A los Estados Unidos llegó enrolado en la troupe cómica londinense de Fred Karno. Lo vio actuar el productor Mack Sennett, jefe de la Keystone, que percibió inmediatamente su talento y lo llevó con él a Chicago y a California. Rodó decenas de películas para Sennett hasta que comenzó a rodar sus propias películas.
Casi desde sus comienzos creó el famoso personaje del vagabundo, conocido por “Charlot”, que le hizo mundialmente famoso. En esa figura se funden otras muchas: (Fernández-Santos 1997) la del judío errante, la del pícaro enamoradizo, la del bandido generoso, la del apátrida 'sentimental, la del golfo enamorado, la del mendigo dandy, la del artista de la supervivencia, la del exiliado perpetuo y otras cristalizaciones de la metáfora bíblica de la sal de la tierra, es decir: la revulsiva, irresistible y confortadora gracia de esa casta de individuos que, expulsados de la colectividad porque no saben ceder a ésta un milímetro del territorio de su independencia, convierten su soledad en su pueblo.
El mismo Chaplin dio a su personaje del vagabundo, que le acompaño desde sus primeros tiempos hasta la película Tiempos Modernos (Modern Times, 1940), el vestuario y maquillaje que lo identifica. Estaba formado de prendas de vestir prestadas o apropiadas de otros actores. Las botas de Sterling, tan grandes que para llevarlas se las tenía que colocar en el pie que no correspondía, los grandes pantalones del gordísimo Fatty Arbuckle, el sombrero hongo del suegro de Arbuckle, que tenía la cabeza muy pequeña, una estrecha chaqueta de Charles Avery, y el bastón que hacía tiempo el mismo Chaplin manejaba con soltura. Acompañados del bigotito cortado bajo la nariz, el personaje se hizo característico y fue desarrollado y perfeccionado a lo largo de los 22 años siguientes.
Entre 1914 y 1923 Chaplin interpretó, escribió, musicalizó, supervisó la fotografía, dirigió y produjo nada menos que 69 filmes. Rodó 35 películas en la Keystone, muchas de las cuales dirigió. Allí perfeccionó su oficio y pasó por otras compañías hasta tener estudio propio, en 1917. En esa época realizó cortos memorables. En 1919 rodó su primer largometraje El Chico (The Kid, 1921), obra social en la que incluye elementos autobiográficos y su preocupación por los niños abandonados.
En 1925 dirigió La quimera del oro (The Gold Rush) y en 1928 El circo, consideradas ambas de lo mejor de su filmografía. En esos tiempos, el cine sonoro preocupó a Chaplin, que había visto caer a directores y astros del cine mudo. Sus siguientes películas, a pesar de incluir sonidos, música o trabalenguas, siguieron siendo eminentemente de mímica y pantomima muda a pesar de que el cine entraba de lleno en el sonoro.
Las críticas del puritanismo norteamericano, producidas por los contenidos o trasfondos sociales de las películas de Chaplin, se vieron incrementadas notablemente con la película El gran dictador (The Great Dictator, 1940), una sátira contra las dictaduras, en la que personifica caricaturescamente a Hitler. El mismo Chaplin comentó posteriormente que si hubiera sabido en aquello momentos la verdad sobre los campos de concentración y el exterminio nazi, nunca hubiera osado realizar la película. Las campañas de descrédito contra Chaplin se agudizaron a partir de la película Monsieur Verdoux, en 1947, sobre un cínico personaje que emulando a Barba azul se dedicaba a enamorar mujeres para quedarse con su dinero después de asesinarlas y mantener así a su familia. El trasfondo comparativo entre los crímenes de Verdoux y los que hacían los aliados en la guerra fría no gustó demasiado a las autoridades y a los patriotas americanos, y Charles Chaplin se exilió de los Estados Unidos en 1953.
Antes de abandonar los Estados Unidos rodó su última gran película, Candilejas (Limelight 1952), llena de referencias autobiográficas, sobre actores y el teatro. ‘Es Candilejas su gran película final, (Fernández-Santos 1997) la que logró la entera fusión en un solo gesto de la carcajada, y la lágrima y la contiene, en la terrible imagen del camerino donde Chales Chaplin y Buster Keaton, lo príncipes de la comedia fundacional de Hollywood, se van despojando de los acicalamientos de sus caretas de cómicos geniales y quedan reducidos a máscaras trágicas’.
Ya en Londres dirigió e interpretó Un rey en Nueva York (A King in New York, 1957), una crítica despiada contra la sociedad norteamericana, las persecuciones de la era de la caza de brujas del senador maccarthista que él mismo había sufrido y el dominio de la publicidad. Su última película, en la que no actuó fue La condesa de Hong Kong, (A countess From Hong Kong, 1967), a los 77 años, interpretada por Sofía Loren y Marlos Brando.
Charles Chaplin falleció, rodeado por sus hijos, nietos y su última esposa, Oona, hija del gran dramaturgo estadounidense Eugene O'Neil, en su casona suiza de Vevey, en la Navidad de 1977.
Charles Chaplin falleció, rodeado por sus hijos, nietos y su última esposa, Oona, hija del gran dramaturgo estadounidense Eugene O'Neil, en su casona suiza de Vevey, en la Navidad de 1977.
Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in London in 1889. His father, Charles Chaplin, was an actor of Jewish descent, his mother, Hannah singer and dancer, was a minor actress, took care of two children, Sydney Chaplin. Charles succeeded his mother in the theater a day this was hoarse. With the same song she sang her mother, after five years, Charles had a memorable success. From that day acted Charles and his mother was no longer active (Taylor, 1993. This will be allowed in a few years with great acting ability for comedy and mime. When the mother went mad and was Chaplin himself who led his mother to an asylum. The brothers Chaplin spent time between orphanages and other charities. When his mother died, Sydney, his older brother and he lived on charity and odd jobs on the streets and in the theater. His life was of extreme poverty. The child made a living singing and mimicking the streets of London. After 12 years Charles worked in several theater companies.The United States became enlisted in the London comedy troupe Fred Karno. I saw her perform the producer Mack Sennett, Keystone chief, who immediately noticed his talent and took him with him to Chicago and California. Dozens of movies filmed Sennett until he began shooting his own films.Almost from the beginning created the famous tramp character, known as "Charlot", which made him world famous. In this figure merge many others: (Fernández-Santos 1997), the wandering Jew, the rogue's amorous, the generous bandit, the stateless person 'sentimental love the Gulf, the beggar's dandy, the artist of the survival, of perpetual exile and other crystals of the biblical metaphor of the salt of the earth, ie the revolting, irresistible and comforting grace of that breed of individuals who, expelled from the community because they can not assign to it a millimeter of territory of its independence, makes her loneliness in her village.Chaplin himself gave his tramp character, who accompanied him from the earliest times to the film Modern Times (Modern Times, 1940), the costumes and makeup that identifies it. It consisted of borrowed clothing or other appropriate actors. Sterling boots, so large that they had to take them to put on the foot that did not correspond very fat big pants Fatty Arbuckle, the bowler hat in-law of Arbuckle, whose head was very small, a tight jacket of Charles Avery, and the staff that Chaplin was driving the same time with ease. Accompanied with the mustache under his nose cut off, the character was distinctive and was developed and perfected over the 22 years.Between 1914 and 1923 he played Chaplin wrote, set to music, photography supervised, directed and produced no less than 69 films. 35 films shot in Keystone, many of whom directed. There he perfected his craft and spent by other companies to have their own studio in 1917. In that short time made memorable. In 1919 he made his first feature film The Boy (The Kid, 1921), social work which includes autobiographical elements and her concern for abandoned children.In 1925 he directed The Gold Rush (The Gold Rush) and in 1928 the circus, considered both the best of his films. At that time, the talkies worried Chaplin, who had seen him fall to directors and stars of silent films. His next film, despite including sounds, music or twisters, remained essentially mute mime and pantomime despite the film entered fully into the sound.The criticisms of American Puritanism, produced by the content or social backgrounds Chaplin films, were significantly increased in the movie The Great Dictator (The Great Dictator, 1940), a satire on dictatorships, which embodies caricatured Hitler . Chaplin himself said later that had he known at the time the truth about the concentration camps and the Nazi extermination would never have dared to make the film. The smear campaign against Chaplin were exacerbated after the film Monsieur Verdoux, in 1947 on a cynical character emulating Blue Beard was engaged women love to stay with his money after killing them and thus maintain his family. The comparative background Verdoux's crimes and those who were allies in the Cold War did not like too much to the authorities and the American patriots, and Charles Chaplin was exiled from the United States in 1953.Before leaving the United States made his last great film, Limelight (Limelight 1952), full of autobiographical references, about actors and theater. "It is his great final film Limelight (Fernández-Santos 1997), who managed the entire merger in a single gesture of laughter and tears and contains, in the terrible image of the clubhouse where Chaplin and Buster Keaton Shawls, the princes founding of the Hollywood comedy, are stripped of their masks Grooming comic genius and tragic masks are reduced to '.Back in London, directed and performed A King in New York (A King in New York, 1957), a ruthless critique of American society against the persecutions of the era of witch hunts of Senator McCarthyite he had undergone, and domain of advertising. His latest film, which was not acted Countess from Hong Kong (A Countess From Hong Kong, 1967), at age 77, played by Sophia Loren and Brando Marlos.Charles Chaplin died, surrounded by his children, grandchildren and his last wife, Oona, daughter of the great American playwright Eugene O'Neill, in Vevey Swiss house in Christmas 1977.
http://www.uhu.es/cine.educacion/cineyeducacion/figuraschaplin.htm
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