Charlie Chaplin: A Life from Beginning to End

by Hourly History

Charlie Chaplin * * *Free BONUS Inside!* * * Read On Your Computer, MAC, Smartphone, Kindle Reader, iPad, or Tablet. Charlie Chaplin is most famously known for his “tramp” character—the homeless hobo that can be seen hopping from trains and lining up in the soup kitchens of the Great Depression. At a time when the whole world was struggling from economic meltdown, Charlie Chaplin made “destitute” a term of endearment. We may laugh when we see Charlie Chaplin so broke that he has to boil his shoes and eat them, but during the worst parts of the economic collapse of the 1920s and 1930s, some people had to do just that. So, at the time, even though many would laugh at the crazy tramp’s antics, they could also relate and identify with them. And the fact that Charlie Chaplin’s tramp character could be completely broke with his pockets turned out, sitting in a gutter with the rain pouring down, yet still be happy, gave people quite a bit of encouragement. People thought that if the homeless, wandering tramp portrayed in Chaplin’s films could get through such rough times and be alright, maybe they could too. Inside you will read about... ✓ From the Poorhouse to the Stage ✓ Coming to America ✓ Unhappily Married ✓ The Silent Film Hush Money ✓ He Doesn’t Talkie ✓ Socialist Leanings ✓ Exile from the United States And much more! As goofy as some of Chaplin’s slapstick comedic moments are in his films, it was the way he just kept trundling along, even in the face of great adversity, that empowered so many. It was this tantalizing glimpse of hope, more than anything else, that kept them coming back for more.

Genres: Biography, History, Nonfiction, Amazon, Ebooks

105 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 8, 2017

About the author

At Hourly History, we focus on publishing history books that are concise, straightforward and take no longer than one hour to read.

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Reviews

[Apollo Hesiod · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy these quick read books, informative & entertaining

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short biography of Charlie Chaplin, which I thought was most interesting because he made a film favoring industrial workers vs. management, and that was enough for J. Edgar Hoover to label him a probable socialist, and Chaplin left the United States for a couple decades after that.

I watched a few Chaplin shorts on YouTube afterwards (one was dangerously subtitled in Cyrillic words, indicating a distinct lean toward Russia). It seems hard to do exclusively physical comedy, which was the most popular form in the silent movies. There's a lot of pratfalls and people getting kicked in the rear end. Nonetheless, after comparing his films with Buster Keaton and Fatty Arbuckle, he seems distinctly the best physical comic of the three.

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely poor to fabulously rich!

Charlie Chaplin by Hourly History shows the reader what a mess of a life Charlie had in his growing years. No wonder his epic act was the 'tramp'. Very interesting and informative! He may have been rich in the end but most of the time it didn't seen like he was all that happy. I hope I am wrong.

[Udit Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all I must admit that I didn't knew a lot about Charlie Chaplin before. I mean I knew the artist he was but surely not the journey. As a result I really was glued on to this short biography. Surely this book has been very interesting and informative.

[Young Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fine book with lots of positive lessons for the readers

“Tough experiences at your young age are worth more than anything.” —An old Korean proverb

It was said that Charlie Chaplin was the only person in Hollywood Albert Einstein wanted to meet.

The legacy of Charlie Chaplin is like a great example for the people who think they have neither future nor any hope. We somehow grow to believe that the world’s been too harsh on us.

It is sad and disappointing to see the common factor of that sort of despair comes from cushy childhood we think was though for us without realizing the blessings surrounding us. It is due to our lack of experiences of the world.

I’d say, “Your despair comes from your ignorance.”

It is true that we only see and compare ours to what we see around us. We can’t experience everything in our lives, but we can learn from reading. That’s why good readers got upper hand.

Reading is great.

If we don’t want any physical + emotional hardships through act’ual soc’ial experi’ences, then how about some more reading in our comfy room?

If we don't even want that, let's be fair; we don't deserve to complain and affect other people's emotions. Let's stop being a selfish baby and grow up at last.

(Hourly History, Charlie Chaplin, Kindle Ed., 2017, p. 5)
“To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it.” —Charlie Chaplin

All the hardships in his childhood made the man strong.

(Ibid., p. 1)
As goofy as some of Chaplin’s slapstick comedic moments are in his films, it was the way he just kept trundling along, even in the face of great adversity, that empowered so many...

That's the right way of a Human life which is meant to be just like a “roller coaster ride.”

(Ibid., p. 5)
...Thanks to his commitment and hard work in the troupe, by the age of 13 Chaplin was able to make enough money to support his family. It’s hard for us to fathom such a state of affairs today, but Charlie Chaplin, the 13-year-old, became the head of his family. Chaplin made enough money to put his family in a small flat...

Why not? What's wrong with our First World societies today spoiling our kids? I don’t think we are really helping our kids. We only make them weaker. I don’t mean abuse. I mean training with real love wishing them to live even through any unexpected accidents or losses.

(Ibid., p. 5)
...besides paying the bills, he also became the guardian of his mother, taking her to and from appointments and admitting her to the psych ward when needed...

That's overdoing as his mother was supposed at least to take care of her grown-up self, but anyways, wow.

(Ibid., p. 14)
“The saddest thing I can imagine is to get used to luxury.” —Charlie Chaplin

Luxury for experience outside of your daily lives is okay. Like the man said, it will be problematic if we "get used to that."

There are some errors to be edited:
(Kindle Ed., p. 1)
...So, at the time, even though many would laugh at the crazy tramp’s antics, they could also relate and identify with them.

Correction: ...relate and identify “the character” with themselves.

(Ibid., p. 3)
...as the tension of his troubled mother began to surface again, Chaplin and Sydney were relocated once more...

Chaplin was the brothers' family name:
Correction: ...Charlie and Sydney...

(Ibid., p. 5)
...he practiced his routines day and night until he became a crowd favorite...

Correction: ...crowd's favorite...

(Ibid., p. 24)
...The two fled to Mexico together in order to complete their vows, tying the knot on November 25, 1924. This hastily managed wedding seemed to be a near identical repetition of Chaplin’s first, except this time, the girl really was pregnant. Lita gave birth on May 5, 1925, to Charlie Chaplin’s first child, a son he named Spencer. It was a chaotic marriage from the beginning, and just as was the pattern, Charlie began to resent his wife and spent most of his time at work to get away from her.

No, he named the child Charles after himself while the other son Sydney after his brother: Spencer was Charlie III's middle name. FYI, Charlie Chaplin's full name was Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr after his father.

(Ibid., p. 37)
Even in the midst of his darkest hour, Chaplin once again found love and happiness when he met 18-year-old actress Oona O’Neil. Her age sparked more criticism and fed into the image of Chaplin preying on young women. But for all his problems with women in the past, Oona would stay by his side until the day he died. And Chaplin’s son Charles Jr. would later recall that Oona “worshiped his father.” As Chaplin languished in the turmoil of his powerful enemies, it seems that Oona may have been his only real friend, his comfort, his saving grace...

The author means Charles the Third, whom he has mentioned before as Spencer.

(Ibid., p. 1)
...At a time when the whole world was struggling from economic meltdown, Charlie Chaplin made “destitute” a term of endearment.

Over all, it is a fine book with lots of positive lessons for the readers, and thus I recommend this book for anyone who likes to read, learn a person’s life in certain era, get surprised and pick up some fine lessons.

You can read the full review here.

[Avinash Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Name you know but the journey you Don't.

Wow! What a journey. There of lots of things that we should learn from the legend himself. As always Hourly History at its best, clean and clear data within a few pages. I absolutely love this book!

[Dr.J.G. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Author and publishers seem to wish to keep a balance between the subject and those who assaulted him with muck, in a strange manner.

It's far better, anyway, to read his biographies, one by himself and another by his son.
***

"Charlie Chaplin is most famously known for his “tramp” character—the homeless hobo that can be seen hopping from trains and lining up in the soup kitchens of the Great Depression. At a time when the whole world was struggling from economic meltdown, Charlie Chaplin made “destitute” a term of endearment."

Most viewers are unaware of the serious background of reality of destitute population of US, although poverty is familiar to most of rest of the world.

So this suddenly brings a deep perspective to the films of Charlie Chaplin and his poor or destitute characters.
***

"We may laugh when we see Charlie Chaplin so broke that he has to boil his shoes and eat them, but during the worst parts of the economic collapse of the 1920s and 1930s, some people had to do just that. So, at the time, even though many would laugh at the crazy tramp’s antics, they could also relate and identify with them."

No, with slightest sensitivity, a viewer doesn't just laugh and let go of those scenes from films of Charlie Chaplin. The pure comedy genre that was for example thst of films of Laurel and Hardy has slways been distinctly different from that of Charlie Chaplin with its tragedy hidden in plain view.
***

Author proceeds to attack the artist now, having quoted part of the speech ending his next film The Great Dictator.

Funny, that a nation founded constitutionally on a presumption of equality and on avowed principle and a philosophy affirming rights of all men to opportunities to seek their own happiness, has strived do assiduously to badmouth leftist ideology, although the latter is no different from an extention of exactly the same "family values" that US right-wing seeks to impose on all women in name of church.
"“To those who can hear me, I say—do not despair. The misery that is now upon us is but the passing of greed—the bitterness of men who fear the way of human progress. The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people and so long as men die, liberty will never perish.”

"—Charlie Chaplin"
***

"She was born with the name of Marion Levy, but by the time she crossed paths with Charlie Chaplin, she had taken on her mother’s maiden name of Goddard and changed her first name to Paulette, figuring that these would be more conducive stage names for her. For Chaplin it didn’t matter what she was called, he just knew that she was going to be a star, and he saw to it that she became one.

"He cast her as his co-star in the 1936 tour de force of Modern Times. As it turns out—and as Chaplin himself would admit in later years—during his year and a half of wandering the globe while he was in between films, Chaplin began to have a different viewpoint on the social and political affairs of his day. And as he took notes on what he saw and compared and contrasted it with the situation in the United States, he began to have a deep concern that capitalist industry would eventually become so efficient it would weed out the worker entirely. It was this line of thought that became the catalyst that led to Modern Times."

This above paragraph is not only unjustified but also completely fraudulent comment there by the author, since it should be clear to anyone whether having watched the film or otherwise, that a comment on nature of mechanisation of industry in modern times had nothing to do with whether the said industry is operating under a capitalistic, communities, docialistic or monarchic social structure.
***

"This is also when Charlie Chaplin first started to come under deep suspicion by his colleagues of having sympathies—if not direct ties—to communism. The actor’s sudden focus on the worker or as a communist would call them, the “proletariat,” made him seem suspect to many. Chaplin, on the other hand, described his depiction in the film as being a kind of satire of modern industrialized society."

This is nonsense and a lie, not only since it portrays the said colleagues as congenitally brain damaged, unable to separate political structures from mechanisation of industry, but also because it was the political attack against the artist helped by the media thats bring given false colours of colleagues' fears.
***

" ... Chaplin wasn’t taking any side in this perceived conflict. He wasn’t on the striking union worker’s side any more than he was on the factory bosses; he was just the hapless clown that was in the middle of it all."

Having admitted this kernel of fact, author promptly lies again.

"If Chaplin found himself stuck in a vice after he created Modern Times, he would really feel the pressure when he penned the infamous movie The Dictator. ... "

Here's the greatest film Chaplin ever made, labelled "infamous" by the author, which only goes to certify the author and the publishers as tru-blu nazis.

" ... Meant to be a mocking satire of Hitler and the Nazis, Chaplin began filming this epic just six days after Britain issued a formal declaration of war against Germany.

"There can be no doubt that Hitler was the enemy of the international community at this point. They had coddled him enough allowing him to roll all over Czechoslovakia, the Sudetenland, and Austria, but when the Nazi dictator invaded Poland, it was the last straw. There was no love lost, but it was still controversial to make a movie of this kind, and all of Chaplin’s peers in the industry had warned him as much."

Courageous, certainly. Controversial it was only in Germany and for naxis everywhere.
***

"If Chaplin had been dependent on the bigwigs at a movie company to finance his film, it would have never gotten done. But Chaplin was already fabulously rich by 1940, so he had enough money to pull it off on a private basis. No one else wanted to do it, but Chaplin was determined. As he later stated, “I was determined to go ahead—for Hitler must be laughed at.”"

Author now pens a scathing denouncement of Chaplin’s speech at the end of the film, which is at the very least a Gandhian conclusion justifiably arrived at leading from the horror of what Germany was put through, rather than a political philosophy raised to a higher than church doctrine that was imposed on the wrong side as was done in India, and almost never on those that needed to heed it.

The film is far more effective than the said sermons to victims by the politician striving to sainthood, and its almost as if the words of the speech by Charlie Chaplin are spoken only to underscore the lessons already painfully clear.

And if anyone disliked it, it could only be due to a guilt of participation in perpetuation of the horrors which were then current in Germany and East Europe, perpetrated by nazis against subjected populations, although not known yet fully to West until Nuremberg trials.
***

Author seems to have sought to work assiduously towards blaming Charlie Chaplin for the horrible treatment meted out to him post WWII, not only by McCarthy et al but media and false gossip.

But fact is, this was the witchhunt that outpaced that of Salem was conducted exactlythe same way, and artists of US were particularly vulnerable, as depicted by Arthur Miller in his excellent and very painful play, The Crucible.
***

"With his movie career in decline by the middle of the 1940s, Chaplin was having a hard time coping with his waning popularity. Now he had a following of a whole other kind thanks to J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI who began to track Chaplin’s every move. But no matter how hard Hoover’s snoops tried, they couldn’t find any dirt on Chaplin—at least not anything that would stick—and ended up coming back empty handed. Soon enough, however, Hoover changed tactics, and since they couldn’t find anything, J. Edgar Hoover decided to use some of his craft ingenuity. Hoover began a brutal smear campaign aimed at destroying the star’s public image, and he soon managed to find some willing partners in his conniving and dredged up four separate indictments on the famed actor.

"Meanwhile, the ire that Chaplin was attracting to himself was ever increasing due to his vigorous support of Russian War Relief. Although the Soviet Union was technically the ally of the United States at this point, such ardent support proved to be unacceptable, and only served to cast suspicion onto Chaplin’s motivation to aid Russia."

And yet, had Russia made a separate peace at any point, West would be overrun by nazis in no time, whether UK or US.
***

"One of Hoover’s soldiers leading this charge was conservative syndicated journalist Westbrook Pegler who was recruited to print story after story about Chaplin with all of the salacious details and innuendos on his personal life that they could find. He was also very adept at transforming Chaplin’s calls to aid the Soviet Union into an all-out call to support Russian communism, and therefore a rejection of American values. Delving deep into Chaplin’s—admittedly—troubled marital life, he pointed to Chaplin’s string of divorces with American women as if they were proof of his penchant to throw away cherished values such as family, home, and marriage. It was as if he was making the American women that Chaplin had dumped into a kind of symbolism of the many times that he had dumped and betrayed America itself.

"Over the next few weeks, a continuous stream of real and imagined details of his private life were dug up and the critics began to pile on, in what today would almost be tantamount to a case of cyber bullying. And in June 1943, Chaplin’s tormentors finally had their breakthrough moment. It came when an alleged former lover of Chaplin’s came forward and filed a paternity suit.
***

"As is often the case with such affairs, this woman who had been silent for nearly a decade suddenly sprang forth with a vigorous claim that Charlie Chaplin had fathered a child with her out of wedlock. Later on, Chaplin would be vindicated from her erroneous claims with blood tests that proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that he was not the father.

"But in the end even this vindication proved to be irrelevant, public opinion had already been worked up against him, and the damage was done. The FBI had used just about every underhanded tactic in the book, frequently leaking fake stories to the press to ruin Chaplin’s life, all in the name of national security."
***

"Even in the midst of his darkest hour, Chaplin once again found love and happiness when he met 18-year-old actress Oona O’Neil. Her age sparked more criticism and fed into the image of Chaplin preying on young women. But for all his problems with women in the past, Oona would stay by his side until the day he died. And Chaplin’s son Charles Jr. would later recall that Oona “worshiped his father.”"

In fact in his own biography of his father he recounts a dialogue between his brother Sydney and himself, about whether one of them had any chance with Oona, and both admitting they did not.

"As Chaplin languished in the turmoil of his powerful enemies, it seems that Oona may have been his only real friend, his comfort, his saving grace. Chaplin’s aggressors were relentless, however, and continued their assault all the way until 1951 with Chaplin’s last American movie release, Limelight. Limelight was supposed to be Charlie Chaplin’s comeback movie, and he put everything he had into the film. But it was never given its chance for a proper debut. It was virtually banned from every box office, just prior to Chaplin being effectively exiled from the United States. As a result of the antagonism, Charlie Chaplin, the once revered British turned American icon, would not set foot on American soil for 20 years."
***


" ... the climate seemed just right for Charlie Chaplin to release his autobiography, a memoir titled simply My Autobiography. He had been working on the manuscript for the book since 1957, and by the time it went off to the publisher, it was 500 pages, primarily focused on his glory days as an entertainer. Leaving out most of his recent trauma, the book was just what Charlie and the public needed to help them remember the good times when Charlie Chaplin and his tramp-like character were the darlings of the nation. The time was indeed ripe for a comeback, and the book became an almost immediate best seller. Even so, Chaplin wouldn’t make his final return to America until 1972.

"He was not expecting to be received back in open arms, so this was quite a shock to his system. So was the deafening applause. In honor of Mr. Chaplin, people clapped, clapped, and clapped some more. They couldn’t seem to do or say enough to thank this man who had eked out a successful path through the treacherousness of the film industry back when California’s movie studios sat on barren, desert wastelands. The clapping was so long it set a record for the longest standing ovation that anyone had ever (then or now) received. Chaplin’s spirits seemed to be greatly buoyed and renewed by this reception, and he was eager to begin his next big film project, but although his mind was willing, sadly enough, his flesh was extraordinarily weak."

Ridiculous statement there about someone born in April 1889, and so over 83 in 1972!
***

"After suffering a few subsequent strokes he was confined for the most part in a wheelchair, and it became exceedingly hard for him to even speak, let alone direct a film. Nevertheless, before the clock of his legacy struck midnight, Chaplin was able to finish a few last projects. First, there was his illustrated biography My Life in Pictures, which was released in 1974, and then the re-scoring of his old film A Woman of Paris, before finding the time to show up in a documentary featuring his life story called The Gentleman Tramp which aired in 1975.

"Later that year Chaplin would receive what was probably the thrill of his life, being knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. He was still confined to his wheel chair, but as he sat there and had the customary sword tap both of his shoulders to symbolize his ushering into knighthood you could sense the pride swelling up from within his body.

"Chaplin’s health would continue to fade, even as his spirit soared during his last days on Earth. He finally left us on Christmas morning—December 25, 1977—as if to prove that Charlie Chaplin was a gift to us all."
****

[Suwitcha Chandhorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

มีหลายแง่มุมที่เราไม่เคยรู้จักชาร์ลี แชปลินเลยนอกจอเงิน เขาเกิดและเติบโตอย่างยากจน ต้องปากกัดตีนถีบสร้างตัวมาในยุคสงครามและข้าวยากหมากแพง ต้องต่อสู้กับเจ้าหน้าที่รัฐที่มองเขาเป็นปฏิปักษ์ แม้กระนั้นก็ยังได้รับการยอมรับอย่างสูงจากผู้ชมทั่วโลก เขาเป็นที่รักของผู้คน และหญิงสาวมากหน้าหลายตา เขาได้รับเกียรติสูงสุดจากสมเด็จพระราชินีนาถเอลิซาเบธที่ 2 ในประเทศบ้านเกิดของเขา เขาจากเราไปแต่ทิ้งผลงานมากมายไว้ให้เป็นที่จดจำ

หนังสือเล่มนี้เรียบเรียงและพาเราไปอยู่กับเขาในหลาย ๆ ช่วงเวลาสำคัญในชีวิตของเขา ไม่มากไป ไม่น้อยไป กำลังพอดี และบรรยายได้อย่างน่าประทับใจ

[Mike Kowis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contains highlights of Charlie Chaplin's life and career. While I enjoyed reading it, I thought it is way too short in length. The pages are not numbered, but I counted less than 40 pages total. In fact, it only took me 30 minutes to read it from cover to cover, and I'm not a fast reader. This book (or more accurately, "booklet") is interesting and I'm glad I read it. However, I would have enjoyed it more had it been at least twice as long. My recommendation is to read another book about Charlie Chaplin if you want to know more details about his life and career.

[Thom Swennes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charlie Chaplin was born in a poor section of London on April 16, 1889. His parents, Hannah Chaplin (birth name: Hannah Harriet Pedingham Hill and her stage name was: Lily Hartley) and Charles Chaplin were both entertainers. Charlie and his older half brother Sydney had a very hard youth. Their parents were unable or unwilling to give them the support they needed. They were forced to make their own way at a very early age. He performed in a few plays, receiving favorable reviews.
In 1912, Chaplin arrived in New York and was soon contracted to perform for Keystone Picture Studios. This was the beginning of an iconic career on the Silver Screen. In 1913, Chaplin displayed his talent for creating a character that would epitomize the silent film hero. It is often said about writers and actors work with what you know. Chaplin knew poverty. Baggy pants, coat too tight, hat too small, and shoes too big, was his winning formula.
Charlie Chaplin was maybe the most successful actor of the silent picture era. Unfortunately, he wasn’t so lucky with love and domestic bliss. He entered three unhappy marriages, resulting in expensive divorces before he married Oona O’Neal in 1943, and remained together until 1977 when he died.

When asked about silent films and the actors that starred in them, the name Charlie Chaplin leads the list or stands alone. He brought laughter to a world caught up in a hard and depressing time. His character as a gentle, misfit hobo brought a gala of emotions to everyone that watched them. He was one of the targets of FBI’s J. Edgar Hoover aimed at when the United States was waging a witch hunt for anyone suspected of communist sympathies. Luckily, he was recognized for his accomplishments and, in 1972 was given an Academy Award for his life’s work. This is a short history of a very great man. Many people will enjoy reading it.

[Jerry Jares · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlie Chaplin was a bit before my time and I thought his brand of humor was pure schtick.  From this book, however, I learned that moviegoers felt that 'the little tramp' was perfect fun.  Fans at this point were looking for simple plot devices; they didn't want to think too hard.

However, Chaplin didn't come from fun; he had a background of extreme poverty.  In fact, he was supporting his family by the age of about 13. One has to respect a child that can take on such responsibility.  Certainly, Chaplin's need to succeed was born of his early experiences.

Lots of Chaplin's problems were associated with his penchant for young girls.  However, it is shocking to see that the man was nearly brought down by our own government -- over the suspicion that Chaplin was a communist.  That is appalling.  I remember watching the Academy Awards in the year that Charlie Chaplin received an honorary award.  The clapping just kept on and on.

I was sorry that there weren't photos of Chaplin's 4 wives, nor mention of all of Chaplin's children.  I know Geraldine Chaplin was an actor for a while.  She was one of 8 children by Oona and Charlie.

[Roopkumar Balachandran · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short book about the life of Charlie Chaplin from Hourly history. Who will forgot his tramp character and the movies like Modern Times, The Kid, City Lights and Great Dictator.

His characters were cast out from his childhood miseries. The short mustache Chaplin used has a back story that he looked young and he was made to put mustache to make him look older. All Chaplin needed for a comedy movie is a park, a policeman and pretty girl. The author has covered the failed marriages of Charlie too.

It is a revealtion for me that Edgar Hoover gave that much torture for his career to end and relocate from US.

The book has enough information for a beginner. Highly recommended to Chaplin fans.

[Jim affleck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chaplin, the rise and fall.

Against all odds, Chaplin rose to fame, playing the bit part of "The tramp" with comical genius. His fame was born from the truest poverty, which touched the minds and hearts of millions, including the illustrious Walt Disney. Although best remembered for scenes, akin to The French Revolution, ie, eating an old leather shoe, but with sophisticated etiquette, he is much lesser remembered for his scandalous sexual misdeeds. With fame came an eventual fall from grace, at the hands of Hoover, and perhaps his own naive use of cinematic space time to exude his own political observations. A brilliant and controversial read. HIGHLY recommend.

[Bonnie Gleckler Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew, and still no very little about Charlie Chaplin. However, what I have read here in was certainly most informative. For someone who grew up so impoverished and so deserted by his parents, he turned in to a world renowned actor, entrepreneur, and award winner. That his life was hard, he made the absolute best of it. Though he made numerous mistakes along the way (some more egregious than others) he contributed greatly to the success Of the motion picture industry. And his works continue to be loved by many.

[Terri's Dangerous When Reading · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was touched by Charlie Chaplin's life story. His tragic childhood could be a novel all on its own. His incredible talent and rise to fame is another entire novel worth reading. And then the kicker - being targeted by the FBI. It is an astonishing story. Charlie Chaplin's life came around full circle when he was honored at the Academy Awards and he received the longest standing ovation ever. The biography of Charlie Chaplin is well worth the read.

[Julian Orozco, Jr. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book to spend some time with. I knew some things about Charlie Chaplin, about his celebrity life not his personal life. This read has some great information into Chaplin's failures and success'. I recommend this book to anyone interested in Mr. Chaplin or into the life and artistic genius of a great man.

[Thomas Mihalchick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very, very interesting

I knew little about Chaplin's life before reading this book. Until now, I didn't understand the impact his "Little Tramp" had on his audience. I was never a fan, and didn't care much about his artistry, but now I'm intrigued. This series does a good job of summarizing these stories.

[Ashwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlie Chaplin was one of the pioneers of slapstick comedy during the early twentieth century.

Often called the best comedian ever, Charlie Chaplin was a man with many talents. He also had a fair share of controversies linked to him, which ultimately led to his exile from United States. Indeed the best among slapstick comedians.

[James Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Charlie Chaplain movies are rather interesting, at least the few I've seen. I wanted to know more about the man, though, so I got this book. The book says he was born in England and the family was poor. He had an unstable mother and at the age of only 7 he was sent ot the workhouse to pay off his family debts.

The whole workhouse system that England had was one of the worse things, in my opinion, that anyone ever came up with and sending a 7 year old to work in those conditions should be considered as cruel and inhuman punishment.

The book goes into more of his personal history and then how he came to the United States and was in vaudeville at first and eventually moved on to silent films and then made the move to 'talkies' and was successful.

His personal life was less successful especially when it came to marriages, though. His political views were criticized with some thinking he was a Communist. Basically is life was sort of an up-and-down thing which he did manage to survive and eventually won praise for his work.

[Laxmi]

After having read his autobiography, this book seemed like a neat and concise version of his life. Having retained most of the important happenings in Charles's life, it also included some aspects that were deliberately left out from the autobiography, in mere sentences. It mentions his coming back to the US and the much-talked-about standing ovation!

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well done

I knew very little about Charlie Chaplin before I read this. I feel blessed to have been able to have read something like this. I was in complete awe of this man who went through so much, yet achieved what he did. Highly recommend this one.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exactly as I expected

A short history of an interesting character. Pulled out the main parts of his story and of course there was plenty missing as well, but that is to be expected in a 30-page book. Will definitely read more of the same.

[Dave Leimbach · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s supposed to be a one hour read, and it was, but there’s a bit too much editorialist liberty taken and at least one error. Charlie Chaplin never did a movie called “The Dictator”. It was “The Great Dictator”.

[Jennifer Hilliger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some basics and a good one hour read.

I like these Hourly History books to find out basic facts. I I really like what I read them I can find other books to read.

[Colin Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting

Very interesting and informative, but I didn't realise how much Chaplin liked young girls, which in a way has made me dislike the man.

[Amit gupta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice short history

Nice book, precisely written, with touching almost all aspects of the life of Charlie Chaplin. Another inspirational story of rugs to riches.

[Nancy Cruse]

Quite interesting..found out a few things I never knew about Charlie Chaplin! I do enjoy these little Hourly History books!

[josette ringuette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Goog series

I read them out of order but they were all well written bios. I read some interesting things about these actors and actresses.

[George Polansky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brings home the poverty of Chaplin's early life.

[Thiago · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting reading

Chaplin's life was really interesting and turbulent. It's a good summary. But language is a bit formal and complicated sometimes.