Eight Interesting Facts About Charlie Chaplin
Tags: Film, TV, Humor, Art, History

1. Charlie had a difficult childhood.

It would be an understatement if I tell you that Chaplin had a difficult childhood. He had a poor relationship with his father who himself was an entertainer but not a successful one. Due to a lack of financial support from his father, Charlie had an impoverished upbringing.

On the other hand, his mother had mental health issues. She was taken to a psychiatric institution when Charlie was a young boy. Until 1905, his mother was in and out of mental health facilities. The point of me telling you all this is that the person who made the whole world laugh didn’t get a normal upbringing or parental affection which most of us are lucky enough to have.

2. Chaplin failed to win a Charlie Chaplin look-a-like contest.

Charlie participated in a Charlie Chaplin look-a-like contest as a joke in 1915. The audience and the judges were unable to recognize him, they didn’t realize that he was in fact the real Charlie Chaplin. To my surprise, he lost the competition and took home third place.

3. He was against using sound.

It’s true that sound completely transformed the film industry. But there are always some people who are reluctant to embrace new technologies, call them old-fashioned or whatever, Charlie was one of them. He opposed using sound and dialogues in his movies. And to be honest, he really didn’t need it. It felt unnecessary to him since most of his work was pantomime.

4. Chaplin became rich very quickly.

In December 1914, Chaplin was receiving $1,250 a week, and a $10,000 bonus from the Essanay Studios which called him,

The greatest comedian in the world

Later he signed a contract with Mutual Film Corporation that got him $670,000 a year. Following the contract, he made a deal with First National for over $1 million in return for making eight comedies.

In 1919, he founded his own studio partnering with other Hollywood icons. He once said in an interview,

“I went into the business for money, and the art grew out of it. If people are disillusioned by that remark, I can’t help it. It’s the truth.”

5. Chaplin married three teenagers.

Charlie’s first marriage was with a 17-year old actress Mildred Harris in 1918. It was a hasty decision and the couple got divorced soon after the marriage. Charlie said that they were “irreconcilably mismated.” After that, Charlie married another teenager, a 16-year old actress Lita Grey, but that marriage didn’t work either and ended in divorce.

It was then in 1943 that the 53-year old Charlie married 18-year-old Oona O’Neill, whom he met through a friend. O’Neill’s father didn’t approve of the marriage and disinherited his daughter. But unlike the first two marriages, this one worked and the couple stayed together until Chaplin’s death. They had eight children together.

6. Chaplin was essentially exiled from the U.S.

The irony is that Chaplin spent forty years of his life in the United States and never got citizenship. Due to the role, he played in “Modern Times” Chaplin was thought of as a communist sympathizer. The FBI put him under surveillance and some congressmen also demanded his deportation.

In 1952, when traveled to England for the premiere of his film Limelight, the U.S. government his re-entry permit and asked him to appear before the immigration officials. Chaplin got so upset and disheartened, he refused to appear before the officials and decided that would never go back to the U.S. Consequently he along his family moved to Switzerland.

7. The Honorary Oscar and a star on the Walk of Fame

Twenty years after his self imposed exile, in 1972, at the age of 82, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences honored Chaplin with an honorary Oscar. It was at that time when he decided to go back to the U.S. and receive his Oscar in person. Chaplin got an incredible standing ovation and said,

“Thank you for the honor of inviting me here. You’re all wonderful, sweet people.”

The same year he also got a star in his name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles.

8. His coffin Was stolen.

The legend passed away on December 25, 1977, at the age of 88 in Switzerland. Only a few months after his death, two thieves dug up his grave and stole his coffin from the cemetery. After that, they sent Chaplin’s wife a letter and asked for a $600,000 ransom in return for his remains.

When his wife refused to pay, the thieves threatened his kids too. Thankfully, the perpetrators were caught and the coffin was recovered. Chaplin’s remains were sent back to the cemetery and this time he was reburied in a theft-proof well-cemented grave.