There is perhaps no more recognizable figure of the silent film era than the Charlie Chaplinone of his first major stars Hollywood. Even in our time, there are not many who can boast that their acting career has lasted almost three quarters of a century. Chaplin was one of them, playing roles on stage and then in film studios from his childhood in the Victorian era until before his death in the 1970s.
Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in April 1889 in South London. His parents, Charles Chaplin Sr. and Hannah Hill, were Music Hall artists, which definitely influenced him later in life. After his father ran away, his mother faced many financial problems. Her two sons were essentially raised in an institution for orphans and abandoned children, reaping horrific memories. After her incarceration in a mental asylum in 1898, Charlie and Sidney’s guardianship was taken over by their father, who never showed any interest in raising them.
Charlie first took to the stage at the age of 5, replacing his sick mother.
Charlie first took to the stage at the age of five, filling in for his ailing mother. He comically performed a popular song of the time winning the applause of the assembled crowd. Later, when his father took over his guardianship, Charlie joined a children’s troupe. Over the years, he gained experience and confidence on stage. When his brother was hired by a troupe that frequently toured the American continent, he also wanted to join this daring journey. Eventually, the United States of America won over Charlie, who remained there for many years. In the mid-1910s he took his first steps in silent cinema, playing small roles as petty crooks and philanderers. Then he started shaping the role of “Charlotte”, which made him a big Hollywood star.
In 1918 he met the sixteen-year-old American actress Mildred Harris. Harris made her film debut at the age of ten. By the time she met the twenty-nine-year-old Chaplin, she had already appeared in enough films to be considered famous enough. Their relationship started shortly after they met. Afraid of the social scandal that would erupt if the world learned that Harris was pregnant – something that later proved to be false – Chaplin decided to marry her in order to save his reputation.
Their marriage turned out not to be based on feelings of love. Chaplin remarried three more times.
On October 23, 1918, the two were married in Los Angeles in a private ceremony. In July 1919, Harris prematurely gave birth to a baby boy, Norman Spencer. Three days later, however, little Norman died. His death worsened his parents’ already strained relationship. Their marriage turned out not to be based on feelings of love and their personal differences were many. In 1920 Chaplin and Harris officially divorced. Chaplin remarried three more times.
Column editor: Myrto Katsigera, Vassilis Minakakis, Antigone-Despina Poimenidou, Athanasios Syroplakis
