CHARLIE CHAPLIN: Extra-ordinary man on film industry who magnetize people by his comedic actions. He was a British actor who became one of the biggest stars of the 20th century's silent-film period.
OUTLINE OF CHARLIE CHAPLIN’S LIFE
He was born on April 16, 1889, in London, England, Charlie Chaplin worked with a children's dance troupe before making his smiling on the big screen. His character "The Tramp" relied on pantomime and peculiar movements to become an iconic figure of the silent-film era. Chaplin went on to become a director, making films such as City Lights and Modern Times, and co-founded the United Artists Corporation. He died in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland, on December 25, 1977.
CHIDHOOD OR EARLY LIFE:
Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in London, England, on April 16th, 1889. His father was a flexible vocalist and actor; and his mother, known under the stage name of Lily Harley, was an attractive actress and singer, who achieved a name for her work in the light opera field. Charlie was terrified on his own resources before he reached the age of ten as the early death of his father and the consequent illness of his mother made it necessary for Charlie and his brother, Sydney, to fend for themselves. Between his time in the poor schools and his mother succumb to mental illness; Chaplin began to perform on stage. He later recalled making his first amateur appearance at the age of five years, when he took over from Hannah one night in Alder shot. This was an isolated occurrence, but by the time he was nine Chaplin had, with his mother's encouragement, grown interested in performing. Having hereditary natural talents from their parents, the youngsters took to the stage as the best opportunity for a career. Charlie made his professional debut as a member of a juvenile group called “The Eight Lancashire Lads” and rapidly won popular favor as an outstanding tap dancer.
BEGINNING OF HIS CAREER
When he was about twelve, Got his first chance to prove himself and to act in a legitimate stage show, and appeared as “Billy” the page boy, in support of William Gillette in “Sherlock Holmes”. At the close of this engagement, Charlie started a career as a comedian in vaudeville, which eventually took him to the United States in 1910 as a characteristic player with the Fred Karno Repertoire Company. With the Karno troupe, Chaplin got his first taste of the United States, where he caught the eye of film producer Mack Sennett, who signed Chaplin to a contract for a $150 a week.
FLIM CAREER
He scored an instant hit with American audiences, particularly with his characterization in a draft entitled “a night in an English music hall”. When the Fred karno company returned to the united states in the fall of 1912 for a repeat tour, Chaplin was offered a motion picture contract.he finally agreed to appear before the cameras at the expiration of his vaudeville commitments in November 1913; and his entry in the cinema world took place that month when he joined Mack Sennett and the keystone film company. His initial salary was $150 a week, but his overnight successes on the screen stimulate other producers to start discussions for his services. At the completion of his Sennett contract, Chaplin moved on to the Essanay Company (1915) at a large increase. Sydney Chaplin had then arrived from England, and took his brother’s place with Keystone as their leading comedian.
The following year Charlie was even more in demand and signed with the Mutual Film Corporation for a much larger sum to make 12 two-reel comedies. These include “The Floorwalker”, “The Fireman”, “The Vagabond”, “One A.M.” “The Count”, “The Pawnshop”, “Behind the Screen”, “The Rink”, “Easy Street” (heralded as his greatest production up to that time), “The Cure”, “The Immigrant” and “The Adventurer”.But the results were hard to disprove. During the 1920s Chaplin's career blossomed even more. During this decade he made some landmark films, including The Kid (1921), The Pilgrim (1923), A Woman in Paris (1923), The Gold Rush (1925), a movie Chaplin would later say he wanted to be remembered by, and The Circus (1928). The latter three were released by United Artists, a company Chaplin co-founded in 1919 with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, and D.W. Griffith. Chaplin became equally famous for his life off-screen. His relationships with actresses who had roles in his movies were numerous. Some, however, ended better than others. Chaplin kept creating interesting and engaging films in the 1930s. In 1931, he released City Lights, a critical and commercial success that incorporated music Chaplin scored himself.More acclaim came with Modern Times (1936), a biting commentary about the state of the world's economic and political infrastructures. The film, which did incorporate sound, was, in part, the result of an 18-month world tour Chaplin had taken between 1931 and 1932, a trip during which he'd witnessed severe economic anxiety and a sharp rise in nationalism in Europe and elsewhere.Chaplin exposes even louder in The Great Dictator (1940), which particularly mockery the governments of Hitler and Mussolini.
Final Years
At the end of his life, Chaplin made one last visit to the United States in 1972, when he was given an honorary Academy Award. The trip came just five years after Chaplin's final film, A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), the filmmaker's first and only color movie. Chaplin received further appreciation when he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth.At December 25, 1977, Charlie Chaplin died at his home in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. His wife, Oona, and seven of his children were with him at the time of his passing. In a twist that might very well have come out of one of his films, Chaplin's body was stolen not long after he was buried from his grave near Geneva Lake in Switzerland by two men who demanded $400,000 for its return. The men were arrested and Chaplin's body was recovered 11 weeks later.
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