Charlie Chaplin

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Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (16 April 1889 – December 1977) was an English comedian, film director, and composer who came to fame in the era of silent film.

He became a worldwide celebrity thanks to his film role, "The Tramp," and is considered one of the most influential figures in the film industry's history.

His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian period to a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both excitement and discontent. Chaplin's childhood in London was one of poverty and struggled financially, and his father was indigent, and his mother was in debt, and he was sent to a workhouse twice before the age of nine.

When he was 14, his mother was admitted to a mental hospital.

Chaplin began performing in early childhood, touring music halls, and then became a stage actor and comedian.

He was signed to the prestigious Fred Karno company, which took him to America at 19 years old.

1889–1913: early years

Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. was born in 1889 to Hannah Chaplin (née Hill) and Charles Chaplin Sr. His paternal grandmother was born in the Smith family, who belonged to Romani people. There is no official record of his birth, although Chaplin believes he was born in Walworth, South London, on East Street. His parents had married four years before, at the time Charles Sr. became Hannah's first son's legal guardian, Sydney John Hill. Chaplin's parents were both music hall entertainers at the time of his birth. Hannah, the daughter of a shoemaker, had a brief and unsuccessful career under the stage name Lily Harley, although Charles Sr., a butcher's son, was a well-known entertainer. Chaplin's parents were dissatisfied by 1891, though they never divorced. Hannah gave birth to George Wheeler Dryden, the music hall entertainer Leo Dryden's third son. The child was taken by Dryden at six months old and did not re-enter Chaplin's life for thirty years.

According to Chaplin's authorised biographer David Robinson, his childhood was full of poverty and hardship, making his eventual path "the most exciting of all the rags to riches stories ever told." In Kennington, London, Chaplin's early years were spent with his mother and brother Sydney. Hannah had no way of earning other than occasional nursing and dressmaking, and Chaplin Sr. had no budget or sponsorship. Chaplin was taken to Lambeth Workhouse when the situation worsened, and he was seven years old. Chaplin described him as "a forlorn existence" at the Central London District School for paupers. He was briefly reunited with his mother 18 months later, but Hannah was forced to recommit her family to the workhouse in July 1898. The boys were enrolled in Norwood Schools, another facility for destitute children.

Hannah was committed to Cane Hill's mental asylum in September 1898; she had reportedly been exposed to a psychosis owing to a syphilis and hunger. Chaplin and his brother Sydney were sent to live with their father, who she barely knew for the two months she was there. Charles Sr. was a heavy drinker when he was born, but his life as a result was bad enough to warrant a visit from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Chaplin's father died two years later from cirrhosis of the liver, at 38 years old.

Hannah went through periods of remission, but in May 1903, she became sick again. Chaplin, who was then 14 years old, had the responsibility of transporting his mother to the hospital from where she was taken back to Cane Hill. Until Sydney, he had been living alone for several days, searching for food and often sleeping rough, until he returned to the Navy two years ago. Hannah was released from the asylum eight months later, but her illness resurfaced in March 1905, this time in a permanent way. "We could do nothing more than accept poor mother's fate," Chaplin later wrote, and she continued in care until her death in 1928.

Chaplin began performing on stage after his time in the poor schools and his mother succumbing to mental illness. He recalled taking over from Hannah one night in Aldershot at the age of five years. This was an unusual occurrence, but by the time he was nine, Chaplin had, with his mother's encouragement, become involved in performing. "She] imbued me with the sense that I had some sort of talent," he later wrote. Chaplin became a member of the Eight Lancashire Lads clog-dancing troupe, with whom he toured English music halls from 1899 to 1900, thanks to his father's connections. Chaplin performed hard, and the show was well-received by audiences, but he wasn't content with dancing and wanted to develop a comedy troupe.

Chaplin's mother reassured him that he still attended school, but that by age 13, he had left education. He supported himself in a variety of professions, as well as encouraging his aspirations to be an actor. He registered with a theatre company in London's West End at 14 years after his mother's death. Chaplin, who was shortly given his first role as a newsboy in Harry Arthur Saintsbury's Jim, a Romance of Cockayne, was a potential candidate for the manager. It opened in July 1903 but it was dissatisfied and shuttered after two weeks. In several of the articles, Chaplin's comedic appearance was lauded.

Chaplin appeared in Charles Frohman's Sherlock Holmes, where he appeared Billy the pageboy in three national tours. He was invited to London to play William Gillette, the original Holmes, because his appearance was so well-received. Chaplin recalled, "It was like tidings from heaven." Chaplin appeared in the West End of the Duke of York's Theatre from October to December 1905 as a 16-year old. In early 1906, he did one last tour of Sherlock Holmes before leaving the production after more than two-and-a-half years.

Chaplin soon found work with a new company and went on tour with his brother, who was also working on a comedy sketch called Repairs. Chaplin first appeared in May 1906 in Casey's Circus, where he created famous burlesque pieces and was soon the show's star. By the time the tour ended in July 1907, the 18-year-old had established himself as a superb comedic performer. He tried to find more jobs, but a brief attempt at a solo performance was a flop.

Sydney Chaplin had joined Fred Karno's prestigious comedy company in 1906 and by 1908, he was one of the company's most popular performers. He was able to get a two-week trial for his younger brother in February. Karno was skeptical at first, and Chaplin was deemed a "pale, puny, sullen-looking youngster" who "looked much too shy to do any good in the theater." However, the teen had a big influence on his first night at the London Coliseum, and he was quickly agreed to a deal. Chaplin began by playing a string of minor characters before progressing to starring roles in 1909. Jimmy the Fearless, a new sketch from April 1910, was given the lead. It was a huge success, and Chaplin attracted a lot of media attention.

Karno picked his new actor to join the company's tour of North America's vaindeville circuit, which also included Stan Laurel. The young comedian wowed the audience and stunned reviewers by being dubbed "one of the finest pantomime artists ever seen here." He was most popular in his role as the "Inebriate Swell," a booze who attracted significant attention. The tour spanned 21 months, and the troupe returned to England in June 1912. Chaplin described his disquieting sensation of returning to a depressing commonplaceness" and was, therefore, delighted when a new tour began in October.

Chaplin was invited to the New York Motion Picture Company six months into his second American tour. Fred Mace, a character of their Keystone Studios who had intended to leave, had a representative who had seen his performances. The Keystone comedies were described as "a crude mixture of rough and rumble," Chaplin said, but she preferred the prospect of being in films and rationalized: "In addition, it would mean a new life." In September 1913, he joined the firm and agreed to a $150-per-week schedule. Chaplin began working for the Keystone studio in Los Angeles in early December and started on January 5th.

Mack Sennett, Chaplin's boss, was initially concerned that the 24-year-old looked too young. He was not included in a photograph until late January, during which Chaplin attempted to learn the filmmaking process. Making a Living commemorated his debut film acting and was released on February 2nd 1914. Chaplin strongly disliked the film, but one review chose him out as "a comedian of the first water." Chaplin opted for the costume with which he was identified for his second appearance in front of the camera. In his autobiography, he outlined the procedure:

The film was Mabel's Strange Predicament, but the Tramp" character, as it became known, debuted in Kid Auto Races in Venice, two days after Mabel's Strange Predicament was published two days earlier on February 7th, 1914. Chaplin adapted the character as his screen persona and began to make suggestions for the films he appeared in. His administrators had dismissed these plans. Mabel at the Wheel, his 11th film, clashed with director Mabel Normand and was about to be released from his service. Sennett was on the radio until he received orders from exhibitors for further Chaplin films. Chaplin's promise to pay $1,500 ($41,000) if the film were unsuccessful, but Sennett allowed Chaplin to direct his next film himself.

This was Chaplin's first directorial debut, which was a success. He directed almost every short film in which he appeared for Keystone at a rate of about one per week, a period in his career that he later described as the most exciting. Chaplin's films were a slower form of comedic comedy than the traditional Keystone farce, and he attracted a large fan base. He was a supporting actor in Tillie's Punctured Romance, directed by Sennett and starring Marie Dressler, which was a commercial success and increased his fame in November 1914. Chaplin's deal came up for renewal at the end of the year, he asked for $1,000 a week, but Sennett refused because the sum was too large.

The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company of Chicago sent Chaplin an $1,250 per week with a $100,000 signing bonus. In late December 1914, he began forming a stock company of regular players, actors, and celebrities, including Ben Turpin, Leo White, Bud Jamison, Paddy McGuire, Fred Goodwins, and Billy Armstrong. Edna Purviance, Chaplin's first lady, was hired quickly in a café and hired on account of her beauty. She went on to appear in 35 films with Chaplin for over eight years; the pair also had a long-running affair dating back to 1917.

Chaplin maintained a high degree of influence over his photographs and began to put more time and effort into each film. A month-long lag between the debut of his second film, A Night Out, and his third, The Champion. Chaplin's 14 Essanay films were all produced at a much slower rate. Chaplin also began to change his screen appearance, which had attracted some mockery at Keystone for its "mean, crude, and brutish" appearance. The character grew more sensitive and romantic; the Tramp (April 1915) was regarded as a turning point in his evolution. Pathos were also developed with The Bank, in which Chaplin wrote a sad ending. Robinson argues that this was a breakthrough in comedy films and that it came at a time when serious commentators began to respect Chaplin's work. Chaplin "discovered the themes and the setting that would define the Tramp's world" at Essanay, writes film scholar Simon Louvish.

Chaplin became a cultural phenomenon in 1915. Chaplin merchandise was sold in comics and comic strips, and several songs about him had been written. According to a journalist for Motion Picture Magazine, "Chaplinitis" had spread throughout America in July. He became the first international celebrity as his fame soared. Chaplin, who was well aware of his fame, requested a $150,000 sign bonus from his next studio when the Essanay lease came to an end in December 1915. Universal, Fox, and Vitagraph were among the bids he received, the best of which came from the Mutual Film Corporation at $10,000 a week.

Robinson says Chaplin, who was 26 years old – one of the world's highest paid people – was negotiated with Mutual, a yearly salary. The high salary shocked the public and was widely distributed in the media. "We can afford to pay Mr. Chaplin this much each year because the general public loves Chaplin and will pay for him," studio president John R. Freuler explained.

Chaplin was given his own Los Angeles studio to work in, which opened in March 1916. Albert Austin and Eric Campbell, two main executives of his company, joined him in creating a line of elaborate two-reelers: The Floorwalker, The Fireman, One A.M., and The Count are among his many elaborate two-reelers. Henry Bergman, a comedian who had been with Chaplin for 30 years, was recruited for The Pawnshop. Chaplin's films for 1916, Behind the Screen and The Rink. According to the Mutual film, he had promised that a two-reel film be released every four weeks, which he had failed to do. Chaplin began to request more time in the new year. Over the first ten months of 1917, he made only four more films for Mutual: Easy Street, The Cure, The Immigrant, and The Adventurer. These films are considered by Chaplin scholars to be among his finest works due to their careful construction. Chaplin referred to his Mutual years as the happiest period of his career later in life. Chaplin, on the other hand, felt that those films became increasingly formulaic over the course of the employment, and that he was becoming dissatisfied with the working conditions that facilitated this.

Chaplin was chastised in the British media for not participating in the First World War. He defended himself, saying that if called and had signed for the American draft, he would fight for Britain if called and signed for the American draft, but he was not summoned by either country. Despite this criticism, Chaplin was a fan of the troops and his fame continued to expand globally. Charlie Chaplin's name was "a part of almost every country's common language," according to Harper's Weekly, and the Tramp picture was "universally familiar" and "universally understood." Professional Chaplin imitators were so widespread in 1917 that he took court action, and nine out of ten men who attended costume parties, including the Tramp, were dressed as the Tramp. Chaplin was "an American obsession" at the Boston Society for Psychical Research's report last year. "A continually growing body of cultured, artistic people are starting to see the young English buffoon, Charles Chaplin, as both an exceptional artist and a comedy genius," actress Minnie Maddern Fiske wrote.

Chaplin was visited by leading British singer and comedian Harry Lauder in January 1918, and the two appeared in a short film together.

Mutual was generous with Chaplin's decreased rate of production, and the deal came to an end amicably. Chaplin's biggest problem in finding a new distributor was his growing reputation, according to Sydney Chaplin, then his company manager, "Charlie [must] be allowed all the time he needs and all the resources for making [films] the way he wants despite his earlier skepticism over contract scheduling stipulations." We are after quality, not quantity." Chaplin completed eight films on First National Exhibitors' Circuit in June 1917, earning $1 million in return. He wanted to build his own studio, which is located on five acres of land off Sunset Boulevard, with production facilities of the highest order. It was completed in January 1918, and Chaplin was given the freedom to design his portraits.

A Dog's Life, which was released in April 1918, was the first film to be released under the new name. Chaplin expressed his growing dissatisfaction with story development and his treatment of the Tramp as "a kind of Pierrot." Louis Delluct characterized the film as "cinema's first complete work of art." Chaplin then embarked on the Third Liberty Bond campaign, roaming the United States for a month to raise funds for the First World War's Allies. The Bond was also produced at his own expense and donated to the government for fund-raising. Chaplin's next move was war-based, deploying the Tramp in the trenches for Shoulder Arms. Associates advised him not to make a comedy about the war, but the idea, whether he remembered or not, made me smile." He spent four months shooting the film, which was released in October 1918 with a lot of success.

Chaplin requested more funds from First National, which was refused, after the introduction of Shoulder Arms. Chaplin, frustrated with their lack of interest in quality and worry about rumors of a possible merger between the firm and Famous Players-Lasky, Mary Pickford, and D. W. Griffith, formed United Artists, a new distribution firm established in January 1919. The arrangement was pioneering in the film industry, as it allowed the four partners, all experimental artists, to personally fund their photographs and have complete control. Chaplin was eager to join the new company and offered to buy First National out of his deal. They refused and demanded that he complete the remaining six films owed.

Chaplin married for the first time before the creation of United Artists. Mildred Harris, a 16-year-old actress, had revealed she was pregnant with his child, and in September 1918, she married her quietly in Los Angeles to avoid scandal. The pregnancy was found to be incorrect shortly after. Chaplin was dissatisfied with his union, and he was unhappy with the production of his film Sunnyside, who felt that marriage stunted his imagination. Harris was pregnant at the time and gave birth to a boy on July 7th, 1919. Norman Spencer Chaplin was born prematurely and died three days later. The marriage ended in April 1920, with Chaplin describing how they were "irconcilably wrong" in his autobiography.

Chaplin's next film, which turned the Tramp into a young child's caretaker, is reportedly inspired by the child's loss as well as his own childhood experiences. Chaplin intended to do more than comedic, and Louvish said, "make his mark on a new world." Jackie Coogan, a four-year-old boy, and The Kid's co-star, began filming in August 1919. The Kid was in production from nine months to May 1920, and Chaplin's longest photo to date was at 68 minutes. The Kid was one of the first films to explore poverty and parent/child separation. It was introduced in January 1921 with a roaring success, and by 1924, it had been broadcast in more than 50 countries.

Chaplin's next film, the two-reeler The Idle Class, took place five months. More turmoil in his personal life delayed work on the picture for a time. On April 12, First National revealed Chaplin's engagement to actress May Collins, who he had recruited to be his secretary at the studio. Chaplin "suddenly agreed to be in the same room" as Collins by early June, but rather than denying the job directly, he "stopped coming in to work, indicating that he was suffering from a bad case of influenza, which May knew to be a lie."

Well, work on the film resumed, and Chaplin returned to England for the first time in nearly a decade after its initial release in September 1921. My Wonderful Visit is his first book about his trip. He continued to work towards his First National Service, beginning in February 1922 with the issuance of Pay Day. The Pilgrim, his last short film, was postponed due to distribution issues with the studio and then released a year later.

Chaplin was ready to make his first film as an independent producer after completing his First National Service. He began filming A Woman of Paris, a romantic story about ill-fated couples in November 1922. Chaplin intended it to be a celebrity-making device for Edna Purviance, but he did not appear in the photo other than in a brief, uncredited cameo. He wanted the film to have a realistic feel and directed his actors to give restrained performances. "Men and women try to mask their emotions rather than attempting to articulate them," he said in daily life. A Woman of Paris premiered in September 1923 and was praised for its flexible, subtle approach. The public, on the other hand, seemed to have no interest in a Chaplin film without Chaplin, and it was a box office disappointment. This loss sparked the filmmaker's long-awaited film and was proud of the end result, and A Woman of Paris was taken from circulation shortly after.

Chaplin returned to comedy for his next project. "This next film must be an epic," he said, raising his barrows.

The Greatest!"

He was inspired by a photograph of the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush and later the history of the Donner Party of 1846-1847, which Geoffrey Macnab described as "an epic comedy out of a grim topic matter." The Tramp is a lonely prospector facing adversity and looking for love in The Gold Rush. Chaplin began filming in February 1924, with Georgia Hale as his leading lady. Its intricate design, which cost nearly $1 million, featured location shootings in Nevada's Truckee mountains, which required 600 extras, elaborate sets, and special effects. After 15 months of filming, the last scene was shot in May 1925.

Chaplin thought The Gold Rush was the best film he had made. It opened in August 1925 and became one of the best-grossing films of the silent era, with a $5 million box-office in the United States. The comedy includes some of Chaplin's most popular scenes, including the Tramp eating his shoe and the "Dance of the Rolls." "The quintessential Chaplin film," Macnab has described it. "This is the picture that I want to be remembered by," Chaplin said at the time.

Chaplin married for the second time while making The Gold Rush. Lita Grey, a teenage actress who was set to appear in the film but forced Chaplin to divorce due to her unexpected pregnancy revelation. Chaplin was convicted of statutory rape under California law when she was 16 and 35 years old, which means she may have been charged with statutory rape under California rule. On the 25th of November 1924, he therefore planned a private wedding in Mexico. They first met during his childhood, and she had appeared in his films The Kid and The Idle Class. Charles Spencer Chaplin III, their first son, was born on May 25, 1925, and Sydney Earl Chaplin follows him on 30 March 1926. Chaplin became the first movie celebrity to be featured on a Time magazine front page on July 6, 1925.

It was an unhappy marriage, and Chaplin spent long hours at the studio to not see his wife. Grey took the children and left the family's house in November 1926. Grey's proposal, accusing Chaplin of infidelity, assault, and of harbouring "perpetual sexual desires," was leaked to the media. Chaplin was thought to be in a state of nervous breakdown as the tale became national news and organizations formed around America calling for his films to be banned. Chaplin's lawyers signed a $600,000 settlement, the most awarded by American courts at that time, eager to resolve the case without further controversy. His fanbase was strong enough to withstand the incident, which was soon forgotten, but Chaplin was strongly affected by it.

Chaplin had started working on a new film called The Circus before the divorce case was filed. He created a tale about walking a tightrope while being attacked by monkeys, and turned the Tramp into the accidental star of a circus. Filming was postponed for ten months as he dealt with the divorce scandal, and it was unavoidable. The Circus was finally completed in October 1927 and held a positive reception in January 1928. Chaplin received a special award at the 1st Academy Awards for his versatility and intelligence in acting, writing, directing, and presenting "The Circus." Despite its success, Chaplin attributed the film to the film's suffering; Chaplin omitted The Circus from his autobiography and later attempted to work on it.

Hollywood had seen the introduction of sound films by the time The Circus was announced. Chaplin was skeptic about this emerging technology and the technical shortcomings it displayed, claiming that "talkies" were lacking the artistry of silent films. He was also hesitant to change the formula that had brought him such success, and feared that giving the Tramp a voice would limit his foreign appeal. He, therefore, rejected the nascent Hollywood craze and began working on a new silent film. Chaplin, however, was nonetheless concerned about the call and remained so throughout the film's development.

Chaplin had been filming on the story since 1928. City Lights followed the Tramp's passion for a blind flower girl (played by Virginia Cherrill) and his attempts to raise funds for her sight-saving mission. It was a challenging production that lasted 21 months, with Chaplin later admitting that he had "worked himself into a neurotic state of wanting perfection." Chaplin's greatest benefit in sound technology was the opportunity to record a musical score for the film, which he created himself.

Chaplin completed editing City Lights in December 1930, a time when silent films were an anachronism. A preview before an unsuspecting public audience was not a success, but a press runoff resulted in promising news. "Nobody in the world but Charlie Chaplin may have done it," one journalist wrote. He is the only one with the 'audience appeal' in high enough quality to defy the common obsession for movie talkers. City Lights was a huge hit and financial success when it first launched in January 1931, with now over $3 million. The British Film Institute cites it as Chaplin's finest work, and critic James Agee praises the closing scene as "the best piece of acting and the best moment in film." Chaplin became Chaplin's personal favorite of his films, and he stayed so throughout his life.

The City Lights had been a success, but Chaplin was uncertain if he'd be able to get another picture without speaking with them. He stayed positive that sound would not work in his films, but he was also "obsessed by a crippling fear of being old-fashioned." The comedian decided to take a break and ended up traveling for 16 months in this state of confusion, beginning in 1931. He spent months in Western Europe, including extended stays in France and Switzerland, before deciding to visit Japan. Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated by ultra-nationalists in the May 15 Incident the day after he arrived in Japan. The group's original intention was to spark a conflict with the US by assassinating Chaplin at a welcome reception held by the prime minister, but the scheme was postponed due to the delay in public notification of the event.

Chaplin recalled that on his return to Los Angeles, "I was confused and without a plan, restless, and acutely aware of an extreme loneliness." He briefly considered retiring and heading to China. When Chaplin first met 21-year-old actress Paulette Goddard in July 1932, their loneliness was lifted, and the pair began a friendship. He was not keen to commit to a film, however, and instead concentrated on writing a serial about his travels (published in Woman's Home Companion). The trip had been a enriching experience for Chaplin, which included visits with several leading thinkers and a growing interest in global affairs. The state of work in America troubling him, and he was concerned that rising unemployment rates would increase the use of machines in the workplace. Chaplin's new film was motivated by these fears.

"A satire on some aspects of our personal life," Chaplin wrote in Modern Times. It was ten and a half months to film the Tramp and Goddard as they survived the Great Depression. Chaplin had intended to use spoken dialogue but had to cancel during rehearsals. Modern Times used sound effects, but no speaking was required, as its predecessor. Chaplin's appearance of a gibberish song did, however, give the Tramp a voice for the first time on film. Chaplin first appeared on TV in February 1936, the first time a music critic would publish it. Despite Chaplin's attempts to downplay the topic, it was his first feature in 15 years to incorporate political terms and socioeconomic realism, a trend that attracted substantial press coverage. While some viewers disliked the politicising, the film earned less at the box-office than its previous films and received mixed feedback. The British Film Institute has selected Modern Times as one of Chaplin's "best features," according to David Robinson, the film depicts the filmmaker at "his unrivalled peak as a creator of visual comedy."

Chaplin and Goddard were headed to the Far East after the publication of Modern Times. The couple had refused to comment on the nature of their marriage, and it was unclear if they were married or not. Chaplin revealed that they married in Canton on this trip some time later. Both the couple had drifted apart by 1938, but Goddard's next feature film, The Great Dictator, had her leading lady. In 1942, she and Chaplin divorced in Mexico, citing incompatibility and separation for more than a year.

Chaplin's 1940s faced a string of scandals, both in his career and in his personal life, which ended his fortunes and significantly damaged his fame in the United States. The first of these was his increasing confidence in speaking out about his political convictions. Chaplin found that he was not able to ignore these topics from his work amid deeply disturbed by the explosion of imperialism in 1930s world politics. There had been similarities between himself and Adolf Hitler, who were born four days apart, and both had risen from poverty to global prominence, and Chaplin wore the same moustache style as Chaplin. It was this physical resemblance that influenced Chaplin's upcoming film, The Great Dictator, which mocked Hitler and condemned fascism.

In September 1939, six days after Britain declared war on Germany, Chaplin spent two years writing the script and began filming in September 1939. He had spoken to use sworn dialogue partly out of necessity of recognizing that he had no other choice but also because it was a more effective way to deliver a political message. Making a joke out of favour was seen as highly divisive, but Chaplin's financial stability enabled him to take the risk. "I was determined to go forward," he later wrote, "for Hitler must be laughed at." Chaplin replaced the Tramp (while wearing similar clothing) with "A Jewish Barber," a reference to the Nazi Party's assertion that he was Jewish. He also played the tyrant "Adenoid Hynkel," a parody of Hitler.

The Great Dictator was built for a year and was released in 1940. The film earned a lot of buzz, with a critic for The New York Times describing it as "the most eagerly awaited snapshot of the year" and being one of the biggest money makers of the period. However, the ending was unpopular and caused controversies. Chaplin ended the film with a five-minute address in which he discarded his barber appearance, gazed directly into the camera, and protested war and imperialism. Charles J. Maland has characterized this overt preaching as the reason for Chaplin's demise, and he writes, "No film enthusiast will ever be able to distinguish the distinction of politics from [his] celebrity." However, both Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt loved the film, which they saw at private screenings before it was released. During his January 1941 inauguration, Roosevelt invited Chaplin to read the film's last word over the radio, resulting in the address being a "hit" of the celebration. During the war, Chaplin was often invited to other patriotic functions to read the address to audiences. The Great Dictator received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Actor.

Chaplin was embroiled in a string of trials that consumed the majority of his time and had a huge effect on his public image in the mid-1940s. His affair with an aspiring actress named Joan Barry, with whom he was closely involved intermittently between June 1941 and 1942, fueled his woes. Barry, who had displayed obsessive behaviour and was twice jailed afterseparating, resurfaced the following year and announced that she was pregnant with Chaplin's child. Barry filed a paternity lawsuit against him, though Chaplin denied it.

J. Edgar Hoover, the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), who had long been suspicious of Chaplin's political leanings, took the opportunity to publish scathing information about him. The FBI indicted Chaplin in four indictments relating to the Barry case as part of a smear campaign to damage Chaplin's reputation. The most serious of these was a suspected breach of the Mann Act, which forbids the transport of women across state boundaries for sexual purposes. But if Chaplin was found guilty, historian Otto Friedrich called this a "absurd trial" of an "ancient law." Three charges were insufficient evidence to go to trial, but the Mann Act trial began on March 21, 1944. Chaplin was cleared two weeks later, on April 4th. The affair was frequently covered in headlines, with Newsweek naming it as the "biggest public relations fiasco since the 1921 Fatty Arbuckle murder trial."

Carol Annette Barry's child was born in October 1943, and the paternity suit was brought to court in December 1944. Chaplin was found to be the father after two lengthy trials, in which the prosecuting counsel accused him of "moral turpitude." The judge ordered Chaplin to provide child care until Carol Ann Turn 21. Evidence from blood tests that indicated otherwise were not admissible, and he did not refuse to pay child care until she turned 21. The FBI, which distributed details to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, and Chaplin were all portrayed in a largely critical manner in media coverage of the suit.

The drama surrounding Chaplin erupted when it was revealed that it had married Oona O'Neill, the daughter of American playwright Eugene O'Neill, two weeks after the paternity suit was filed. Chaplin, then 54, had been introduced by a film agent seven months before. Chaplin wrote "perfect love" after meeting O'Neill as "the happiest moment of my life" and said he had found "perfect love" in his autobiography. Oona "worshipped" his father, according to Chaplin's son, Charles III. The couple were married until Chaplin's death and had eight children under the age of 18. Josephine Hannah (b. March 1946) (b. ), a historian who was on the lookout for a long time. Victoria Agnes (b. 1949) - March 1949 Eugene Anthony (b. August 1953), Jane Cecil (b. May 1951), b. Annette Emily (b. December 1959), and Christopher James (b. July 1962).

Chaplin said that the Barry trials had "crippled [his] creativity," and that it took some time for him to restart working again. He began filming in April 1946, during a project that hadn't been in production since 1942. Monsieur Verdoux was a black comedy, the story of a French bank clerk, Verdoux (Chaplin), who loses his career and starts marrying and murdering wealthy widows to help his family. Orson Welles, who wanted him to appear in a film about the French serial killer Henri Désiré Landru, inspired Chaplin's idea for the project. Chaplin figured that the plan would "make a wonderful comedic comedy" and that Welles $5,000 would be spent on it.

In Monsieur Verdoux, Chaplin reiterated his political views, criticizing capitalism and arguing that mass murder promotes mass murder through wars and weapons of mass destruction. The film premiered in April 1947, and there had been calls for a boycott because of this; Chaplin was booed at the premiere; and there were calls for a boycott. Monsieur Verdoux was the first Chaplin release that failed both critically and commercially in the United States. It was more profitable in overseas, and Chaplin's screenplay was nominated at the Academy Awards. "Monsieur Verdoux is the most beautiful film I have ever made," he wrote in his autobiography.

Monsieur Verdoux's skepticism was largely due to Chaplin's public image's changes. He was publicly accused of being a communist, contributing to the traumatic aftermath of the Joan Barry affair. During World War II, his political involvement had soared as he lobbied for the establishment of a Second Front to assist the Soviet Union and aided various Soviet–American friendship organizations. He was also friendly with many suspected communists, and he attended Soviet diplomats' functions in Los Angeles. Chaplin was deemed "dangerously progressive and amoral" in 1940s America's political environment, as Larcher writes. The FBI wanted him out of the country and opened an official probe in early 1947.

Chaplin denied being a communist and instead referred to himself as a "peacemonger," but considered that the government's attempt to mask the ideology was an unacceptable violation of civil rights. He refused to be silent about the investigation and the House Un-American Activities Committee's activities. Chaplin was granted a warrant to appear at HUAC, but he was not summoned to testify. As his activities were widely distributed in the press, and Cold War fears heightened, suspicions of his inability to obtain American citizenship were raised. Representative John E. Rankin, who helped establish HUAC in June 1947, told Congress, "Chaplin's" active life in Hollywood is damaging to America's moral fabric. [If he is deported]... his disgusting pictures can be saved from the eyes of the American youth. He should be deported and released at once."

George Orwell secretly accused Chaplin of being a shadow communist and a USSR ally, according to declassified British archives belonging to the British Foreign Office in 2003. According to a 1949 document referred to as Orwell's list, Chaplin's name was one of 35 Orwell's to the Information Research Department (IRD), a little-known British Cold War propaganda service that worked closely with the CIA. Chaplin was not the only actor in America Orwell was accused of being a shadow communist. Paul Robeson, the American civil-rights leader and actor, also described him as "anti-white" in his remarks.

Despite Chaplin's continued activism in the years after the demise of Monsieur Verdoux, his next film about a forgotten music hall comedian and a young ballerina in Edwardian London, was devoid of political themes. Limelight was particularly autobiographical, alluding not only to Chaplin's childhood and the lives of his parents, but also to his loss of traction in the United States. Several members of his family were cast, including his five oldest children and his half-brother, Wheeler Dryden.

Filming began in November 1951, by which time Chaplin had spent three years researching the tale. He aimed for a more serious tone in his previous films, often using the term "melancholy" when describing his intentions to his co-star Claire Bloom. Buster Keaton, who Chaplin played as his stage partner in a pantomime performance, appeared in Limelight on a cameo appearance. This was the first time the comedians appeared together in a film.

Since the setting of the film, Chaplin decided to hold the world premiere of Limelight in London. He left Los Angeles with a nefarious omension that he would not be returning. He and his family boarded the RMS Queen Elizabeth in New York on September 18, 1952, and his family stayed at the Queen Elizabeth in New York. Chaplin's re-entry card was withdrawn by the next day, according to US Attorney General James P. McGranery, he'd have to submit an interview on his political convictions and moral behavior in order to re-enter the country. Despite McGranery's remark that he had "a pretty good argument against Chaplin," Maland found that the US government had no concrete evidence to prevent Chaplin's re-entry. If he had applied for it, it is likely that he would have gained admission. Nevertheless, Chaplin did not break his links with the US after he received a cablegram alerting him of the news: he had a private message from the US.

Chaplin said nothing negative about the incident to the media because all of his property remained in America. The scandal attracted a lot of interest, but Chaplin and his film were warmly welcomed in Europe. The hostility against him in America raged, and, despite some encouraging comments, Limelight was subjected to a broad boycott. Chaplin's demise, according to Maland, "may be the most dramatic in the history of stardom in America."

After his re-entry visa was withdrawn, Chaplin did not attempt to return to the United States, but instead ordered his wife to deal with his affairs. The couple decided to settle in Switzerland, and the family moved to Manoir de Ban, a 14-acre (35-acre) estate overlooking Lake Geneva, Corsier-sur-Vevey, in January 1953. Chaplin bought his Beverly Hills house and studio in March and then re-entry licence in April. His wife renounced her US citizenship and became a British citizen next year. Chaplin ended his professional relationship with the United States in 1955 when he sold the majority of his United Artists' stock, which had been in financial turmoil since the early 1940s.

Chaplin remained a controversial figure in the 1950s, particularly after being given the International Peace Prize by the communist-led World Peace Council, and after his discussions with Zhou Enlai and Nikita Khrushchev. In 1954, he began a new European film, A King, in New York. Chaplin portrayed himself as an exiled king seeking asylum in the United States, and he shared several of his recent screenplay encounters. Michael's son, Michael, was depicted by the FBI as a child whose parents are being threatened by the FBI, while Chaplin's portrayal of communism has been smuggish. The political satire parodied HUAC and criticised elements of 1950s culture, such as consumerism, plastic surgery, and wide-screen cinema. In a review, playwright John Osborne called it Chaplin's "most bitter" and "most openly personal" film. Chaplin said, "I am an anarchist, as for politics." I dislike government and rules, as well as fetters. People must be free."

Chaplin formed Attica, a new production company, and the shooting was shot at Shepperton Studios. Filming in England was an enthralling challenge, as he was used to his own Hollywood studio and a familiar crew, and there was no longer enough production time. This had an effect on the film's quality, according to Robinson. In September 1957, a King in New York was born but received mixed feedback. Chaplin barred American journalists from attending the Paris premiere but decided not to release the film in the United States. This severely limited its income, though it did have moderate commercial success in Europe. A King in New York was not seen in America until 1973.

Chaplin's last two decades concentrated on re-editing and scoring his old films for re-release, as well as obtaining their ownership and distribution rights. Chaplin said that there is still "space for the Little Man in the atomic age" in a video he gave in 1959, the year of his 70th birthday. The first of these re-releases was The Chaplin Revue (1959), which included new versions of A Dog's Life, Shoulder Arms, and The Pilgrim.

The political atmosphere in America began to shift, and the public attention was once more directed to Chaplin's films rather than his views. "We don't think the Republic will be in danger if yesterday's forgotten little tramp were allowed to amble down the gangplank of a steamer or plane in an American port," The New York Times editorial said in July 1962. The Universities of Oxford and Durham awarded Chaplin with the honourary degree of Doctor of Letters the same month. The Plaza Theater in New York launched a year-long series of Chaplin's films, including Monsieur Verdoux and Limelight, which received excellent reviews from American critics in November 1963. Chaplin's memoirs, My Autobiography, which he had been working on since 1957, were published in September 1964. The 500-page book became a best-seller around the world. It was criticized for lacking details about his film career during his youth and personal life.

Chaplin began working on A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), a romantic comedy based on a script he had written for Paulette Goddard in the 1930s, just shy of the publication of his memoirs. Marlon Brando as an American ambassador and Sophia Loren as a stowaway discovered in his cabin, which was set on an ocean liner. In several respects, Chaplin's earlier films were different from Chaplin's earlier works. It was his first time to use Technicolor and the widescreen media, but he concentrated on directing and only appeared on screen in a cameo role as a seasick steward. Jerome Epstein, the producer's assistant, was also hired by Universal Pictures and named him as the producer. Chaplin was paid $600,000 as a director's fee as well as a swath of the company's gross receipts. Countess from Hong Kong premiered in 1967, got unfavourable feedback, and was a box-office failure. Chaplin was greatly affected by the film's sarcastic reaction, which was to be his last.

Chaplin suffered from a string of minor strokes in the late 1960s, which marked the start of a slow decline in his health. Despite the setbacks, he was soon writing The Freak, a story about a winged girl discovered in South America, which he intended as a supporting vehicle for his daughter, Victoria. The venture's fragile health prevented it from being completed. Chaplin's early 1970s films, including The Kid and The Circus, were mainly concentrated on re-releasing his old films. At the Cannes Film Festival in 1971, he was named Commander of the National Order of Honour. He was honoured by the Venice Film Festival with a special award the following year.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded Chaplin an Honorary Award in 1972, a show that America "wanted to make amends." Chaplin was initially unsure about returning to the United States for the first time in 20 years, but after that, he returned to the United States for the first time in 20 years. The trip attracted a lot of press coverage, and at the Academy Awards gala, he was honoured with a 12-minute standing ovation, the longest in the academy's history. Chaplin, who was clearly emotional, accepted his award for "the incalculable contribution he has had in making motion pictures the art form of the century."

Although Chaplin had hopes for future film projects, by the mid-1970s, he was still frail. He had multiple strokes, making it impossible for him to communicate, and he had to use a wheelchair. His final projects included compiling a pictorial autobiography, My Life in Pictures (1974) and scoring A Woman of Paris for re-release in 1976. He appeared in The Gentleman Tramp (1975), a Richard Patterson film about his life. Chaplin was given a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II but he was too young to kneel and received the award in his wheelchair.

Chaplin's health had deteriorated to the point where he needed constant care by October 1977. Chaplin died at home in the early morning of Christmas Day 1977 after suffering a stroke in his sleep. He was 88 years old at the time. According to his wishes, the funeral, which took place on December 27, was a small and private Anglican service. Chaplin was laid to rest in the Corsier-sur-Vevey cemetery. "He was a monument to the cinema, of all nations and times... the most beautiful gift the cinema made to us," director René Clair wrote. "We were lucky to have lived in his days," Actor Bob Hope said. Chaplin's widow received more than $100,000.

Roman Wardas and Gantcho Ganev dug up and stole Chaplin's coffin on March 1, 1978. In an effort to extort money from his widow, Oona Chaplin, the body was held for ransom. Both were caught in a big police operation in May, and Chaplin's coffin was discovered buried in a field near Noville, near the village of Noville. In a reinforced concrete vault, it was reinterred in the Corsier cemetery.

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