Thought of by many as the greatest comedian of all time, Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in a poor district of London, England, on April 16, 1889. His mother, Hannah Hill Chaplin, a talented singer, actress, and piano player, spent most of her life in and out of mental hospitals. Charlie Chaplin's father, Charles Spencer Chaplin Sr. was a fairly successful singer until he began drinking. After his parents separated, Charlie and his half-brother, Sidney, spent most of their childhood in orphanages. While in the orphanages, they often went hungry and were beaten if they misbehaved. Barely able to read and write, Chaplin left school to tour with a group of comic entertainers. In 1908 he joined Fred Karno's touring stage company (group of comic entertainers) with his brother Sydney; Stan Laurel was also a member of the same company. After a short time, at the age of 19, he was one of the most popular music hall performers in England. In 1912 the troupe went to perform in America, and Chaplin decided to stay. The following year, producer Mack Sennett saw him perform and decided to take him on at the Keystone Studio, which already boasted such names as 'Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle' , Mabel Normand, the Keystone Kops and Mack Swain. However, Chaplin moved on to become an even a bigger star than any of the above legendary names, making a staggering 35 pictures in one year alone.
His first movie was Making a Living (1914); however, his next film, Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914), was destined to change his entire career. This picture saw him wearing baggy pants borrowed from 'Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle', size 14 shoes belonging to Ford Sterling (and worn upside down to keep them from falling off), a tiny jacket from Keystone Kop Charles Avery, a bowler hat belonging to Arbuckle's father-in-law and Mack Swain's mustache trimmed down to toothbrush size.
From 1915 onwards Chaplin wrote, directed, produced, scored and, of course, starred in all his movies. He joined the Essanay Company the following year and in 1917, The Immigrant (1917) and Easy Street (1917) were both released. In 1918 he and his brother opened their own studio in Los Angeles, and in 1919 he teamed up with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith to form a joint venture they named United Artists, for production of their own films. However, Chaplin did not make a film for the company until 1923 when A Woman of Paris: A Drama of Fate was released; this was followed in 1925 by the classic The Gold Rush (#5 highest grossing silent movie of all time) and in 1927 by The Circus (released in 1928 and #7 highest grossing silent movie of all time), for which he received an Academy Award. Charlie Chaplin became most famous for his Tramp character. Pictured above, this character had a square, black mustache, a bowler hat, baggy pants, tight fitting jacket, over-sized shoes, and a cane.
For the premiere of City Lights (1931), Chaplin traveled to London, and stayed there until 1932 before returning to the U.S. His next film was Modern Times (1936), which proved to be one of his greatest successes, followed four years later by The Great Dictator (1940), which was an indictment of the Nazi regime. Chaplin played a dual role, as a Jewish barber who fought in World War I and as the evil Adenoid Hynkel, dictator of Tomania. In 1945 he started working on a new picture, Monsieur Verdoux (1947), which was based on an idea from Orson Welles; he is thus credited in the film. In 1952 he released what is probably his best-known "talkie", Limelight (1952), which also featured his longtime friend, Buster Keaton.
That same year he was found himself swept up in the anti-Communist hysteria known as the McCarthy Era that was engulfing the U.S., and found himself accused by U.S. authorities of having Communist tendencies. Outraged and depressed, he left the U.S. for Switzerland. During his absence from the States he made two more films, A King in New York (1957), released in America 20 years later, and his final film A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), which starred Marlon Brando and Sophia Loren. This last film proved to be Chaplin's only failure and was a box-office flop.
In 1969 Chaplin began new scores for a number of his films, including The Kid and The Circus (1928). He also planned to make a film called "The Freak" with his daughter Victoria Chaplin in the lead role, wearing the wings her father had worn 50 years earlier in The Kid. However, by this time Chaplin was already into his 80s, and he retired to live in Vevey, Switzerland.
In 1975 he was knighted by the Queen of England. He died in his sleep on Christmas Day, 1977 (88 years old).
AWARDS:
National Board Review………..............Best Acting…..Movie: The Great Dictator 1940
New York Film Critics Circle…............Best Actor…….Movie: The Great Dictator 1940
Venice International Film Festival…....Golden Lion 1972
His first movie was Making a Living (1914); however, his next film, Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914), was destined to change his entire career. This picture saw him wearing baggy pants borrowed from 'Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle', size 14 shoes belonging to Ford Sterling (and worn upside down to keep them from falling off), a tiny jacket from Keystone Kop Charles Avery, a bowler hat belonging to Arbuckle's father-in-law and Mack Swain's mustache trimmed down to toothbrush size.
From 1915 onwards Chaplin wrote, directed, produced, scored and, of course, starred in all his movies. He joined the Essanay Company the following year and in 1917, The Immigrant (1917) and Easy Street (1917) were both released. In 1918 he and his brother opened their own studio in Los Angeles, and in 1919 he teamed up with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith to form a joint venture they named United Artists, for production of their own films. However, Chaplin did not make a film for the company until 1923 when A Woman of Paris: A Drama of Fate was released; this was followed in 1925 by the classic The Gold Rush (#5 highest grossing silent movie of all time) and in 1927 by The Circus (released in 1928 and #7 highest grossing silent movie of all time), for which he received an Academy Award. Charlie Chaplin became most famous for his Tramp character. Pictured above, this character had a square, black mustache, a bowler hat, baggy pants, tight fitting jacket, over-sized shoes, and a cane.
For the premiere of City Lights (1931), Chaplin traveled to London, and stayed there until 1932 before returning to the U.S. His next film was Modern Times (1936), which proved to be one of his greatest successes, followed four years later by The Great Dictator (1940), which was an indictment of the Nazi regime. Chaplin played a dual role, as a Jewish barber who fought in World War I and as the evil Adenoid Hynkel, dictator of Tomania. In 1945 he started working on a new picture, Monsieur Verdoux (1947), which was based on an idea from Orson Welles; he is thus credited in the film. In 1952 he released what is probably his best-known "talkie", Limelight (1952), which also featured his longtime friend, Buster Keaton.
That same year he was found himself swept up in the anti-Communist hysteria known as the McCarthy Era that was engulfing the U.S., and found himself accused by U.S. authorities of having Communist tendencies. Outraged and depressed, he left the U.S. for Switzerland. During his absence from the States he made two more films, A King in New York (1957), released in America 20 years later, and his final film A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), which starred Marlon Brando and Sophia Loren. This last film proved to be Chaplin's only failure and was a box-office flop.
In 1969 Chaplin began new scores for a number of his films, including The Kid and The Circus (1928). He also planned to make a film called "The Freak" with his daughter Victoria Chaplin in the lead role, wearing the wings her father had worn 50 years earlier in The Kid. However, by this time Chaplin was already into his 80s, and he retired to live in Vevey, Switzerland.
In 1975 he was knighted by the Queen of England. He died in his sleep on Christmas Day, 1977 (88 years old).
AWARDS:
National Board Review………..............Best Acting…..Movie: The Great Dictator 1940
New York Film Critics Circle…............Best Actor…….Movie: The Great Dictator 1940
Venice International Film Festival…....Golden Lion 1972
Relevance of Charlie Chaplin
in the 21st century
The ultra talented Charlie Chaplin starred in over 80 movies, two of which were in the top ten highest grossing silent films of all time. The stunts, body language, facial expressions, special effects, and overall comedy in Chaplin’s silent movies continue to impact the entertainment industry, which is remarkable when considering his last silent movie was made in 1936 (Modern Times).
1. Chaplin the Musical
(Special thanks goes to Mrs. Hawkins for providing the Playbill. Scroll down to see pics!) http://chaplinbroadway.com/
http://www.playbillvault.com/Show/Detail/13952/Chaplin
Ethel Barrymore Theatre
First Preview: August 21, 2012
Opening Date: September 10, 2012
Closing Date: Currently Running
Previews: 24
Performances: 79 as of November 18, 2012
Book: Thomas Meehan, Christopher Curtis
Music: Christopher Curtis
Lyrics: Christopher Curtis
QUICK STATS (As of November 18, 2012):
Total Current Gross: $5,666,260
Highest Weekly Gross: $532,747 (Week Ending 2012-10-07)
Average Ticket Price: $70.70
Avg % Capacity: 74.54
Previews: 24
Performances: 79
2. Chaplin's bowler hat and cane sell for $62,500
http://articles.nydailynews.com/2012-11-19/news/35211396_1_bowler-hat-bonhams-hat-and-cane
Chaplin's bowler hat, cane sell for $62,500
Monday, November 19, 2012
One of Charlie Chaplin's bowler hats and a cane, the staple of Hollywood silent-era comedy, were auctioned for $62,500 on Sunday, said auction house Bonhams.
3. Apollo Theater to screen Charlie Chaplin classic 'The Gold Rush'
http://www.pjstar.com/entertainment/x1224700988/Apollo-Theater-to-screen-Charlie-Chaplin-classic-The-Gold-Rush
Nov. 11, 2012 PEORIA — After last year's silent movie "The Artist" won five Oscars, film fans may yearn for more, so Downtown Peoria's not-for-profit Apollo Theater is presenting a classic silent comedy on Saturday, Charlie Chaplin's "The Gold Rush."
4. Broadway's Chaplin Offers Benefit Performance for NYC Firefighters Charity
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/172120-PHOTO-CALL-Broadways-Chaplin-Offers-Benefit-Performance-for-NYC-Firefighters-Charity
By Krissie Fullerton
12 Nov 2012
The new Broadway musical Chaplin, based on the life of screen legend Charlie Chaplin, hosted a benefit performance Nov. 9 for the NYC Firefighters charity, Lil' Bravest Inc., which raises money for children with diseases
5. Movie: Johnny English Reborn rated PG (2011)
Distributed by Universal
Worldwide Gross - $160,078,586
6. Movie: Mr. Bean’s Holiday rated G (2007)
Distributed by Universal
Worldwide Gross - $229,736,344
Starring: Rowan Atkinson & Willem Dafoe
Producers: Tim Beyan & Eric Fellner
7. Movie: Johnny English rated PG (2003)
Distributed by Universal
Worldwide Gross - $160,583,018
Writers: Neal Purvis and Robert Wade
Starring: Rowan Atkinson and John Malkovich
Producers: Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner
Composer: Ed Shearmur
8. Movie: Bean rated PG-13 distributed by Gramercy (1997)
Worldwide gross - $251,212,670
Starring: Rowan Atkinson
9. Movie: Chaplin rated PG-13 distributed by TriStar (1992)
Starring:
Robert Downey, Jr.
Anthony Hopkins
Marisa Tomei
Kevin Kline
Milla Jovovich*
David Duchovny*
Diane Lane
Total Lifetime Grosses: $9,493,259
Release Dates
December 25, 1992 (limited)
January 8, 1993 (wide)
Limited Opening Weekend: $84,669
(5 theaters, $16,933 average)
Wide Opening Weekend: $3,263,026
(#7 rank, 1,066 theaters, $3,061 average)
% of Total Gross: 34.4%
Widest Release: 1,080 theaters
Academy Awards Nominations
Actor: Robert Downey, Jr.
Art Direction
Original Score: John Barry
PLAYBILL for Chaplin the Broadway Musical (#1 above):
Chaplin’s Contributions in Comedy:
An Analysis of the Comedic Contributions of Charlie Chaplin Autumn Miller, Yahoo! Contributor Network
http://voices.yahoo.com/an-analysis-comedic-contributions-charlie-3286232.html
Comedies have the difficult task of making people laugh. A fine line exists between the realms of pain and pleasure. A man walking down the street, with nose in newspaper, happens upon a discarded banana peel and falls down to the ground with feet flailing. A viewer watching this scene can either gasp in horror, sympathizing with the victim, or he can laugh out loud, psychologically removing himself from the hapless incident. It is the duty of the comedy to create the latter scenario. As a genre, the comedy has provided American audiences with the necessary material for their laughter. With comedic figures like Jim Carey being one of the top paid Hollywood actors of any genre, it is easy to see the appeal of the American comedy. Translating comedy to the visual realm of film all began in the era of silent film with a man by the name of Mack Sennett.
Working for D. W. Griffith, Sennett began his comedic career first acting in and then directing American film's first comedies. The French were the source of many of the comic formulas used by Sennett. One such formula was the chase, which became a staple for the Sennett comedy (Everson, 262). This can be seen in The Curtain Pole, where a curtain pole transforms from an innocuous tool to a lethal weapon in the hands of Sennett. He parades through town poking, prodding, and spearing innocent people, who in turn begin to chase him. More and more people are added to the angry mob of victims, and the chase scene is firmly established. Tillie's Punctured Romance, credited with being the first American feature-length comedy, is also one of Sennett's contributions. This film is credited to D.W. Griffith, but it is believed that Sennett had most of the control over its direction (Everson 262). In this comedy, a swift kick in the backside is the most used comic device. Hardly funny by today's standards, Tillie's Punctured Romance portrays physical comedy at its rudimentary beginnings. Sennett is also responsible for the Keystone Kops, a group of inept officers who bounce onto the scene with comedic havoc (Langman, 330). Mack Sennett provided many contributions to the world of comedy, but another figure was going to push comedy from its frenzied, slapstick realm of low comedy into the slowed, intellectualized realm of high comedy.
This figure was Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin began his film career working for Sennett. At the end of his contract with Sennett, he left and pursued his career without the restrictions of his former employer. Chaplin began to create a comedic language on film that broke away from the purely physical kicking, poking and chasing of the first silent comedies. He slows down the gags, giving the audience time to become familiar with the characters, tailors the gags to individual characters within their situations, and begins to use comedy as social commentary. Walter Kerr writes in, The Silent Clowns, that Chaplin creates a "dimensional comedy - permitting us to see and to feel what is realistically distressing about life through the magnifying glass, and only through the magnifying glass, of humor" (171). In an article entitled, "What People Laugh At," Charlie Chaplin writes about the secret of his success: "And when all is said and done, at the bottom of almost all success is a knowledge of human nature..." (MacCann, 94). More than making us laugh, Chaplin provides his audiences a glimpse at humanity with comedic undertones. What enables him to provide laughter as well as social insight is an enigmatic character with a funny mustache.
The tramp, according to Chaplin, was "a composite of many Englishman...with small black mustaches, tight-fitting clothes and bamboo canes" (MacCann, 96). This Chaplin character became the iconic figure representative of silent comedy. The figure of the tramp began in film as a villain. In Griffith films the tramp represents a threat to the middle class family. Griffith's tramp exists to steal money, kidnap babies, threaten beautiful girls, and menace society. In his role as the vagabond, Chaplin represents an underdog that the audience can sympathize with. As the underdog, he is overlooked by society. It is this status as outsider that is key to Chaplin's success at social commentary. Like the court jester or the Shakespearean fool, the tramp can point out society's idiosyncrasies without being persecuted. Not only is he not chastised for his critique on society, he is applauded with laughter.
The character of the tramp continues to make people laugh. Chaplin's comedies combine serious social issues with humorous situations creating a plethora of avenues for the tramp to do what he does best. The tramp is naively ingenious in his ability to ascertain society's loopholes, physically adept at escaping society's traps, and above all else, the tramp is a hero to society's outcasts. A survey of Chaplin films employing the character of the tramp will illustrate these attributes.
The Immigrant is a 1917 Mutual film with Chaplin in the lead and directing. The story focuses on two immigrants, played by Chaplin and Edna Purviance, en route and arriving in America. Langman writes of the film, "with its social implications and autobiographical overtones, it reminded many urban dwellers of the harsh realities they had undergone in search of a new home and a fresh beginning" (302). Here Chaplin provides a glimpse at a real life issue about the difficulty of immigrants arriving in a new world, and masks this social commentary with humorous sight gags. In a 1917 magazine article one critic believed the film to have "successfully chased the imps of pain with lashes of laughter" (Pratt, 200).
In The Immigrant, the tramp possesses the ability to outwit his fellow shipmates. He learns that what people do not see can benefit him. Just as people have difficulty seeing the often overlooked tramp, people also have difficulty seeing the details of their surroundings. The tramp uses this knowledge to survive in his harsh environment. It is his sleight of hand in the card game with his fellow shipmates that allows him to win the game and the money. He also learns that as the outsider, and thus privileged seer of humanity, he can not let the details of a situation go unnoticed. It is when he does not see his surroundings that trouble abounds. The man he beats at gambling goes off disgruntled and steals money from the woman he later falls in love with.
This woman is the recipient of the tramp's kind heart. He, discovering her misfortune, places money in her pocket without her knowing of his generosity - his sleight of hand sneaks the money into her unsuspecting pocket. But what the tramp does not see is a cop watching the exchange. The cop misinterprets the tramp's motives, and thinks he is actually stealing the money from her pocket. The tramp's knowledge of his surroundings is key to surviving the wrath of narrow minded cops. This cop, as with all cops in Chaplin's films, represents society's inability to see the tramp for who he is. We see an interesting reversal of Griffith's good and evil roles. In Griffith, the tramp represents a threat to society and the police are considered the heroes. In Chaplin, the tramp is the savior to society's values, and the cops are the threat to that benevolence.
As the immigrants approach their new home the screen title points out, "Arrival in the Land of Liberty." While they gaze at America's symbol of freedom, the Statue of Liberty, an immigration clerk rushes at them with a rope to tie them off. Being corralled like animals is the immigrants first taste of freedom. The tramp does not let this treatment go unnoticed. The clerk, not paying attention to his world, receives a quick kick in the backside by the elusive tramp. While still employing the slapstick of comedies like Tillie's Punctured Romance, Chaplin moves beyond simple physical comedy into a statement about American hypocrisy. Even with this negative outlook on life, the ending of The Immigrants reaffirms the American ideal. The tramp finds a job, love, and happiness. This optimistic ending will not be so evident in later Chaplin comedies.
In the 1925 United Artists film, The Gold Rush, Chaplin takes his character of the tramp even further outside society. The tramp, in the form of a lone prospector, braves the elements of the Klondike in search of gold. While inspired by the actual 1898 Klondike gold rush, Chaplin was also inspired by another story about immigrants - the Donner party (Robinson 334). This group of immigrants fell prey to the elements and resorted to eating the remains of their fallen friends to survive starvation.
The distinction between following primal instincts and partaking in the restraints of humanity are the focus of The Gold Rush. The distinction between animal and man is blurred throughout the story. The tramp's cabin mate, Big Jim McKay, wears a big fur coat, resembling a giant bear. When a real bear shows up in the cabin, the tramp believes it to be his friend. In a scene echoed in so many cartoons, Big Jim, in a fit of starvation, sees the tramp as a giant chicken and tries to eat him. While expecting Georgia to a New Year's Eve dinner, the tramp answers a knock at the door only to find a donkey. Though comedic in nature, these gags address the ethical dilemma of a society behaving less than civilized.
In response to this dilemma, the tramp becomes the epitome of humanity. He fears that the cabin dog was eaten when Black Larsen returns to the cabin without the dog. Realizing the frailty of the human condition, the tramp knows the animalistic result of depravity. Trying to temper this frailty, the tramp provides Thanksgiving dinner for Big Jim. Not having any food, the tramp sacrifices his shoe as the feast. Through the rest of the film he goes without a shoe as a symbol of his compassion.
The concept of mistaken identity is also utilized in the misunderstandings of character between the tramp and his love interest, Georgia. He views her as a fellow compassionate human. In reality she is far from compassionate as she plays cruel tricks on the tramp - leading him to believe she is interested while all the time she is laughing at his naiveté. She thinks him to be a worthless bum and not the caring person the audience knows him to be. Georgia finally realizes the errors of her ways and becomes the compassionate person the tramp thought she was. She accepts the tramp as a tramp, and yet she is still wrong. By the end of the film, the tramp has become a millionaire, and when the two meet again she mistakes him for the bum she remembered. However, by the end of the film, they are each correct in assuming compassion in the other.
Five years earlier Chaplin made his first feature length film, The Kid - a 1920 First National production. This film more eloquently mixes comedic effect with serious overtones, as the opening screen title states, "A picture with a smile - and perhaps a tear." In an increasingly industrial society, this film depicts a society confused by what is useful and what is trash.
The tramp's morning promenade sets up the theme to the movie. As people throw their trash out the window, the tramp either dodges or gets hit by the debris. When he happens upon an abandoned baby in the alleyway, his first instinct is to look up at the purveyors of the street trash. His life on the street is what leads him to that assessment of the situation - as a tramp he lives on what other people cast away; he finds use in what people find a burden. His role as trash collector is extended to its logical extreme when he happens upon a baby he believes to be discarded by society and becomes a father.
His role as father does not happen so quickly. Even he thinks about throwing the child away down a sewage drain. He can not do it for the same reason he can not throw away the pin holding the note to the child's chest - it might be of some use after all. He carefully sticks the pin in his lapel and cradles the child closer in his arms. His humanity prevents him from overlooking the burden on society that he holds in his arms. As he raises the child, we get a sense of the tramp's compassionate value system. Eating breakfast with the now 5 year old child, the tramp meticulously counts out each pancake being served to make sure he and the boy have the same amount. When he realizes he has one more, he cuts the extra in half and splits it evenly. The tramp's value system is based on equality. Having lived a life of inequality, however, he cant help throw into his equality based dream sequence, where everyone in heaven has the same tattered wings, the concept of sin. Even a supposed perfect realm is not without its flaws.
Like the world in the dream sequence, the tramp's reality-based world is similarly corrupted. "The proper care and attention" show up in a county orphan asylum van to take away the child he raised. As they take the boy out the door, it is easy to read on the child's lips the exclamations of, "papa! papa! papa!" The tramp's role as lone outsider diminished a little when he became a father, but society does not allow tramps to raise children. The now rich mother, who has proved her compassion to the audience by her acts of charity, reclaims her lost possession. Her compassion extends out to the tramp, however, as she invites him into her home. This pseudo happy ending leaves the audience to decide the tramp's fate.
In the 1931 United Artist production, City Lights, a contrast is set up between rich and poor. The picture is about how you see what you see and how you interpret what you hear. The title aptly points out this visual contrast. A visitor to any city will be dazzled by it's bright, city lights, while unable to see a tramp living in its darker ghettos.
The concept of sound began to enter pictures, and Chaplin as a silent star feared the pending conquest. His outsider status threatened to become a reality as talkies began to push him outside the realm of movies altogether. Several biting references to the new sound technology are made throughout City Lights. The first instance is at the opening ceremony. Attempting to reveal a new statue extolling peace and prosperity, the speakers talk in a fashion similar to the adults in a Peanuts cartoon. Sound comes out, but no words are heard. Even without the aid of words it is easy to discern the meaning of the speech, and irony is established as the speech praises prosperity and the penniless tramp sits in the lap of the statue. It is evident that meaning is important while words are futile. In several instances throughout the film, sound represents people's tendency to give a mindless Pavlonian response to the sounds of their world. The National Anthem begins to play at the ceremony, the mob stops their yelling, and the tramp stops his stumbling to stand erect with hand over heart in honor of the song. In the boxing scene, the rope controlling the bell announcing each round becomes tied around the tramp's neck. As his movements command a ringing of the bell, each boxer responds appropriately by either taking a corner or resuming fighting. The world is filled with sounds that command individual actions.
The importance of sound and sight become more clear when the tramp encounters a blind girl. She represents all of society: her world is commanded by sound, and she is literally blind to the impoverished. The tramp does what he does with all underdogs of society - he attempts to help her. He befriends a drunken millionaire by preventing him from committing suicide - another act of kindness offered by the tramp. The trouble is that the millionaire only sees the tramp as a friend when he is drunk. The millionaire becomes symbolically blind when he is sober. The millionaire is not the only one confused by the tramp. Through a mishap, the blind girl believes the tramp to be a millionaire. Unable to see his tattered clothes, she assumes that the appearance of the tamp at the exact moment of the sound of a rich man's car door slamming indicates he is indeed wealthy. By the end of the film, the girl's eyes are restored and the question becomes will she accept the tramp. As a chance encounter arises between the two, the girl slowly realizes the tramp is her imagined millionaire. The audience is left wondering will she accept him now that she can see. The answer depends on if society can accept him now that it can see.
The 1936 United Artist production, Modern Times, was Chaplin's last silent film. The world gave way to sound, and the tramp remained silent. Modern Times is also one of Chaplin's more biting satirical looks at America. One of its themes looks at the growing inability of people to distinguish man from machine. The growth of industry begins to dwarf the tramp's benevolence, and the products of that industry, namely sound, begin to dwarf Chaplin's character. The opening screen title tells us that Modern Times is "a story of industry, of individual enterprise - humanity crusading in the pursuit of happiness."
Humanity is pitted against machine in the modern world of industry. The movie opens with a shot of sheep being herded contrasted with the sight of workers lining into work. Individuality is lost in the meshes of the machine age. This work environment foreshadows George Orwell's, as yet to be written 1984. Cameras watch the workers every move. The camera even follows the tramp into the bathroom. In society's attempt at making a machine out of a man, the tramp goes the way of all overworked machines - suffering a breakdown. During his breakdown he becomes similar to all of society in that he can no longer distinguish human from machine. In a world where people treat machines like people and people like machines, the tramp provided a glimpse at rare compassion. Now that he has suffered his breakdown, humans are no more important than machines. This is evidenced in his inability to distinguish a fire hydrant from a woman - both are targets for his wrench happy hands.
As with the court jesters of medieval times, the fool walks a fine line. Once that line is overstepped and social criticism begins to offend rather than make society laugh at itself, then there is danger. The tramp began to walk this fine line, and Chaplin suffered for it. In the film, the tramp happens upon a red flag fallen from a truck. He begins to wave this red flag as Communist marchers turn the corner. Mistaken for a Communist leader, the tramp is hauled off to jail. This little sequence echoes Chaplin's fate in America. Accused of being loyal to the Communist party he leaves America towards the end of his career. The tramp's ability at social satire may have been too well played.
As the tramp in Modern Times meets up with a female waif named Gamin, the film begins to parallel the biblical story of Adam and Eve. Their first encounter happens when Gamin steals the forbidden fruit - bread to satiate her hungry stomach. Eve's motives were similar - stealing the fruit to satiate her hunger for knowledge. The police, standing in for God, punish both the tramp and Gamin. It becomes clear that this social order imposed by laws stifles the tramp's freedom. In a dream sequence, the tramp combines the American dream with images of Eden. Wanting to live happily ever after, the tramp imagines he and Gamin in the roles of husband and wife. The house they live in, however, has trees at every window overgrowing the rigid structure of the house. The garden of Eden with all its freedom is what the tramp longs for. But as with the biblical story, the tramp and Gamin become exiles - walking away, with backs turned, down a dusty road.
Modern Times offers a poignant ending to the life of the tramp. As a watcher of humanity, and a critic of society, he had a full career. His first steps onto the Land of Liberty in The Immigrant, gave him a glimpse into both the American nightmare and the American dream. He was an impoverished foreigner who had only his guile to outwit the establishment. Because of this intuitive ability to survive, the tramp was able to find happiness in the form of a loving wife alluded to by the end. In The Gold Rush, the tramp was able to become a millionaire despite societies continuing inability to distinguish animalistic desire from humanistic compassion. The tramp became a father in The Kid, and proved himself able to overcome the industrialist attitude of utility over love exhibited by his fellow humans. The happy ending of an American dream fulfilled is not so readily apparent in this film. The woman may invite the tramp inside her home, seeming to counter his outsider status, but the audience is not so sure the woman, the kid, and the tramp can live happily ever after. In City Lights, we see the tramp in his most compassionate role as he falls in love despite class distinctions. In his tattered clothes he reunites with the now prosperous, sighted heroine only to see a slight tinge of disappointment on her face as she realizes it is he who saved her. This ending is more sad than happy, and we begin to realize the tramp must remain outside the realm of society in order to survive in tact. Finally, in Modern Times, society's mechanistic attitude permanently exiles the tramp, and while he escapes a society that no longer wants him, we are left in that imagined world where objects dominate people. Only now we no longer have the balancing forces of the tramp's infinite humor through compassion. From immigrant to exile, the tramp fulfills his status as outsider, and satirizes the world that created his immanent alienation.
While the tramp left us down that dusty road, he created a type of comedy that would be emulated for decades. More than making us laugh, he opened our eyes to the discrepancy between our values and our actions. While countless comedians continue his satirical style, the tramp had to do it without the benefit of dialogue. He proved well that words are futile and actions speak millions.
Works Cited
City Lights. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. UA, 1931.
The Curtain Pole. Dir. D.W. Griffith. 1909.
Everson, William. American Silent Film. New York: Oxford UP, 1978.
The Gold Rush. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. UA, 1925.
The Immigrant. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. MUT, 1917.
Kerr, Walter. The Silent Clowns. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1975.
The Kid. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. FN, 1921.
Langman, Larry. Encyclopedia of American Film Comedy. New York: Garland Publishing, 1987.
MacCann, Richard. The Silent Comedians. New Jersey: Scarecrow Press, 1993.
Modern Times. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. UA,1936.
Pratt, George. Spellbound in Darkness: A History of the Silent Film. Greenwich: New York Graphic Society, 1973.
Robinson, David. Chaplin: His Life and Art. New York: De Capo Press, 1994.
Tillie's Punctured Romance. Dir. Mack Sennett. KEY, 1914.
1. Chaplin the Musical
(Special thanks goes to Mrs. Hawkins for providing the Playbill. Scroll down to see pics!) http://chaplinbroadway.com/
http://www.playbillvault.com/Show/Detail/13952/Chaplin
Ethel Barrymore Theatre
First Preview: August 21, 2012
Opening Date: September 10, 2012
Closing Date: Currently Running
Previews: 24
Performances: 79 as of November 18, 2012
Book: Thomas Meehan, Christopher Curtis
Music: Christopher Curtis
Lyrics: Christopher Curtis
QUICK STATS (As of November 18, 2012):
Total Current Gross: $5,666,260
Highest Weekly Gross: $532,747 (Week Ending 2012-10-07)
Average Ticket Price: $70.70
Avg % Capacity: 74.54
Previews: 24
Performances: 79
2. Chaplin's bowler hat and cane sell for $62,500
http://articles.nydailynews.com/2012-11-19/news/35211396_1_bowler-hat-bonhams-hat-and-cane
Chaplin's bowler hat, cane sell for $62,500
Monday, November 19, 2012
One of Charlie Chaplin's bowler hats and a cane, the staple of Hollywood silent-era comedy, were auctioned for $62,500 on Sunday, said auction house Bonhams.
3. Apollo Theater to screen Charlie Chaplin classic 'The Gold Rush'
http://www.pjstar.com/entertainment/x1224700988/Apollo-Theater-to-screen-Charlie-Chaplin-classic-The-Gold-Rush
Nov. 11, 2012 PEORIA — After last year's silent movie "The Artist" won five Oscars, film fans may yearn for more, so Downtown Peoria's not-for-profit Apollo Theater is presenting a classic silent comedy on Saturday, Charlie Chaplin's "The Gold Rush."
4. Broadway's Chaplin Offers Benefit Performance for NYC Firefighters Charity
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/172120-PHOTO-CALL-Broadways-Chaplin-Offers-Benefit-Performance-for-NYC-Firefighters-Charity
By Krissie Fullerton
12 Nov 2012
The new Broadway musical Chaplin, based on the life of screen legend Charlie Chaplin, hosted a benefit performance Nov. 9 for the NYC Firefighters charity, Lil' Bravest Inc., which raises money for children with diseases
5. Movie: Johnny English Reborn rated PG (2011)
Distributed by Universal
Worldwide Gross - $160,078,586
6. Movie: Mr. Bean’s Holiday rated G (2007)
Distributed by Universal
Worldwide Gross - $229,736,344
Starring: Rowan Atkinson & Willem Dafoe
Producers: Tim Beyan & Eric Fellner
7. Movie: Johnny English rated PG (2003)
Distributed by Universal
Worldwide Gross - $160,583,018
Writers: Neal Purvis and Robert Wade
Starring: Rowan Atkinson and John Malkovich
Producers: Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner
Composer: Ed Shearmur
8. Movie: Bean rated PG-13 distributed by Gramercy (1997)
Worldwide gross - $251,212,670
Starring: Rowan Atkinson
9. Movie: Chaplin rated PG-13 distributed by TriStar (1992)
Starring:
Robert Downey, Jr.
Anthony Hopkins
Marisa Tomei
Kevin Kline
Milla Jovovich*
David Duchovny*
Diane Lane
Total Lifetime Grosses: $9,493,259
Release Dates
December 25, 1992 (limited)
January 8, 1993 (wide)
Limited Opening Weekend: $84,669
(5 theaters, $16,933 average)
Wide Opening Weekend: $3,263,026
(#7 rank, 1,066 theaters, $3,061 average)
% of Total Gross: 34.4%
Widest Release: 1,080 theaters
Academy Awards Nominations
Actor: Robert Downey, Jr.
Art Direction
Original Score: John Barry
PLAYBILL for Chaplin the Broadway Musical (#1 above):
Chaplin’s Contributions in Comedy:
An Analysis of the Comedic Contributions of Charlie Chaplin Autumn Miller, Yahoo! Contributor Network
http://voices.yahoo.com/an-analysis-comedic-contributions-charlie-3286232.html
Comedies have the difficult task of making people laugh. A fine line exists between the realms of pain and pleasure. A man walking down the street, with nose in newspaper, happens upon a discarded banana peel and falls down to the ground with feet flailing. A viewer watching this scene can either gasp in horror, sympathizing with the victim, or he can laugh out loud, psychologically removing himself from the hapless incident. It is the duty of the comedy to create the latter scenario. As a genre, the comedy has provided American audiences with the necessary material for their laughter. With comedic figures like Jim Carey being one of the top paid Hollywood actors of any genre, it is easy to see the appeal of the American comedy. Translating comedy to the visual realm of film all began in the era of silent film with a man by the name of Mack Sennett.
Working for D. W. Griffith, Sennett began his comedic career first acting in and then directing American film's first comedies. The French were the source of many of the comic formulas used by Sennett. One such formula was the chase, which became a staple for the Sennett comedy (Everson, 262). This can be seen in The Curtain Pole, where a curtain pole transforms from an innocuous tool to a lethal weapon in the hands of Sennett. He parades through town poking, prodding, and spearing innocent people, who in turn begin to chase him. More and more people are added to the angry mob of victims, and the chase scene is firmly established. Tillie's Punctured Romance, credited with being the first American feature-length comedy, is also one of Sennett's contributions. This film is credited to D.W. Griffith, but it is believed that Sennett had most of the control over its direction (Everson 262). In this comedy, a swift kick in the backside is the most used comic device. Hardly funny by today's standards, Tillie's Punctured Romance portrays physical comedy at its rudimentary beginnings. Sennett is also responsible for the Keystone Kops, a group of inept officers who bounce onto the scene with comedic havoc (Langman, 330). Mack Sennett provided many contributions to the world of comedy, but another figure was going to push comedy from its frenzied, slapstick realm of low comedy into the slowed, intellectualized realm of high comedy.
This figure was Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin began his film career working for Sennett. At the end of his contract with Sennett, he left and pursued his career without the restrictions of his former employer. Chaplin began to create a comedic language on film that broke away from the purely physical kicking, poking and chasing of the first silent comedies. He slows down the gags, giving the audience time to become familiar with the characters, tailors the gags to individual characters within their situations, and begins to use comedy as social commentary. Walter Kerr writes in, The Silent Clowns, that Chaplin creates a "dimensional comedy - permitting us to see and to feel what is realistically distressing about life through the magnifying glass, and only through the magnifying glass, of humor" (171). In an article entitled, "What People Laugh At," Charlie Chaplin writes about the secret of his success: "And when all is said and done, at the bottom of almost all success is a knowledge of human nature..." (MacCann, 94). More than making us laugh, Chaplin provides his audiences a glimpse at humanity with comedic undertones. What enables him to provide laughter as well as social insight is an enigmatic character with a funny mustache.
The tramp, according to Chaplin, was "a composite of many Englishman...with small black mustaches, tight-fitting clothes and bamboo canes" (MacCann, 96). This Chaplin character became the iconic figure representative of silent comedy. The figure of the tramp began in film as a villain. In Griffith films the tramp represents a threat to the middle class family. Griffith's tramp exists to steal money, kidnap babies, threaten beautiful girls, and menace society. In his role as the vagabond, Chaplin represents an underdog that the audience can sympathize with. As the underdog, he is overlooked by society. It is this status as outsider that is key to Chaplin's success at social commentary. Like the court jester or the Shakespearean fool, the tramp can point out society's idiosyncrasies without being persecuted. Not only is he not chastised for his critique on society, he is applauded with laughter.
The character of the tramp continues to make people laugh. Chaplin's comedies combine serious social issues with humorous situations creating a plethora of avenues for the tramp to do what he does best. The tramp is naively ingenious in his ability to ascertain society's loopholes, physically adept at escaping society's traps, and above all else, the tramp is a hero to society's outcasts. A survey of Chaplin films employing the character of the tramp will illustrate these attributes.
The Immigrant is a 1917 Mutual film with Chaplin in the lead and directing. The story focuses on two immigrants, played by Chaplin and Edna Purviance, en route and arriving in America. Langman writes of the film, "with its social implications and autobiographical overtones, it reminded many urban dwellers of the harsh realities they had undergone in search of a new home and a fresh beginning" (302). Here Chaplin provides a glimpse at a real life issue about the difficulty of immigrants arriving in a new world, and masks this social commentary with humorous sight gags. In a 1917 magazine article one critic believed the film to have "successfully chased the imps of pain with lashes of laughter" (Pratt, 200).
In The Immigrant, the tramp possesses the ability to outwit his fellow shipmates. He learns that what people do not see can benefit him. Just as people have difficulty seeing the often overlooked tramp, people also have difficulty seeing the details of their surroundings. The tramp uses this knowledge to survive in his harsh environment. It is his sleight of hand in the card game with his fellow shipmates that allows him to win the game and the money. He also learns that as the outsider, and thus privileged seer of humanity, he can not let the details of a situation go unnoticed. It is when he does not see his surroundings that trouble abounds. The man he beats at gambling goes off disgruntled and steals money from the woman he later falls in love with.
This woman is the recipient of the tramp's kind heart. He, discovering her misfortune, places money in her pocket without her knowing of his generosity - his sleight of hand sneaks the money into her unsuspecting pocket. But what the tramp does not see is a cop watching the exchange. The cop misinterprets the tramp's motives, and thinks he is actually stealing the money from her pocket. The tramp's knowledge of his surroundings is key to surviving the wrath of narrow minded cops. This cop, as with all cops in Chaplin's films, represents society's inability to see the tramp for who he is. We see an interesting reversal of Griffith's good and evil roles. In Griffith, the tramp represents a threat to society and the police are considered the heroes. In Chaplin, the tramp is the savior to society's values, and the cops are the threat to that benevolence.
As the immigrants approach their new home the screen title points out, "Arrival in the Land of Liberty." While they gaze at America's symbol of freedom, the Statue of Liberty, an immigration clerk rushes at them with a rope to tie them off. Being corralled like animals is the immigrants first taste of freedom. The tramp does not let this treatment go unnoticed. The clerk, not paying attention to his world, receives a quick kick in the backside by the elusive tramp. While still employing the slapstick of comedies like Tillie's Punctured Romance, Chaplin moves beyond simple physical comedy into a statement about American hypocrisy. Even with this negative outlook on life, the ending of The Immigrants reaffirms the American ideal. The tramp finds a job, love, and happiness. This optimistic ending will not be so evident in later Chaplin comedies.
In the 1925 United Artists film, The Gold Rush, Chaplin takes his character of the tramp even further outside society. The tramp, in the form of a lone prospector, braves the elements of the Klondike in search of gold. While inspired by the actual 1898 Klondike gold rush, Chaplin was also inspired by another story about immigrants - the Donner party (Robinson 334). This group of immigrants fell prey to the elements and resorted to eating the remains of their fallen friends to survive starvation.
The distinction between following primal instincts and partaking in the restraints of humanity are the focus of The Gold Rush. The distinction between animal and man is blurred throughout the story. The tramp's cabin mate, Big Jim McKay, wears a big fur coat, resembling a giant bear. When a real bear shows up in the cabin, the tramp believes it to be his friend. In a scene echoed in so many cartoons, Big Jim, in a fit of starvation, sees the tramp as a giant chicken and tries to eat him. While expecting Georgia to a New Year's Eve dinner, the tramp answers a knock at the door only to find a donkey. Though comedic in nature, these gags address the ethical dilemma of a society behaving less than civilized.
In response to this dilemma, the tramp becomes the epitome of humanity. He fears that the cabin dog was eaten when Black Larsen returns to the cabin without the dog. Realizing the frailty of the human condition, the tramp knows the animalistic result of depravity. Trying to temper this frailty, the tramp provides Thanksgiving dinner for Big Jim. Not having any food, the tramp sacrifices his shoe as the feast. Through the rest of the film he goes without a shoe as a symbol of his compassion.
The concept of mistaken identity is also utilized in the misunderstandings of character between the tramp and his love interest, Georgia. He views her as a fellow compassionate human. In reality she is far from compassionate as she plays cruel tricks on the tramp - leading him to believe she is interested while all the time she is laughing at his naiveté. She thinks him to be a worthless bum and not the caring person the audience knows him to be. Georgia finally realizes the errors of her ways and becomes the compassionate person the tramp thought she was. She accepts the tramp as a tramp, and yet she is still wrong. By the end of the film, the tramp has become a millionaire, and when the two meet again she mistakes him for the bum she remembered. However, by the end of the film, they are each correct in assuming compassion in the other.
Five years earlier Chaplin made his first feature length film, The Kid - a 1920 First National production. This film more eloquently mixes comedic effect with serious overtones, as the opening screen title states, "A picture with a smile - and perhaps a tear." In an increasingly industrial society, this film depicts a society confused by what is useful and what is trash.
The tramp's morning promenade sets up the theme to the movie. As people throw their trash out the window, the tramp either dodges or gets hit by the debris. When he happens upon an abandoned baby in the alleyway, his first instinct is to look up at the purveyors of the street trash. His life on the street is what leads him to that assessment of the situation - as a tramp he lives on what other people cast away; he finds use in what people find a burden. His role as trash collector is extended to its logical extreme when he happens upon a baby he believes to be discarded by society and becomes a father.
His role as father does not happen so quickly. Even he thinks about throwing the child away down a sewage drain. He can not do it for the same reason he can not throw away the pin holding the note to the child's chest - it might be of some use after all. He carefully sticks the pin in his lapel and cradles the child closer in his arms. His humanity prevents him from overlooking the burden on society that he holds in his arms. As he raises the child, we get a sense of the tramp's compassionate value system. Eating breakfast with the now 5 year old child, the tramp meticulously counts out each pancake being served to make sure he and the boy have the same amount. When he realizes he has one more, he cuts the extra in half and splits it evenly. The tramp's value system is based on equality. Having lived a life of inequality, however, he cant help throw into his equality based dream sequence, where everyone in heaven has the same tattered wings, the concept of sin. Even a supposed perfect realm is not without its flaws.
Like the world in the dream sequence, the tramp's reality-based world is similarly corrupted. "The proper care and attention" show up in a county orphan asylum van to take away the child he raised. As they take the boy out the door, it is easy to read on the child's lips the exclamations of, "papa! papa! papa!" The tramp's role as lone outsider diminished a little when he became a father, but society does not allow tramps to raise children. The now rich mother, who has proved her compassion to the audience by her acts of charity, reclaims her lost possession. Her compassion extends out to the tramp, however, as she invites him into her home. This pseudo happy ending leaves the audience to decide the tramp's fate.
In the 1931 United Artist production, City Lights, a contrast is set up between rich and poor. The picture is about how you see what you see and how you interpret what you hear. The title aptly points out this visual contrast. A visitor to any city will be dazzled by it's bright, city lights, while unable to see a tramp living in its darker ghettos.
The concept of sound began to enter pictures, and Chaplin as a silent star feared the pending conquest. His outsider status threatened to become a reality as talkies began to push him outside the realm of movies altogether. Several biting references to the new sound technology are made throughout City Lights. The first instance is at the opening ceremony. Attempting to reveal a new statue extolling peace and prosperity, the speakers talk in a fashion similar to the adults in a Peanuts cartoon. Sound comes out, but no words are heard. Even without the aid of words it is easy to discern the meaning of the speech, and irony is established as the speech praises prosperity and the penniless tramp sits in the lap of the statue. It is evident that meaning is important while words are futile. In several instances throughout the film, sound represents people's tendency to give a mindless Pavlonian response to the sounds of their world. The National Anthem begins to play at the ceremony, the mob stops their yelling, and the tramp stops his stumbling to stand erect with hand over heart in honor of the song. In the boxing scene, the rope controlling the bell announcing each round becomes tied around the tramp's neck. As his movements command a ringing of the bell, each boxer responds appropriately by either taking a corner or resuming fighting. The world is filled with sounds that command individual actions.
The importance of sound and sight become more clear when the tramp encounters a blind girl. She represents all of society: her world is commanded by sound, and she is literally blind to the impoverished. The tramp does what he does with all underdogs of society - he attempts to help her. He befriends a drunken millionaire by preventing him from committing suicide - another act of kindness offered by the tramp. The trouble is that the millionaire only sees the tramp as a friend when he is drunk. The millionaire becomes symbolically blind when he is sober. The millionaire is not the only one confused by the tramp. Through a mishap, the blind girl believes the tramp to be a millionaire. Unable to see his tattered clothes, she assumes that the appearance of the tamp at the exact moment of the sound of a rich man's car door slamming indicates he is indeed wealthy. By the end of the film, the girl's eyes are restored and the question becomes will she accept the tramp. As a chance encounter arises between the two, the girl slowly realizes the tramp is her imagined millionaire. The audience is left wondering will she accept him now that she can see. The answer depends on if society can accept him now that it can see.
The 1936 United Artist production, Modern Times, was Chaplin's last silent film. The world gave way to sound, and the tramp remained silent. Modern Times is also one of Chaplin's more biting satirical looks at America. One of its themes looks at the growing inability of people to distinguish man from machine. The growth of industry begins to dwarf the tramp's benevolence, and the products of that industry, namely sound, begin to dwarf Chaplin's character. The opening screen title tells us that Modern Times is "a story of industry, of individual enterprise - humanity crusading in the pursuit of happiness."
Humanity is pitted against machine in the modern world of industry. The movie opens with a shot of sheep being herded contrasted with the sight of workers lining into work. Individuality is lost in the meshes of the machine age. This work environment foreshadows George Orwell's, as yet to be written 1984. Cameras watch the workers every move. The camera even follows the tramp into the bathroom. In society's attempt at making a machine out of a man, the tramp goes the way of all overworked machines - suffering a breakdown. During his breakdown he becomes similar to all of society in that he can no longer distinguish human from machine. In a world where people treat machines like people and people like machines, the tramp provided a glimpse at rare compassion. Now that he has suffered his breakdown, humans are no more important than machines. This is evidenced in his inability to distinguish a fire hydrant from a woman - both are targets for his wrench happy hands.
As with the court jesters of medieval times, the fool walks a fine line. Once that line is overstepped and social criticism begins to offend rather than make society laugh at itself, then there is danger. The tramp began to walk this fine line, and Chaplin suffered for it. In the film, the tramp happens upon a red flag fallen from a truck. He begins to wave this red flag as Communist marchers turn the corner. Mistaken for a Communist leader, the tramp is hauled off to jail. This little sequence echoes Chaplin's fate in America. Accused of being loyal to the Communist party he leaves America towards the end of his career. The tramp's ability at social satire may have been too well played.
As the tramp in Modern Times meets up with a female waif named Gamin, the film begins to parallel the biblical story of Adam and Eve. Their first encounter happens when Gamin steals the forbidden fruit - bread to satiate her hungry stomach. Eve's motives were similar - stealing the fruit to satiate her hunger for knowledge. The police, standing in for God, punish both the tramp and Gamin. It becomes clear that this social order imposed by laws stifles the tramp's freedom. In a dream sequence, the tramp combines the American dream with images of Eden. Wanting to live happily ever after, the tramp imagines he and Gamin in the roles of husband and wife. The house they live in, however, has trees at every window overgrowing the rigid structure of the house. The garden of Eden with all its freedom is what the tramp longs for. But as with the biblical story, the tramp and Gamin become exiles - walking away, with backs turned, down a dusty road.
Modern Times offers a poignant ending to the life of the tramp. As a watcher of humanity, and a critic of society, he had a full career. His first steps onto the Land of Liberty in The Immigrant, gave him a glimpse into both the American nightmare and the American dream. He was an impoverished foreigner who had only his guile to outwit the establishment. Because of this intuitive ability to survive, the tramp was able to find happiness in the form of a loving wife alluded to by the end. In The Gold Rush, the tramp was able to become a millionaire despite societies continuing inability to distinguish animalistic desire from humanistic compassion. The tramp became a father in The Kid, and proved himself able to overcome the industrialist attitude of utility over love exhibited by his fellow humans. The happy ending of an American dream fulfilled is not so readily apparent in this film. The woman may invite the tramp inside her home, seeming to counter his outsider status, but the audience is not so sure the woman, the kid, and the tramp can live happily ever after. In City Lights, we see the tramp in his most compassionate role as he falls in love despite class distinctions. In his tattered clothes he reunites with the now prosperous, sighted heroine only to see a slight tinge of disappointment on her face as she realizes it is he who saved her. This ending is more sad than happy, and we begin to realize the tramp must remain outside the realm of society in order to survive in tact. Finally, in Modern Times, society's mechanistic attitude permanently exiles the tramp, and while he escapes a society that no longer wants him, we are left in that imagined world where objects dominate people. Only now we no longer have the balancing forces of the tramp's infinite humor through compassion. From immigrant to exile, the tramp fulfills his status as outsider, and satirizes the world that created his immanent alienation.
While the tramp left us down that dusty road, he created a type of comedy that would be emulated for decades. More than making us laugh, he opened our eyes to the discrepancy between our values and our actions. While countless comedians continue his satirical style, the tramp had to do it without the benefit of dialogue. He proved well that words are futile and actions speak millions.
Works Cited
City Lights. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. UA, 1931.
The Curtain Pole. Dir. D.W. Griffith. 1909.
Everson, William. American Silent Film. New York: Oxford UP, 1978.
The Gold Rush. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. UA, 1925.
The Immigrant. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. MUT, 1917.
Kerr, Walter. The Silent Clowns. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1975.
The Kid. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. FN, 1921.
Langman, Larry. Encyclopedia of American Film Comedy. New York: Garland Publishing, 1987.
MacCann, Richard. The Silent Comedians. New Jersey: Scarecrow Press, 1993.
Modern Times. Dir. Charlie Chaplin. UA,1936.
Pratt, George. Spellbound in Darkness: A History of the Silent Film. Greenwich: New York Graphic Society, 1973.
Robinson, David. Chaplin: His Life and Art. New York: De Capo Press, 1994.
Tillie's Punctured Romance. Dir. Mack Sennett. KEY, 1914.
List of Charlie Chaplin Movies
81st movie: A Countess from Hong Kong (1967)
#80 - 1957 A King in New York
#79 - 1952 Limelight
1951 Chase Me Charlie Archival Appearance
#78 - 1947 Monsieur Verdoux
1945 Gaslight Follies Archival Appearance
# 77 - 1940 The Great Dictator
1939 The Movies March On [doc] Archival Appearance
# 76 - 1936 Modern Times
#75 - 1931 City Lights
#74 - 1928 The Circus
#73 - 1928 Show People
#72 - 1925 The Gold Rush
#71 - 1923 The Pilgrim
#70 - 1923 Souls for Sale
#69 - 1923 A Woman of Paris
#68 - 1922 Pay Day
1921 The Nut
# 67 - 1921 The Kid
#66 - 1921 The Idle Class
#65 - 1919 Sunnyside
#64 - 1919 A Day's Pleasure
# 63 - 1918 Triple Trouble
#62 - 1918 The Bond
1918 How to Make Movies [doc] Director / Archival Appearance
1918 Chase Me Charlie Archival Appearance
# 61 - 1918 A Dog's Life Screenwriter / Producer / Director / Composer / Actor
#60 - 1917 The Immigrant Actor [Starring] / Director / Producer
#59 - 1917 The Adventurer Director / Producer / Actor
#58 - 1917 Shoulder Arms
Actor [Starring] / Screenwriter / Producer / Director / Composer
1917 National Association's All-Star Picture [doc] Archival Appearance
#57 - 1917 Easy Street Actor [Starring] / Producer / Director
#56 - 1917 Cure Producer / Director / Actor
#55 - 1916 The Vagabond
Director / Actor [Starring] / Screenwriter / Producer
#54 - 1916 The Rink Actor / Producer / Director
#53 - 1916 The Pawnshop Producer / Director / Actor
#52 - 1916 The Floorwalker The Store Actor / Producer / Director
#51 - 1916 The Fireman Producer / Director / Actor
#50 - 1916 The Count Producer / Director / Actor
#49 - 1916 The Burlesque on Carmen
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
#48 - 1916 Police Charlie the Burglar Housebreaker
Director / Actor / Screenwriter
#47 - 1916 One A.M. Producer / Director / Actor
#46 - 1916 Behind the Screen Producer / Director / Actor [Starring]
45 - 1915 Work Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
44 - 1915 The Tramp Charlie the Hobo
Director / Actor [Starring] / Screenwriter
43 - 1915 The Champion Battling Charlie
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
42 - 1915 The Bank Charlie at the Bank Charlie Detective
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
41 - 1915 Shanghaied Charlie on the Ocean Charlie the Sailor
Actor [Starring] / Screenwriter / Director
40 - 1915 In the Park Charlie in the Park Charlie on the Spree
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
39 - 1915 His New Job Charlie's New Job
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
38 - 1915 Cave Man A Dream [1914] His Prehistoric Past [1914] King Charlie [1914]
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
37 - 1915 By the Sea Charlie's Day Out
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
36 - 1915 A Woman Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
35 - 1915 A Night in the Show A Night at the Show Charlie at the Show
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
34 - 1915 A Night Out Actor [Starring]
33 - 1915 A Jitney Elopement Charlie's Elopement
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
32 - 1914 Twenty Minutes of Love Cops and Watches He Loves Her So Love-Friend
Director
31 - 1914 Tillie's Punctured Romance
For the Love of Tillie Marie's Millions Tillie's Big Romance Tillie's Nightmare
Actor [Starring]
1914 Those Love Pangs Busted Hearts The Rival Mashers
Director / Actor [Starring]
30 - 1914 The Star Boarder
In Love with His Landlady Landlady's Pet The Hash-House Hero
Actor [Starring]
29 - 1914 The Rounders Revelry Two of a Kind
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
28 - 1914 The Property Man Getting His Goat The Rustabout Vamping Venus
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
27 - 1914 The New Janitor The Blundering Boob The New Porter The Porter
Director / Actor [Starring]
26 - 1914 The Masquerader Putting One Over
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
25 - 1914 The Knockout Counted Out The Pugilist
Director / Actor [Starring]
24 - 1914 The Fatal Mallet
Hit Him Again The Pile Driver The Rival Suitors
Actor
23 - 1914 The Face on the Bar Room Floor The Ham Actor The Ham Artist
Director / Actor
22 - 1914 Tango Tangles Charlie's Recreation Music Hall
Actor [Starring]
21 - 1914 Recreation Spring Fever Director / Actor
20 - 1914 Making a Living
A Busted Johnny Doing His Best Troubles
Actor
19 - 1914 Mabel's Strange Predicament Hotel Mixup
Actor
18 - 1914 Mabel's Married Life The Squarehead When You're Married
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
17 - 1914 Mabel's Busy Day
Charlie and the Sausages Hot Dogs Love and Lunch
Actor
16 - 1914 Mabel at the Wheel His Daredevil Queen Hot Finish
Actor [Starring]
15 - 1914 Laughing Gas
Busy Little Dentist Down and Out The Dentist Tuning His Ivories
Director / Actor
14 - 1914 Kid Auto Races at Venice The Children's Automobile Race
Actor
13 - 1914 His Trysting Place Family Home Family House
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
12 - 1914 His New Profession Helping Himself The Good for Nothing
Director / Actor [Starring]
11 - 1914 His Musical Career Musical Tramps The Piano Movers
Director / Actor
10 - 1914 His Favorite Pastime Reckless Fling The Bonehead
Actor
9 - 1914 Her Friend the Bandit A Thief Catcher Mabel's Flirtation
Director / Actor [Starring]
8 - 1914 Getting Acquainted A Fair Exchange Exchange is No Robbery Hello Everybody
Director / Actor
7 - 1914 Gentlemen of Nerve Charlie at the Races Some Nerve
Director / Actor
6 - 1914 Dough and Dynamite The Cook The Doughnut Designer The New Cook
Director / Actor
5 - 1914 Cruel, Cruel Love Lord Helpus
Actor [Starring]
4 - 1914 Caught in the Rain At It Again Who Got Stung?
Director / Actor
3 - 1914 Caught in a Cabaret Faking with Society Jazz Waiter The Waiter
Actor
2 - 1914 Between Showers Charlie and the Umbrella The Flirts
Actor [Starring]
1 -1914 A Film Johnnie
Charlie at the Studio Film Johnny Million Dollar Job Movie Nut
Actor
1914 - A Busy Day
#80 - 1957 A King in New York
#79 - 1952 Limelight
1951 Chase Me Charlie Archival Appearance
#78 - 1947 Monsieur Verdoux
1945 Gaslight Follies Archival Appearance
# 77 - 1940 The Great Dictator
1939 The Movies March On [doc] Archival Appearance
# 76 - 1936 Modern Times
#75 - 1931 City Lights
#74 - 1928 The Circus
#73 - 1928 Show People
#72 - 1925 The Gold Rush
#71 - 1923 The Pilgrim
#70 - 1923 Souls for Sale
#69 - 1923 A Woman of Paris
#68 - 1922 Pay Day
1921 The Nut
# 67 - 1921 The Kid
#66 - 1921 The Idle Class
#65 - 1919 Sunnyside
#64 - 1919 A Day's Pleasure
# 63 - 1918 Triple Trouble
#62 - 1918 The Bond
1918 How to Make Movies [doc] Director / Archival Appearance
1918 Chase Me Charlie Archival Appearance
# 61 - 1918 A Dog's Life Screenwriter / Producer / Director / Composer / Actor
#60 - 1917 The Immigrant Actor [Starring] / Director / Producer
#59 - 1917 The Adventurer Director / Producer / Actor
#58 - 1917 Shoulder Arms
Actor [Starring] / Screenwriter / Producer / Director / Composer
1917 National Association's All-Star Picture [doc] Archival Appearance
#57 - 1917 Easy Street Actor [Starring] / Producer / Director
#56 - 1917 Cure Producer / Director / Actor
#55 - 1916 The Vagabond
Director / Actor [Starring] / Screenwriter / Producer
#54 - 1916 The Rink Actor / Producer / Director
#53 - 1916 The Pawnshop Producer / Director / Actor
#52 - 1916 The Floorwalker The Store Actor / Producer / Director
#51 - 1916 The Fireman Producer / Director / Actor
#50 - 1916 The Count Producer / Director / Actor
#49 - 1916 The Burlesque on Carmen
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
#48 - 1916 Police Charlie the Burglar Housebreaker
Director / Actor / Screenwriter
#47 - 1916 One A.M. Producer / Director / Actor
#46 - 1916 Behind the Screen Producer / Director / Actor [Starring]
45 - 1915 Work Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
44 - 1915 The Tramp Charlie the Hobo
Director / Actor [Starring] / Screenwriter
43 - 1915 The Champion Battling Charlie
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
42 - 1915 The Bank Charlie at the Bank Charlie Detective
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
41 - 1915 Shanghaied Charlie on the Ocean Charlie the Sailor
Actor [Starring] / Screenwriter / Director
40 - 1915 In the Park Charlie in the Park Charlie on the Spree
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
39 - 1915 His New Job Charlie's New Job
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
38 - 1915 Cave Man A Dream [1914] His Prehistoric Past [1914] King Charlie [1914]
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
37 - 1915 By the Sea Charlie's Day Out
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
36 - 1915 A Woman Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
35 - 1915 A Night in the Show A Night at the Show Charlie at the Show
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
34 - 1915 A Night Out Actor [Starring]
33 - 1915 A Jitney Elopement Charlie's Elopement
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
32 - 1914 Twenty Minutes of Love Cops and Watches He Loves Her So Love-Friend
Director
31 - 1914 Tillie's Punctured Romance
For the Love of Tillie Marie's Millions Tillie's Big Romance Tillie's Nightmare
Actor [Starring]
1914 Those Love Pangs Busted Hearts The Rival Mashers
Director / Actor [Starring]
30 - 1914 The Star Boarder
In Love with His Landlady Landlady's Pet The Hash-House Hero
Actor [Starring]
29 - 1914 The Rounders Revelry Two of a Kind
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
28 - 1914 The Property Man Getting His Goat The Rustabout Vamping Venus
Screenwriter / Director / Actor [Starring]
27 - 1914 The New Janitor The Blundering Boob The New Porter The Porter
Director / Actor [Starring]
26 - 1914 The Masquerader Putting One Over
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
25 - 1914 The Knockout Counted Out The Pugilist
Director / Actor [Starring]
24 - 1914 The Fatal Mallet
Hit Him Again The Pile Driver The Rival Suitors
Actor
23 - 1914 The Face on the Bar Room Floor The Ham Actor The Ham Artist
Director / Actor
22 - 1914 Tango Tangles Charlie's Recreation Music Hall
Actor [Starring]
21 - 1914 Recreation Spring Fever Director / Actor
20 - 1914 Making a Living
A Busted Johnny Doing His Best Troubles
Actor
19 - 1914 Mabel's Strange Predicament Hotel Mixup
Actor
18 - 1914 Mabel's Married Life The Squarehead When You're Married
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
17 - 1914 Mabel's Busy Day
Charlie and the Sausages Hot Dogs Love and Lunch
Actor
16 - 1914 Mabel at the Wheel His Daredevil Queen Hot Finish
Actor [Starring]
15 - 1914 Laughing Gas
Busy Little Dentist Down and Out The Dentist Tuning His Ivories
Director / Actor
14 - 1914 Kid Auto Races at Venice The Children's Automobile Race
Actor
13 - 1914 His Trysting Place Family Home Family House
Screenwriter / Director / Actor
12 - 1914 His New Profession Helping Himself The Good for Nothing
Director / Actor [Starring]
11 - 1914 His Musical Career Musical Tramps The Piano Movers
Director / Actor
10 - 1914 His Favorite Pastime Reckless Fling The Bonehead
Actor
9 - 1914 Her Friend the Bandit A Thief Catcher Mabel's Flirtation
Director / Actor [Starring]
8 - 1914 Getting Acquainted A Fair Exchange Exchange is No Robbery Hello Everybody
Director / Actor
7 - 1914 Gentlemen of Nerve Charlie at the Races Some Nerve
Director / Actor
6 - 1914 Dough and Dynamite The Cook The Doughnut Designer The New Cook
Director / Actor
5 - 1914 Cruel, Cruel Love Lord Helpus
Actor [Starring]
4 - 1914 Caught in the Rain At It Again Who Got Stung?
Director / Actor
3 - 1914 Caught in a Cabaret Faking with Society Jazz Waiter The Waiter
Actor
2 - 1914 Between Showers Charlie and the Umbrella The Flirts
Actor [Starring]
1 -1914 A Film Johnnie
Charlie at the Studio Film Johnny Million Dollar Job Movie Nut
Actor
1914 - A Busy Day