Editing Charlie Chaplin (section)

===1923–1938: silent features===

====''A Woman of Paris'' and ''The Gold Rush''====
Having fulfilled his First National contract, Chaplin was free to make his first picture as an independent producer. In November 1922, he began filming ''[[A Woman of Paris]]'', a romantic drama about ill-fated lovers.{{sfn|Robinson|p=310}} Chaplin intended it to be a star-making vehicle for Edna Purviance,{{sfn|Robinson|p=302}} and did not appear in the picture himself other than in a brief, uncredited cameo.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=311–312}} He wished the film to have a realistic feel and directed his cast to give restrained performances. In real life, he explained, "men and women try to hide their emotions rather than seek to express them".{{sfn|Robinson|pp=319–321}} ''A Woman of Paris'' premiered in September 1923 and was acclaimed for its innovative, subtle approach.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=318–321}} The public, however, seemed to have little interest in a Chaplin film without Chaplin, and it was a [[box office bomb|box office disappointment]].{{sfn|Louvish|p=193}} The filmmaker was hurt by this failure{{snd}}he had long wanted to produce a dramatic film and was proud of the result{{snd}}and soon withdrew ''A Woman of Paris'' from circulation.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=302, 322}}
[[File:Chaplin the gold rush boot.jpg|thumb|The Tramp resorts to eating his boot in ''[[The Gold Rush]]'' (1925).]]

Chaplin returned to comedy for his next project. Setting his standards high, he told himself "This next film must be an epic! The Greatest!"{{sfn|Louvish|p=195}} Inspired by a photograph of the 1898 [[Klondike Gold Rush]], and later the story of the [[Donner Party]] of 1846–1847, he made what Geoffrey Macnab calls "an epic comedy out of grim subject matter".{{sfnm|1a1=Kemp|1p=64|2a1=Chaplin|2p=299}} In ''[[The Gold Rush]]'', the Tramp is a lonely [[prospecting|prospector]] fighting adversity and looking for love. With [[Georgia Hale]] as his leading lady, Chaplin began filming the picture in February 1924.{{sfn|Robinson|p=337}} Its elaborate production, costing almost $1{{spaces}}million,{{sfn|Robinson|p=358}} included [[location shooting]] in the [[Truckee Range|Truckee mountains]] in [[Nevada]] with 600 extras, extravagant sets, and [[special effect]]s.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=340–345}} The last scene was shot in May 1925 after 15 months of filming.{{sfn|Robinson|p=354}}

Chaplin felt ''The Gold Rush'' was the best film he had made.{{sfn|Robinson|p=357}} It opened in August 1925 and became one of the highest-grossing films of the silent era, with a U.S. box-office of $5{{spaces}}million.{{efn|{{Inflation|US|5000000|1925|fmt=eq|r=-5}}}}{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1p=358|2a1=Kemp|2p=63}} The comedy contains some of Chaplin's most famous sequences, such as the Tramp eating his shoe and the "Dance of the Rolls".{{sfnm|1a1=Kemp|1pp=63–64|2a1=Robinson|2pp=339, 353|3a1=Louvish|3p=200|4a1=Schickel|4p=19}} Macnab has called it "the quintessential Chaplin film".{{sfn|Kemp|p=64}} Chaplin stated at its release: "This is the picture that I want to be remembered by".{{sfn|Vance|2003|p=154}}

====Lita Grey and ''The Circus''====
[[File:Lita Grey.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Lita Grey]], whose bitter divorce from Chaplin caused a scandal]]

While making ''The Gold Rush'', Chaplin married for the second time. Mirroring the circumstances of his first union, [[Lita Grey]] was a teenage actress, originally set to star in the film, whose surprise announcement of pregnancy forced Chaplin into marriage. She was 16 and he was 35, meaning Chaplin could have been charged with [[statutory rape]] under California law.{{sfn|Robinson|p=346}} He therefore arranged a discreet marriage in Mexico on 25 November 1924.{{sfnm|1a1=Chaplin and Vance|1p=53|2a1=Vance|2y=2003|2p=170}} They originally met during her childhood and she had previously appeared in his works ''The Kid'' and ''The Idle Class''.{{sfn|Chaplin and Vance|pp=xvi, xviii, 4, 26, 30}} Their first son, [[Charles Chaplin Jr.|Charles Spencer Chaplin III]], was born on 5{{spaces}}May 1925, followed by [[Sydney Chaplin (American actor)|Sydney Earl Chaplin]] on 30 March 1926.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=355, 368}} On 6 July 1925, Chaplin became the first movie star to be featured on a ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' [[List of covers of Time magazine (1920s)|cover]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Charlie Chaplin: The First Actor in the world to be on the cover of Times magazine|first=Kumar|last=Ujjal|url=https://infotonline.com/charlie-chaplin-on-the-cover-of-times-magazine/|date=16 April 2020|access-date=1 April 2021|website=Infotoline|archive-date=25 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220625015109/https://infotonline.com/charlie-chaplin-on-the-cover-of-times-magazine/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

It was an unhappy marriage, and Chaplin spent long hours at the studio to avoid seeing his wife.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=350, 368}} In November 1926, Grey took the children and left the family home.{{sfn|Robinson|p=371}} A bitter divorce followed, in which Grey's application{{snd}}accusing Chaplin of infidelity, abuse and of harbouring "perverted sexual desires"{{snd}}was leaked to the press.{{sfnm|1a1=Louvish|1p=220|2a1=Robinson|2pp=372–374}}{{efn|In her memoirs, Lita Grey later claimed that many of her complaints were "cleverly, shockingly enlarged upon or distorted" by her lawyers.{{sfn|Maland|1989|p=96}}}} Chaplin was reported to be in a state of nervous breakdown, as the story became headline news and groups formed across America calling for his films to be banned.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1pp=372–374|2a1=Louvish|2pp=220–221}} Eager to end the case without further scandal, Chaplin's lawyers agreed to a cash settlement of $600,000{{efn|{{Inflation|US|600000|1927|fmt=eq|r=-4}}}}{{snd}}the largest awarded by American courts at that time.{{sfn|Robinson|p=378}} His fan base was strong enough to survive the incident, and it was soon forgotten, but Chaplin was deeply affected by it.{{sfnm|1a1=Maland|1y=1989|1pp=99–105|2a1=Robinson|2p=383}} Less than five months after the divorce, Grey's former butler [[Murder of Don Solovich|Don Solovich]] was murdered in Utah, and articles speculated about connections between Chaplin and the murder.<ref name=Strange>{{cite news |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]] |location=New York City |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-charlie-chaplin-murder/112404948/ |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |title=What Was Justice: The Strange Killing of Don Solovich, Known as Hollywood's Mystery Man |date=21 October 1928 |pages=46–47}}</ref><ref name=Sensational>{{cite news |date=7 May 1928 |title=Sensational Evidence Promised in Solovich Murder Trial: Attorney Hints at Revelations |pages=18 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-sensational-eviden/125115092/ |access-date=26 May 2023 |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref><ref name=Completed>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-manti-messenger-testimony-completed/125113276/ |title= Testimony Completed, Jury To Get Clark Case Tomorrow |newspaper=Manti Messenger |location=Manti, UT |date=8 June 1928 |pages=1, 4| via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref>

Before the divorce suit was filed, Chaplin had begun work on a new film, ''[[The Circus (1928 film)|The Circus]]''.{{sfn|Robinson|p=360}} He built a story around the idea of walking a tightrope while besieged by monkeys, and turned the Tramp into the accidental star of a circus.{{sfn|Robinson|p=361}} Filming was suspended for ten months while he dealt with the divorce scandal,{{sfn|Robinson|pp=371, 381}} and it was generally a trouble-ridden production.{{sfn|Louvish|p=215}} Finally completed in October 1927, ''The Circus'' was released in January 1928 to a positive reception.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=382}} At the [[1st Academy Awards]], Chaplin was given a special trophy "For versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing and producing ''The Circus''".<ref name="circus">{{cite encyclopedia|last=Pfeiffer |first=Lee |title=The Circus – Film by Chaplin [1928] |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Circus |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=9 August 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905164503/https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Circus |archive-date= 5 September 2015}}</ref> Despite its success, he permanently associated the film with the stress of its production; Chaplin omitted ''The Circus'' from his autobiography, and struggled to work on it when he recorded the score in his later years.{{sfnm|1a1=Brownlow|1p=73|2a1=Louvish|2p=224}}

====''City Lights''====
{{Rquote|right|text=I was determined to continue making silent films{{spaces}}... I was a pantomimist and in that medium I was unique and, without false modesty, a master.|author=Charlie Chaplin, explaining his defiance against [[sound film|sound]] in the 1930s{{sfn|Chaplin|p=322}}}}

By the time ''The Circus'' was released, Hollywood had witnessed the introduction of [[sound film]]s. Chaplin was cynical about this new medium and the technical shortcomings it presented, believing that "talkies" lacked the artistry of silent films.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1p=389|2a1=Chaplin|2p=321}} He was also hesitant to change the formula that had brought him such success,{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1p=465|2a1=Chaplin|2p=322|3a1=Maland|3y=2007|3p=29}} and feared that giving the Tramp a voice would limit his international appeal.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1p=389|2a1=Maland|2y=2007|2p=29}} He, therefore, rejected the new Hollywood craze and began work on a new silent film. Chaplin was nonetheless anxious about this decision and remained so throughout the film's production.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1p=389|2a1=Maland|2y=2007|2p=29}}
[[File:Chaplin City Lights still.jpg|thumb|upright|''[[City Lights]]'' (1931) is regarded as one of Chaplin's finest works.]]

When filming began at the end of 1928, Chaplin had been working on the story for almost a year.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1p=398|2a1=Maland|2y=2007|2pp=33–34, 41}} ''[[City Lights]]'' followed the Tramp's love for a blind flower girl (played by [[Virginia Cherrill]]) and his efforts to raise money for her sight-saving operation. It was a challenging production that lasted 21 months,{{sfn|Robinson|p=409|ps=, records the date filming ended as 22 September 1930.}} with Chaplin later confessing that he "had worked himself into a neurotic state of wanting perfection".{{sfn|Chaplin|p=324}} One advantage Chaplin found in sound technology was the opportunity to record a musical score for the film, which he composed himself.{{sfn|Chaplin|p=324}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.charliechaplin.com/biography/articles/205-Chaplin-as-a-composer |title=Chaplin as a composer |publisher=CharlieChaplin.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110705021919/http://www.charliechaplin.com/biography/articles/205-Chaplin-as-a-composer |archive-date= 5 July 2011}}</ref>

Chaplin finished editing ''City Lights'' in December 1930, by which time silent films were an anachronism.{{sfn|Robinson|p=410}} A preview before an unsuspecting public audience was not a success,{{sfn|Chaplin|p=325}} but a showing for the press produced positive reviews. One journalist wrote: "Nobody in the world but Charlie Chaplin could have done it. He is the only person that has that peculiar something called 'audience appeal' in sufficient quality to defy the popular penchant for movies that talk."{{sfn|Robinson|p=413}} Given its general release in January 1931, ''City Lights'' proved to be a popular and financial success, eventually grossing over $3{{spaces}}million.{{efn|{{Inflation|US|3000000|1931|fmt=eq|r=-5}}}}{{sfnm|1a1=Maland|1y=2007|1pp=108–110|2a1=Chaplin|2p=328|3a1=Robinson|3p=415}} The [[British Film Institute]] called it Chaplin's finest accomplishment, and the critic [[James Agee]] hails the closing scene as "the greatest piece of acting and the highest moment in movies".<ref name="bfi great features">{{cite web|url=http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/biog/biog.php?fid=biog9 |title=United Artists and the Great Features |work=Charlie Chaplin |publisher=British Film Institute |access-date=21 June 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120406094725/http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/biog/biog.php?fid=biog9 |archive-date= 6 April 2012}}</ref>{{sfn|Maland|2007|pp=10–11}} ''City Lights'' became Chaplin's personal favourite of his films and remained so throughout his life.{{sfn|Vance|2003|p=208}}

==== Travels, Paulette Goddard and ''Modern Times'' ====
''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 work in 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}}
[[File:Modern Times poster.jpg|thumb|upright|''[[Modern Times (film)|Modern Times]]'' (1936), described by Jérôme Larcher as a "grim contemplation on the automatisation of the individual"{{sfn|Larcher|p=64}}]]

In his autobiography, Chaplin recalled that on his return to Los Angeles, "I was confused and without plan, restless and conscious of an extreme loneliness". He briefly considered retiring and moving to China.{{sfn|Chaplin|pp=372, 375}} Chaplin's loneliness was relieved when he met 21-year-old actress [[Paulette Goddard]] in July 1932, and the pair began a relationship.{{sfnm|1a1=Robinson|1p=453|2a1=Maland|2y=1989|2p=147}} He was not ready to commit to a film, however, and focused on writing a [[Serial (literature)|serial]] about his travels (published in ''[[Woman's Home Companion]]'').{{sfn|Robinson|p=451}} The trip had been a stimulating experience for Chaplin, including meetings with several prominent thinkers, and he became increasingly interested in world affairs.{{sfn|Louvish|p=256}} The state of labour in America troubled him, and he feared that capitalism and machinery in the workplace would increase unemployment levels. It was these concerns that stimulated Chaplin to develop his new film.{{sfnm|1a1=Larcher|1p=63|2a1=Robinson|2pp=457–458}}

''[[Modern Times (film)|Modern Times]]'' was announced by Chaplin as "a satire on certain phases of our industrial life".{{sfn|Louvish|p=257}} Featuring the Tramp and Goddard as they endure the [[Great Depression in the United States|Great Depression]], it took ten and a half months to film.{{sfn|Robinson|p=465}} Chaplin intended to use spoken dialogue but changed his mind during rehearsals. Like its predecessor, ''Modern Times'' employed sound effects but almost no speaking.{{sfn|Robinson|p=466}} Chaplin's performance of a gibberish song did, however, give the Tramp a voice for the only time on film.{{sfn|Robinson|p=468}} After recording the music, Chaplin released ''Modern Times'' in February 1936.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=469–472, 474}} It was his first feature in 15 years to adopt political references and social realism,{{sfn|Maland|1989|p=150}} a factor that attracted considerable press coverage despite Chaplin's attempts to downplay the issue.{{sfn|Maland|1989|pp=144–147}} The film earned less at the box-office than his previous features and received mixed reviews, as some viewers disliked the politicising.{{sfnm|1a1=Maland|1y=1989|1p=157|2a1=Robinson|2p=473}} Today, ''Modern Times'' is seen by the British Film Institute as one of Chaplin's "great features",<ref name="bfi great features"/> while David Robinson says it shows the filmmaker at "his unrivalled peak as a creator of visual comedy".{{sfn|Schneider|p=125}}

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 [[Đà Nẵng]] where he visited the [[Marble Mountains (Vietnam)|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}}