Charles Spencer Chaplin, popularly known as Charlie Chaplin, was born in London in 1889. His father was an alcoholic and his mother was going insane. Little Chaplin spent two years in poorhouses and orphanages. He was flogged and humiliated in those places. As fate would have it, he became an actor at the age of five and at 25, he became a movie star millionaire.
In addition to being an actor, he was also a writer, director and producer of silent films during the 1900s. He became famous after he acted the role of The Little Tramp in ‘Shoulder Arms, The Kid, City Lights, The Gold Rush’ and ‘Modern Times.’ When he died at the age 88, he was worth $20 million.
The little introduction shows that Chaplin was no ordinary man or mediocre actor. In fact, he was a genius among the Hollywood actors. His biographer Theodore Huff says, “Charles Spencer Chaplin, the comic little vagabond, the underdog with profound and tragic overtones, has been appreciated in every part of the globe. His 80 films are shown continuously in many parts of the world. It is estimated that over 300 million viewers have seen each Chaplin comedy.”
Those living in the 21st century know him as a successful actor during the silent movie era. He is considered a genius as an entertainer. His acting career began quite accidentally. One day he accompanied his mother who was acting in stage plays. While acting on stage her voice cracked and the audience consisting mostly of soldiers started making catcalls. As a result, she was forced to walk off the stage.
The stage manager who had seen little Chaplin perform before small groups decided to introduce him to the stage. He led the little fellow onto the stage and left him there. The glare of footlights and the soldiers smoking in the audience were enough for Chaplin to summon courage to do something on the stage. He started singing a popular song at the time.
Loud laughter
The audience was thrilled. Some of them started throwing money onto the stage. Chaplin stopped singing and said that he would first collect the money and then sing later. The audience burst into loud laughter! Chaplin who had no stage fright danced on the stage as best as he could. He also sang an Irish song. While singing he tried to imitate his mother’s cracking voice. Everybody in the audience laughed and cheered him. Once again they started throwing money onto the stage. In the meantime, an unexpected incident took place. His mother came onto the stage and carried him off. The incident evoked tremendous applause. It became a red letter day for Chaplin for appearing on stage for the first time. And it was also his mother’s last appearance on stage.
It was the Little Tramp that launched Chaplin on his dramatic movie career which lasted 52 years. He began to act as the Little Tramp in 1914. In fact, his producer Mack Sennett was trying to find a suitable costume for his role as the Little Tramp. Chaplin also looked around the dressing room and saw a pair of enormous pants hanging over a chair. He put them on and tied the waist with a string. Then he found a small jacket hanging on a hook. He wore it along with a small derby hat. A false moustache gave him an adult look. The pair of shoes he found was too big for him. So, he put the left shoe on the right and vice versa. The Little Tramp was ready for action.
In his autobiography, Chaplin said he had no idea of the character. However, he found that his funny dress was ideal for a typical tramp. Although Chaplin acted as a tramp, he was a gentleman, poet, dreamer and a lonely man in real life. He used to pick up cigarette butts and rob babies of their candy. What is more, he would kick a lady in the rear!
Comedy with sad ending
‘The Tramp’ released in 1915 was the first Chaplin movie. Although it was a comedy, it had a sad ending. The silent film had a simple story. The tramp saves a girl from a robber gang. The girl’s father is so happy that he offers a job to the tramp. The robbers come back to rob the girl’s father. The tramp manages to drive them away, but he is shot in the leg. The girl begins to nurse him. However, his happiness is short lived. The girl’s boyfriend appears on the scene. The tramp is forced to leave the house with his belongings. The final scene shows the tramp walking slowly towards the horizon.
The secret of his tremendous popularity has been a subject for film critics. According to them, Chaplin represented something most people wanted to have expressed about themselves. That is their resilience in adversity. Women particularly loved him for his waif-like appeal and delicacy. Men also loved him because Chaplin kicked his enemies on their backs. What is more, he made everybody laugh. While some of our comedians fail miserably to evoke laughter, Chaplin did so quite easily. He also had a mission in life. He showed the world that you should not give up hopes at times of adversity. If you try hard, you can conquer adversity and win appreciation from everybody.
When poor people become rich, they fear losing their wealth. However, Chaplin never feared that he would become poor again. Although he earned more than what he needed, he did not lead an extravagant life. Unlike many other Hollywood actors, Chaplin led a simple life wandering around wherever he liked humming a song or playing the accordion. He loved meeting friends and reading books more than attending parties and concerts.
Perfectionist
Chaplin was a versatile actor who could fit into any role. In ‘City Lights,’ he demonstrated how to play the roles of Virginia Cherrill, a beautiful girl and pea-shooting newsboys. In a way, he was a perfectionist. Although he succeeded as an actor, Chaplin was rather unhappy in his family life. He was involved in three divorce cases and lost a paternity suit. While he was visiting his native Britain, the U.S. Government revoked his permit to re-enter the country.
The reasons adduced were moral turpitude and sympathy for communism. In his autobiography he claimed that he was not a communist sympathiser. Until the end of his life, Chaplin lived in a villa overlooking Lake Geneva in Switzerland. He was living with his fourth wife – Oona O’Neill – the daughter of the well-known American playwright Eugene O’Neill. He was 54 and she was 18 at the time of their marriage. They had eight children.
Chaplin yearned after wealth, fame and beautiful women. However, he did not know how to enjoy any of them. In his old age, Queen Elizabeth II conferred a knighthood on him. In 1972 he returned to Hollywood to receive an Oscar Award. On December 25, 1977, Chaplin died peacefully in his sleep.