Charles Spencer Chaplin is known to the whole world as Charlie Chaplin - the king of comedy, who stood at the origins of all cinema in general. In him, both the talent of an actor and the gift of a business man were combined in an amazing way; he was and remains an unsurpassed actor and director.
What would modern cinema be like if the legendary and unique Charles Chaplin had not been at its origins? Neither ordinary viewers nor experts in this field of art will be able to answer this question. We know and love films with his participation and those created by him as a director, but what is known about him? Who is he and where is he from? How did his career and personal life develop?
Charles Chaplin biography
The future legendary comedian and director was born in London, in 1889, into a poor family of pop actors in one of the music halls of his hometown. Money problems in the family began due to the boy's father's addiction to alcohol. He was a talented actor, but addiction robbed him of financially lucrative creative proposals.
Charlie lost his father early, he had to go on stage with his mother in order to somehow earn a living. At the age of 7, Charles's childhood ended - his mother became seriously ill and he had to perform on stage along with his adult colleagues, and quite successfully.
From the age of 9, Chaplin completely took over the financial care of the family - his sick mother and brother. The boy worked wherever he was taken - he delivered newspapers, worked as an orderly in a hospital, performed simple duties in a printing house. But he did not forget about the career of an actor, and was not going to give up his dream.
Charlie Chaplin's career
In fact, Chaplin's career began when he was 5 years old. The boy's mother could not finish her part due to health problems, and he did it instead of her. Touched spectators showered the young talent with money, Charlie diligently collected banknotes, and sang again and again, for an encore.
This incident from childhood is so engraved in the memory of Charles that he could no longer dream of anything other than a stage. Earning money wherever possible in order to feed his family, the boy did not abandon his attempts to break into the world of art. And his efforts were rewarded - at the age of 14, Chaplin was accepted into the troupe of the theater and received a small role in the play.
And at the age of 19, together with the Fred Carnot Theater, Chaplin came to America, and decided to stay there. After 5 years, the young man was invited to the American film studio "Keystone", where he began his acting career.
In 1914, Charlie Chaplin tried his hand as a screenwriter and director, and the world received a lot of silent film masterpieces. In his film library there are more than 100 acting works, in his creative piggy bank the best director's works since the beginning of the development of cinema.
Charlie Chaplin's personal life
Chaplin's personal life was no less bright than his biography and career. After several whirlwind romances, in 1918, Chaplin decided to settle down and married Mildred Harris. The couple had a son, but soon died. The marriage broke up 2 years after the tragedy.
Then there were three more wives in his life:
- Lita Gray,
- Paulette Goddard,
- Una O Neil.
With his fourth wife, Una, Chaplin met old age. She helped him to withdraw financial assets from the United States, moved to London, renouncing American citizenship.
