Charlie Chaplin - Quotes & Trivia

Invented his tramp costume with the help of Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle's pants, Arbuckle's father-in-law's derby, Chester Conklin's cutaway, Ford Sterling's size-14 shoes, and some crepe paper belonging to Mack Swain (which became the tramp's mustache). The only item that actually belonged to Chaplin was the whangee cane.

He was also the first actor to have a comic strip about him; Ed Carey's 1916 strip, "Pa's Imported Son-in-Law," detailed the adventures of Chaplin.

After his body was recovered from grave robbers, Chaplin was reburied in a vault surrounded by cement.

Pictured (as Charlie Chaplin) on one of ten 29¢ US commemorative postage stamps celebrating stars of the silent screen, issued April 27, 1994. Designed by caricaturist Al Hirschfeld, this set of stamps also honored Rudolph Valentino, Clara Bow, Lon Chaney, John Gilbert, Zasu Pitts, Harold Lloyd, Theda Bara, Buster Keaton, and the Keystone Kops.

Pictured on one of fifteen 32¢ US commemorative postage stamps in the "Celebrate the Century" series, issued February 3, 1998, celebrating the 1910s.

In Spain he had a different dubbing actor in each of his sound films. They were: Ricardo Solans ("The Great Dictator" (1940)), Félix Acaso ("Limelight" (1952)), and Joaquín Díaz ("A King in New York" (1957)). The dubbing actor of "Monsieur Verdoux" (1947) is, at this time, unknown.

Most people (now and during his lifetime) believe that Chaplin had brown eyes because they had only seen him in black and white with black eye makeup on. It fact they were very blue. Chaplin remarked in his autobiography that people meeting him for the first time were always struck by his blue eyes. And his future wife Oona Chaplin wrote, "Just met Charlie Chaplin. What blue eyes he has!" to a girlhood friend in 1942.

Was an accomplished musician who, in his later years, often reissued his silent films with scores he had composed himself.

His handprints, footprints, and signature were immortalized in cement at Grauman's (now Mann's) Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, but after his fall from grace with the Americans because of his political views, the section of cement was removed from public view. It cannot be located and is now feared lost.

Although Adolf Hitler was not at all a fan - in fact he had been misinformed that Charlie was Jewish, and therefore despised him - he was also well aware of how beloved Charlie was throughout the world at that time, and that was the reason he grew the Chaplin moustache: he thought it would endear him to the people (Source: "The Tramp and the Dictator").

Biography in: "Who's Who in Comedy" by Ronald L. Smith. Pg. 99-102. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387.

As a child he was confined to a bed for weeks due to a serious illness. At night his mother would sit at the window and act out what was going on outside. This was a major reason Chaplin became a comedian.

When Chaplin arrived in the U.S. with the Fred Karno troupe on October 2, 1912, in his second trip to America, according to Ellis Island immigration records he had $45 in his pocket. He listed his half-brother, Sydney, as his next of kin even though his mother was still alive. Sailing with him was fellow Karno troupe member Arthur Stanley Jefferson - later to be known as Stan Laurel.

Biography in: John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume One, 1890-1945." Pages 115-124. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1987.

Did not receive screen credit on the many comedies he made for Keystone in 1914-15, as it was studio policy not to credit its actors (any Keystone film that credits Chaplin is a reissue print). His first screen credit appeared on His New Job (1915), his first film for Essanay.

Received an Honorary Oscar the The 44th Annual Academy Awards (1972). He appeared on stage blowing kisses to the Hollywood audience with tears running down his face while he received a long standing ovation. Ironically, he won another Oscar the following year.

He and Buster Keaton had an interesting relationship. Long considered rivals but always having avoided commenting about each other in the press, Chaplin hired Keaton for a part in "Limelight" (1952). Keaton, who was flat broke at the time, went into a career decline after having been signed by MGM in 1928, as the studio would not let him improvise in any of his films nor allow him any writing or directorial input, and he was eventually reduced to writing gags - often uncredited - for other comedians' films. Chaplin, at this point, felt sorry for Keaton due to his hard luck, but Keaton recognized that, despite Charlie's better fortune and far greater wealth, Chaplin was (strangely) the more depressed of the two. In one scene in "Limelight," Chaplin's character was dying. While the camera was fading away, Keaton was muttering to Chaplin without moving his lips, "That's it, good, wait, don't move, wait, good, we're through." In his autobiography Keaton called Chaplin "the greatest silent comedian of all time."

At the Golden Camera Awards 2005 in Berlin, Geraldine Chaplin told in a moving speech honoring Jerry Lewis about the last time she saw her father alive. He watched a movie of Lewis on television screaming, "He's funny, that bastard!"

Named the 10th Greatest Actor on "The 50 Greatest Screen Legends" list by the American Film Institute.

In all his years of living and working in the United States he never became a U.S. citizen.

He was the uncle of Spencer Dryden, drummer for the 1960s rock band Jefferson Airplane.

Founder of United Artists along with Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, and D.W. Griffith.

Profiled in in J.A. Aberdeen's "Hollywood Renegades: The Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers." Palos Verdes Estates, CA: Cobblestone Entertainment.

His performance as the Tramp in "City Lights" (1931) is ranked #44 on Premiere Magazine's "100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006)."

Is portrayed in Sesame Street skits by Linda Bove (Linda) and Sonia Manzano (Maria).

His performance as the Tramp in "City Lights" (1931), and a slew of other pictures, is ranked #24 on Premiere Magazine's "100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time."

Up until his last few movies, he never shot with a working script. He would start with a story in his mind and constantly retool it, often shooting hours of scenes that wouldn't make the final cut until he was satisfied. He spent his nights during filming, critiquing the rushes with his assistant directors. Consequently compared to the major studio's films, he spent months/years and excessive amounts of money on his productions. He often said though he would not release any of his films until he was 100% satisfied with the result.