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Who Was . . . ? Series
Who Was Charlie Chaplin?
Who was the real Charlie Chaplin? Kids will learn all about the comic genius who created "The Little Tramp"!
Charlie Chaplin sang on a London stage for the first time at the age of five. Performing proved to be his salvation, providing a way out of a life of hardship and poverty. Success came early and made Chaplin one of the best loved people in the United States until the McCarthy witch hunts drove Chaplin from his adopted country. This is a moving portrait of a multi-talented man—actor, director, writer, even music composer—and the complicated times he lived in.
Charlie Chaplin sang on a London stage for the first time at the age of five. Performing proved to be his salvation, providing a way out of a life of hardship and poverty. Success came early and made Chaplin one of the best loved people in the United States until the McCarthy witch hunts drove Chaplin from his adopted country. This is a moving portrait of a multi-talented man—actor, director, writer, even music composer—and the complicated times he lived in.
112 pages, Library Binding
Published December 6, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
March 11, 2024
Who Was ...? biography series for middle grade brings incredible man – Charlie Chaplin - a stage performer who rose to the top in the movie industry becoming the highest paid actor of his time.
Charles Spencer Chaplin (1889-1977) was born in London. Both of his parents were entertainers and performed in music halls. At five, Charlie had his first chance of performing on stage.
Charlie and his brother Sydney went through workhouse due to their father abandoning them and mother being hospitalized.
Charlie went through street dancing, clog dancing, then acting in theater. In theater, he did so well that in 1910, he got an offer to go to America on a tour.
He did so well in America that in 1913, he got an offer to make movies. Charlie always acted on stage, being in front of a camera was something new.
He took his chance. In California, at the costume room, he picked everything that was a contradiction: baggy pants, tight coat, small hat, and the large shoes. The final touch was a small black mustache and a cane. He was natural at creating funny scenes: tripping over a lady’s foot and apologizing to a hat. He crafted one of the most famous characters after just 5 days in the movies.
With his popularity growing, he got a deal to both direct and star in his films which gave him freedom to create characters he was interested in.
In 1916, he became the highest paid person in America, and probably the world. He’d gone from rags to riches, and above all remained a humble human being to the very end.
Charlie continued to break the rules by following his instincts. Building his own studio and joining United Artists gave him the freedom to create what he wanted, which was to make longer, more dramatic films. He created masterpieces and was called a genius.
In 1975, he was knighted. He went from being the street waif to Sir Charlie Chaplin.
This biography exemplifies a man who used his talent to purse it and became very successful at it; even at the top of his game, he continuously learned his business. And with following his instincts, he created “motion pictures the art form of the century.
This is one of my favorite biographies which is touching and tear-dropping.
This illustrated biography series for young readers, ages 8-12, is presented in a relatable way, with simple sentences and enriched with insightful inserts.
https://biopurposeland.blogspot.com/
Charles Spencer Chaplin (1889-1977) was born in London. Both of his parents were entertainers and performed in music halls. At five, Charlie had his first chance of performing on stage.
Charlie and his brother Sydney went through workhouse due to their father abandoning them and mother being hospitalized.
Charlie went through street dancing, clog dancing, then acting in theater. In theater, he did so well that in 1910, he got an offer to go to America on a tour.
He did so well in America that in 1913, he got an offer to make movies. Charlie always acted on stage, being in front of a camera was something new.
He took his chance. In California, at the costume room, he picked everything that was a contradiction: baggy pants, tight coat, small hat, and the large shoes. The final touch was a small black mustache and a cane. He was natural at creating funny scenes: tripping over a lady’s foot and apologizing to a hat. He crafted one of the most famous characters after just 5 days in the movies.
With his popularity growing, he got a deal to both direct and star in his films which gave him freedom to create characters he was interested in.
In 1916, he became the highest paid person in America, and probably the world. He’d gone from rags to riches, and above all remained a humble human being to the very end.
Charlie continued to break the rules by following his instincts. Building his own studio and joining United Artists gave him the freedom to create what he wanted, which was to make longer, more dramatic films. He created masterpieces and was called a genius.
In 1975, he was knighted. He went from being the street waif to Sir Charlie Chaplin.
This biography exemplifies a man who used his talent to purse it and became very successful at it; even at the top of his game, he continuously learned his business. And with following his instincts, he created “motion pictures the art form of the century.
This is one of my favorite biographies which is touching and tear-dropping.
This illustrated biography series for young readers, ages 8-12, is presented in a relatable way, with simple sentences and enriched with insightful inserts.
https://biopurposeland.blogspot.com/
August 1, 2021
"That night was my first appearance on the stage," Charlie later wrote, "and Mother's last."
I was anticipating a long boring read. But I was far from right.
"Who was the real Charlie Chaplin? Kids will learn all about the comic genius who created "The Little Tramp"!
Charlie Chaplin sang on a London stage for the first time at the age of five. Performing proved to be his salvation, providing a way out of a life of hardship and poverty. Success came early and made Chaplin one of the best-loved people in the United States until the McCarthy witch hunts drove Chaplin from his adopted country. This is a moving portrait of a multi-talented man—actor, director, writer, even music composer—and the complicated times he lived in.
the writing was simple. the explanations were clear. It was overall very engaging. I finished it in under one hour. When I turned the last page, I was surprised- I've never read a book so swiftly.
On the bottom line, if you want to know about Charlie Chaplin, this is very helpful. But it doesn't go very into detail, so it may not be perfect for everyone.
~-~
March 22, 2017
Who Was Charlie Chaplin? by Patricia Brennan Demuth is one of my favorites of the series. It goes into so much detail of his life and movies. His childhood was so bad and it goes into how, where, why and it had me almost in tears. His life was such a struggle until he came to America and made it in movies. This is a book of perseverance, hope, love, hardships, rags to riches-literally, and talent. I truly think this is one of the top 5 books of the series. It touched my heart as he touched so many funny bones. I got this book from the library.
June 15, 2021
This book is a small biography of Charlie Chaplin. The content was summed succinctly. Chaplin is not my favourite person but i was still amazed to read that how could a boy with limited resources and hailing from a humble background, could become one of the most famous actors in the world. A good read it is .
January 25, 2018
(This was written by my 11 year old)
Who was Charlie Chaplin? by Patricia Brennan Demuth enveloped me and taught me much about Chaplin's life. It was as funny as the man himself, it taught me his struggles and accomplishments, and captured his hopes for a world with a smile on it's face.
Charlie Chaplin was a born actor with a talent for remembering everything he saw and heard which made him a wonderful performer. He was born to a poor family and began street performing when he was nine. When William Jackson saw his talent he was determined to give him a spot in his latest show, which began his career.
He was very active with his humor in the way he stumbled around the stage. His greatest accomplishment was that he made comedic acting into an art form. For anyone wishing to learn about the roots of comedy themselves this is a great place to start.
Who was Charlie Chaplin? by Patricia Brennan Demuth enveloped me and taught me much about Chaplin's life. It was as funny as the man himself, it taught me his struggles and accomplishments, and captured his hopes for a world with a smile on it's face.
Charlie Chaplin was a born actor with a talent for remembering everything he saw and heard which made him a wonderful performer. He was born to a poor family and began street performing when he was nine. When William Jackson saw his talent he was determined to give him a spot in his latest show, which began his career.
He was very active with his humor in the way he stumbled around the stage. His greatest accomplishment was that he made comedic acting into an art form. For anyone wishing to learn about the roots of comedy themselves this is a great place to start.
July 20, 2017
Charlie Chaplin is still funny today. Watch his films and see for yourself!
August 10, 2020
This book was extraordinarily well written and put together.
March 14, 2023
Fabulous, simple account of Charlie Chaplin's life! One of my favorites in this series.
May 25, 2021
Very enjoyable! Especially because I didn't know anything about Charlie Chaplin. The first surprise was that he was not an American. Charlie is so quintessentially associated with early America Hollywood, I just took for granted that he came from here.
May 20, 2017
" I'm just a little nickel comedian trying to make people laugh "
He once said.
I just have so much admiration and respect for this man.
Reading this book made me tear, laugh, jump, hold
my heart from the emotional state i was in.
WOW. CHARLIE.
I always laughed on his movies. Felt so dragged into his performance. I never tried to know more about him until now. His story, his success. And what he made is no easy. And that just inspired me way too much then i have expected.
I wish i can go back in time to attend one of your shows. ' An alive masterpiece ' .
* light easy full of info book. Totally loved it.
He once said.
I just have so much admiration and respect for this man.
Reading this book made me tear, laugh, jump, hold
my heart from the emotional state i was in.
WOW. CHARLIE.
I always laughed on his movies. Felt so dragged into his performance. I never tried to know more about him until now. His story, his success. And what he made is no easy. And that just inspired me way too much then i have expected.
I wish i can go back in time to attend one of your shows. ' An alive masterpiece ' .
* light easy full of info book. Totally loved it.
December 14, 2021
Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in London on 16 April,1889. He had a half brother named Sydney. His father was Charles Chaplin Sr. and his mother was Hanna Chaplin. They were both entertainers. Before, there were no movies so there would only be live shows.One day, his father packed up and left home leaving Hannah to care for the kids herself. They soon became poor.
One night, Hannah’s voice cracked in the middle of a song and it was the end of her singing career. Charlie, who was just 5, ran onto the stage and started singing and dancing. Everybody loved him. Hannah started sewing as a job to help take care of the family. They moved from a 3 - room apartment, into a 2 - room then finally a 1 room one.
In time, hannah, ws to weak and ill to work. She sent her sons to the workhouse. From there, they were taken to school called hanwell.Teachers at hanwell were very strict and Charlie often resorted to daydreams for an escape from the classroom.In 1898, Charlie’s father took them in. Those 2 months were the worst of his life.Finally, Hannahgot out of the hospital and rescued them.
Charles stopped going to school and started dancing and singing for a living. One afternoon, a person put him into a dancing group. This was Charlie’s first job. 2 years later, his mother took him out because he looked worn out. He started doing odd jobs. Sydney was away at sea at these times.
Hannah slowly started losing her state of mind. One day, Charlie took her to a doctor’s clinic from where they sent her to a mental hospital. She never came back and died there.. Charlie might have become a thief if Sydney didn’t come back to rescue him. Sydney was going to try acting and Charlie decided to try it too.Charlie Played a young boy in Sherlock Holmes. It was a big hit.
In 1908 he got a job in Fred Karno’s office. In 1910, they went on a tour of America.Here a company called Skyscrapers offered him a job. He accepted and became a big hit in America.Charlie was a very shy person.
In 1913, he joined a company called Keystone studios. They were trying to make movies for the first time. These were filmed without any sound!He visited the place and turned straight back. After 3 days he came back. There were 3 to 4 films being filmed. Keystone filmed movies without a script. Movies at that time were 15 minutes long. Charlie’s first film was making a living.One day, his boss told him to dress in whatever he wanted. This was the day The Little Tramp was invented.Movies fascinated Charlie.For one movie, the director wouldn’t listen to his ideas. Charlie walked off and refused to act.Charle wanted to direct his own movies and he did just that. He was the star and director of his movies.Charlie slipped into the theatre when the movie was playing. Nobody recognised him. He listened to the reactions of his audience to help shape his future films.
Charlie asked his brother Sydney to be his manager. He landed a job in Essanay Studios. Charles made them react to the scenes till everything was perfect. Charlie started to spend money. He bought a car and built a mansion.
His best friend was Douglas Fairbanks, the star of the Robin Hood movies. He got married to Mildred but they soon broke apart.Charlie found an amazing young actor Jackie Coogan for his next film called The Kid. It was a blockbuster. He got married again and had 2 sons. His wife was Lita Grey. They got divorced.
Soon, films could be filmed with sound. He went on a tour of Asia and Europe. The Little Tramp’s last film soon came.World war 2 broke out. In 1940, he made a movie making fun of Adolf Hitler. He had his first box office flop.Than there was a cold war. The US sent him out believing he was the enemy.He got married to Oona O’ Neil. They settled in Switzerland. They had 7children. He died on christmas day.
It was agood autobiograpy
One night, Hannah’s voice cracked in the middle of a song and it was the end of her singing career. Charlie, who was just 5, ran onto the stage and started singing and dancing. Everybody loved him. Hannah started sewing as a job to help take care of the family. They moved from a 3 - room apartment, into a 2 - room then finally a 1 room one.
In time, hannah, ws to weak and ill to work. She sent her sons to the workhouse. From there, they were taken to school called hanwell.Teachers at hanwell were very strict and Charlie often resorted to daydreams for an escape from the classroom.In 1898, Charlie’s father took them in. Those 2 months were the worst of his life.Finally, Hannahgot out of the hospital and rescued them.
Charles stopped going to school and started dancing and singing for a living. One afternoon, a person put him into a dancing group. This was Charlie’s first job. 2 years later, his mother took him out because he looked worn out. He started doing odd jobs. Sydney was away at sea at these times.
Hannah slowly started losing her state of mind. One day, Charlie took her to a doctor’s clinic from where they sent her to a mental hospital. She never came back and died there.. Charlie might have become a thief if Sydney didn’t come back to rescue him. Sydney was going to try acting and Charlie decided to try it too.Charlie Played a young boy in Sherlock Holmes. It was a big hit.
In 1908 he got a job in Fred Karno’s office. In 1910, they went on a tour of America.Here a company called Skyscrapers offered him a job. He accepted and became a big hit in America.Charlie was a very shy person.
In 1913, he joined a company called Keystone studios. They were trying to make movies for the first time. These were filmed without any sound!He visited the place and turned straight back. After 3 days he came back. There were 3 to 4 films being filmed. Keystone filmed movies without a script. Movies at that time were 15 minutes long. Charlie’s first film was making a living.One day, his boss told him to dress in whatever he wanted. This was the day The Little Tramp was invented.Movies fascinated Charlie.For one movie, the director wouldn’t listen to his ideas. Charlie walked off and refused to act.Charle wanted to direct his own movies and he did just that. He was the star and director of his movies.Charlie slipped into the theatre when the movie was playing. Nobody recognised him. He listened to the reactions of his audience to help shape his future films.
Charlie asked his brother Sydney to be his manager. He landed a job in Essanay Studios. Charles made them react to the scenes till everything was perfect. Charlie started to spend money. He bought a car and built a mansion.
His best friend was Douglas Fairbanks, the star of the Robin Hood movies. He got married to Mildred but they soon broke apart.Charlie found an amazing young actor Jackie Coogan for his next film called The Kid. It was a blockbuster. He got married again and had 2 sons. His wife was Lita Grey. They got divorced.
Soon, films could be filmed with sound. He went on a tour of Asia and Europe. The Little Tramp’s last film soon came.World war 2 broke out. In 1940, he made a movie making fun of Adolf Hitler. He had his first box office flop.Than there was a cold war. The US sent him out believing he was the enemy.He got married to Oona O’ Neil. They settled in Switzerland. They had 7children. He died on christmas day.
It was agood autobiograpy
February 8, 2025
قصة ملهمة تبدأ ببداية حزينة ومؤثرة بعيش تشارلي في فقر وبعيد عن والدته وكل ما كان يرغب به هو الهروب من الفقر حتى أتته الفرص ليكون ممثلا على المسرح.
من هنا نتعرف على أهمية الفن في الحياة وأننا لا نستطيع العيش بلا فن بكل أنواعه . ومن أهم أنواع الفن بالنسبة لي هو مجال صناعة الأفلام لذا أقدر كل ممثل أو مخرج انتجوا لنا الأفلام التي ترسم الابتسامات على أوجهنا أو تنسينا همومنا . وفي العامين السابقيين أصبحت أحب متابعة الأفلام لأنني وجدتها كفاصل بين الحياة والمتعة . ونتعلم من تشارلي تشابلن الضحك على الهموم لأن هذا سيخفف الثقل علينا ونرى الحياة جميلة حتى بآلامها.
والشيء الثاني الذي نستطيع تعلمه منه هو العمل ، الجدية في العمل ، المثابرة في العمل ، والإبداع والأصالة في العمل. حيث بذل تشابلن قصارى جهده ليخرج بأفضل ما لديه حتى أتقن عمله ، وعندما أتقن عمله ترقى لمجال إخراج الأفلام( لم يجمع تشارلي بين الإخراج والتمثيل إلا عندما أتقن التمثيل. فلا تشتت نفسك بتعلم أكثر من صنعة في آن واحد تجعلك إحداهما مقصرا في الأخرى.)
ومن الأخطاء التي وقع فيها تشارلي هو عدم الموازنة بين العمل والعائلة ، كلاهما بنفس الأهمية فلا إفراط ولا تفريط ولكن قضاء الوقت مع العائلة وإعطائها جزءا من وقتك سيجعلك شخصا أفضل ، وتعيد شحن طاقتك أيضا.
جرب ولا تخف ، لأن الخوف قد يمنعك من النجاح . أنت لن تخسر شيئا إن جربت حتى لو لم تكسب شيئا . وأعجبني الاقتباس عندما انتقل تشارلي إلى نيو يورك ونظر إلى المباني وعرف حينها أن أمريكا تحمل فرصا كبيرة له . بالفعل فأحيانا تغيير المكان الذي أنت فيه يفتح لك بابا للتعلم ، فرص وظيفية أفضل ، ويكون عندك حس للمغامرة فتخرج من منطقة راحتك.
وفي النهاية ، كن أنت ، اتبع أحاسيسك لأن هذا هو ما يجعلك نفسك .
من هنا نتعرف على أهمية الفن في الحياة وأننا لا نستطيع العيش بلا فن بكل أنواعه . ومن أهم أنواع الفن بالنسبة لي هو مجال صناعة الأفلام لذا أقدر كل ممثل أو مخرج انتجوا لنا الأفلام التي ترسم الابتسامات على أوجهنا أو تنسينا همومنا . وفي العامين السابقيين أصبحت أحب متابعة الأفلام لأنني وجدتها كفاصل بين الحياة والمتعة . ونتعلم من تشارلي تشابلن الضحك على الهموم لأن هذا سيخفف الثقل علينا ونرى الحياة جميلة حتى بآلامها.
والشيء الثاني الذي نستطيع تعلمه منه هو العمل ، الجدية في العمل ، المثابرة في العمل ، والإبداع والأصالة في العمل. حيث بذل تشابلن قصارى جهده ليخرج بأفضل ما لديه حتى أتقن عمله ، وعندما أتقن عمله ترقى لمجال إخراج الأفلام( لم يجمع تشارلي بين الإخراج والتمثيل إلا عندما أتقن التمثيل. فلا تشتت نفسك بتعلم أكثر من صنعة في آن واحد تجعلك إحداهما مقصرا في الأخرى.)
ومن الأخطاء التي وقع فيها تشارلي هو عدم الموازنة بين العمل والعائلة ، كلاهما بنفس الأهمية فلا إفراط ولا تفريط ولكن قضاء الوقت مع العائلة وإعطائها جزءا من وقتك سيجعلك شخصا أفضل ، وتعيد شحن طاقتك أيضا.
جرب ولا تخف ، لأن الخوف قد يمنعك من النجاح . أنت لن تخسر شيئا إن جربت حتى لو لم تكسب شيئا . وأعجبني الاقتباس عندما انتقل تشارلي إلى نيو يورك ونظر إلى المباني وعرف حينها أن أمريكا تحمل فرصا كبيرة له . بالفعل فأحيانا تغيير المكان الذي أنت فيه يفتح لك بابا للتعلم ، فرص وظيفية أفضل ، ويكون عندك حس للمغامرة فتخرج من منطقة راحتك.
وفي النهاية ، كن أنت ، اتبع أحاسيسك لأن هذا هو ما يجعلك نفسك .
October 4, 2021
Charlie Chaplin is famous worldwide for his comedic acts. But many people don't have any idea of how much he struggled in his personal life. I love the book as it not only provides information about the person but also the people surrounding them. It has info boxes in every chapter about either a movie, a family member, a place etc. Throughout his lives, there are many lessons to be learned like how he and his brother shared a very close bond and helped each other through difficult times, as siblings should. The writer has done a wonderful job presenting the key moments of his fame and his important films that gained him more popularity and audience. It is not only informative but emotional too, reading about his struggles at such a young age. There are also lines said by him in interviews or his autobiography that are heart-breaking, like how his childhood ended at the mere age of 7. I would like to say that the "Who Was" series are amazing and I will continue to read it and so should you.
October 3, 2025
This book was very very good and I enjoyed it a lot. I recommend this book to people who love poems
May 29, 2017
This is part of a series of biographies illustrated and written for middle grade students. Chaplin’s childhood and experiences in the music halls, informed his film career, but the first 37 pages of this short book are on that period. That seems out of proportion to me.
Mabel Normand, gets one sentence and a picture, when she was as a big a star, at the time, or bigger, than Chaplin was. Paulette Godard his co-star in Modern Times and The Great Dictator and the only one of his co-stars to have a movie career apart from him, oh, and his wife, doesn’t rate a mention, at all. Neither does his co-star of ten years, Edna Purviance, for whom he wrote and directed a feature drama, A Woman of Paris. I would have written this differently, but I am glad this was written and I hope it is read, because a flawed biography, can still be a good introduction to Chaplin’s work.
I bought this at the Book House 5.1.17 for $5.99.
Mabel Normand, gets one sentence and a picture, when she was as a big a star, at the time, or bigger, than Chaplin was. Paulette Godard his co-star in Modern Times and The Great Dictator and the only one of his co-stars to have a movie career apart from him, oh, and his wife, doesn’t rate a mention, at all. Neither does his co-star of ten years, Edna Purviance, for whom he wrote and directed a feature drama, A Woman of Paris. I would have written this differently, but I am glad this was written and I hope it is read, because a flawed biography, can still be a good introduction to Chaplin’s work.
I bought this at the Book House 5.1.17 for $5.99.
December 8, 2018
Book level: 5.1
Summary: From a poor and broken family to the richest actor in the world, this story brings feelings to life. Hard work and determination allowed Charlie to teach himself to act, be silly and play the violin lead him to successfully write, act, direct, cast, produce and compose music all by himself.
Genre: Biography
Writing Trait: Presentation and voice. The careful story digs deep to share his feelings through good times and bad. He was quiet and reserved; which boded well for his silent movies. Presentation of the pictures helped bring it all together.
Classroom integration: This story can be used as a history reference for several projects. One in particular could be the example of how the technology of "talkies", where movies started to have sound, put the piano players who used to play during silent movies, out of jobs. A lesson plan could instruct students to find examples of how technology erased jobs.
Summary: From a poor and broken family to the richest actor in the world, this story brings feelings to life. Hard work and determination allowed Charlie to teach himself to act, be silly and play the violin lead him to successfully write, act, direct, cast, produce and compose music all by himself.
Genre: Biography
Writing Trait: Presentation and voice. The careful story digs deep to share his feelings through good times and bad. He was quiet and reserved; which boded well for his silent movies. Presentation of the pictures helped bring it all together.
Classroom integration: This story can be used as a history reference for several projects. One in particular could be the example of how the technology of "talkies", where movies started to have sound, put the piano players who used to play during silent movies, out of jobs. A lesson plan could instruct students to find examples of how technology erased jobs.
September 14, 2019
Very enjoyable! Especially because I didn't know anything about Charlie Chaplin. The first surprise was that he was not an American. Charlie is so quintessentially associated with early America Hollywood, I just took for granted that he came from here.
He was quite poor in his early life. His mother spent a good portion of her life in hospital. She had some kind of mental illness. He and his brother were always close and took care of each other. They worked together a lot.
Charlie invented his tramp character at the very beginning of his career and was basically an instant hit. People had a hard time recognizing him, since he was a more reserved person than his character. At one point he made a movie mocking Hitler, but said he wouldn't have done that if he'd known what was coming.
I read this book over a month ago, so it's hard to remember specifics, but it was fascinating.
He was quite poor in his early life. His mother spent a good portion of her life in hospital. She had some kind of mental illness. He and his brother were always close and took care of each other. They worked together a lot.
Charlie invented his tramp character at the very beginning of his career and was basically an instant hit. People had a hard time recognizing him, since he was a more reserved person than his character. At one point he made a movie mocking Hitler, but said he wouldn't have done that if he'd known what was coming.
I read this book over a month ago, so it's hard to remember specifics, but it was fascinating.
October 9, 2020
With all of today's Hollywood mega stars it may be hard to believe that the funny man with the Hitler mustache and the funny walk from the silent film days was one of the first to have it all in the movie industry. Who Was Charlie Chaplin? by Patricia Brennan Demuth is a short but fact-filled book in the award-winning "Who Was..." series targeted specifically for the youth market. Most of the important points from Charlie Chaplin's life are described here and, for those who haven't seen any of his works or the 1992 movie about his life titled Chaplin and starring Robert Downey Jr. Well written for such a short presentation about someone who, in the early days of the film industry did it all from writing screenplays, directing, acting, editing, and even composing musical scores. Hopefully will encourage today's youth to read further about this talented man who was devoted to his craft and his rags to riches story.
January 1, 2021
This is an adorable way to introduce and explain the GREAT Sir Charlie Chaplin to kiddos! The illustrations are amazingly spot on, and the information is detailed but not too much to delude the actor-director's massive importance.
I am a huge Chaplin fan, so this was more of a cute purchase for a bookshelf full of Chaplin-related literature and memorabilia, but it was still a super cute and fun read.
I am a huge Chaplin fan, so this was more of a cute purchase for a bookshelf full of Chaplin-related literature and memorabilia, but it was still a super cute and fun read.
July 5, 2020
The book was about my favourite comedian Charlie Chaplin.so anyway it is my favourite book and I appreciate New York Times to make it a bestselling CDS because even if I was in place of it, I would do the same thing
September 15, 2020
This is a tough one for me to rate. As a book, it's well written and I thought it was an interesting and informative read. The illustrations are great.
Charlie Chaplin was a pioneer in film making, recognized as one of the greatest actors in movie history, and Academy Award recipient for his part in "making motion pictures the art form of the (20th) century." He's an icon of the entertainment industry. The author covers this well.
His early life and hardships as a young boy were particularly interesting. His is truly a rags to riches story. "He proved that humble roots didn't have to hold anyone back."
After finishing this book, I was curious about some random thing and ended up reading further.
What I learned by reading more wasn't good, and really changed my mood about Charlie Chaplin.
Coincidentally, the last book I had read before this one was a psychological suspense about predatory adults who are interested in humans much younger than them. When I learned the rest of the story (from a source other than this book), that Chaplin's wives, love interests, and the mothers of his children tended to be decades younger than him, I was pretty disappointed that I'd been charmed by having that information omitted in this book.. or, rather - that he'd been chosen as a subject for this children's series at all.
When Chaplin was 29, he got a 16 year old girl pregnant. To avoid controversy, he married her, but not for long.
When Chaplin was 35, he got another 16 year old girl pregnant. At that time, he could have been charged with statutory rape under California law. He arranged a discreet marriage in Mexico. He had met her during her childhood. Later, she accused him of pretty bad things in court and he paid her off with the largest cash settlement awarded by American courts at that time.
When Chaplin was 43, he began seeing a 21 year old.. a step on the right side of legal. He married her but it didn't last.
When Chaplin was 52, he had a relationship with a 22 year old, which resulted in a nasty paternity suit and legal proceedings.
Two weeks after the paternity suit was filed, it was announced that Chaplin (54) had married his newest protégée, an 18-year-old he'd been introduced to her the year before.
At last, at least, these two did stay married until the end of his life, having 8 children together, the youngest was fathered when Chaplin was 73 years old. (This book mentions Charlie's age, but never the young age of the women involved with him.)
THIS is why I struggle with rich and famous entertainment celebrities as subjects for these kids books. Rarely do they have kid-friendly personal lives.
My star rating is on the book, not the person. It was a good book.
But I felt misled by omission, and like maybe he wasn't a very appropriate "Who" for this series.
Charlie Chaplin was a pioneer in film making, recognized as one of the greatest actors in movie history, and Academy Award recipient for his part in "making motion pictures the art form of the (20th) century." He's an icon of the entertainment industry. The author covers this well.
His early life and hardships as a young boy were particularly interesting. His is truly a rags to riches story. "He proved that humble roots didn't have to hold anyone back."
After finishing this book, I was curious about some random thing and ended up reading further.
What I learned by reading more wasn't good, and really changed my mood about Charlie Chaplin.
Coincidentally, the last book I had read before this one was a psychological suspense about predatory adults who are interested in humans much younger than them. When I learned the rest of the story (from a source other than this book), that Chaplin's wives, love interests, and the mothers of his children tended to be decades younger than him, I was pretty disappointed that I'd been charmed by having that information omitted in this book.. or, rather - that he'd been chosen as a subject for this children's series at all.
When Chaplin was 29, he got a 16 year old girl pregnant. To avoid controversy, he married her, but not for long.
When Chaplin was 35, he got another 16 year old girl pregnant. At that time, he could have been charged with statutory rape under California law. He arranged a discreet marriage in Mexico. He had met her during her childhood. Later, she accused him of pretty bad things in court and he paid her off with the largest cash settlement awarded by American courts at that time.
When Chaplin was 43, he began seeing a 21 year old.. a step on the right side of legal. He married her but it didn't last.
When Chaplin was 52, he had a relationship with a 22 year old, which resulted in a nasty paternity suit and legal proceedings.
Two weeks after the paternity suit was filed, it was announced that Chaplin (54) had married his newest protégée, an 18-year-old he'd been introduced to her the year before.
At last, at least, these two did stay married until the end of his life, having 8 children together, the youngest was fathered when Chaplin was 73 years old. (This book mentions Charlie's age, but never the young age of the women involved with him.)
THIS is why I struggle with rich and famous entertainment celebrities as subjects for these kids books. Rarely do they have kid-friendly personal lives.
My star rating is on the book, not the person. It was a good book.
But I felt misled by omission, and like maybe he wasn't a very appropriate "Who" for this series.
June 16, 2017
I enjoyed reading this greatly. I think the writer has done a wonderful job here presenting the key moments of his fame and important films. This book makes me want to see a few of his important films and read his autobiography. One of the best in this series.
December 23, 2018
I like series of who is, because you get to know many different important people in history. It is short, but has a lot of information. Chaplin had an interesting life, he was a very poor child but became famous and rich and made many contributions to movie making.
May 3, 2019
I loved the layout of this book and all of the packs tucked into such a lovely narrative. As an adult, I learned SO MUCH! I think if a child read this, they would be very inspired and want to read even more books like this one or about Charlie Chaplin. Job well done!
October 16, 2019
As always, the Who Was series has produced a wonderful short biography. I didn't know much about Charlie Chaplin before hand, and I now find myself fairly knowledgeable, as well as yearning to know more. I also plan to watch a few silent films in the near future!
February 9, 2020
My son was inspired to learn more about Charlie Chaplin after watching bits of Mr. Chaplin's movies in his middle school film class. This series of books serves as a really good introduction to a wide-range of individuals. My son and I read, and learned, together.
December 4, 2021
the amazing life story of Charlie Chaplin, I was moved and very emotional reading the book, came to know about his childhood hardships. Always thought of him as a comic character but after reading this book, I respect and admire him a lot.
too an emotional book for me.
too an emotional book for me.
March 19, 2023
I loved getting this overview of my favourite comedian! The illustrations gave his story also a personal touch.
I already knew a thing or two about Charlie Chaplin‘s life but this presentation made me appreciate his art even more!
Very excited to watch more of his movies and read his biography.🫶🏼
I already knew a thing or two about Charlie Chaplin‘s life but this presentation made me appreciate his art even more!
Very excited to watch more of his movies and read his biography.🫶🏼
June 23, 2017
I enjoyed this book. I can't believe he wrote, directed, cast, and starred in his movie.
October 21, 2017
Great information on Charlie Chaplin featuring his entire life story and highlighting the reasoning behind his famous films and rise to stardom.
Recommended to kids who like comedy/ acting.
Recommended to kids who like comedy/ acting.
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