Still today, most of us recognize the character of the Little Tramp--postage-stamp mustache, formal bowler hat, too small jacket, too large pants, huge shoes pointing out, and a cane twirling. This character, created by Charlie Chaplin in 1914, has become an icon of American film and American culture. Sid Fleischman presents a very readable biography of Charlie Chaplin, from his childhood of abject poverty in the slums of London to being one of the highest paid and most powerful movie stars in Hollywood; from his banishment from the U.S. in 1952 to his triumphant return to the Oscar ceremony in 1972. Chaplin was a genius at physical comedy and an innovative film maker. But Fleischman also presents Chaplin's personal problems--his multiple relationships with very young women; his distance from his children; his strained relationship with his mother; his unpopular politics.
The book is well written and full of wonderful photographs. Thoroughly entertaining--almost as entertaining as Chaplin himself!
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