Sir Charles Chaplin
His Life and Times
Charlie Chaplin
James Agee wrote of Chaplin, “the finest
pantomime, the deepest emotion, and the
richest and most poignant poetry were in
[his] work.
Andrew Sarris called Chaplin “the single
most important artist produced by the
cinema, certainly its most extraordinary
performer, and probably still its most
universal icon.”
Chaplin’s Mother
Charlie always cited
his own mother as a
great inspiration.
Hannah was a singer
and character
comedienne in the
British music halls.
Hannah Chaplin
Hannah Chaplin
Sadly her career was blighted on
and off by ill health, and it was
when her voice failed during one
particular performance that the
young Charlie Chaplin got his
first taste of performing - he
went on as an impromptu
replacement.
Hannah Chaplin
Her health continued to
decline and she found
herself making a poor living
as a seamstress and was
eventually put into a mental
hospital.
Her other children were
Sydney Chaplin, and
Wheeler Dryden - both
by different fathers.
Hannah Chaplin
Charlie and Syd
brought her over
to live with them in
the U.S for the last
seven years of her
life.
1865-1928
Charlie’s Father
The senior Charles
Chaplin married
Hannah in 1885 and
took to the stage
professionally a year
later.
He was well known as
a comic singer.
Charles Chaplin
Charles Chaplin, Sr.
His marriage to Hannah
did not last long, and
soon he was living with
his mistress.
Charlie had little contact
with his father, except for
a short period when
Hannah was in a mental
hospital.
Charles Chaplin, Sr.
Alcoholism was a
common problem
amongst many music
hall stars of the
period, and it was this
that eventually killed
Chaplin's father at
such a young age.
1863-1901
Chaplin’s Childhood
Charles Spencer
Chaplin was born on
April 16th, 1889, in
Walworth, London
His childhood,
included extreme
poverty, workhouses,
and seeing his
mother's mental
decline put her into
an institution.
Chaplin Before Success
Chaplin’s Career
He joined the Eight
Lancashire Lads,
and this eventually
led to Sherlock
Holmes and Casey's
Court Circus.
Eventually Charlie
joined his brother in
the Fred Karno
Company.
Chaplin in Karno Show
Chaplin’s Career
Karno was almost a
college of comedy for
them, and the period
had a huge impact on
Charlie especially.
Chaplin 1913
In 1910 Charlie
toured the U.S with
the Karno group and
returned for another
tour in 1912.
Chaplin’s Career
It was on this tour
that he was
discovered by Mack
Sennett and his
Keystone Film
Company.
 His first film, in 1914,
was aptly titled
Making A Living.
Chaplin and Sennett in 1948
Chaplin’s Career
His success was
such that he was
able to move from
one company to
another, each time
on to a better deal.
Chaplin’s Career
In 1915 , after
thirty-five films, he
moved to Essanay.
It was here he really
found his feet, not to
mention his longest
serving leading lady,
Edna Purviance.
Edna Purviance
The Champion, The
Tramp and The Bank.
Chaplin’s Career
In 1916 he moved to
Mutual, with even
greater control and
financial rewards.
At Mutual he made
the definitive Chaplin
short comedies, The
Rink, Easy Street,
The Cure and The
Immigrant.
Chaplin’s Career
First National was
next, and it was here
he constructed his full
length masterpiece,
The Kid.
Shorter comedies of
note at this time
included Sunnyside
and The Idle Class.
The Big Four
Along with his
great friend,
Douglas Fairbanks,
as well as Mary
Pickford and D.W
Griffith, Chaplin
formed United
Artists in 1919.
"So, the lunatics have taken
over the asylum!"
Chaplin’s Career
He made his first film
for them in 1923, the
Edna Purviance vehicle,
A Woman of Paris,
perhaps the least
known of his films, but
it was followed by the
Chaplin classics - The
Gold Rush, The
Circus, City Lights
and Modern Times.
Chaplin’s Career
It wasn't until 1940
that he made his first
talkie, The Great
Dictator, to be
followed by the more
refined Monsieur
Verdoux and
Limelight, a look
back to the music hall
world of his youth.
Chaplin’s Career
Limelight (1952)
was the last film he
made in America.
McCarthyite political
maneuverings effectively
ejected him from the
country and he wasn't to
return until 1972, when
he received a special
Academy Award.
Chaplin’s Career
In the meantime, though
heartily welcomed back to
Britain, he moved to
Switzerland with his wife,
Oona O' Neill, and their
children.
He made two more films, A
King In New York (1957)
and A Countess From
Hong Kong (1967).
Chaplin’s Final Days
He spent his final
years writing music
for his films and
enjoying his family
life.
He died, at 4 a.m
on Christmas Day
in 1977.
Les Quais de Vevey
Chaplin’s Half-Brother
Charlie and Sydney were
very close and looked
out for each other from
their young days.
Sydney Chaplin
Though younger, it was
Charlie that got onto the
stage first, in a play,
Sherlock Holmes, but
it wasn't long before Syd
joined the tour.
Syd Chaplin
Fred Karno signed up
Sydney, who then
recommended Charlie,
giving him his biggest
break.
After Charlie left Keystone,
he suggested Sydney as his
replacement, and he made
a few comedies there.
Fred Karno
Syd Chaplin
Soon he was handling
the majority of
Charlie's business
affairs, negotiating
most of his big
contracts and
appearing in a few
films during the First
National era.
1885-1965
Charlie’s First Wife
Married in 1918
after Mildred
believed she was
pregnant - it was a
false alarm.
She did later give
birth to Charlie's
first child, who
only lived for three
days.
Mildred Harris
Mildred Harris
Their divorce, in
1920, was
acrimonious.
Mildred was an
actress who
appeared in a few
films such as The
Inferior Sex and
For Husbands
Only.
Charlie’s Second Wife
She played an angel
in The Kid and a
maid in The Idle
Class.
 She started out as
the leading lady for
The Gold Rush
before falling for
Charlie and then
falling pregnant.
Lita Grey
Lita Grey
She had two children by
him, Charles Jr. and Sydney
Earl.
This marriage (1924-1927)
also came to a bitter end in
court.
Lita carried on in Vaudeville
successfully, but had
problems with alcohol.
1908-1995
Charlie’s Third Wife
His third marriage
lasted from 1936
to 1942
She appeared in
two of Chaplin’s
films: Modern
Times and The
Great Dictator
Paulette Goddard
Paulette Goddard
Though Charlie and
Paulette divorced, it
was by all accounts,
on amicable terms.
1911-1990
Charlie’s Last Wife
When Charlie married
Oona in June 1943, he
at last found true
happiness, and it
seems they had both
found their soul
mates, despite the
fact that Oona was
only 18, and Charlie
was 53.
Oona O’Neill
They met when Charlie
considered her for a part
in an unmade film,
Shadow and
Substance (during
1942) and were
inseperable from then
on.
Oona's father was the
famous playwright
Eugene O'Neill.
Chaplin’s Family
Together they had
eight children
(Geraldine, Michael,
Josephine, Victoria,
Eugene, Jane,
Annette and
Christopher).
Chaplin and Oona
She supported him totally
throughout a particularly
harrowing court case in the
40's and when he was exiled
from the U.S. in 1952, when
she renounced her American
citizenship for British, though
they made their home in
Switzerland.
Vevey, Switzerland
She died on September 27,
1991.