chez Confucius: Une Enquête du Juge Bao" []
http://www.amazon.fr/th%C3%A9-chez-Confucius-enqu%C3%AAte-juge/dp/2809703299/
http://www.amazon.fr/th%C3%A9-chez-Confucius-Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric-Lenormand/dp/2809710139/
Judge Dee Fiction by Other Authors
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
 | "The Court of The Lion: A Novel of The T'Ang Dynasty" [1988] by Eleanor Cooney & Daniel Altieri Not a tale of Judge Dee, but rather a well-reviewed novel of the same time-frame, about intrigues among Lady Wu, weak Emperor Tang Minghuang, beautiful consort Yang Guifei, barbarian An Lushan, evil Prime Minister Lin Lin-fu, Chief Eunuch Kao Li-Shih, the Yang sisters, and other members of the VIIIth Century Imperial Chinese court. Kindle Edition from Buchanan & Li [3/2011] for $7.99 Avon mass pb [4/90] out of print/many, many used William Morrow 9¼x6 hardcover [12/88] out of print/used |
 | "Deception: A Novel of Mystery and Murder In Ancient China" [1993] by Eleanor Cooney & Daniel Altieri Magistrate Dee discovers the truth of the numerous murders that Madame Wu Tse-tien has committed as she seeks to replace the ancient T'ang dynasty with her own Chou dynasty thru magic, superstition, corruption, and deceit. Avon mass pb [7/94] out of print/many, many used William Morrow hardcover [5/93] out of print/used retitled "Iron Empress" Kindle Edition from Buchanan & Li [6/2011] for $5.99 |
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
 | "Tales of Judge Dee" [stories circa 669 AD; 2006] by Chinese-American author Zhu Xiao Di Kindle Edition from iUniverse [2006 edition] for $3.03 iUniverse 9x6 pb [2/2006] for $13.95 |
"La Dernière Enquète du Juge Ti" [circa 675; 2008]
by French author Sven Roussel ISBN 9782953220605
"Detective Dee and The Mystery of The Phantom Flame" [2010]
Chinese-language novelization by Lin Qianyu ISBN 9787538548594
Stageplays, Movies, Other Media
Robert van Gulik's credits at Internet Movie Database
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
"Judge Dee" mini-series
[Granada Television April-May 1969]
 | six hour-long b&w episodes: "Traitors In High Places", "A Place of Great Evil", "The Haunted Pavilion", "A Festival of Death", "The Day of The Scavengers", and "The Curse of The Lacquer Screen" Produced by Howard Baker; directed by Howard Baker & Richard Doubleday; written by John Wiles; starring Michael Goodliffe, Penny Casdagli, Arne Gordon, Susan Lefton, Garfield Morgan, Pamela Roland, Norman Scace & David Ashton
DVD/Blu-ray not available • credits at IMDb |
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
"Judge Dee and The Monastery Murders"
TV movie [ABC-TV 1974]
 | While on a journey with his three wives, Magistrate Dee stops overnight at a Taoist monastery. He soon discovers that the former abbot died of unnatural causes; several more deaths follow before Dee uncovers the killer. Produced by Gerald Isenberg; based on the novel "The Haunted Monastery", script credited to Nicholas Meyer & Robert van Gulik; starring Khigh Dhiegh {as Judge Dee}, with an all-Asian cast including Mako, Soon-Tek Oh, Keye Luke, Miiko Taka, Irene Tsu, Susie Elene, Beverly Kushida, Ching Hocson, Yuki Shimoda, Robert Sadang & James Hong; nominated for an Edgar Award for Best Television Feature Script DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb |
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
"Detective Dee and The Mystery of The Phantom Flame"
[Huayi Brothers Hong Kong Sept 2010, Indomina USA Sept 2011]
 | "Inspired by the incredible true story of one of the T'ang Dynasty's most celebrated officials." Wu Zetian is the most powerful woman in China, and about to be crowned Empress of China, but a series of bizarre murders at the Imperial Palace threatens the future of her dynasty. She implores formerly-exiled detective Dee Renjie to solve the crime before her coronation, and appoints him Chief Judge of the Empire. Directed by Tsui Hark & stunt director Sammo Hung; starring Andy Lau, Carina Lau, Li Bing Bing, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Chao Deng, Richard Ng, Teddy Robin Kwan, Lu Yao & Jinshan Liu; won six Hong Kong Film Awards
Indomina widescreen color Chinese w/subtitles Blu-ray [12/2011] for $7.47 Indomina widescreen color Chinese w/subtitles DVD [12/2011] for $13.14 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia • official movie site {shut down 2014} • official trailer [2:13] watch full movie (English subtitles) online [1:58:44] at YouTube Chinese-language novelization [2010] by Lin Qianyu North China Women & children Publng House 9¼x6½ pb [7/2011] for $16.99 |
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
"Young Detective Dee: Rise of The Sea Dragon"
aka "Di Renjie: Shen Du Long Wang" [Huayi Brothers Sept 2013]
 | The first case of Dee Renjie of the Imperial Police Force is the assignment to investigate reports of a sea monster terrorizing the Imperial Capital, which reveals a sinister conspiracy of treachery and betrayal, leading to the highest reaches of the Imperial family • Co-produced, co-written & directed by Tsui Hark; starring Mark Chao {as Dee}, 'AngelaBaby' Yeung Wing, Carina Lau, Kun Chen, Shaofeng Feng, Dong Hu, Bum Kim & Kenny Lin
Well Go USA widescreen color Blu-ray [2/2014] for $12.60 Well Go USA widescreen color DVD [2/2014] for $11.66 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia • official trailer [2:34] |
"Detective Dee: The Four Heavenly Kings"
aka "Di Renjie zhi Sidatianwang" [Huayi Brothers July 2018]
 | Sequel to the 2013 movie; Detective Dee investigates a crime spree and supernatural beings while defending himself against accusations from Empress Wu • Co-produced & directed by Hark Tsui; written by Chia-Lu Chang; music by Kenji Kawai; starring
Mark Chao {as Dee},
Carina Lau,
Shaofeng Feng,
Sichun Ma,
Kenny Lin,
Ethan Juan
Well Go USA widescreen color Blu-ray in Mandarin w/English subtitles [11/2018] for $14.96 Well Go USA widescreen color DVD in Mandarin w/English subtitles [11/2018] for $14.99 credits at IMDb • official movie websites: USA + Asia • movie entry at Wikipedia watch 8/2018 official trailer [2:11] online at YouTube |
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
"Detective Dee vs. The Black Mask" [in development 2018] 
 | Feature film, possibly animation Produced by F. Daud Wuriee; starring Christina Martin DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • latest info at IMDb |
L i n k s
Robert van Gulik's credits at Internet Movie Database
official? Judge Dee website {in Chinese}
Judge Dee entry at Wikipedia
MH's van Gulik/Dee fansite:
Dutch language •
English language
French-language Juge Ti fansite
Juge Ti entry at French-language Wikipedia
Blackhat Mystery Bookstore's 'Judge Dee, Chinese Detective' Page
top of page • short history • XVIIIth Century novel • novels by Robert van Gulik •
novels by Frédéric Lenormand • novels by other authors • stageplays, movies, other media • links
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