Charlie Chaplin’s Scandalous Life and Boundless Artistry

I had the good fortune of reading his autobiography. I highly recommend it. It explains the events described in this article (eg the ostracization; allegations of being a communist; attacks on his character; the affairs; seizure of his wealth by the government and the fact that he had to stay away from the country that he loved and called his home for majority of his life). I truly walked away feeling deeply pained and felt sorry for him -- here was a man born into extreme poverty (the scene in one of his movies where the tramp eats a shoe due to extreme hunger, was a part of Chaplin's childhood). His mother went insane (became catatonic) due to hunger. As a small boy he saw his mother being taken away by the police and put into an asylum. And this person, spent his entire life making people laugh.

He was born to make us laugh. I think instead of focussing on his shortcomings and marriages, it is far more important to focus and discuss his craft.

The lookup Hanna speech [1] at the end of the great dictator is must read / listen. One of the best monologues in movie history. Tell me if this speech doesn't move you!

[1] http://www.americanrhetoric.com/MovieSpeeches/moviespeechthe... (added link)

"In 1952, in the midst of McCarthy-era paranoia,.. his reëntry permit was revoked"

You know why? What tipped the scales is high profile British writer listing him (along with some other people) as potential communist in a secret list submitted to Intelligence.

You know who compiled that list? George Orwell.

One thing I find interesting about Chaplin is that he also composed the music for his films.

http://www.charliechaplin.com/en/biography/articles/205-Chap...

I was peeved to read about his lawless character with young women in the article. I only knew about his fourth wife, a famous New York socialite who left J.D Salinger for Chaplin, essentially. Oona O'Neill (yes, that O'Neill) was something like 18 or 19 when she married Chaplin, but they stayed married until he died over 30 years later.

The article makes it sound like he just raped his way across America, and perhaps he did -- I wouldn't know. It does note that he was accused of this by a Nazi sympathizer, but says that the accusations were essentially true.. About the man who made "The Great Dictator".

The journalist doesn't bother to mention that he did settle down for what was by most accounts a loving relationship, and must have been a successful marriage by any standard.