Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977)
Chaplin
even now is probably the most famous film star that ever lived. The
international audience for silent
film, the wide appeal of silent
comedy and the mythic little tramp combined to create a popularity it
is unlikely will ever be surpassed. Buster Keaton called Chaplin the
greatest comedian that ever lived and he probably was. Since the 50s
though there has been a critical rebuff against Chaplin which has
viewed him as only a competent director and not very funny at all. He
certainly wasn't the most cinematic of film-makers but his technique
was perfect for capturing the hypnotic antics of the Tramp. His comedy
might be tinged at times with sadness but he was a master of pantomime
who achieved precisely the effects he wanted. Chaplin's poverty stricken childhood in the London of the 1890s informs a lot of his art. The sequence in his first feature The Kid (1921) in which Jackie Coogan is torn from his surrogate father actually happened to Charlie as a seven year old boy the only difference being it was his mother from which he and half brother Sydney were separated. Chaplin's work in retrospect always had a leftish tinge to it which was eventually along with his gregarious private life to lead him into trouble and eventual exile from the USA.
Chaplin began his film career at Keystone and was so successful he was able to begin directing his own work early on. At Essanay he made his first classic short The Tramp (1915) which ends with the iconic shot of the little man walking down a country lane. This introduced the emotion of pathos to his work which was to be integral to his art. In the Mutual series it appears again in the superb The Immigrant (1917). The Mutual shorts are the one part of Chaplin's work to maintain a great popularity among critics many of whom think Chaplin's later work became too sombre compared with the pure comedy of films like One AM (1916), The Pawnshop (1916), The Cure (1917) and The Adventurer (1917).
This
might be one of the reasons the First National films have been largely
neglected, a pity when they include A Dog's Life (1918), Shoulder Arms
(1918) and The Idle Class (1921). Chaplin now had his own studio but
was still answerable to his exhibitors until he joined Pickford,
Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith in United Artists. His first film for the
company A Woman of Paris (1923) was a fascinating romantic comedy which
headlined his leading lady Edna Purviance but he only directed the film
not appearing apart from in a brief cameo. The critics raved but the
public stayed away. His first feature comedy for United Artists The Gold Rush (1925) was a big hit with Chaplin at his creative peak delivering such classic sequences as the dance of the rolls and the eating of the shoe(actually made of liquorice). To maintain his international audience Chaplin pretty much ignored the introduction of sound : City Lights (1931) and Modern Times (1936) were really silent films with few concessions to the new era, both are excellent films and were big hits, proof that he still retained the affection of the public after many years.
Modern Times (1936) attacked mechanised labour and The Great Dictator (1940) dictatorships showing up their absurdities. The political nature of these films led to a growing suspicion Chaplin was a bit of a left winger, this impression was confirmed for many when he called at rallies during World War II for a second front to aid our Russian allies. Chaplin turbulent private life (he had two unhappy marriages to child brides) had a happy ending when he married Oona O' Neill in 1943.
Monsieur Verdoux (1947) a clever black comedy was rejected by the public who couldn't accept the Little Tramp as a wife murderer, so by the time Limelight (1952) was released Chaplin had lost much of his old audience. He was prevented from returning to the US when his re-entry permit was rescinded and went into retirement in Switzerland. Charlie made two disappointing films in Europe before finally returning to the US in 1972 to receive an honorary Oscar.
It was an incredible life,full of incident which Richard Attenborough attempted to sum up in Chaplin (1992) but Chaplin lived for his film work and was planning new films almost up to the end. At the end of the 20th Century there was a poll of international film critics to find the greatest movie star of all time, the winner was Charlie Chaplin.
Charlie
Chaplin Photo Gallery
The Kid (1921) Photo Gallery
The Gold Rush (1925) Photo Gallery
Comedy's Greatest Era (1949) Article
Chaplin (1950) Article
The Kid (1921) Photo Gallery
The Gold Rush (1925) Photo Gallery
Comedy's Greatest Era (1949) Article
Chaplin (1950) Article
FILMOGRAPHY
1914 BETWEEN SHOWERS (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 A BUSY DAY (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 CAUGHT IN A CABARET performer, director, screenwriter
1914 CAUGHT IN THE RAIN (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 CRUEL, CRUEL LOVE (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 DOUGH AND DYNAMITE (short) performer, director
1914 THE FACE ON THE BARROOM FLOOR uncredited performer, performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE FATAL MALLET (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 A FILM JOHNNIE (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 GENTLEMEN OF NERVE (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 GETTING ACQUAINTED (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HER FRIEND THE BANDIT (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HIS FAVORITE PASTIME (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 HIS MUSICAL CAREER (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HIS NEW PROFESSION (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HIS PREHISTORIC PAST performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HIS TRYSTING PLACE performer, director, screenwriter
1914 KID AUTO RACES AT VENICE uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 THE KNOCKOUT uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 LAUGHING GAS performer, director, screenwriter
1914 MABEL AT THE WHEEL (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 MABEL'S BUSY DAY performer, director, screenwriter
1914 MABEL'S MARRIED LIFE performer, director, screenwriter
1914 MABEL'S STRANGE PREDICAMENT (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 MAKING A LIVING (short) performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 THE MASQUERADER (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE NEW JANITOR (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE PROPERTY MAN performer, director, screenwriter
1914 RECREATION (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE ROUNDERS (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE STAR BOARDER (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 TANGO TANGLES (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 THOSE LOVE PANGS (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 TILLIE'S PUNCTURED ROMANCE performer
1914 TWENTY MINUTES OF LOVE (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1915 THE BANK performer, director, screenwriter
1915 BY THE SEA (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 THE
CHAMPION performer,
director, screenwriter
1915 HIS NEW JOB performer, director, screenwriter
1915 HIS REGENERATION (short) uncredited performer
1915 IN THE PARK (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 A JITNEY ELOPEMENT performer, director, screenwriter
1915 A NIGHT IN THE SHOW (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 A NIGHT OUT performer, director, screenwriter
1915 SHANGHAIED (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 THE TRAMP performer, director, screenwriter
1915 A WOMAN (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 WORK performer, director, screenwriter
1916 BEHIND THE SCREEN performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1916 CHARLIE CHAPLIN'S BURLESQUE ON CARMEN performer, director, screenwriter
1916 THE COUNT performer, director, screenwriter
1916 THE FIREMAN performer, director, screenwriter
1916 THE FLOORWALKER performer, director, screenwriter
1916 ONE A.M. (short) performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1916 THE PAWNSHOP (short) performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1916 POLICE! performer, director, screenwriter
1916 THE RINK (short) performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1916 THE VAGABOND performer, director, screenwriter
1917 THE ADVENTURER performer, director, screenwriter
1917 THE CURE performer, director, screenwriter
1917 EASY STREET performer, director, screenwriter
1917 THE IMMIGRANT performer, director, screenwriter
1918 THE BOND (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1918 A DOG'S LIFE performer, director, screenwriter
1918 SHOULDER ARMS performer, director, screenwriter
1919 A DAY'S PLEASURE (short) performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1919 SUNNYSIDE performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1921 THE IDLE CLASS performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1921 THE KID performer, director, producer,
screenwriter
1921 THE NUT performer
1922 NICE AND FRIENDLY (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1922 PAY DAY performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1923 THE PILGRIM performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1923 SOULS FOR SALE performer
1923 A WOMAN OF PARIS performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer
1925 THE GOLD RUSH performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1926 A WOMAN OF THE SEA idea, producer
1928 THE CIRCUS performer, director, producer, screenwriter, editor
1928 SHOW PEOPLE performer
1931 CITY LIGHTS performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer, editor
1936 MODERN TIMES performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer
1940 THE GREAT DICTATOR performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1947 MONSIEUR VERDOUX performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer
1952 LIMELIGHT performer, director, producer, screenwriter, story, score composer, choreography
1957 A KING IN NEW YORK performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer
1967 A COUNTESS FROM HONG KONG screenwriter, score composer, song composer, performer, director,
executive producer
1914 BETWEEN SHOWERS (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 A BUSY DAY (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 CAUGHT IN A CABARET performer, director, screenwriter
1914 CAUGHT IN THE RAIN (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 CRUEL, CRUEL LOVE (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 DOUGH AND DYNAMITE (short) performer, director
1914 THE FACE ON THE BARROOM FLOOR uncredited performer, performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE FATAL MALLET (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 A FILM JOHNNIE (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 GENTLEMEN OF NERVE (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 GETTING ACQUAINTED (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HER FRIEND THE BANDIT (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HIS FAVORITE PASTIME (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 HIS MUSICAL CAREER (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HIS NEW PROFESSION (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HIS PREHISTORIC PAST performer, director, screenwriter
1914 HIS TRYSTING PLACE performer, director, screenwriter
1914 KID AUTO RACES AT VENICE uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 THE KNOCKOUT uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 LAUGHING GAS performer, director, screenwriter
1914 MABEL AT THE WHEEL (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 MABEL'S BUSY DAY performer, director, screenwriter
1914 MABEL'S MARRIED LIFE performer, director, screenwriter
1914 MABEL'S STRANGE PREDICAMENT (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 MAKING A LIVING (short) performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 THE MASQUERADER (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE NEW JANITOR (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE PROPERTY MAN performer, director, screenwriter
1914 RECREATION (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE ROUNDERS (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 THE STAR BOARDER (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 TANGO TANGLES (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1914 THOSE LOVE PANGS (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1914 TILLIE'S PUNCTURED ROMANCE performer
1914 TWENTY MINUTES OF LOVE (short) uncredited performer, uncredited screenwriter
1915 THE BANK performer, director, screenwriter
1915 BY THE SEA (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 THE
CHAMPION performer,
director, screenwriter1915 HIS NEW JOB performer, director, screenwriter
1915 HIS REGENERATION (short) uncredited performer
1915 IN THE PARK (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 A JITNEY ELOPEMENT performer, director, screenwriter
1915 A NIGHT IN THE SHOW (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 A NIGHT OUT performer, director, screenwriter
1915 SHANGHAIED (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 THE TRAMP performer, director, screenwriter
1915 A WOMAN (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1915 WORK performer, director, screenwriter
1916 BEHIND THE SCREEN performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1916 CHARLIE CHAPLIN'S BURLESQUE ON CARMEN performer, director, screenwriter
1916 THE COUNT performer, director, screenwriter
1916 THE FIREMAN performer, director, screenwriter
1916 THE FLOORWALKER performer, director, screenwriter
1916 ONE A.M. (short) performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1916 THE PAWNSHOP (short) performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1916 POLICE! performer, director, screenwriter
1916 THE RINK (short) performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1916 THE VAGABOND performer, director, screenwriter
1917 THE ADVENTURER performer, director, screenwriter
1917 THE CURE performer, director, screenwriter
1917 EASY STREET performer, director, screenwriter
1917 THE IMMIGRANT performer, director, screenwriter
1918 THE BOND (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1918 A DOG'S LIFE performer, director, screenwriter
1918 SHOULDER ARMS performer, director, screenwriter
1919 A DAY'S PLEASURE (short) performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1919 SUNNYSIDE performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1921 THE IDLE CLASS performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1921 THE KID performer, director, producer,
screenwriter
1921 THE NUT performer
1922 NICE AND FRIENDLY (short) performer, director, screenwriter
1922 PAY DAY performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1923 THE PILGRIM performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1923 SOULS FOR SALE performer
1923 A WOMAN OF PARIS performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer
1925 THE GOLD RUSH performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1926 A WOMAN OF THE SEA idea, producer
1928 THE CIRCUS performer, director, producer, screenwriter, editor
1928 SHOW PEOPLE performer
1931 CITY LIGHTS performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer, editor
1936 MODERN TIMES performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer
1940 THE GREAT DICTATOR performer, director, producer, screenwriter
1947 MONSIEUR VERDOUX performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer
1952 LIMELIGHT performer, director, producer, screenwriter, story, score composer, choreography
1957 A KING IN NEW YORK performer, director, producer, screenwriter, score composer
1967 A COUNTESS FROM HONG KONG screenwriter, score composer, song composer, performer, director,
executive producer
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Written content of the Golden Age of Hollywood Website (except where indicated) copyright Derek McLellan, 2007.