Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin, Jr., KBE (16 April 1889 - 25 December 1977), better known as Charlie Chaplin, was an Academy Award-winning English comedy actor. Chaplin became one of the most famous actors as well as a notable director, composer and musician in the early to mid Hollywood cinema era. He is considered to have been one of the finest mimes and clowns ever caught on film and has greatly influenced performers in this field.

He acted in, directed, scripted, produced, and eventually scored his own films. Chaplin was also one of the most creative and influential personalities in the silent-film era. His working life in entertainment spanned over 65 years, from the Victorian stage and music hall in the United Kingdom as a child performer, almost until his death at the age of eighty-eight. Chaplin's high-profile public and private life encompassed highs and lows with both adulation and controversy.

His principal character was "The Tramp" (known as "Charlot" in France and the French-speaking world, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Romania, and Turkey, and as "Carlitos" in Brazil). "The Tramp" is a vagrant with the refined manners and dignity of a gentleman. The character wears a tight coat, oversized trousers and shoes, and a derby; carries a bamboo cane; and has a signature toothbrush moustache.

Charles Chaplin (1907 - 1987) was an English artist, engraver and printmaker.

"You teach me a little about engraving and I will teach you a little about art" was the remarkable offer made by Robert Austin to his new student, Charles Chaplin. Austin, an eminent engraver himself, had become Chaplin's tutor at the Royal College of Art in September 1947. Chaplin, a mature student, was a printer's commercial engraver; he was also an amateur artist whose prints had already received some recognition and had been hung at the Royal Academy summer exhibitions. He had, however, had little formal education or art training. Austin's encouragement was a major influence on Chaplin's subsequent career as an artist.

The years before World War II cover Chaplin's birth into a large working-class family, his early love of drawing, the accident which left him with only one eye, and his apprenticeship in a large printing works. After the war, he enrolled as a Saturday student at the Royal College of Art and, thereafter, his style developed significantly. Following his retirement from the printing industry, his prolific output continued unabated, encouraged by new contacts in Sweden and Canada. A shy man who loved the countryside and recorded its trees, lakes, weather, wildlife, and the fascinating rural clutter of its farmyard, his family life is revealed in the detail of his work.

His favourite technique was line engraving on copper, although he used several techniques during his career.

Known in his lifetime only to a small number of collectors, Chaplin's work is now being discovered by a wider public. A book about Chaplin and his work published in 2005 collects the prints, facts concerning the prints, and the background of his life.

Charles Chaplin (30 May 1759 - 28 August 1816) was an English Member of Parliament (MP). He was one of the two MPs for Lincolnshire from 1802 until his death in 1816, aged 57.

Charles Chaplin (21 April 1786 - 24 May 1859) was an English Member of Parliament (MP). He represented Stamford from 1809 to 1812 and Lincolnshire from 1818 to 1831.

Charles Chaplin's parents, Charles and Hannah Chaplin, were music hall entertainers. His first stage appearance, at age five, was singing a song in place of his mother who had become ill. At eight he toured in a musical, "The Eight Lancaster Lads". Nearly 11, he appeared in "Giddy Ostende" at London's Hippodrome. From age 17 to 24 he was with Fred Karno's English vaudeville troupe, which brought him to New York in 1910, aged 21. In November of 1913 he signed a contract with Mack Sennett at Keystone and left for Hollywood the next month. His first movie, Making a Living (1914), premiered in February of 1914. He made 35 films that year, moved to Essanay in 1915 and did 14 more, then jumped over to Mutual for 12 two-reelers in 1916 and 1917. In 1918 he joined First National (later absorbed by Warner Bros.) and in 1919 formed United Artists along with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith. His first full-length film was Kid, The (1921); his first for UA, which he produced and directed himself, was _Woman of Paris, A (1923)_. In 1929, at the first Oscar awards,he won a special award "for versatility and genius in writing, acting, directing and producing" Circus, The (1928). In 1943 he was accused of fathering a child; the papers made much of the scandal, but it was proved in a court trial that he was not the father. The same year he entered his fourth marriage, to Oona Chaplin (I), daughter of playwright 'Eugene ONeill (I). They had eight children. Tired of political and moralistic controversies and plagued with tax problems, he left the United States for Switzerland in 1952. He published his memoirs in 1964. In 1972 he returned to Hollywood to claim a special Oscar honoring his lifetime contributions to movies. He was named Knight Commander of the British Empire in 1975. He died in his sleep from old age.

Thought of by many as the greatest comedian of all time, Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in London, England on 16 April 1889. In 1908 he joined Fred Karno's touring stage company with his brother Sydney; Stan Laurel was also a member of the same company. In 1912 the troupe went to perform in America, and Chaplin decided to stay. The following year, producer Mack Sennett saw him perform and decided to take him on at the Keystone Studio, which already boasted such names as 'Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle', Mabel Normand, the Keystone Kops and Mack Swain. However, Chaplin moved on to become an even a bigger star than any of the above legendary names, making a staggering 35 pictures in one year alone. His first movie was Making a Living (1914); however, his next film, Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914), was destined to change his entire career. This picture saw him wearing baggy pants borrowed from 'Roscoe 'Fatty Arbuckle, size 14 shoes belonging to Ford Sterling (and worn upside down to keep them from falling off), a tiny jacket from Keystone Kop Charles Avery (I), a bowler hat belonging to Arbuckle's father-in-law and Mack Swain's mustache trimmed down to toothbrush size. From 1915 onwards Chaplin wrote, directed, produced, scored and, of course, starred in all his movies. He joined the Essanay Company the following year and in 1917, Immigrant, The (1917) and Easy Street (1917) were both released. In 1918 he and his brother opened their own studio in Los Angeles, and in 1919 he teamed up with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith to form a joint venture they named United Artists, for production of their own films. However, Chaplin did not make a film for the company until 1923 when _Woman of Paris, A (1923)_ was released; this was followed in 1925 by the classic Gold Rush, The (1925) and in 1927 by Circus, The (1928), for which he received an Academy Award. For the premiere of City Lights (1931), Chaplin traveled to London, and stayed there until 1932 before returning to the U.S. His next film was Modern Times (1936), which proved to be one of his greatest successes, followed four years later by Great Dictator, The (1940), which was an indictment of the Nazi regime. Chaplin played a dual role, as a Jewish barber who fought in World War I and as the evil Adenoid Hynkel, dictator of Tomania. In 1945 he started working on a new picture, Monsieur Verdoux (1947), which was based on an idea from Orson Welles; he is thus credited in the film. In 1952 he released what is probably his best-known "talkie", Limelight (1952), which also featured his longtime friend, Buster Keaton. That same year he was found himself swept up in the anti-Communist hysteria known as the McCarthy Era that was engulfing the U.S., and found himself accused by U.S. authorities of having Communist tendencies. Outraged and depressed, he left the U.S. for Switzerland. During his absence from the States he made two more films, King in New York, A (1957), released in America 20 years later, and his final film Countess from Hong Kong, A (1967), which starred Marlon Brando and Sophia Loren. This last film proved to be Chaplin's only failure and was a box-office flop. In 1969 Chaplin began new scores for a number of his films, including "The Kid" and "The Circus". He also planned to make a film called "The Freak" with his daughter Victoria Chaplin in the lead role, wearing the wings her father had worn 50 years earlier in "The Kid". However, by this time Chaplin was already into his 80s, and he retired to live in Vevey, Switzerland. In 1975 he was knighted by the queen. He died in his sleep on Christmas Day, 1977.

Charlie Chaplin, considered to be one of the most pivotal stars of the early days of Hollywood, lived an interesting life both in his films and behind the camera. He is most recognized as an icon of the silent film era, often associated with his popular "Little Tramp" character; the man with the toothbrush mustache, bowler hat, bamboo cane, and a funny walk. Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in Walworth, London, England on April 26th, 1889 to Charles and Hannah (Hill) Chaplin, both music hall performers, who were married on June 22nd, 1885. After Charles Sr. separated from Hannah to perform in New York City, Hannah then tried to resurrect her stage career. Unfortunately, her singing voice had a tendency to break at unexpected moments. When this happened, the stage manager spotted young Charlie standing in the wings and led him on stage, where five-year-old Charlie began to sing a popular tune. Charlie and his half-brother, Syd Chaplin (born Sydney Hawkes), spent their lives in and out of charity homes and workhouses between their mother's bouts of insanity. Hannah was committed to Cane Hill Asylum in May of 1903 and lived there until 1921, when Chaplin moved her to California. Chaplin began his official acting career at the age of eight, touring with The Eight Lancashire Lads. At 18 he began touring with Fred Karno's vaudeville troupe, joining them on the troupe's 1910 US tour. He traveled west to California in December 1913 and signed on with Keystone Studios' popular comedy director Mack Sennett, who had seen Chaplin perform on stage in New York. Charlie soon wrote his brother Syd, asking him to become his manager. While at Keystone, Chaplin appeared in and directed 35 films, starring as the Little Tramp in nearly all. In November 1914 he left Keystone and signed on at Essanay, where he made 15 films. In 1916, he signed on at Mutual and made 12 films. In June 1917 Chaplin signed up with First National Studios, after which he built Chaplin Studios. In 1919 he and Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith formed United Artists (UA). Chaplin's life and career was full of scandal and controversy. His first big scandal was during World War I, during which time his loyalty to England, his home country, was questioned. He had never applied for US citizenship, but claimed that he was a "paying visitor" to the United States. Many British citizens called Chaplin a coward and a slacker. This and his other career eccentricities sparked suspicion with FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover and the House Un-American Activities Council (HUAC), who believed that he was injecting Communist propaganda into his films. Chaplin's later film Great Dictator, The (1940), which was his first "talkie", also created a stir. In the film Chaplin plays a humorous caricature of Adolf Hitler. Some thought the film was poorly done and in bad taste. However, it grossed over $5 million and earned five Academy Award Nominations. Another scandal occurred when Chaplin briefly dated 22-year-old Joan Barry (I). However, Chaplin's relationship with Barry came to an end in 1942, after a series of harassing actions from her. In May of 1943 Barry returned to inform Chaplin that she was pregnant, and filed a paternity suit, claiming that the unborn child was his. During the 1944 trial blood tests proved that Chaplin was not the father, but at the time blood tests were inadmissible evidence and he was ordered to pay $75 a week until the child turned 21. Chaplin was also scrutinized for his support in aiding the Russian struggle against the invading Nazis during World War II, and the U.S. government questioned his moral and political views, suspecting him of having Communist ties. For this reason HUAC subpoenaed him in 1947. However, HUAC finally decided that it was no longer necessary for him to appear for testimony. Conversely, when Chaplin and his family traveled to London for the premier of _Limelight (1952)_ , he was denied re-entry to the United States. In reality, the government had almost no evidence to prove that he was a threat to national security. He and his wife decided, instead, to settle in Switzerland. Chaplin was married four times and had a total of 11 children. In 1918 he wed Mildred Harris (I), they had a son together, Norman Spencer Chaplin, who only lived three days. Chaplin and Mildred were divorced in 1920. He married Lita Grey in 1924, who had two sons, Charles Chaplin Jr. and Sydney Chaplin. They were divorced in 1927. In 1936, Chaplin married Paulette Goddard and his final marriage was to Oona O'Neill (Oona Chaplin (I)), daughter of playwright 'Eugene ONeill (I) in 1943. Oona gave birth to eight children: Geraldine Chaplin, Michael Chaplin (I), Josephine Chaplin, Victoria Chaplin, Eugene, Jane, Annette-Emilie and Christopher Chaplin (I). In contrast to many of his boisterous characters, Chaplin was a quiet man who kept to himself a lot. He also had an "un-millionaire" way of living. Even after he had accumulated millions, he continued to live in shabby accommodations. In 1921 Chaplin was decorated by the French government for his outstanding work as a filmmaker, and was elevated to the rank of Officer of the Legion of Honor in 1952. In 1972 he was honored with an Academy Award for his "incalculable effect in making motion pictures the art form of the century." In 1975 England's Queen Elizabeth II knighted him. Chaplin's other works included musical scores he composed for many of his films. He also authored two autobiographical books, "My Autobiography" in 1964 and its companion volume, "My Life in Pictures" in 1974. Chaplin died of natural causes on December 25, 1977 at his home in Switzerland. In 1978, Chaplin's corpse was stolen from its grave and was not recovered for three months; he was re-buried in a vault surrounded by cement. Charlie Chaplin was considered one of the greatest filmmakers in the history of American cinema, whose movies were and still are popular throughout the world, and have even gained notoriety as time progresses. His films show, through the Little Tramp's positive outlook on life in a world full of chaos, that the human spirit has and always will remain the same.