Charlie Chaplin's Birthday

 

 

 

 

The Little Tramp

Today April 16th,1889 in the slums of London, a genius and icon of the cinema was born: Charles Spencer Chaplin, to an alcoholic father and a mentally unstable mother. Chaplin is head and shoulders above most performers when it comes to being a true superstar not only of Hollywood but of film. This was a music hall comedian who came to America in 1913 at the age of 24, a complete nobody in terms of fame with no connections or relatives in the movie business, practically friendless. By the end of 1914, he was known the world over as ' The Little Fellow ' as he Chaplin referred to his timeless creation, although most would call his character the ' Little Tramp'. Chaplin could do it all, what a baseball man would say is a 5 tool player. He wrote, directed, produced, scored and acted in his movies from 1921 to his last starring role in 1957's ' A King in New York '. In 1967's ' A Countess from Hong Kong ', the last film he directed, wrote and scored he did not star, but did have a brief cameo as a steward of an ocean liner.

On Doug Fairbanks shoulders New York City, 1918

Look at the above picture. Who in the world today could create such a massive turnout of people? Humans as far as the eye can see and then some. Such popularity scared some government officials. Known as a champion of liberal [ see human, compassionate ] causes, Chaplin was under surveillance by the FBI for years, not only because of his politics, but also because of his fondness for young women. His first wife was 16 when they wed, Chaplin was 29. His second wife, whom he met while making ' The Gold Rush ' in 1924, was another 16 year old, Chaplin, 35.  They married after she became pregnant. The marriage produced a total of 2 sons but as a couple they seemed totally mismatched and divorced in 1927.  

Leader of the double-cross, The Great Dictator 1940

Chaplin took risks not only in his private life but also in his art. His 1940 classic ' The Great Dictator ' was a blistering portrait of a certain facist ruler when not all Americans wished to antagonize relations with Germany.  Any resemblance between Charlie and a certain German political leader was purely coincidental. In that film besides the Dictator he also played a poor Jewish barber. In 1947's ' Monsieur Verdoux', Chaplin played a played a unemployed banker, who seduces marries then murders wealthy widows and kills them. As the 40's ended and the cold war 50's began, Chaplin was more that ever under an ever watchful government eye. As he had never became a citizen of the United States [ I am a citizen of the world, as he said in ' Great Dictator' ], Chaplin became an easy target for the right wing reactionaries such as Sen. Joseph McCarthy and his infamous communist witch hunt. In 1952, Chaplin released his latest film ' Limelight ' his valentine to his british music hall roots and voyaged overseas by ocean liner to publicize it. Having left America, the U.S government revoked his re-entry permit. Chaplin wouldn't set foot on American soil again for 20 years. With their eight children, Chaplin and his 4th and last wife Oona, whom he married in 1942 in Carpinteria, California, lived a quiet life in Switzerland. He died on Christmas Day 1977 at the age of 88.  The movies owe Chaplin a great debt, one that can, nor ever will be, repaid. He, Fairbanks, Pickford, Griffith and maybe one or two others made Hollywood the mecca for filmmaking and entertainment throughout the world. It's a reputation that has been fading for years and will eventually fade entirely.  Charlie's creations, however will never die. As long as there is a way to project them, Charlie Chaplin and his legacy- his gift to us- will live forever. Happy Birthday, Charlot.