Charlie Chaplin 16 April 1889 —

Charlie Chaplin 16 April 1889 — 25 December

CONTENTs 1. YOUNG YEARS 2. STAGE BY STAGE 3. FAMILY LIFE 4. POET OF LOVE 5. CITIZEN 6. SURPRISING TO KNOW 7. CONCLUSION

Charlie Chaplin……. just the name is enough to bring a smile. We all remember laughing at his famous “Tramp”, wearing a pair of baggy pants, a tight coat, a smallbowler hat, a large pair of shoes, a cane and not to forget, the small moustache.

This British comic actor of American movies and a legendary film-maker, writer, composer, became one of the biggest stars of the 20 th century’s silent-film era. Let’s remember some facts about his life and career, thus helping ourselves understand the way he rose up to The Great Dictator’s Speech. Sir Charles

YOUNG YEARS “ I always like walking in the rain, so no one can see me crying” Charlie was taught to sing before he could talk and danced as soon as he could walk. He was told that he would become the most famous person in the world.

Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in London, England, on April 16 th 1889. His father was a versatile vocalist and actor; and his mother, known under the stage name of Lily Harley, was an attractive actress and singer, who gained a reputation for her work in the light opera field. At the tender age of five he sang for his mother on stage after she became ill. The audience loved him and hurled their money onto the stage. His childhood was marked by hardship and poverty. By the age of ten, Charles was a skilled singer, acrobat.

In 1898, Charlie Chaplin entered the children’s dance group «Eight Lancashire guys. » However, in the spring of 1901 Charlie out of this dance group. Charlie almost did not attend school. He worked as a salesman of newspapers, doctor’s assistant, in the printing, but nowhere for a long time did not work because of the small age At the age of 14 years (in 1903), Charlie gets a permanent job in theater and the role of messenger, Billy in the play «Sherlock Holmes. » But since he was illiterate, the role helped to learn his brother Cindy.

STAGE BY STAGE From September 1910 to June 1912 with the troupe Chaplin Carnot is on tour in the United States. In 1912 he returned to 5 months in England, but on arrival in the States, he decides to stay in the country forever. In America, his special talent soon brought him popularity and, by the age of 25, Chaplin was already considered as a genius in his craft.

His richness of character and a rebellious caring heart are seen in the list of films beloved by everybody: “The Tramp”, “the Kid”, “the Gold Rush”, “the Circus”, “City Lights”, “Modern Times”, “the Great dictator” (1940), etc. As an actor, Charles Chaplin appeared in 86 films, and directed 72 movies.

FAMILY LIFE “ Butthere’s something just as inevitable aslove”. He was loved by the audiences and by the ladies. Of his four wives, Oona O’Neil was the last and stayed by him for the rest of his life. They got married when she had just turned 18, and he was 54. They stayed together for the rest of his life and had 8 children.

POET OF LOVE “ City Lights” was the favorite film of Charlie. The little fellow wanders the streets, money- and homeless. He sees a beautiful blind Flower Girl and decides to raise enough money for the girl to have an eye operation.

CITIZEN “ The Great dictator” “ I remain just one thing, — and that is aclown. It places me on a far higher plane than anypolitician”. From the early films, the actor shows his innate political and social criticism and wins popularity of the cinema-going public.

“ The Great Dictator” (1940) and was his first dialogue picture. The film was seen as an act of courage in the political environment of the time. In this film, the “little man of Chaplin” raised his voice against Nazism and persecution of Jewish people.

The film appeared one year before the U. S. entering the World War II. Despite Chaplin’s fears that the audience would dislike a comedy about the dictator, the film became popular with the American public, But, sadly, the world didn’t listen the antifascist warnings.

Do you know that: Charlie was born four days before A. Hitler. When A. Hitler watched «The Great Dictator» alone in theatrerepeatedly for three days, he was impressed by the acting of Chaplin without knowing that Chaplin imitated him in the movie. He even grew the mustache like Chaplin to make himself more appealing to the people.

Before “Great Dictator” was “Modern Times”. A political story commenting on the poverty of factory workers during depression era America. For his political views, the actor is sent to jail and exiled from America afterwards. At that time, many of his friends turned their back to him.

” I am not a political man. I am anindividualand abelieverin liberty. On the other hand I am not a super-patriot. It leads to Hitlerism— and we’ve had our lesson there. I don’t want to create arevolution— I just want to create a few more films”.

SURPRISING TO KNOW: — There is an asteroid named after him between Mars and Jupiter, which is called 3623 Chaplin. — He composed around 500 melodies for his own films and the last film that he ever saw was Rocky in 1976.

Charlie Chaplin was recognized as an American icon, but wasn’t an American citizen. He had lived in America for 40 years but was kicked out of the country after refusing U. S. citizenship in 1953. He lived in Switzerland during his exiled years and died in 1977 at the age of 88.

CONCLUSION Charlie Chaplin has earned the boundless affection of the entire world, among all nations, borders, languages and cultures. His name is written in the stars, and in the people’s memories and hearts. Charlie Chaplin is a citizen of the world. In his “Mini Biography” he said: “ I love everything that I do. If I could do something else better, I would do it, but I can’t”. I believe that if some of us could take these words as headline, the world around us would become better. But still….