Charles "Charlie" Chaplin

Born: 16 April 1889, Walworth, London, England
Died: 25 Dec 1977, Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland

Without doubt the most famous and enduring comic actor from the silent screen era was Charlie Chaplin. Over a century and a quarter after his birth, he is still instantly recognizable. Countless millions, who may never even have seen one of his films, still know who the Tramp with the funny walk is.
Chaplin's childhood reads like a Dickensian novel - he was in born London into poverty and his parents were estranged when he was an infant. His father died very young of drink related illness and his mother had mental issues, resulting in being committed into a mental asylum. He and his brother were sent to Lambeth Workhouse when he was just seven.
Chaplin began working in the music halls as an actor and then as a comedian. He joined Fred Karno's Troupe and eventually toured with them in America. He signed for Mack Sennett of Keystones Studios but his first film was poorly received. Legend has it that star actress Mabel Normand convinced Sennett to give the young actor a second chance and Chaplin, based on vagabonds he knew in London, wore a small bowler hat, tight jacket, baggy pants and oversized shoes - the Tramp was born.
Audiences loved this down-on-his luck character who bravely battles the odds through continued hardship. Chaplin's input into his films expanded into directing, as he changed studios, moving to Essaney and then to Mutual, signing lucrative contracts along the way. He then co-founded United Artists with Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. At this stage of his career there were no bigger stars than him.
Chaplin moved towards feature length films and with full directorial control, produced some of his best work. "The Kid" drew heavily on his own background experiences and was released to general acclaim, as was "The Gold Rush" with its iconic bread roll dance (a gag borrowed from Roscoe Arbuckle). The advent of sound was the death knell for many a silent star but Chaplin, for the time being, simply choose to ignore it and continued making dialogue free films such as "City Lights" and "Modern Times" - some of his best work.
He released a satire on Hitler, called "The Great Dictator", his first talkie and it contains the fantastic globe-dance.
Chaplin's private life was starting to become under scrutiny. He had been already married 3 times before meeting and marrying eighteen year old Oona O'Neil in 1943 (Chaplin was 54) but they would remain happily married until Chaplin's death 34 years later. He was never shy in voicing his political views which, in America at that time, proved to be quite detrimental. He admired Russia, which led to accusations of communist sympathies and an extended federal investigation, (View the FBI investigation letters).
Having ditched the Tramp character, his next film "Monsieur Verdoux" was a flop - continual bad publicity had taking its toll. When Chaplin took his family on a trip to Europe to promote his latest film in 1952, his re-entry visa was immediately revoked. Now in exile Chaplin and his family settled in Switzerland. He continued to work but could never recapture the heights of his earlier success. He semi-retired, spending a lot of his family holiday time in Waterville, Co-Kerry here in Ireland. This association with Waterville is celebrated by the annual Charlie Chaplin Film Festival.
In later years however Chaplin's films would be seen by a whole new audience and he lived to see resurgence in his popularity. This resurgence was complete when , in 1972, he was invited to America to accept an honorary Oscar - he reputedly received a 12 minute standing ovation.
Charlie Chaplin died on Christmas Day 1977.

Related Documents

• Charlie and Stan Laurel's names on a passenger list for the SS Oceanic, Southampton to USA 0n Oct 2nd 1912.
• Charlie's name on a passenger list for the SS Hikawa Maru, Japan to USA 0n June 2nd 1932.