Editing Charlie Chaplin (section)

====Final works and renewed appreciation====
[[File:Chaplin family 1961.jpg|thumb|upright=1.25|Chaplin with his wife Oona and six of their eight children (Jane and [[Christopher Chaplin|Christopher]] are absent) in 1961]]

In the last two decades of his career, Chaplin concentrated on re-editing and scoring his old films for re-release, along with securing their ownership and distribution rights.{{sfn|Maland|1989|p=326}} In an interview he gave in 1959, the year of his 70th birthday, Chaplin stated that there was still "room for the Little Man in the atomic age".{{sfn|Robinson|pp=594–595}} The first of these re-releases was ''[[The Chaplin Revue]]'' (1959), which included new versions of ''A Dog's Life'', ''Shoulder Arms'', and ''The Pilgrim''.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=594–595}}

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 working on 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}}

Shortly after the publication of his memoir, Chaplin began work on ''[[A Countess from Hong Kong]]'' (1967), a romantic comedy based on a script he had written for Paulette Goddard in the 1930s.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=608–609}} Set on an ocean liner, it starred [[Marlon Brando]] as an American ambassador and [[Sophia Loren]] as a stowaway found in his cabin.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=608–609}} The film differed from Chaplin's earlier productions in several aspects. It was his first to use [[Technicolor]] and the [[widescreen]] format, while he concentrated on directing and appeared on-screen only in a cameo role as a seasick steward.{{sfn|Robinson|p=612}} He also signed a deal with [[Universal Pictures]] and appointed his assistant, [[Jerome Epstein (director)|Jerome Epstein]], as the producer.{{sfn|Robinson|p=607}} Chaplin was paid $600,000 director's fee as well as a percentage of the gross receipts.{{sfn|Vance|2003|p=330}} ''A Countess from Hong Kong'' premiered in January 1967, to unfavourable reviews, and was a box-office failure.{{sfn|Epstein|pp=192–196}}{{sfnm|1a1=Lynn|1p=518|2a1=Maland|2y=1989|2p=335}} Chaplin was deeply hurt by the negative reaction to the film, which turned out to be his last.{{sfn|Epstein|pp=192–196}}

Chaplin had a series of minor strokes in the late 1960s, which marked the beginning of a slow decline in his health.{{sfn|Robinson|p=619}} Despite the setbacks, he was soon writing a new film script, ''The Freak'', a story of a winged girl found in South America, which he intended as a starring vehicle for his daughter, Victoria.{{sfn|Robinson|p=619}} His fragile health prevented the project from being realised.{{sfn|Epstein|p=203}} In the early 1970s, Chaplin concentrated on re-releasing his old films, including ''The Kid'' and ''The Circus''.{{sfn|Robinson|pp=620–621}} In 1971, he was made a [[Legion of Honour|Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour]] at the [[Cannes Film Festival]].{{sfn|Robinson|p=621}} The following year, he was honoured with a special award by the [[Venice Film Festival]].{{sfn|Robinson|p=625}}
[[File:Chaplin oscar.JPG|thumb|left|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 twenty years.]]

In 1972, the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] offered Chaplin an Honorary Award, which Robinson sees as a sign that America "wanted to make amends". Chaplin was initially hesitant about accepting but decided to return to the US for the first time in 20 years.{{sfn|Robinson|p=621}} The visit attracted a large amount of press coverage and, at the Academy Awards gala, he was given a 12-minute standing ovation, the longest in the academy's history.{{sfn|Maland|1989|p=347}} Visibly emotional, Chaplin accepted his award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century".{{sfn|Robinson|pp=623–625}}

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=http://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>