Charlie Chan is a fictional Chinese-American detective created by Earl Derr Biggers in 1923 for a novel published in 1925. Biggers conceived of the character as an alternative to Yellow Peril stereotypes; unlike such villains as Fu Manchu, Chan is portrayed as non-threatening and benevolent. However, he is also portrayed as portly and asexual, and while Chan often encounters racism, he does not always speak openly against it.