Barack Obama
Black History
African-American Firsts: Athletes
Don Cornelius
I Survived...
I Survived... Beyond and Back
Jamie Foxx
Magic Johnson
Tina Turner
I Survived
Quick Facts
- NAME: Charlie Chaplin
- OCCUPATION: Comedian
- BIRTH DATE: April 16, 1889
- DEATH DATE: December 25, 1977
- PLACE OF BIRTH: London, United Kingdom
- PLACE OF DEATH: Vaud
Best Known For
With the use of mime, slapstick and other comedic routines, Charlie Chaplin, "The Tramp," was the best known actor and director of the silent film era.
Charlie Chaplin. (2012). Biography.com. Retrieved 08:37, Feb 09, 2012 from http://www.biography.com/people/charlie-chaplin-9244327
Charlie Chaplin [Internet]. 2012. http://www.biography.com/people/charlie-chaplin-9244327, February 09
" Charlie Chaplin." 2012. Biography.com 09 Feb 2012, 08:37 http://www.biography.com/people/charlie-chaplin-9244327
' Charlie Chaplin', Biography.com,(2012) http://www.biography.com/people/charlie-chaplin-9244327 [accessed Feb 09, 2012]
" Charlie Chaplin," Biography.com, http://www.biography.com/people/charlie-chaplin-9244327 (accessed Feb 09, 2012).
Charlie Chaplin [Internet]. Biography.com; 2012 [cited 2012 Feb 09]. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/charlie-chaplin-9244327.
Charlie Chaplin, http://www.biography.com/people/charlie-chaplin-9244327 (last visited Feb 09, 2012).
Charlie Chaplin, http://www.biography.com/people/charlie-chaplin-9244327 (last visited Feb 09, 2012).
Synopsis
Quotes
Profile
British comedian, producer, writer, director, and composer. Born Charles Spencer Chaplin on April 16, 1889, in London, England, to parents Charles and Hannah Chaplin. Famous for his Little Tramp character, the sweet little man with a bowler hat, mustache, and cane, Chaplin was one of film's first superstars, elevating the industry in a way few could have ever imagined.
Chaplin's rise was a true rags-to-riches story. His father, a notorious drinker, abandoned Chaplin, his mother, and his older half-brother, Sydney, not long after his Charlie's birth. That left Chaplin and his brother in the hands of their mother, a vaudevillian and music hall singer who went by the stage name of Lily Harley.
For a few years, anyway, Chaplin's mother, who would later suffer severe mental issues and have to be committed to an asylum, was able to support her family. But in a performance that would introduce her youngest boy to the world of performance, Hannah inexplicably lost her voice in the middle of a show, prompting the stage manager to push the five-year-old Chaplin, whom he'd heard sing, onto the stage to replace her.
Chaplin lit up the audience, wowing them with his natural presence and comedic angle (at one point he imitated his mother's cracking voice). But the episode meant the end for Hannah. Her singing voice never returned and she eventually ran out of money. For a time Charlie and Sydney had to make a new temporary home for themselves in London's tough workhouses.
Armed with his mother's love of the stage, Chaplin was determined to make it in show business himself and in 1897 using his mother's contacts landed with a clog dancing troupe named the Eight Lancashire Lads. It was a short stint, and not a terribly profitable one, forcing the go-getter Chaplin to make ends meet anyway he could.
"I (was) newsvendor, printer, toymaker, doctor's boy, etc., but during these occupational digressions, I never lost sight of my ultimate aim to become an actor," Chaplin later recounted. "So, between jobs I would polish my shoes, brush my clothes, put on a clean collar and make periodic calls at a theatrical agency."
Eventually other stage work did come his way. Chaplin made his acting debut as a pageboy in a production of Sherlock Holmes. From there he toured with a vaudeville outfit named Casey's Court Circus and in 1908 teamed up with the Fred Karno pantomime troupe, where Chaplin became one of its stars as The Drunk in the comedic sketch, A Night in an English Music Hall.
With the Karno troupe, Chaplin got his first taste of the United States, where he caught the eye of film producer
GetGlue
-
Celebrate Black History with BIO and GetGlue
All February, check in daily to BIO Black History on GetGlue to unlock stickers, videos, and more!
profile name: Charlie Chaplin profile occupation:
Your Connections
Sign in with Facebook to see how you and your friends are connected to famous icons.
Profile Connections
Included In These Groups
-
Blacklisted
View groupIn the 1940s and 1950s, the United States was in the grips of a "red scare." Many prominent individuals suspected of sympathizing with liberal or humanitarian causes were branded a communist threat, and even accused of espionage. Hollywood was a major focus of the accusations, and after 10 actors refused to testify in front of the House Committee on Un-American Activities, the blacklist was created. Hundreds of actors, actresses, directors, screenwriters and other entertainment professionals were barred from working. Here are some of the famous people who were on the Hollywood blacklist.
Blacklisted 25 people in this group
-
Silent Screen Stars
View groupIn the early years of motion pictures, actors were recruited from the stage, resulting in larger-than-life performances that seemed jarring when blown up to the size of a movie screen. As the years went on, actors began to understand the subtleties of the medium, and used more natural expressions to connect with their audiences. They became movie stars, known for their glamorous looks and identifiable personalities. As Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard would say, they didn't need dialogue, they had faces.
Silent Screen Stars 16 people in this group
-
Actors Turned Directors
View groupAfter years of on-screen success, many talented actors decide to take their chances on the other side of the camera—often to even greater acclaim. Here's our collection of performers who have made a new name for themselves as film and television directors.
Actors Turned Directors 56 people in this group
