Charlie Chaplin was a comedic British actor who became one of the 

 

biggest stars of the 20th century's silent-film era.

 

Born on April 16, 1889, in London, England, Charlie Chaplin worked with a 

 

children's dance troupe before making his mark on the big screen. His 

 

character "The Tramp" relied on pantomime and quirky movements to 

 

become an iconic figure of the silent-film era. Chaplin went on to become a 

 

director, making films such as City Lights and Modern Times, and co-founded 

 

the United Artists Corporation. He died in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland, on December 25, 1977.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Famous for his character "The Tramp," the sweet little man with a bowler hat, 

 

mustache and cane, Charlie Chaplin was an iconic figure of the silent-film era 

 

and one of film's first superstars, elevating the industry in a way few could 

 

have ever imagined.

 

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 any way he could.

 

 

In 1914 Chaplin made his film debut in a somewhat forgettable one-reeler 

 

called Make a Living. To differentiate himself from the clad of other actors in 

 

Sennett films, Chaplin decided to play a single identifiable character, and "The 

 

Little Tramp" was born, with audiences getting their first taste of him inKid 

 

Auto Races at Venice (1914).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chaplin kept creating interesting and engaging films in the 1930s. In 1931, he 

 

released City Lights, a critical and commercial success that incorporated 

 

music Chaplin scored himself.

 

More acclaim came with Modern Times (1936), a biting commentary about the 

 

state of the world's economic and political infrastructures. The film, which did 

 

incorporate sound, was, in part, the result of an 18-month world tour Chaplin 

 

had taken between 1931 and 1932, a trip during which he'd witnessed severe 

 

economic angst and a sharp rise in nationalism in Europe and elsewhere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the early morning hours of December 25, 1977, Charlie Chaplin died at his home in Corsier-

 

sur-Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. His wife, Oona, and seven of his children were at his bedside at 

 

the time of his passing. In a twist that might very well have come out of one of his films, 

 

Chaplin's body was stolen not long after he was buried from his grave near Lake Geneva in 

 

Switzerland by two men who demanded $400,000 for its return. The men were arrested and 

 

Chaplin's body was recovered 11 weeks later.