Charlie Chaplin: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|English actor and filmmaker (1889–1977)}}

{{Redirect|Charles Chaplin}}

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| birth_name        = Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr.

| death_place        = [[Corsier-sur-Vevey]], Vaud, Switzerland

| years_active      = 1899–1975  

| children          = 11, including [[Charles Chaplin Jr.|Charles III]], [[Sydney Chaplin (American actor)|Sydney]], [[Geraldine Chaplin|Geraldine]], [[Michael Chaplin (actor)|Michael]], [[Josephine Chaplin|Josephine]], [[Victoria Chaplin|Victoria]], [[Eugene Chaplin|Eugene]], and [[Christopher Chaplin|Christopher]]

'''Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr.''' (16 April 1889{{snd}}25 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, singer, film editor and composer<!--see talk page before adding or removing occupations--> who rose to fame in the era of [[silent film]]. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, [[the Tramp]], and is considered one of the film industry's most important figures. His career spanned more than 75 years, from his childhood in the [[Victorian era]] until a year before his death in 1977.

Chaplin's childhood in London was one of poverty and hardship. His father was absent and his mother struggled financially{{snd}}he was sent to a [[workhouse]] twice before the age of nine. When he was 14, his mother was committed to a [[Lunatic asylum|mental asylum]]. Chaplin began performing at an early age, touring [[music hall]]s and later working as a stage actor and comedian. At 19, he was signed to the [[Fred Karno]] company, which took him to the United States. In 1914, Chaplin gained widespread popularity through his appearances in [[Keystone Studios]] films. He soon introduced and adopted the Tramp as his screen persona. He directed his own films and continued to hone his craft as he moved to [[Essanay Studios]], where the Tramp persona was developed emotionally in ''[[The Tramp (film)|The Tramp]]'' (1915). He then attracted a large fanbase and demanded more money as he moved to [[Mutual Film|Mutual]] and [[First National Pictures|First National]] corporations. By 1918, he was one of the world's best-paid and best-known figures.

In 1919, Chaplin co-founded the distribution company [[United Artists]], which gave him complete control over his films. His first feature-length film was ''[[The Kid (1921 film)|The Kid]]'' (1921), followed by ''[[A Woman of Paris]]'' (1923), ''[[The Gold Rush]]'' (1925), and ''[[The Circus (1928 film)|The Circus]]'' (1928). He initially refused to move to sound films in the 1930s, instead producing ''[[City Lights]]'' (1931) and ''[[Modern Times (film)|Modern Times]]'' (1936) without dialogue. His first [[sound film]] was ''[[The Great Dictator]]'' (1940), which satirised [[Adolf Hitler]]. The 1940s were marked with controversy for Chaplin, and his popularity declined rapidly. He was accused of [[Fellow traveller|communist sympathies]], and some members of the press and public were scandalised by his involvement in a paternity suit and marriages to much younger women. The [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] opened an investigation, and Chaplin was forced to leave the US in 1952 and settle in Switzerland. He abandoned the Tramp in his later films, which include ''[[Monsieur Verdoux]]'' (1947), ''[[Limelight (1952 film)|Limelight]]'' (1952), ''[[A King in New York]]'' (1957), and ''[[A Countess from Hong Kong]]'' (1967).

 

==Life and career==

[[File:Chaplin at Hanwell.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|Seven-year-old Chaplin (centre, head slightly cocked) at the [[Central London District School]] for [[pauper]]s, 1897]]

Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. was born on 16 April 1889 in London, to [[Hannah Chaplin]] (née Hill) and [[Charles Chaplin Sr.]] It has been speculated that his paternal grandmother came from the [[Romani people]], although "Without a birth certificate, no one will ever know the truth."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2026-05-08 |title=Was Charlie Chaplin born in a Smethwick Gypsy camp? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2l2j18017xo |access-date=2026-05-12 |website=www.bbc.com |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Sweet |first=Matthew |date=2011-02-17 |title=Was Charlie Chaplin a Gypsy? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/feb/17/charlie-chaplin-gypsy-heritage |access-date=2026-05-12 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Brooks |first=Richard |date=2011-02-20 |title=Unlocked: the little tramp's gypsy caravan secret is revealed |url=https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/uk-travel/england/london-travel/unlocked-the-little-tramps-gypsy-caravan-secret-is-revealed-z32fkgg0r78 |access-date=2026-05-12 |website=www.thetimes.com |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last=Prempain | first=Laurence | year=2022 | chapter=From Where They Were: Resistance by Romani Circus People during the Second World War | editor-last=Guyon | editor-first=Stéphane | editor2-last=Lévy | editor2-first=Marie | editor3-last=Williams | editor3-first=Patrick | title=European Roma: Lives Beyond Stereotypes | publisher=Liverpool University Press | pages=269 | isbn=9781800857520 | doi=10.2307/j.ctv2crj1sr.21 | jstor=j.ctv2crj1sr.21}}</ref> There is no official record of his birth, although Chaplin believed he was born at [[East Street]], [[Walworth]], in [[South London]].{{sfn|Robinson|p=10}}{{efn|An [[MI5]] investigation in 1952 was unable to find any record of Chaplin's birth.<ref>{{cite news |last=Whitehead |first=Tom |date=17 February 2012 |title=MI5 Files: Was Chaplin Really a Frenchman and Called Thornstein? |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/9086510/MI5-files-Was-Chaplin-really-a-Frenchman-and-called-Thornstein.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=11 April 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120424011812/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/9086510/MI5-files-Was-Chaplin-really-a-Frenchman-and-called-Thornstein.html |archive-date=24 April 2012}}</ref> Chaplin biographer David Robinson notes that it is not surprising that his parents failed to register the birth: "It was easy enough, particularly for music hall artists, constantly moving (if they were lucky) from one town to another, to put off and eventually forget this kind of formality; at that time the penalties were not strict or efficiently enforced."{{sfn|Robinson|p=10}} In 2011 a letter sent to Chaplin in the 1970s came to light which claimed that he had been born in a Gypsy caravan at [[Black Patch Park]] in [[Smethwick]], Staffordshire (now in the borough of Sandwell in the West Midlands). Chaplin's son, [[Michael Chaplin (actor)|Michael]], has suggested that the information must have been significant to his father for him to retain the letter.<ref>{{cite news |date=18 February 2011 |title=Charlie Chaplin Was 'Born into a Midland Gipsy Family' |url=https://www.expressandstar.com/news/2011/02/18/charlie-chaplin-was-born-into-midland-gipsy-family/ |newspaper=Express & Star |access-date=17 February 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120222045249/http://www.expressandstar.com/news/2011/02/18/charlie-chaplin-was-born-into-midland-gipsy-family/ |archive-date=22 February 2012}}</ref> Regarding the date of his birth, Chaplin believed it to be 16 April, but an announcement in the edition of 11 May 1889 of ''The Magnet'' stated it as the 15th.{{sfn|Robinson|p=xxiv}}}}

 

His parents had married four years earlier, at which time Charles Sr. became the legal guardian of Hannah's first son, [[Sydney Chaplin|Sydney John Hill]].{{sfn|Robinson|pp=3–4, 19}}{{efn|Sydney was born when Hannah Chaplin was 19. The identity of his biological father is not known for sure, but Hannah claimed it was a Mr. Hawkes.{{sfn|Robinson|p=3}}}} At the time of Chaplin's birth, both parents were [[music hall|music-hall]] entertainers. Hannah, the daughter of a shoemaker,{{sfn|Robinson|p=3}} had a brief and unsuccessful career under the stage name "Lily Harley",{{sfn|Robinson|pp=5–7}} while Charles Sr., a butcher's son,{{sfn|Weissman|2009|p=10}} was a popular singer.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=9–10, 12}} Although they never divorced, Chaplin's parents were estranged by around 1891.{{sfn|Robinson|p=13}} The following year, Hannah gave birth to a third son, [[Wheeler Dryden|George Wheeler Dryden]], fathered by the music-hall entertainer [[Leo Dryden]]. The child was taken by Dryden at six months old and did not re-enter Chaplin's life for about three decades.{{sfn|Robinson|p=15}}

Chaplin's childhood was marked by poverty and hardship, making his later rise, according to his authorised biographer [[David Robinson (film critic)|David Robinson]], "the most dramatic of all the rags to riches stories ever told".{{sfn|Robinson|p=xv}} Chaplin's early years were spent with his mother and brother Sydney in the London district of [[Kennington]]. Hannah had no means of income other than occasional nursing and dressmaking, and Chaplin Sr. provided no financial support.{{sfn|Robinson|p=16}} As the situation deteriorated, Chaplin was sent to [[Lambeth Workhouse]] when he was seven years old.{{efn|Hannah became ill in May 1896, and was admitted to hospital. Southwark Council ruled that it was necessary to send the children to a workhouse "owing to the absence of their father and the destitution and illness of their mother".{{sfn|Robinson|p=19}}}} The council housed him at the [[Central London District School]] for [[pauper]]s, which he later remembered as "a forlorn existence".{{sfn|Chaplin|p=29}} He was briefly reunited with his mother 18 months later, but Hannah was forced to readmit her family to the workhouse in July 1898. The boys were promptly sent to [[West Norwood|Norwood]] Schools, another institution for destitute children.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=24–26}}

In September 1898, Hannah was committed to [[Cane Hill Hospital|Cane Hill]] mental asylum; she had developed [[psychosis]] seemingly brought on by an infection of [[syphilis]] and malnutrition.{{sfn|Weissman|2009|pp=49–50}} During her two-month stay, Chaplin and Sydney were sent to live with their father, whom they scarcely knew.{{sfn|Chaplin|pp=15, 33}} Charles Sr. was by then severely alcoholic, and conditions were poor enough to prompt a visit from the [[National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children]].{{sfn|Robinson|p=27}} Charles Sr. died two years later, aged 38, from [[cirrhosis]] of the liver.{{sfn|Robinson|p=36}}

Hannah entered a period of remission but became ill again in May 1903.{{sfn|Robinson|p=27}} Chaplin, then 14, had the task of taking her to the infirmary, from where she returned to Cane Hill.{{sfn|Robinson|p=40}} He lived alone for several days, searching for food and occasionally sleeping rough, until Sydney{{snd}}who had joined the Navy two years earlier{{snd}}returned.{{sfnm|1a1=Weissman|1y=2009|1p=6|2a1=Chaplin|2pp=71–74|3a1=Robinson|3p=35}} Hannah was released from the asylum eight months later,{{sfn|Robinson|p=41}} but her illness recurred in March 1905 and became permanent. "There was nothing we could do but accept poor mother's fate", Chaplin later wrote; she remained in care until her death in 1928.{{sfnm|1a1=Chaplin|1p=88|2a1=Robinson|2pp=55–56}}

[[File:Chaplin in Sherlock Holmes.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|left|A teenage Chaplin in the play ''[[Sherlock Holmes (play)|Sherlock Holmes]]'']]

Between his time in the poor schools and his mother succumbing to mental illness, Chaplin began to perform on stage. He later recalled making his first amateur appearance at the age of five years, when he took over from Hannah one night in [[Aldershot]].{{efn|According to Chaplin, Hannah had been booed off stage and the manager chose him{{snd}}as he was standing in the wings{{snd}}to go on as her replacement. He remembered confidently entertaining the crowd, and receiving laughter and applause.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1p=17|2a1=Chaplin|2p=18}}}} This was an isolated occurrence, but by the time he was nine Chaplin had, with his mother's encouragement, grown interested in performing.  

 

He later wrote: "[she] imbued me with the feeling that I had some sort of talent".{{sfn|Chaplin|p=41}} Through his father's connections,{{sfn|Marriot|p=4}} Chaplin became a member of the [[The Eight Lancashire Lads|Eight Lancashire Lads]] [[Clog dance|clog-dancing]] troupe, with whom he toured English music halls throughout 1899 and 1900.{{efn|The Eight Lancashire Lads were still touring until 1908; the exact time Chaplin left the group is unverified, but based on research, A. J. Marriot believes it was in December 1900.{{sfn|Marriot|p=213}}}} Chaplin worked hard, and the act was popular with audiences, but he was not satisfied with dancing and wished to form a comedy act.{{sfn|Chaplin|p=44}}

The film was ''[[Mabel's Strange Predicament]]'', but "[[the Tramp]]" character, as it became known, debuted to audiences in ''[[Kid Auto Races at Venice]]''{{snd}}shot later than ''Mabel's Strange Predicament'' but released two days earlier on 7{{spaces}}February 1914.{{sfn|Robinson|p=113}}<ref name=LATimes>{{cite news |last=Mostrom |first=Anthony |title=Unsuspecting extras go down in film history |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/la-xpm-2011-jun-19-la-me-0619-then-20110619-story.html |date=19 June 2011}}</ref> His interest in tramps came from various sources, with Chaplin crediting the hobo comic strip, "Weary Willie and Tired Tim", from the London comic magazine ''[[Illustrated Chips]]'', as a childhood influence.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Murray |first1=Chris |title=The British Superhero |date=2017 |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |page=22}}</ref>

 

Chaplin adopted the Tramp as his screen persona and attempted to make suggestions for the films he appeared in. These ideas were dismissed by his directors.{{sfn|Robinson|p=120}} During the filming of his 11th picture, ''[[Mabel at the Wheel]]'', he clashed with director [[Mabel Normand]] and was almost released from his contract. Sennett kept him on, however, when he received orders from exhibitors for more Chaplin films.<ref>Chaplin, C. (1964). ''My Autobiography''. New York: Simon and Schuster.</ref> Sennett also allowed Chaplin to direct his next film himself after Chaplin promised to pay $1,500 (${{Inflation|US|1500|1913|fmt=c|r=-3}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars) if the film was unsuccessful.{{sfn|Robinson|p=121}}

[[File:Charlie Chaplin.jpg |thumb|right|Chaplin in costume as [[The Tramp]]]]

''[[A Dog's Life (1918 film)|A Dog's Life]]'', released April 1918, was the first film under the new contract. In it, Chaplin demonstrated his increasing concern with story construction and his treatment of the Tramp as "a sort of [[Pierrot]]".{{sfn|Chaplin|p=208}} The film was described by [[Louis Delluc]] as "cinema's first total work of art".{{sfn|Robinson|p=229}} Chaplin then embarked on the [[Liberty bond#Sales difficulties and the subsequent campaign|Third Liberty Bond]] campaign, touring the United States for one month to raise money for the Allies of the First World War.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=237, 241}} He also produced a short propaganda film at his own expense, donated to the government for fund-raising, called ''[[The Bond (1918 film)|The Bond]]''.{{sfn|Robinson|p=244}} Chaplin's next release was war-based, placing the Tramp in the trenches for ''[[Shoulder Arms]]''. Associates warned him against making a comedy about the war but, as he later recalled: "Dangerous or not, the idea excited me."{{sfn|Chaplin|p=218}} He spent four months filming the picture, which was released in October 1918 with great success.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=241–245}}

''City Lights'' had been a success, but Chaplin was unsure if he could make another picture without dialogue. He remained convinced that sound would not be compatible with his films, but was also "obsessed by a depressing fear of being old-fashioned".{{sfn|Chaplin|p=360}} In this state of uncertainty, early in 1931, the comedian decided to take a holiday and ended up travelling for 16 months.{{sfnm|1a1=Louvish|1p=243|2a1=Robinson|2p=420}}{{efn|Chaplin left the United States on 31 January 1931, and returned on 10 June 1932.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=664–666}}}} He spent months travelling Western Europe, including extended stays in France and Switzerland, and spontaneously decided to visit Japan.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=429–441}} The day after he arrived in Japan, Prime Minister [[Inukai Tsuyoshi]] was assassinated by ultra-nationalists in the [[May 15 Incident]]. The group's original plan had been to provoke a war with the United States by assassinating Chaplin at a welcome reception organised by the prime minister, but the plan had been foiled due to delayed public announcement of the event's date.{{sfn|Silverberg|pp=1–2}}

Following the release of ''Modern Times'', Chaplin left with Goddard for a trip to the Far East.{{sfn|Robinson|p=479}} Chaplin, Goddard and a Japanese servant named Yonnemori arrived in [[Saigon]] in April 1936, and visited multiple locations in [[French Indochina]].<ref name="Vua-hề-Charlie-Chaplin-thăm-Đông-Dương-năm-1936">{{cite web|url= https://archives.org.vn/gioi-thieu-tai-lieu-nghiep-vu/vua-he-charlie-chaplin-tham-dong-duong-nam-1936.htm|title= Vua hề Charlie Chaplin thăm Đông Dương năm 1936.|date=26 May 2023|accessdate=31 May 2023|author= Bùi Hệ|publisher= National Archives of Vietnam|language=vi}}</ref> They then visited [[Phnom Penh]] to view [[Angkor Wat]], and [[Da Lat]], followed by [[Huế]], arriving in [[Da Nang]] where he visited the [[Ngũ Hành Sơn|Marble Mountains]] and the [[Museum of Cham Sculpture|Henri Parmentier Museum]].<ref name="Vua-hề-Charlie-Chaplin-thăm-Đông-Dương-năm-1936"/> In [[Hanoi]] (the capital city of French Indochina)<ref name="Vua-hề-Charlie-Chaplin-thăm-Đông-Dương-năm-1936"/> they visited the popular tourist destination [[Hạ Long Bay]], and the couple then left from [[Hải Phòng]] to [[British Hong Kong|Hong Kong]] on board of a ship the ''Canton''.<ref name="Vua-hề-Charlie-Chaplin-thăm-Đông-Dương-năm-1936"/> The couple had refused to comment on the nature of their relationship, and it was not known whether they were married or not.{{sfn|Robinson|p=469}} Sometime later, Chaplin revealed that they married in [[Guangzhou|Canton]] during this trip.{{sfn|Robinson|p=483}} By 1938, the couple had drifted apart, as both focused heavily on their work, although Goddard was again his leading lady in his next feature film, ''The Great Dictator''. She eventually divorced Chaplin in Mexico in 1942, citing incompatibility and separation for more than a year.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=509–510}}

Chaplin claimed that the Barry trials had "crippled [his] creativeness", and it was some time before he began working again.{{sfn|Chaplin|p=426}} In April 1946, he finally began filming a project that had been in development since 1942.{{sfn|Robinson|p=520}} ''[[Monsieur Verdoux]]'' is a [[black comedy]], the story of a French bank clerk, Verdoux (Chaplin), who loses his job and begins marrying and murdering wealthy widows to support his family. Chaplin's inspiration for the project came from [[Orson Welles]], who wanted him to star in a film about the French serial killer [[Henri Désiré Landru]]. Chaplin decided that the concept would "make a wonderful comedy",{{sfn|Chaplin|p=412}} and paid Welles $5,000{{efn|{{Inflation|US|5000|1942|fmt=eq|r=-3}}}} for the idea.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=519–520}}

In 2003, declassified British archives belonging to the [[Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office|British Foreign Office]] revealed that author and social critic [[George Orwell]] secretly accused Chaplin of being a secret communist and a friend of the USSR<ref name=":0">{{cite news |last=Ash |first=Timothy Garton |author-link=Timothy Garton Ash |title=Orwell's List |url=https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2003/09/25/orwells-list/ |work=The New York Review |date=25 September 2003 |access-date=20 January 2021}}</ref> in the 1949 [[Orwell's list]] document. Chaplin's name was one of 35 that Orwell gave to the [[Information Research Department|Information Research Department (IRD)]], a secret British Cold War propaganda department which collaborated closely with the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]].<ref name=":0" /> Chaplin was not the only actor in America whom Orwell accused of being a secret communist.<ref name=":0" />

Filming began in November 1951, by which time Chaplin had spent three years working on the story.{{sfn|Louvish|p=317}}{{efn|''Limelight'' was conceived as a novel, which Chaplin wrote but never intended for publication.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=549–570}}}} He aimed for a more serious tone than any of his previous films, regularly using the word "melancholy" when explaining his plans to his co-star [[Claire Bloom]].{{sfn|Robinson|p=562}} ''Limelight'' featured a cameo appearance from [[Buster Keaton]], whom Chaplin cast as his stage partner in a [[pantomime]] scene. This marked the only time the comedians teamed up in a feature film.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=567–568}}

In America, the political atmosphere began to change and attention was once again directed to Chaplin's films instead of his views.{{sfn|Maland|1989|p=326}} In July 1962, the ''New York Times'' published an editorial stating, "We do not believe the Republic would be in danger if yesterday's unforgotten little tramp were allowed to amble down the gangplank of a steamer or plane in an American port".{{sfn|Lynn|pp=507–508}} The same month, Chaplin was invested with the honorary degree of [[Doctor of Letters]] by the universities of [[University of Oxford|Oxford]] and [[Durham University|Durham]].{{sfn|Robinson|pp=598–599}} In November 1963, the Plaza Theater in New York started a year-long series of Chaplin's films, including ''Monsieur Verdoux'' and ''Limelight'', which gained excellent reviews from American critics.{{sfnm|1a1=Lynn|1p=509|2a1=Maland|2y=1989|2p=330}} September 1964 saw the release of Chaplin's memoir, ''[[My Autobiography (Chaplin book)|My Autobiography]]'', which he had been drafting since 1957.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=602–605}} The 500-page book became a worldwide best-seller. It focused on his early years and personal life, and was criticised for lacking information on his film career.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1pp=605–607|2a1=Lynn|2pp=510–512}}

 

[[File:Chaplin oscar.JPG|thumb|Chaplin (right) receiving his [[Honorary Academy Award]] from [[Jack Lemmon]] in 1972. It was the first time he had been to the United States in 20 years.]]

Although Chaplin still had plans for future film projects, by the mid-1970s he was very frail.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=627–628}} He experienced several further strokes, which made it difficult for him to communicate, and he had to use a wheelchair.{{sfn|Robinson|p=626}}<ref name="EugeneChaplin">{{cite news|last=Thomas |first=David |title=When Chaplin Played Father |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3587749/When-Chaplin-played-father.html |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=26 December 2002 |access-date=26 June 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120715051303/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3587749/When-Chaplin-played-father.html |archive-date=15 July 2012}}</ref> His final projects were compiling a pictorial autobiography, ''My Life in Pictures'' (1974) and scoring ''A Woman of Paris'' for re-release in 1976.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=626–628}} He also appeared in a documentary about his life, ''The Gentleman Tramp'' (1975), directed by Richard Patterson.{{sfn|Lynn|pp=534–536}} In the [[1975 New Year Honours]], Chaplin was awarded a [[knighthood]] by Queen [[Elizabeth II]],{{sfn|Robinson|pp=626–628}}<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=46444 |date=31 December 1975 |supp=1 |page=8 |title=To be Ordinary Knights Commanders{{spaces}}... }}</ref>{{efn|The honour had already been proposed in 1931 and 1956, but was vetoed after a [[Foreign and Commonwealth Office|Foreign Office]] report raised concerns over Chaplin's political views and private life. They feared the act would damage the reputation of the [[British honours system]] and relations with the United States.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2141391.stm |title=Chaplin Knighthood Blocked |publisher=BBC |access-date=15 February 2010 |date=21 July 2002 |first=Paul |last=Reynolds |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060205195220/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2141391.stm |archive-date=5 February 2006 |url-status=live }}</ref>}} though he was too weak to kneel and received the honour in his wheelchair.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Little Tramp Becomes Sir Charles|date=5 March 1975 |newspaper=[[Daily News (New York)|Daily News]]|location=New York |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/charlie-chaplin-knighted-queens-elizabeth-1975-article-1.2548959 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303192525/http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/charlie-chaplin-knighted-queens-elizabeth-1975-article-1.2548959 |archive-date=3 March 2016 |url-access=limited}}</ref>

Chaplin believed his first influence to be his mother, who entertained him as a child by sitting at the window and mimicking passers-by. He once stated "it was through watching her that I learned not only how to express emotions with my hands and face, but also how to observe and study people."{{sfn|Robinson|p=18}} Chaplin's early years in music hall allowed him to see stage comedians at work; he also attended the Christmas pantomimes at [[Theatre Royal, Drury Lane|Drury Lane]], where he studied the art of clowning through performers like [[Dan Leno]].{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1pp=71–72|2a1=Chaplin|2pp=47–48|3a1=Weissman |3y=2009|3pp=82–83, 88}} Chaplin's years with the Fred Karno company had a formative effect on him as an actor and filmmaker. Simon Louvish writes that the company was his "training ground",{{sfn|Louvish|p=38}} and it was here that Chaplin learned to vary the pace of his comedy.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=86–87}} The concept of mixing pathos with slapstick was learnt from Karno,{{efn|[[Stan Laurel]], Chaplin's co-performer at the company, remembered that Karno's sketches regularly inserted "a bit of sentiment right in the middle of a funny music hall turn".{{sfn|Robinson|pp=86–87}}}} who also used elements of absurdity that became familiar in Chaplin's gags.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=86–87}}<ref>A round-table [http://www.nrk.no/skole/?page=search&mediaId=14092 Chaplin Interview] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160828075402/https://www.nrk.no/skole/?page=search&mediaId=14092 |date=28 August 2016 }} in 1952, first broadcast on BBC Radio on 15 October 1952. (In Norwegian)</ref> From the film industry, Chaplin drew upon the work of the French comedian [[Max Linder]], whose films he greatly admired.{{sfnm|1a1=Lynn|1pp=99–100|2a1=Brownlow|2p=22|3a1=Louvish|3p=122}} In developing the Tramp costume and persona, he was likely inspired by the American vaudeville scene, where tramp characters were common.{{sfn|Louvish|pp=48–49}}

Until he began making spoken dialogue films with ''The Great Dictator'' (1940), Chaplin never shot from a completed script.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=173, 197, 310, 489}} Many of his early films began with only a vague premise, for example "Charlie enters a health spa" or "Charlie works in a pawn shop".{{sfn|Robinson|p=169}} He then had sets constructed and played with his stock company to improvise gags and "business" using them, almost always devising the ideas on film.{{sfnm|1a1=Louvish|1p=103|2a1=Robinson|2p=168}} As ideas were accepted and discarded, a narrative structure would emerge, frequently requiring Chaplin to reshoot an already-completed scene that might have otherwise contradicted the story.{{sfnm|1a1=Louvish|1p=168|2a1=Robinson|2pp=166–170, 489–490|3a1=Brownlow|3p=187}} From ''A Woman of Paris'' (1923) onward Chaplin began the filming process with a prepared plot,{{sfn|Louvish|p=182}} but Robinson writes that every film up to ''Modern Times'' (1936) "went through many metamorphoses and permutations before the story took its final form".{{sfn|Robinson|p=460}}

Describing his working method as "sheer perseverance to the point of madness",{{sfn|Louvish|p=225}} Chaplin would be completely consumed by the production of a picture.{{sfnm|1a1=Brownlow|1p=157|2a1=Robinson|2pp=121, 469}} Robinson writes that even in Chaplin's later years, his films continued "to take precedence over everything and everyone else".{{sfn|Robinson|p=600}} The culmination of story improvisation and relentless perfectionism{{snd}}which resulted in days of effort and thousands of feet of film being wasted, all at enormous expense{{snd}}often proved taxing for Chaplin who, in frustration, would lash out at his actors and crew.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1pp= 362, 371, 469, 613|2a1=Brownlow|2pp=56, 136|3a1=Schickel|3p=8}}

Chaplin received many awards and honours, especially later in life. In the [[1975 New Year Honours]], he was appointed a [[Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] (KBE).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/4/newsid_2794000/2794107.stm |title=Comic Genius Chaplin is Knighted |publisher=BBC |access-date=15 February 2010 |date=4 March 1975 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223191014/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/4/newsid_2794000/2794107.stm |archive-date=23 December 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref> He was also awarded honorary [[Doctor of Letters]] degrees by the University of Oxford and the University of Durham in 1962.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=598–599}} In 1965, he and [[Ingmar Bergman]] were joint winners of the [[Erasmus Prize]]{{sfn|Robinson|p=610}} and, in 1971, he was appointed a Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour by the French government.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/article/57899.html |title=Tribute to Charlie Chaplin |publisher=Festival de Cannes |access-date=25 June 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121028025117/http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/article/57899.html |archive-date=28 October 2012}}</ref> From the film industry, Chaplin received a special [[Golden Lion]] at the Venice Film Festival in 1972,{{sfn|Robinson|pp=625–626}} and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the [[Film Society of Lincoln Center|Lincoln Center Film Society]] the same year. The latter has since been presented annually to filmmakers as The Chaplin Award.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.filmlinc.com/blog/entry/the-birth-of-the-chaplin-award| title=40 Years Ago – The Birth of the Chaplin Award |publisher=Lincoln Center Film Society |date=30 March 2012 |author=E. Segal, Martin |access-date=25 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120502165257/http://www.filmlinc.com/blog/entry/the-birth-of-the-chaplin-award |archive-date=2 May 2012}}</ref> Chaplin was given a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] in 1972, having been previously excluded because of his political beliefs.{{sfn|Williams|p=311}}

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"

| {{nom}}

| align="center"| [[20th Academy Awards|1948]]

| Best Original Screenplay

| ''[[Monsieur Verdoux]]''

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1948|title=The 20th Academy Awards {{pipe}} 1948|date=5 October 2014 |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]]|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>

| align="center"| [[44th Academy Awards|1972]]

| colspan="2"| [[Academy Honorary Award]]

| {{honoured}}

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1972|title=The 44th Academy Awards {{pipe}} 1972|date=5 October 2014 |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]]|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>

| [[Academy Award for Best Original Score|Best Original Dramatic Score]]

| ''[[Limelight (1952 film)|Limelight]]''

| {{won}}

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1973|title=The 45th Academy Awards {{pipe}} 1973|date=5 October 2014 |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]]|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>

! scope="row"| [[British Academy Film Awards]]

| align="center"| [[29th British Academy Film Awards|1976]]

| colspan="2"| [[BAFTA Fellowship]]

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bafta.org/awards/film/?award-year=1976|title=1976 BAFTA Film Awards|publisher=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]]|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>

! scope="row"| [[Directors Guild of America Awards]]

| align="center"| [[26th Directors Guild of America Awards|1974]]

| colspan="2"| Honorary Life Member

| {{honoured}}

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dga.org/Awards/History/1970s/1973|title=1973 Awards|publisher=[[Directors Guild of America]]|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>

! scope="row"| [[Film at Lincoln Center|Film Society of Lincoln Center]]

| align="center"| 1972

| colspan="2"| Gala Tribute

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|last=Segal|first=Martin E.|author-link=Martin E. Segal|url=https://www.filmlinc.org/daily/the-birth-of-the-chaplin-award/|title=The Birth of the Chaplin Award in 1972|publisher=[[Film at Lincoln Center]]|date=4 April 2016|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>

! scope="row"| [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]]

| align="center"| 1972

| colspan="2"| [[List of actors with Hollywood Walk of Fame motion picture stars|Motion Picture Star]]

| {{honoured}}

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/lifestyle/hollywoods-walk-fame-biggest-star-all|title=Hollywood's Walk of Fame, the biggest star of all|work=[[Business Insider]]|date=13 May 2017|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>

! scope="row"| [[National Board of Review|National Board of Review Awards]]

| align="center"| [[National Board of Review Awards 1940|1940]]

| Best Acting

| ''The Great Dictator''

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1940/1940nbr.htm|title=11th National Board of Review Awards {{pipe}} 1940|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=22 February 2026|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061031053158/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1940/1940nbr.htm|archive-date=31 October 2006}}</ref>

! scope="row" rowspan="3"| [[New York Film Critics Circle|New York Film Critics Circle Awards]]

| align="center"| [[1940 New York Film Critics Circle Awards|1940]]

| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]

| {{won}}{{efn|Chaplin refused the award.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1941/01/05/archives/chaplin-declines-award-by-critics-chosen-best-actor-for-great.html|title=Chaplin Declines Awardby Critics; Chosen Best Actor for 'Great Dictator,' He Says Stars Are Not in Competition. First to Refuse Honor. Miss Hepburn, Zanuck, Ford and Disney to Get Prizes at Ceremonies Today|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=5 January 1941|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>}}

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1940/1940nyf.htm|title=6th New York Film Critics Awards {{pipe}} 1940|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=22 February 2026|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061031055608/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1940/1940nyf.htm|archive-date=31 October 2006}}</ref>

| align="center" rowspan="2"| [[1952 New York Film Critics Circle Awards|1952]]

| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director|Best Director]]

| rowspan="2"| ''Limelight''

| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1952/1952nyf.htm|title=18th New York Film Critics Awards {{pipe}} 1952|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=22 February 2026|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061031055157/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1952/1952nyf.htm|archive-date=31 October 2006}}</ref>

| Best Actor

| {{runner-up}}

! scope="row"| [[Venice Film Festival]]

| align="center"| [[33rd Venice International Film Festival|1972]]

| colspan="2"| [[Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement]]

| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|last=Curtiss|first=Thomas Quinn|author-link=Thomas Quinn Curtiss|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1972/09/04/archives/venice-festival-honors-chaplin-33d-film-event-closes-with-city.html|title=Venice Festival honors Chaplin|work=[[The New York Times]]|page=6|date=4 September 1972|access-date=22 February 2026}}</ref>

|}

 

|+

! colspan="4"| [[Academy Award for Best Actor]]

| [[1st Academy Awards|1928]]

| rowspan="2"| Himself

| ''[[The Circus (1928 film)|The Circus]]''

| {{nom}}

| [[13th Academy Awards|1940]]

| ''[[The Great Dictator]]''

| {{nom}}

! colspan="4"| [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor]]

The image of the Tramp has become a part of cultural history;{{sfn|Hansmeyer|p=3}} according to Simon Louvish, the character is recognisable to people who have never seen a Chaplin film, and in places where his films are never shown.{{sfn|Louvish|p=xvii}} The critic [[Leonard Maltin]] has written of the "unique" and "indelible" nature of the Tramp, and argued that no other comedian matched his "worldwide impact".<ref>{{cite news |url=http://blogs.indiewire.com/leonardmaltin/chaplinfirst_last_and_always |title=Chaplin – First, Last, And Always |work=Indiewire |access-date=7 October 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525165601/http://blogs.indiewire.com/leonardmaltin/chaplinfirst_last_and_always |archive-date=25 May 2013 }}</ref> Praising the character, [[Richard Schickel]] suggests that Chaplin's films with the Tramp contain the most "eloquent, richly comedic expressions of the human spirit" in movie history.{{sfn|Schickel|p=41}} Memorabilia connected to the character still fetches large sums in auctions: in 2006 a bowler hat and a bamboo cane that were part of the Tramp's costume were bought for $140,000 in a Los Angeles auction.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/5116474.stm |title=Record Price for Chaplin Hat Set |publisher=BBC |access-date=7 October 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120423104143/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/5116474.stm |archive-date=23 April 2012}}</ref>

As a filmmaker, Chaplin is considered a pioneer and one of the most influential figures of the early twentieth century.{{sfnm|1a1=Cousins|1p=72|2a1=Kemp|2pp=8, 22|3a1=Gunning|3p=41|4a1=Sarris|4p=139|5a1=Hansmeyer|5p=3}} He is often credited as one of the medium's first artists.{{sfnm|1a1=Schickel|1pp=3–4|2a1=Cousins|2p=36|3a1=Robinson|3pp=209–211|4a1=Kamin|4p=xiv}} Film historian [[Mark Cousins (film critic)|Mark Cousins]] has written that Chaplin "changed not only the imagery of cinema, but also its sociology and grammar" and claims that Chaplin was as important to the development of comedy as a genre as [[D. W. Griffith]] was to drama.{{sfn|Cousins|p=70}} He was the first to popularise feature-length comedy and to slow down the pace of action, adding pathos and subtlety to it.{{sfn|Schickel|pp=7, 13}}<ref name="silent clowns">{{Cite episode|title=Charlie Chaplin|series=Silent Clowns|credits=Presented by [[Paul Merton]], directed by Tom Cholmondeley|network=[[British Broadcasting Corporation]]|station=[[BBC Four]]|date=1 June 2006}}</ref> Although his work is mostly classified as slapstick, Chaplin's drama ''A Woman of Paris'' (1923) was a major influence on [[Ernst Lubitsch]]'s film ''[[The Marriage Circle]]'' (1924) and thus played a part in the development of "sophisticated comedy".{{sfnm|1a1=Thompson|1pp=398–399|2a1=Robinson|2p=321|3a1=Louvish|3p=185}} According to David Robinson, Chaplin's innovations were "rapidly assimilated to become part of the common practice of film craft".{{sfn|Robinson|p=321}} Filmmakers who cited Chaplin as an influence include [[Federico Fellini]] (who called Chaplin "a sort of [[Adam]], from whom we are all descended"),{{sfn|Robinson|p=632}} [[Jacques Tati]] ("Without him I would never have made a film"),{{sfn|Robinson|p=632}} [[René Clair]] ("He inspired practically every filmmaker"),{{sfn|Robinson|p=631}} [[François Truffaut]] ("My religion is cinema. I believe in Charlie Chaplin…"),<ref>{{cite web|title=First Person Cinema|url=https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/truffaut-first-person-cinema/|website=TLS}}</ref> [[Michael Powell]],{{sfn|Brownlow|p=77}} [[Billy Wilder]],<ref name="story of film">{{Cite episode|title=Episode 2|series=[[The Story of Film: An Odyssey]]|credits=[[Mark Cousins (film critic)|Mark Cousins]]|network=[[Channel 4]]|station=[[More4]]|date=10 September 2011|time=27:51–28:35}}</ref> [[Vittorio De Sica]],{{sfn|Cardullo|pp=16, 212}} and [[Richard Attenborough]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Attenborough Introduction |url=http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/programme/attenborough.html |work=Charlie Chaplin |publisher=British Film Institute |access-date=11 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105202221/http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/programme/attenborough.html |archive-date= 5 November 2013}}</ref> Russian filmmaker [[Andrei Tarkovsky]] praised Chaplin as "the only person to have gone down into cinematic history without any shadow of a doubt. The films he left behind can never grow old."<ref name="tarovsky">{{Cite journal|title=Tarkovsky's Choice |author=Lasica, Tom |journal=[[Sight & Sound]] |date=March 1993 |volume=3 |issue=3 |url=http://people.ucalgary.ca/~tstronds/nostalghia.com/TheTopics/Tarkovsky-TopTen.html |access-date=1 February 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140214101036/http://people.ucalgary.ca/~tstronds/nostalghia.com/TheTopics/Tarkovsky-TopTen.html |archive-date=14 February 2014}}</ref> Indian filmmaker [[Satyajit Ray]] said about Chaplin "If there is any name which can be said to symbolise cinema{{snd}}it is Charlie Chaplin… I am sure Chaplin's name will survive even if the cinema ceases to exist as a medium of artistic expression. Chaplin is truly immortal."<ref>{{cite web|title=Ray's Views|url=https://satyajitrayworld.org/rays_view.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160924052756/http://satyajitrayworld.org/rays_view.html|url-status=usurped|archive-date=24 September 2016|website=Satyajit Ray world.org}}</ref> French auteur [[Jean Renoir]]'s favourite filmmaker was Chaplin.<ref>{{cite web|title=Jean Renoir:The not so simple man|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/jean-renoir-the-not-so-simple-man-6111144.html|website=Independent|date=20 January 2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The Chaplin Revue|url=https://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2010/01/19/the-chaplin-revue/|website=MoMA}}</ref>

saw ''City Lights'' rank among the critics' top 50, ''Modern Times'' inside the top 100, and ''The Great Dictator'' and ''The Gold Rush'' placed in the top 250.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Greatest Films Poll: Critics Top 250 Films |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/sightandsoundpoll2012/critics |work=Sight & Sound |publisher=British Film Institute |access-date=31 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160207035347/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/sightandsoundpoll2012/critics |archive-date= 7 February 2016}}</ref> The top 100 films as voted on by directors included ''Modern Times'' at number 22, ''City Lights'' at number 30, and ''The Gold Rush'' at number 91.<ref>{{cite web|title=Directors' Top 100 Films |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/sightandsoundpoll2012/directors |publisher=British Film Institute |access-date=8 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160209010504/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/sightandsoundpoll2012/directors |archive-date= 9 February 2016}}</ref> Every one of Chaplin's features received a vote.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Greatest Films Poll: All Films |work=Sight & Sound |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/sightandsoundpoll2012/films |publisher=British Film Institute |access-date=31 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160205070805/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/sightandsoundpoll2012/films |archive-date= 5 February 2016}}</ref> Chaplin was ranked at No. 35 on ''[[Empire (film magazine)|Empire]]'' magazine's "Top 40 Greatest Directors of All-Time" list in 2005.<ref>{{cite web|title=Greatest Film Directors and Their Best Films |publisher=[[Filmsite.org]] |url=https://www.filmsite.org/directors5.html |access-date=19 April 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150419022028/http://www.filmsite.org/directors1.html|archive-date=19 April 2015 }}</ref> In 2007, the [[American Film Institute]] named ''City Lights'' the 11th [[AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)|greatest American film of all time]], while ''The Gold Rush'' and ''Modern Times'' again ranked in the top 100.<ref>{{cite web|title=AFI's 100 Years{{spaces}}... 100 Movies – 10th Anniversary Edition |url=http://www.afi.com/100Years/movies10.aspx |publisher=American Film Institute |access-date=8 February 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150818175815/http://www.afi.com/100Years/movies10.aspx |archive-date=18 August 2015}}</ref> Books about Chaplin continue to be published regularly, and he is a popular subject for media scholars and film archivists.{{sfnm|1a1=Louvish|1p=xvi|2a1=Maland|2y=1989|2pp=xi, 359, 370}} Many of Chaplin's films have had a DVD and [[Blu-ray]] release.<ref>{{cite web |title=DVDs, United States |url=http://www.charliechaplin.com/en/us/dvds |publisher=Charlie Chaplin |access-date=23 December 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224103005/http://www.charliechaplin.com/en/us/dvds |archive-date=24 December 2013}}

In London, a statue of Chaplin as the Tramp, sculpted by [[John Doubleday (sculptor)|John Doubleday]] and unveiled in 1981, is located in [[Leicester Square]].{{sfn|Robinson|p=677}} The city also includes a road named after him in central London, "Charlie Chaplin Walk", which is the location of the [[BFI IMAX]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Welcome to IMAX United Kingdom|url=https://www.imax.com/countries/gb/|publisher=IMAX|access-date=22 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150604110826/https://www.imax.com/countries/gb/|archive-date=4 June 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> There are nine [[blue plaque]]s memorialising Chaplin in London, Hampshire, and Yorkshire.<ref>{{cite web|title=Charlie Chaplin|url=http://www.blueplaqueplaces.co.uk/subject/sir-charlie-chaplin-2190|website=Blue Plaque Places|access-date=20 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180501143558/http://www.blueplaqueplaces.co.uk/subject/sir-charlie-chaplin-2190|archive-date=1 May 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> In [[Canning Town]], East London, the Gandhi Chaplin Memorial Garden, opened by Chaplin's granddaughter [[Oona Chaplin]] in 2015, commemorates the meeting between Chaplin and [[Mahatma Gandhi]] at a local house in 1931.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Morton |first=Sophie |date=21 May 2015 |title=Gandhi Chaplin Memorial Garden opened in Canning Town |url=https://www.newhamrecorder.co.uk/news/gandhi-chaplin-memorial-garden-opened-in-canning-town-3027550 |access-date=10 April 2022 |newspaper=Newham Recorder}}</ref> The Swiss town of [[Vevey]] named a park in his honour in 1980 and erected a statue there in 1982.{{sfn|Robinson|p=677}} In 2011, two large murals depicting Chaplin on two 14-storey buildings were also unveiled in Vevey.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rts.ch/info/suisse/3490412-vevey-les-tours-chaplin-ont-ete-inaugurees.html |title=Vevey: Les Tours "Chaplin" Ont Été Inaugurées |date=8 October 2011 |publisher=RTS.ch |access-date=22 July 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121028101229/http://www.rts.ch/info/suisse/3490412-vevey-les-tours-chaplin-ont-ete-inaugurees.html |archive-date=28 October 2012}} (In French)</ref> Chaplin has also been honoured by the Irish town of [[Waterville, County Kerry|Waterville]], where he spent several summers with his family in the 1960s. A statue was erected in 1998;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://visitwaterville.ie/charlie-chaplin/ |title=Charlie Chaplin |publisher=VisitWaterville.ie |access-date=22 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150222040227/http://visitwaterville.ie/charlie-chaplin/ |archive-date=22 February 2015}}</ref> since 2011, the town has been host to the annual Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival, which was founded to celebrate Chaplin's legacy and to showcase new comic talent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://chaplinfilmfestival.com/the-story/ |title=The Story |publisher=Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival |access-date=3 March 2023|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120824040116/http://chaplinfilmfestival.com/the-story/ |archive-date=24 August 2012}}</ref> In 2021, the alley where Chaplin shot ''[[The Kid (1921 film)|The Kid]]'' was renamed [[Chaplin-Keaton-Lloyd Alley]] in honour of Chaplin and his contemporaries.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chaplin - Keaton - Lloyd Alley |publisher=[[Hollywood Heritage]] |via=[[Historical Marker Database]] |url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=182837 |date=2021}}</ref>

In other tributes, a [[minor planet]], [[3623 Chaplin]] (discovered by Soviet astronomer [[Lyudmila Karachkina]] in 1981) is named after him.{{sfn|Schmadel|p=305}} Throughout the 1980s, the Tramp image was used by [[IBM]] to advertise their personal computers.{{sfn|Maland|1989|pp=362–370}} Chaplin's 100th birthday anniversary in 1989 was marked with several events around the world,{{efn|On his birthday, 16 April, ''City Lights'' was screened at a gala at the [[Dominion Theatre]] in London, the site of its British premiere in 1931.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19890417&id=gRwhAAAAIBAJ&pg=7100,2621993 |title=Charlie Chaplin's 100th Birthday Gala a Royal Bash in London |newspaper=[[The Pittsburgh Press]] |date= 17 April 1989|access-date=22 July 2012 | first=Dan | last=Kamin}}</ref> In Hollywood, a screening of a restored version of ''How to Make Movies'' was held at his former studio, and in Japan, he was honoured with a musical tribute. Retrospectives of his work were presented that year at [[BFI Southbank|The National Film Theatre]] in London,<ref name=NewSundayTimes/> the [[Munich Stadtmuseum]]<ref name=NewSundayTimes>{{cite news|url= https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1295&dat=19890416&id=RK5UAAAAIBAJ&pg=4220,91114 |title=Chaplin's Back in The Big Time |newspaper= [[New Straits Times|New Sunday Times]] |date= 16 April 1989|access-date=22 July 2012 }}</ref> and the [[Museum of Modern Art]] in New York, which also dedicated a gallery exhibition, ''Chaplin: A Centennial Celebration'', to him.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.moma.org/docs/press_archives/6653/releases/MOMA_1989_0020_20.pdf?2010|title= The Museum of Modern Art Honors Charles Chaplin's Contributions to Cinema |date= March 1989|publisher=The Museum of Modern Art Press Release |access-date=22 July 2012}}</ref>}} and on 15 April 2011, a day before his 122nd birthday, [[Google]] celebrated him with a special [[Google Doodle]] video on its global and other country-wide homepages.<ref>{{cite web|title=Google Doodles a Video Honouring Charlie Chaplin |url=http://www.news18.com/news/india/google-doodles-a-video-honouring-charlie-chaplin-366297.html |website=[[News18]] |date=15 April 2011 |access-date=15 April 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160509104424/http://www.news18.com/news/india/google-doodles-a-video-honouring-charlie-chaplin-366297.html |archive-date= 9 May 2016}}</ref>

Chaplin's life has also been the subject of several stage productions. Two musicals, ''[[Little Tramp]]'' and ''[[Chaplin (1993 musical)|Chaplin]]'', were produced in the early 1990s. In 2006, [[Thomas Meehan (writer)|Thomas Meehan]] and Christopher Curtis created another musical, ''[[Chaplin (2006 musical)|Limelight: The Story of Charlie Chaplin]]'', which was first performed at the [[La Jolla Playhouse]] in San Diego in 2010.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.lajollaplayhouse.org/the-season/2010-2011-season/limelight| title=Limelight – The Story of Charlie Chaplin |publisher=La Jolla Playhouse |access-date=25 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130721141919/http://www.lajollaplayhouse.org/the-season/2010-2011-season/limelight|archive-date=21 July 2013}}</ref> It was adapted for [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] two years later, re-titled ''Chaplin{{snd}}A Musical''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://chaplinbroadway.com/ |title=Chaplin – A Musical |publisher=Barrymore Theatre |access-date=25 June 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120615070714/http://www.chaplinbroadway.com/ |archive-date=15 June 2012 }}</ref> Chaplin was portrayed by [[Rob McClure]] in both productions. In 2013, two plays about Chaplin premiered in [[Finland]]: ''Chaplin'' at the [[Swedish Theatre|Svenska Teatern]],<ref name="ChaplinFinland">{{cite web |title=Ohjelmisto: Chaplin |url=http://www.svenskateatern.fi/fi/ohjelmisto/ohjelmisto/chaplin/ |publisher=Svenska Teatern |access-date=8 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130413030359/http://www.svenskateatern.fi/fi/ohjelmisto/ohjelmisto/chaplin/ |archive-date=13 April 2013}}</ref> and ''Kulkuri'' (''The Tramp'') at the [[Tampere Workers' Theatre]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Kulkuri |url=http://www.ttt-teatteri.fi/ohjelmisto/kulkuri |publisher=Tampereen Työväen Teatteri |access-date=2 October 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005002019/http://www.ttt-teatteri.fi/ohjelmisto/kulkuri |archive-date=5 October 2013 }}</ref> In 2025, [[Pan Asian Repertory Theatre]] in New York City produced ''My Man Kono'', a play about Chaplin's relationship with [[Toraichi Kono]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Collins-Hughes |first1=Laura |title='Urinetown' and Other Plays and Musicals to See in February |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/06/theater/plays-musicals-theater-nyc-february.html |website=[[The New York Times]] |date=6 February 2025 |access-date=23 July 2025}}</ref>

A [[Charlie Chaplin right of publicity case|lawsuit brought by Chaplin]], ''Chaplin v. Amador'', 93 Cal. App. 358 (1928), set an important legal precedent{{snd}}that a performer's persona and style, in this case Chaplin's "particular kind or type of mustache, old and threadbare hat, clothes and shoes, a decrepit derby, ill-fitting vest, tight-fitting coat, and trousers and shoes much too large for him, and with this attire, a flexible cane usually carried, swung and bent as he performs his part", is entitled to legal protection from those unfairly mimicking those traits in order to deceive the public.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chaplin v. Amador |url=https://casetext.com/case/chaplin-v-amador |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126160852/http://casetext.com/case/chaplin-v-amador |url-status=dead |archive-date=26 November 2023 |website=www.casetext.com |publisher=CaseText |access-date=4 February 2024}}</ref> The case was an important milestone in U.S. courts' ultimate recognition of a common-law [[right of publicity]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Raga |first=Suzanne |title=Charlie Chaplin Once Sued An Imposter Named 'Charlie Aplin' |url=https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/66364/charlie-chaplin-once-sued-imposter-named-charlie-aplin |website=www.mentalfloss.com |date=17 July 2015 |publisher=Mental Floss |access-date=4 February 2024}}</ref>

[[Category:Chaplin family|Charlie]]