Charlie Chaplin and His Times

by Kenneth S. Lynn

A portrait of Charlie Chaplin discusses the life and times of a comedic genius whose role masked a complex, sometimes tragic and turbulent, personal life

Genres: Biography, Film, Nonfiction, History

608 pages, Hardcover

First published March 3, 1997

Reviews

[melydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very long book, because as its title suggests, it is more than just a biography of arguably the most famous actor of all time, but also of the burgeoning movie industry in general, the communist movement in America, a little of both World Wars, and surprisingly detailed asides about the large number of famous (or, more often, later-to-be-famous) people who wandered in and out of Chaplin's life. Because of that, I don't think you have to be a big Charlie Chaplin fan to enjoy this book. (I confess I've never seen any of them all the way through, though after reading this book I'd like to.) From a century away, it's easy to forget that so many what are now cinematic stereotypes originated during Chaplin's prime. The films are described beautifully, and while the subject is clearly admired for his contributions to art, this is no fawning accolade. Like all geniuses, Chaplin was a complicated man, often unpredictable and hard to work with. But in the end, his work remains a stunningly important chapter in the history of film, and this book is a very interesting, readable, and enjoyable exploration of that chapter's central character.

[Stacia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The note written by a previous offer of this book sums it up nicely: "Larry thinks this book plays into the pro-Commie sentiments too much". So true. And so far it really is mostly commentary on Chaplin's memoir, describe its inaccuracies. Who cares?

[Anthony Ventrello · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute joy to read and to hold on to. A must-read/purchase for any serious Chaplin fan or student of the clowning trade.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked the story, but was far less than sympathetic to the subject upon getting to know more about him. He seemed a bit of a narcissist, perhaps even a megalomaniac. Loved to bed the ladies and gave little thought to the consequences. Likely a communist sympathizer. His humor as a mime was clearly first rate, but probably reflects that he was less than fully able to engage people with whom he had to talk. An interesting character.

[August · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I appreciate that the author doesn't shy away from how terrible Chaplin was as a person, I take serious issue with how the author presents a lot of the women in Chaplin's life, particularly his first two wives. The author presents these two teenaged brides (Chaplin was at least twice their age), either as seductresses intent on destroying his image or extorting money from him, or as young innocents compelled by conniving mothers into putting Chaplin in a compromising position. Both of these girls were around 15 when an adult Chaplin impregnated them, and the author admits that Chaplin only married them to avoid criminal charges and/or deportation from America. They were teenage girls taken advantage of by a rich and powerful man, and his treatment of them after they married only proves that Chaplin had no respect for women. There is no believable way you can argue that those girls fully understood what they were getting involved in when Chaplin started grooming them.

I also got kind of annoyed with how often the author would digress into detailed backgrounds of minor figures in Chaplin's life. This book is already really long, and there were several times when I read five or so pages that were barely relevant and then wondered why they were included.

I mostly read this because I wanted some more context for Chaplin's life, and I did not go into this as a fan of his work or of him as a person. It was informative and comprehensive, but I still think Chaplin was a trash person and his films aren't as good as they're made out to be.

[Suzanne Prichard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Important to read if you are a fan of Chaplin, or cinema. Gives you the good, bad and the ugly parts of the man although it fails to explain the genius, like was he born that way? A bit obsessed with the 'mother was mentally ill" theme, and dragged a bit in the era of communist red-baiting. Lynn is a bit too concerned with pointing out the inaccuracies in Chaplin's memoir, but his source material is very deep, and the chronological setup, a chapter per film, roughly after he began making feature films has a good flow.

[Amy Wolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really digs into the career & character of Chaplin, a _very_ complex man despite his "Little Tramp" persona. Takes us through his start as a mime to Hollywood to owning his own studio to exile. They say there were only 2 true geniuses in Hollywood: Disney, and Chaplin. This is the intriguing story of one of them.

[Adam Hegg · Rating 4 out of 5]

read for work. readible, clear and easily followed.

[Sal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m in awe of Chaplain’s genius

[Scott Delgado · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm an avid fan of Charlie Chaplin's, but I don't deny he had his misgivings. An eye for very young women and being very demanding of those who work on his films are well-known issues had by Chaplin. That being said, I read "Helter Skelter," and I think author Vincent Bugliosi was more sympathetic to the MANSON Family than this author was to Charlie Chaplin. The tone of this book felt like Chaplin might have insulted Lynn's family in the past and birthed some hostile animosity toward Chaplin.

Seriously, this book reads more like a character assassination than it does a biography. Yes, Chaplin definitely had his downfalls, but this author tinged every sentence with such vitriol for the subject of his book that it was distracting. Early on, I thought (jokingly) "Geez. I wonder if he's going to claim Chaplin started World War II just so he could make 'The Great Dictator.'" While he didn't go that far, he did write about how Chaplin's little Tramp character was probably relatable to a young Hitler and fueled his outrage to the more elitist class that he eventually went on to lead. What the Hell?? For every accomplishment Chaplin made, the author would give you reasons why Chaplin didn't deserve praise for it. He talked down later films of Chaplin's despite that the Criterion Collection sees them worthy of being restored and released.

The author worded everything to make Chaplin sound like a monster. In one paragraph where the author discusses an actress talking with Chaplin and eventually agreeing to work with him, instead of writing something like "She would be willing to be work with Chaplin," the author wrote "She would submit to his dominance." He also sprinkled leading statements in the form of a question such as "Is it possible that...(insert a negative hypothesis of Chaplin)?" It was like listening to Tucker Carlson make up stories about people he doesn't like and using the same tactic--"Is it possible that the radical left wants abortion to be legal because they enjoy eating dead babies? I don't know. But hey, that thought is out there now!"

And it's not as if the author was some warrior for women. In the author's descriptions of some women, he referred to one woman as "horse-faced" and commented on another woman's weight. Even after the focus of his hatred (Chaplin) had died in the telling of his life, the author then went on to talk about how awful his wife was, calling her an alcoholic who didn't love her children. However, the author himself went on to insult the children himself! It was disgusting.

Chaplin did a LOT for film history. Does he deserve accolades? Most definitely. Does he also deserve to be held accountable for his misgivings? Yup. There is a way to mention both in a non-biased fashion. That's the point of a biography. This book is hateful of its subject. If you are a fan of Chaplin's, I would highly recommend staying far away from this book. It focuses on ripping apart an icon rather than telling you the good and the bad. This book has one goal, to make Chaplin seem like a monster.

[Steve Higgins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating look at Chaplin and movie making in the silent days. Chaplin emerges as a strange character, desparate not to return to poverty, terrified of having mental health issues like his mother and seemingly obsessed with young girls. The author gives an alternative life story to the one Chaplin himself portrays in his autobiography. Great read.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Impressively thorough and never tedious.

[Rachel Parham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A deeply fascinating look at not just one of Hollywood's most famous celebrities, but also the societies and cultures in which he lived.

[C Lyon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yo my boy Charlie is FASCINATING but also a GIANT ASSHOLE. Don't let the author sweet talk you into thinking the things he did were okay in any way.

[Nathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lynn does a serviceable job of combining artistic criticism of Chaplin's films with a portrait of the man himself, but the personal portrait is devoted heavily to Chaplin's political views. This topic is covered over and over, taking up the greater part of this book's considerable bulk and smudging out the more interesting facets of film and humor hinted at in the earlier sections. Had the subject matter been more evenly handled, this would have been more useful, and more engaging. Not a good introduction to Chaplin or his films.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great, if somewhat sordid read. It really captured an era in theater and early cinema. Chaplin was a fascinating guy, but such an egotist that by the end you end up hating him.

Here's a fascinating tidbit: his children were not allowed to watch any movies other than his until they were in their teens.

[Stephen Palmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read, though perhaps a little too in-depth for me.