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 Considered to be one of the most pivotal stars of the early days of Hollywood, Charlie Chaplin lived an interesting life both in his films and behind the camera. He is most recognized as an icon of the silent film era, often associated with his popular character, the Little Tramp; the man with the toothbrush mustache, bowler hat, bamboo cane, and a funny walk.Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in Walworth, London, England on April 16, 1889, to Hannah Harriet Pedlingham (Hill) and Charles Chaplin, both music hall performers, who were married on June 22, 1885. After Charles Sr. separated from Hannah to perform in New York City, Hannah then tried to resurrect her stage career. Unfortunately, her singing voice had a tendency to break at unexpected moments. When this happened, the stage manager spotted young Charlie standing in the wings and led him on stage, where five-year-old Charlie began to sing a popular tune. Charlie and his half-brother, Syd Chaplin spent their lives in and out of charity homes and workhouses between their mother's bouts of insanity. Hannah was committed to Cane Hill Asylum in May 1903 and lived there until 1921, when Chaplin moved her to California.Chaplin began his official acting career at the age of eight, touring with the Eight Lancashire Lads. At age 18, he began touring with Fred Karno's vaudeville troupe, joining them on the troupe's 1910 United States tour. He traveled west to California in December 1913 and signed on with Keystone Studios' popular comedy director Mack Sennett, who had seen Chaplin perform on stage in New York. Charlie soon wrote his brother Syd, asking him to become his manager. While at Keystone, Chaplin appeared in and directed 35 films, starring as the Little Tramp in nearly all.In November 1914, he left Keystone and signed on at Essanay, where he made 15 films. In 1916, he signed on at Mutual and made 12 films. In June 1917, Chaplin signed up with First National Studios, after which he built Chaplin Studios. In 1919, he and Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith formed United Artists (UA).Chaplin's life and career was full of scandal and controversy. His first big scandal was during World War I, at which time his loyalty to England, his home country, was questioned. He had never applied for American citizenship, but claimed that he was a "paying visitor" to the United States. Many British citizens called Chaplin a coward and a slacker. This and other career eccentricities sparked suspicion with FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover and the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), who believed that he was injecting Communist propaganda into his films. Chaplin's later film The Great Dictator (1940), which was his first "talkie", also created a stir. In the film, Chaplin plays a humorous caricature of Adolf Hitler. Some thought the film was poorly done and in bad taste. However, the film grossed over $5 million and earned five Academy Award Nominations.Another scandal occurred when Chaplin briefly dated 22 year-old Joan Barry. However, Chaplin's relationship with Barry came to an end in 1942, after a series of harassing actions from her. In May 1943, Barry returned to inform Chaplin that she was pregnant and filed a paternity suit, claiming that the unborn child was his. During the 1944 trial, blood tests proved that Chaplin was not the father, but at the time, blood tests were inadmissible evidence, and he was ordered to pay $75 a week until the child turned 21.Chaplin also was scrutinized for his support in aiding the Russian struggle against the invading Nazis during World War II, and the United States government questioned his moral and political views, suspecting him of having Communist ties. For this reason, HUAC subpoenaed him in 1947. However, HUAC finally decided that it was no longer necessary for him to appear for testimony. Conversely, when Chaplin and his family traveled to London for the premier of Limelight (1952), he was denied re-entry to the United States. In reality, the government had almost no evidence to prove that he was a threat to national security. Instead, he and his wife decided to settle in Switzerland.Chaplin was married four times and had a total of 11 children. In 1918, he married Mildred Harris and they had a son together, Norman Spencer Chaplin, who lived only three days. Chaplin and Harris divorced in 1920. He married Lita Grey in 1924, who had two sons, Charles Chaplin Jr. and Sydney Chaplin. They were divorced in 1927. In 1936, Chaplin married Paulette Goddard, and his final marriage was to Oona O'Neill (Oona Chaplin), daughter of playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1943. Oona gave birth to eight children: Geraldine Chaplin, Michael Chaplin, Josephine Chaplin, Victoria Chaplin, Eugene Chaplin, Jane Chaplin, Annette-Emilie Chaplin, and Christopher Chaplin.In contrast to many of his boisterous characters, Chaplin was a quiet man who kept to himself a great deal. He also had an "un-millionaire" way of living. Even after he had accumulated millions, he continued to live in shabby accommodations. In 1921, Chaplin was decorated by the French government for his outstanding work as a filmmaker and was elevated to the rank of Officer of the Legion of Honor in 1952. In 1972, he was honored with an Academy Award for his "incalculable effect in making motion pictures the art form of the century". He was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1975 New Year's Honours List. No formal reason for the honour was listed. The citation simply reads "Charles Spencer Chaplin, Film Actor and Producer".Chaplin's other works included musical scores that he composed for many of his films. He also authored two autobiographical books, "My Autobiography" (1964) and its companion volume, "My Life in Pictures" (1974).Chaplin died at age 88 of natural causes on December 25, 1977 at his home in Vevey, Switzerland. His funeral was a small and private Anglican ceremony according to his wishes. In 1978, Chaplin's corpse was stolen from its grave and was not recovered for three months; he was re-buried in a vault surrounded by cement.Six of Chaplin's films have been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress: The Immigrant (1917), The Kid (1921), The Gold Rush (1925), City Lights (1931), Modern Times (1936), and The Great Dictator (1940).Charlie Chaplin is considered one of the greatest filmmakers in the history of American cinema, whose movies were and still are popular throughout the world and have even gained notoriety as time progresses. His films show, through the Little Tramp's positive outlook on life in a world full of chaos, that the human spirit has and always will remain the same.
Bio:
Considered to be one of the most pivotal stars of the early days of Hollywood, Charlie Chaplin lived an interesting life both in his films and behind the camera. He is most recognized as an icon of the silent film era, often associated with his popular character, the Little Tramp; the man with the toothbrush mustache, bowler hat, bamboo cane, and a funny walk.Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in Walworth, London, England on April 16, 1889, to Hannah Harriet Pedlingham (Hill) and Charles Chaplin, both music hall performers, who were married on June 22, 1885. After Charles Sr. separated from Hannah to perform in New York City, Hannah then tried to resurrect her stage career. Unfortunately, her singing voice had a tendency to break at unexpected moments. When this happened, the stage manager spotted young Charlie standing in the wings and led him on stage, where five-year-old Charlie began to sing a popular tune. Charlie and his half-brother, Syd Chaplin spent their lives in and out of charity homes and workhouses between their mother's bouts of insanity. Hannah was committed to Cane Hill Asylum in May 1903 and lived there until 1921, when Chaplin moved her to California.Chaplin began his official acting career at the age of eight, touring with the Eight Lancashire Lads. At age 18, he began touring with Fred Karno's vaudeville troupe, joining them on the troupe's 1910 United States tour. He traveled west to California in December 1913 and signed on with Keystone Studios' popular comedy director Mack Sennett, who had seen Chaplin perform on stage in New York. Charlie soon wrote his brother Syd, asking him to become his manager. While at Keystone, Chaplin appeared in and directed 35 films, starring as the Little Tramp in nearly all.In November 1914, he left Keystone and signed on at Essanay, where he made 15 films. In 1916, he signed on at Mutual and made 12 films. In June 1917, Chaplin signed up with First National Studios, after which he built Chaplin Studios. In 1919, he and Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith formed United Artists (UA).Chaplin's life and career was full of scandal and controversy. His first big scandal was during World War I, at which time his loyalty to England, his home country, was questioned. He had never applied for American citizenship, but claimed that he was a "paying visitor" to the United States. Many British citizens called Chaplin a coward and a slacker. This and other career eccentricities sparked suspicion with FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover and the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), who believed that he was injecting Communist propaganda into his films. Chaplin's later film The Great Dictator (1940), which was his first "talkie", also created a stir. In the film, Chaplin plays a humorous caricature of Adolf Hitler. Some thought the film was poorly done and in bad taste. However, the film grossed over $5 million and earned five Academy Award Nominations.Another scandal occurred when Chaplin briefly dated 22 year-old Joan Barry. However, Chaplin's relationship with Barry came to an end in 1942, after a series of harassing actions from her. In May 1943, Barry returned to inform Chaplin that she was pregnant and filed a paternity suit, claiming that the unborn child was his. During the 1944 trial, blood tests proved that Chaplin was not the father, but at the time, blood tests were inadmissible evidence, and he was ordered to pay $75 a week until the child turned 21.Chaplin also was scrutinized for his support in aiding the Russian struggle against the invading Nazis during World War II, and the United States government questioned his moral and political views, suspecting him of having Communist ties. For this reason, HUAC subpoenaed him in 1947. However, HUAC finally decided that it was no longer necessary for him to appear for testimony. Conversely, when Chaplin and his family traveled to London for the premier of Limelight (1952), he was denied re-entry to the United States. In reality, the government had almost no evidence to prove that he was a threat to national security. Instead, he and his wife decided to settle in Switzerland.Chaplin was married four times and had a total of 11 children. In 1918, he married Mildred Harris and they had a son together, Norman Spencer Chaplin, who lived only three days. Chaplin and Harris divorced in 1920. He married Lita Grey in 1924, who had two sons, Charles Chaplin Jr. and Sydney Chaplin. They were divorced in 1927. In 1936, Chaplin married Paulette Goddard, and his final marriage was to Oona O'Neill (Oona Chaplin), daughter of playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1943. Oona gave birth to eight children: Geraldine Chaplin, Michael Chaplin, Josephine Chaplin, Victoria Chaplin, Eugene Chaplin, Jane Chaplin, Annette-Emilie Chaplin, and Christopher Chaplin.In contrast to many of his boisterous characters, Chaplin was a quiet man who kept to himself a great deal. He also had an "un-millionaire" way of living. Even after he had accumulated millions, he continued to live in shabby accommodations. In 1921, Chaplin was decorated by the French government for his outstanding work as a filmmaker and was elevated to the rank of Officer of the Legion of Honor in 1952. In 1972, he was honored with an Academy Award for his "incalculable effect in making motion pictures the art form of the century". He was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1975 New Year's Honours List. No formal reason for the honour was listed. The citation simply reads "Charles Spencer Chaplin, Film Actor and Producer".Chaplin's other works included musical scores that he composed for many of his films. He also authored two autobiographical books, "My Autobiography" (1964) and its companion volume, "My Life in Pictures" (1974).Chaplin died at age 88 of natural causes on December 25, 1977 at his home in Vevey, Switzerland. His funeral was a small and private Anglican ceremony according to his wishes. In 1978, Chaplin's corpse was stolen from its grave and was not recovered for three months; he was re-buried in a vault surrounded by cement.Six of Chaplin's films have been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress: The Immigrant (1917), The Kid (1921), The Gold Rush (1925), City Lights (1931), Modern Times (1936), and The Great Dictator (1940).Charlie Chaplin is considered one of the greatest filmmakers in the history of American cinema, whose movies were and still are popular throughout the world and have even gained notoriety as time progresses. His films show, through the Little Tramp's positive outlook on life in a world full of chaos, that the human spirit has and always will remain the same.
Tivia:
Most people (now and during his lifetime) believe that Chaplin had brown eyes because they had only seen him in black and white with black eye makeup on. It fact they were very blue. Chaplin remarked in his autobiography that people meeting him for the first time were always struck by his blue eyes. And his future wife Oona Chaplin wrote "Just met Charlie Chaplin. What blue eyes he has!" to a girlhood friend in 1942.A much-repeated story claims that he once entered a Charlie Chaplin lookalike contest and finished third! In some versions of the story, he came in second.Long after becoming a millionaire, he continued to live in a shabby hotel room, and kept his studio checks in a trunk for months.As of 2021, he is the only person to receive a 12-minute standing ovation at the Academy Awards when he appeared to accept an honorary award "for the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century." It is the longest in the history of the Academy Awards up to 2021.He was 54 years old when he wed Oona O'Neill (Oona Chaplin) in 1943; Oona was age 18 at the time, which deeply disappointed her father Eugene O'Neill, who disowned his daughter as a result of his disappointment. Charlie's marriage to Oona became the longest of his four marriages by far, lasting until his own death.Was 73 years old when his youngest son, Christopher Chaplin, was born.On March 3, 1978, his dead body was stolen from the Corsier-Sur-Vevey cemetery. It took until May 18 when the police found the dead body.He remained in remarkably good physical and mental shape for most of his life, still playing tennis regularly well into his 70s and working constantly. However, after the completion of what turned out to be his last film, A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), his health began to visibly deteriorate.He and Buster Keaton had an interesting relationship. Long considered rivals but always having avoided commenting about each other in the press, Chaplin hired Keaton for a part in Limelight (1952). Keaton, who was flat broke at the time, went into a career decline after having been signed by MGM in 1928, as the studio would not let him improvise in any of his films nor allow him any writing or directorial input, and he was eventually reduced to writing gags--often uncredited--for other comedians' films. Chaplin, at this point, felt sorry for Keaton due to his hard luck, but Keaton recognized that, despite Charlie's better fortune and far greater wealth, he was (strangely) the more depressed of the two. In one scene in "Limelight", Chaplin's character was dying. While the camera was fading away, Keaton was muttering to Chaplin without moving his lips, "That's it, good, wait, don't move, wait, good, we're through." In his autobiography Keaton called Chaplin "the greatest silent comedian of all time".After his body was recovered from grave robbers, it was reburied in a vault surrounded by cement.According to his daughter Geraldine Chaplin, in the last years of his life, Chaplin began to worry that he might not be remembered after his death. This was a major reason why he allowed his trademark character, the Little Tramp to appear on several commercial products in the 1970s and 1980s, most notably 1970s commercials for Ford Motor Company, and 1980s commercials and print ads for International Business Machines (IBM), officially the "IBM Tramp".While visiting Winston Churchill in England in 1937, Chaplin found him studying newspapers and looking worried. When Chaplin asked what was disturbing him, Churchill replied, "Germany". Chaplin made some airy remark to try to dismiss the subject, but Churchill replied, "No, no, it's quite serious".Marlon Brando played the starring role in Chaplin's last movie A Countess from Hong Kong (1967) in 1966. While Brando had always greatly admired Chaplin's work and looked upon him as "probably the most talented man the [movie] medium has ever produced", the two superstars did not get along during the shooting. In his autobiography, Brando described Chaplin as "probably the most sadistic man I'd ever met." Chaplin, on his side, said that working with Brando simply was "impossible".In all his years of living and working in the United States, he never became a citizen.As a child, he was confined to a bed for weeks due to a serious illness. At night, his mother would sit at the window and act out what was going on outside. This was a major reason Chaplin became a comedian.When both Stan Laurel and Chaplin moved to America they shared a room in a boarding house.Stan Laurel was his understudy on the English stage.Was an accomplished musician who, in his later years, often reissued his silent films with scores he had composed himself.Once worked as a butler in England, a job he enjoyed. He was fired after he was caught playing a trumpet he had found in his employer's attic.His mother was so poor, she was once forced to pawn her son's spare clothes. She was also in and out of mental hospitals throughout her life.Composed about 500 melodies, including "Smile" and "This Is My Song".The fact that neither City Lights (1931) nor Modern Times (1936), two of Chaplin's most beloved and acclaimed movies, were nominated for a single Academy Award has puzzled many. One explanation could be that Chaplin expressed disdain for the Academy Awards early on; according to his son Charles Chaplin Jr., for a time Chaplin even used the Honorary Award he won in 1929 as a doorstop. However, apparently, his view on the Awards changed with time, as he accepted and seemed touched by his second Honorary Award in 1972.Although Chaplin was naturally unable to compose synchronized musical scores to his films until the advent of sound films (beginning with City Lights (1931), he is said to have provided several prominent film theaters with sheets of self-composed music to be played by orchestras to his films at least as far back as 1921, beginning with The Kid (1921).On July 6, 1925, he became the first actor to appear on the cover of Time magazine.Founder of United Artists along with Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith.His father, with whom he lived for only a brief period of time in his childhood while his mother was committed to a mental asylum, died as the result of alcohol abuse at age 37, when Charlie was age 12.One of the last movies he saw (and very much enjoyed) was Rocky (1976).His handprints, footprints and signature were immortalized in cement at Grauman's (now Mann's) Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, but after his fall from grace with the Americans because of his political views, the section of cement was removed from public view. It cannot be located and is now feared lost.His Beverly Hills residence was known as "Breakaway House". Designed by Chaplin himself and built by studio carpenters, it began falling to bits over the years, much to the amusement of visitors. Built on Summit Drive in the Pickfair neighborhood, the house boasted a pipe organ Chaplin continually used to entertain his guests in the great hall; he also screened his films there. His tennis court was a hive of activity; even the elusive Greta Garbo was a frequent player. He seems to have been an inspiring host; many of his guests joined in with his antics, and reflected that they had never been so funny before or since--it was the influence of Chaplin.Cinematic genius that he was, he never won an Academy Award in an acting category, his only non-honorary, competitive category Oscar victory being in the capacity of composer.He was subpoenaed by the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) in September 1947, but his appearance was postponed three times, and he never appeared. He sent HUAC a telegram stating "I am not a Communist, neither have I ever joined any political party or organization in my life." Subsequently, HUAC determined that it was no longer needed for him to appear.Cooking was not allowed in the boarding house where Stan Laurel and Chaplin stayed, so he would play the violin to cover up the sound of Laurel frying up food on a hot plate.When Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle was unable to find work after his infamous trial, Chaplin supported him out of his own pocket.He was nominated for writing, acting, directing, and producing The Circus (1928), in the first Academy Awards. However, the Academy Board of Governors chose to remove him from competition, thereby giving him a special award for "acting, writing, directing and producing The Circus." And they wrote a letter to Chaplin stating that he merited a placement "in a class" by himself.His film The Great Dictator (1940) was banned in Germany.He was the first, and to date, the last artist to have regular and complete control over every aspect of the filmmaking process of almost all of his films. He acted in, wrote, directed, produced, edited, cast, and composed the music for his movies. Chaplin literally paid for this authority by financing his films and studio overhead entirely with his own money.At the Golden Camera Awards 2005 in Berlin, Geraldine Chaplin told in a moving speech honoring Jerry Lewis about the last time she saw her father alive. He watched a movie of Lewis on television screaming "He's funny, that bastard!".Uncle of Spencer Dryden, drummer for the 1960s rock band Jefferson Airplane.His salary quickly rose during the Teens from $150 per week in 1913 for Keystone to $1250 per week at Essanay to $10,000 per week with a $150,000 bonus at Mutual to $150,000 per film in 1918 (equivalent to approximately $2,495,662.25 in 2018) at First National.First actor to be nominated for a single Academy Award (Best Actor) for a film in which he was credited as portraying two different characters. In The Great Dictator (1940), he played a Jewish barber--a variation of his Little Tramp character--and Adenoid Hynkel, his version of Adolf Hitler.When Chaplin arrived in the United States with the Fred Karno troupe on October 2, 1912, in his second trip to America, according to Ellis Island immigration records, he had $45 in his pocket. He listed his half-brother Syd Chaplin, as his next of kin. Though his mother was still alive, she was in a mental hospital. Sailing with him was fellow Karno troupe member Arthur Stanley Jefferson--later to be known as Stan Laurel.Invented his tramp costume with the help of Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle's pants. Arbuckle's father-in-law's derby, Chester Conklin's cutaway, Ford Sterling's size-14 shoes, the diminutive Charles Avery's jacket, and some crepe paper belonging to Mack Swain (which became the tramp's mustache). The only item that actually belonged to Chaplin was the whangee cane.His trademark character The Tramp appeared in about 70 movies, shorts and features, during a period of 26 years, from the one-reeler Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914) to his triumphant feature The Great Dictator (1940).He was awarded the Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in the 1975 Queen's New Year Honours List for his services to the film industry.Although Adolf Hitler was not at all a huge fan--in fact, he had been misinformed that Charlie was Jewish, and therefore despised him--he was also well aware of how beloved Charlie was throughout the world at that time, and that was the reason he grew the Chaplin mustache: he thought it would endear him to the people.Pictured (as Charlie Chaplin) on one of ten 29�� US commemorative postage stamps celebrating stars of the silent screen, issued 27 April 1994. Designed by caricaturist Al Hirschfeld, this set of stamps also honored Rudolph Valentino, Clara Bow, Lon Chaney, John Gilbert, Zasu Pitts, Harold Lloyd, Theda Bara, Buster Keaton and the Keystone Kops.Up until his last few movies, he never shot with a working script. He would start with a story in his mind and constantly retool it, often shooting hours of scenes that wouldn't make the final cut until he was satisfied. He spent his nights during filming, critiquing the rushes with his assistant directors. Consequently compared to the major studio's films, he spent months/years and excessive amounts of money on his productions. He often said though he would not release any of his films until he was 100% satisfied with the result.Pictured as his Little Tramp character on a Vatican City commemorative postage stamp celebrating the 125th anniversary of his birth (1889), issued 8 May 2014. Price on the day of issue was EUR0 .70.His bowler and cane was sold for $150,000 in 1987.He was also the first actor to have a comic strip about him; Ed Carey's 1916 strip, "Pa's Imported Son-in-Law", detailed the adventures of Chaplin. |
| Name: |
Charles Chaplin |
Type: |
Writer,Actor,Director (IMDB) |
| Area: |
All World |
Platform: |
IMDB |
| Category: |
|
Business scope: |
Writer,Actor,Director |
| Products for sale: |
Writer,Actor,Director |
| Model rank: |
284 |
| Last update: |
2024-07-01 03:32:12 |
| Height: |
5' 4' (1.63 m) |
| Biography: |
Considered to be one of the most pivotal stars of the early days of Hollywood, Charlie Chaplin lived an interesting life both in his films and behind the camera. He is most recognized as an icon of the silent film era, often associated with his popul |
| Trivia: |
Most people (now and during his lifetime) believe that Chaplin had brown eyes because they had only seen him in black and white with black eye makeup on. It fact they were very blue. Chaplin remarked in his autobiography that people meeting him for the first time were always struck by his blue eyes. And his future wife Oona Chaplin wrote "Just met Charlie Chaplin. What blue eyes he has!" to a girlhood friend in 1942.A much-repeated story claims that he once entered a Charlie Chaplin lookalike contest and finished third! In some versions of the story, he came in second.Long after becoming a millionaire, he continued to live in a shabby hotel room, and kept his studio checks in a trunk for months.As of 2021, he is the only person to receive a 12-minute standing ovation at the Academy Awards when he appeared to accept an honorary award "for the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century." It is the longest in the history of the Academy Awards up to 2021.He was 54 years old when he wed Oona O'Neill (Oona Chaplin) in 1943; Oona was age 18 at the time, which deeply disappointed her father Eugene O'Neill, who disowned his daughter as a result of his disappointment. Charlie's marriage to Oona became the longest of his four marriages by far, lasting until his own death.Was 73 years old when his youngest son, Christopher Chaplin, was born.On March 3, 1978, his dead body was stolen from the Corsier-Sur-Vevey cemetery. It took until May 18 when the police found the dead body.He remained in remarkably good physical and mental shape for most of his life, still playing tennis regularly well into his 70s and working constantly. However, after the completion of what turned out to be his last film, A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), his health began to visibly deteriorate.He and Buster Keaton had an interesting relationship. Long considered rivals but always having avoided commenting about each other in the press, Chaplin hired Keaton for a part in Limelight (1952). Keaton, who was flat broke at the time, went into a career decline after having been signed by MGM in 1928, as the studio would not let him improvise in any of his films nor allow him any writing or directorial input, and he was eventually reduced to writing gags--often uncredited--for other comedians' films. Chaplin, at this point, felt sorry for Keaton due to his hard luck, but Keaton recognized that, despite Charlie's better fortune and far greater wealth, he was (strangely) the more depressed of the two. In one scene in "Limelight", Chaplin's character was dying. While the camera was fading away, Keaton was muttering to Chaplin without moving his lips, "That's it, good, wait, don't move, wait, good, we're through." In his autobiography Keaton called Chaplin "the greatest silent comedian of all time".After his body was recovered from grave robbers, it was reburied in a vault surrounded by cement.According to his daughter Geraldine Chaplin, in the last years of his life, Chaplin began to worry that he might not be remembered after his death. This was a major reason why he allowed his trademark character, the Little Tramp to appear on several commercial products in the 1970s and 1980s, most notably 1970s commercials for Ford Motor Company, and 1980s commercials and print ads for International Business Machines (IBM), officially the "IBM Tramp".While visiting Winston Churchill in England in 1937, Chaplin found him studying newspapers and looking worried. When Chaplin asked what was disturbing him, Churchill replied, "Germany". Chaplin made some airy remark to try to dismiss the subject, but Churchill replied, "No, no, it's quite serious".Marlon Brando played the starring role in Chaplin's last movie A Countess from Hong Kong (1967) in 1966. While Brando had always greatly admired Chaplin's work and looked upon him as "probably the most talented man the [movie] medium has ever produced", the two superstars did not get along during the shooting. In his autobiography, Brando described Chaplin as "probably the most sadistic man I'd ever met." Chaplin, on his side, said that working with Brando simply was "impossible".In all his years of living and working in the United States, he never became a citizen.As a child, he was confined to a bed for weeks due to a serious illness. At night, his mother would sit at the window and act out what was going on outside. This was a major reason Chaplin became a comedian.When both Stan Laurel and Chaplin moved to America they shared a room in a boarding house.Stan Laurel was his understudy on the English stage.Was an accomplished musician who, in his later years, often reissued his silent films with scores he had composed himself.Once worked as a butler in England, a job he enjoyed. He was fired after he was caught playing a trumpet he had found in his employer's attic.His mother was so poor, she was once forced to pawn her son's spare clothes. She was also in and out of mental hospitals throughout her life.Composed about 500 melodies, including "Smile" and "This Is My Song".The fact that neither City Lights (1931) nor Modern Times (1936), two of Chaplin's most beloved and acclaimed movies, were nominated for a single Academy Award has puzzled many. One explanation could be that Chaplin expressed disdain for the Academy Awards early on; according to his son Charles Chaplin Jr., for a time Chaplin even used the Honorary Award he won in 1929 as a doorstop. However, apparently, his view on the Awards changed with time, as he accepted and seemed touched by his second Honorary Award in 1972.Although Chaplin was naturally unable to compose synchronized musical scores to his films until the advent of sound films (beginning with City Lights (1931), he is said to have provided several prominent film theaters with sheets of self-composed music to be played by orchestras to his films at least as far back as 1921, beginning with The Kid (1921).On July 6, 1925, he became the first actor to appear on the cover of Time magazine.Founder of United Artists along with Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith.His father, with whom he lived for only a brief period of time in his childhood while his mother was committed to a mental asylum, died as the result of alcohol abuse at age 37, when Charlie was age 12.One of the last movies he saw (and very much enjoyed) was Rocky (1976).His handprints, footprints and signature were immortalized in cement at Grauman's (now Mann's) Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, but after his fall from grace with the Americans because of his political views, the section of cement was removed from public view. It cannot be located and is now feared lost.His Beverly Hills residence was known as "Breakaway House". Designed by Chaplin himself and built by studio carpenters, it began falling to bits over the years, much to the amusement of visitors. Built on Summit Drive in the Pickfair neighborhood, the house boasted a pipe organ Chaplin continually used to entertain his guests in the great hall; he also screened his films there. His tennis court was a hive of activity; even the elusive Greta Garbo was a frequent player. He seems to have been an inspiring host; many of his guests joined in with his antics, and reflected that they had never been so funny before or since--it was the influence of Chaplin.Cinematic genius that he was, he never won an Academy Award in an acting category, his only non-honorary, competitive category Oscar victory being in the capacity of composer.He was subpoenaed by the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) in September 1947, but his appearance was postponed three times, and he never appeared. He sent HUAC a telegram stating "I am not a Communist, neither have I ever joined any political party or organization in my life." Subsequently, HUAC determined that it was no longer needed for him to appear.Cooking was not allowed in the boarding house where Stan Laurel and Chaplin stayed, so he would play the violin to cover up the sound of Laurel frying up food on a hot plate.When Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle was unable to find work after his infamous trial, Chaplin supported him out of his own pocket.He was nominated for writing, acting, directing, and producing The Circus (1928), in the first Academy Awards. However, the Academy Board of Governors chose to remove him from competition, thereby giving him a special award for "acting, writing, directing and producing The Circus." And they wrote a letter to Chaplin stating that he merited a placement "in a class" by himself.His film The Great Dictator (1940) was banned in Germany.He was the first, and to date, the last artist to have regular and complete control over every aspect of the filmmaking process of almost all of his films. He acted in, wrote, directed, produced, edited, cast, and composed the music for his movies. Chaplin literally paid for this authority by financing his films and studio overhead entirely with his own money.At the Golden Camera Awards 2005 in Berlin, Geraldine Chaplin told in a moving speech honoring Jerry Lewis about the last time she saw her father alive. He watched a movie of Lewis on television screaming "He's funny, that bastard!".Uncle of Spencer Dryden, drummer for the 1960s rock band Jefferson Airplane.His salary quickly rose during the Teens from $150 per week in 1913 for Keystone to $1250 per week at Essanay to $10,000 per week with a $150,000 bonus at Mutual to $150,000 per film in 1918 (equivalent to approximately $2,495,662.25 in 2018) at First National.First actor to be nominated for a single Academy Award (Best Actor) for a film in which he was credited as portraying two different characters. In The Great Dictator (1940), he played a Jewish barber--a variation of his Little Tramp character--and Adenoid Hynkel, his version of Adolf Hitler.When Chaplin arrived in the United States with the Fred Karno troupe on October 2, 1912, in his second trip to America, according to Ellis Island immigration records, he had $45 in his pocket. He listed his half-brother Syd Chaplin, as his next of kin. Though his mother was still alive, she was in a mental hospital. Sailing with him was fellow Karno troupe member Arthur Stanley Jefferson--later to be known as Stan Laurel.Invented his tramp costume with the help of Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle's pants. Arbuckle's father-in-law's derby, Chester Conklin's cutaway, Ford Sterling's size-14 shoes, the diminutive Charles Avery's jacket, and some crepe paper belonging to Mack Swain (which became the tramp's mustache). The only item that actually belonged to Chaplin was the whangee cane.His trademark character The Tramp appeared in about 70 movies, shorts and features, during a period of 26 years, from the one-reeler Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914) to his triumphant feature The Great Dictator (1940).He was awarded the Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in the 1975 Queen's New Year Honours List for his services to the film industry.Although Adolf Hitler was not at all a huge fan--in fact, he had been misinformed that Charlie was Jewish, and therefore despised him--he was also well aware of how beloved Charlie was throughout the world at that time, and that was the reason he grew the Chaplin mustache: he thought it would endear him to the people.Pictured (as Charlie Chaplin) on one of ten 29�� US commemorative postage stamps celebrating stars of the silent screen, issued 27 April 1994. Designed by caricaturist Al Hirschfeld, this set of stamps also honored Rudolph Valentino, Clara Bow, Lon Chaney, John Gilbert, Zasu Pitts, Harold Lloyd, Theda Bara, Buster Keaton and the Keystone Kops.Up until his last few movies, he never shot with a working script. He would start with a story in his mind and constantly retool it, often shooting hours of scenes that wouldn't make the final cut until he was satisfied. He spent his nights during filming, critiquing the rushes with his assistant directors. Consequently compared to the major studio's films, he spent months/years and excessive amounts of money on his productions. He often said though he would not release any of his films until he was 100% satisfied with the result.Pictured as his Little Tramp character on a Vatican City commemorative postage stamp celebrating the 125th anniversary of his birth (1889), issued 8 May 2014. Price on the day of issue was EUR0 .70.His bowler and cane was sold for $150,000 in 1987.He was also the first actor to have a comic strip about him; Ed Carey's 1916 strip, "Pa's Imported Son-in-Law", detailed the adventures of Chaplin. |
| Trademarks: |
A tramp with toothbrush mustache, undersized bowler hat and bamboo cane who struggled to survive while keeping his dignity in a world with great social injustice.
Highly descriptive facial expressions
Stories often reflect his liberal political beliefs
Comedy with a deep undercurrent of pathos
On-screen and off-screen, favored the company of much younger women, who were often innocent if troubled |
| Quotes: |
All I need to make a comedy is a park, a policeman and a pretty girl.
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[Returning to Los Angeles after a 20-year self-imposed exile to accept his honorary Oscar in 1971] Thank you so much. This is an emotional moment for me and words seem so futile, so feeble... I can only say that... thank you for the honor of inviting me here and... oh... you're wonderful, sweet people. Thank you.
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I like friends as I like music, when I am in the mood. To help a friend in need is easy, but to give him your time is not always opportune.
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The minute you bought your ticket you were in another world.
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I remain just one thing, and one thing only, and that is a clown. It places me on a far higher plane than any politician. |
| Salaries: |
The Tramp (1915) - $1,250 /week
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A Night Out (1915) - $1,250 /week
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Caught in the Rain (1914) - $150 /week
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Twenty Minutes of Love (1914) - $150 /week
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Mabel' |
| Job title: |
Writer,Actor,Director |
| Others works: |
(1936) Composed the love theme for Modern Times (1936), as a totally instrumental, unnamed composition (although it was the music for a sequence of the film in which smiling was the emphasis. Much later the song became widely known as the named song that |
| Spouse: |
Oona Chaplin (June 16, 1943 - December 25, 1977) (his death, 8 children)Paulette Goddard (June 1, 1936 - June 4, 1942) (divorced)Lita Grey (November 26, 1924 - August 25, 1927) (divorced, 2 children)Mil |
| Children: |
Victoria ChaplinMichael ChaplinJosephine ChaplinChristopher ChaplinJane ChaplinEugene ChaplinSydney ChaplinNorman Spencer Chaplin |
| Parents: |
Hannah Chaplin
Charles Chaplin Sr. |
| Relatives: |
Oona Chaplin (Grandchild)
Wheeler Dryden (Sibling)
James Thierr��e (Grandparent)
Kiera Chaplin (Grandchild)
Carmen Chaplin (Grandchild)
Dolores Chaplin (Grandchild)
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