Geraldine Chaplin
THE KID had its world premiere one hundred years ago today, on January 21, 1921 at Carnegie Hall in New York City in a pre-public subscription showing as part of a benefit for the Children’s Fund of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. A milestone in his artistry, THE KID was Charles Chaplin’s first full-length film as a director and his most ambitious production to date.
Chaplin created something completely new with THE KID. Films were either dramas, or comedies – but here, as in life, the two were combined in the most natural seeming way. Chaplin wrote in his autobiography that “there had been satire, farce, realism, naturalism, melodrama and fantasy, but raw slapstick and sentiment, the premise of THE KID, was something of an innovation.” He recalled being told by an industry professional, “It won’t work. The form must be pure, either slapstick or drama; you cannot mix them, otherwise one element of your story will fail.” But Chaplin followed his intuition, the film was an instant success, and the cinema industry never looked back.
Paulette Goddard
“A day without laughter is a day wasted.” Charlie Chaplin 9. Words are cheap. “Words are cheap. The biggest thing you can say is ‘elephant’”. Charlie Chaplin. To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it. “To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it!” 11. But you see, Charlie Chaplin was much more than that. He was a writer, a filmmaker, a musician, and a brilliant man. His thinking was ahead of his time. And because I have found in his words a unique wisdom and deep inspiration, I have compiled some of his most. Born Charles Spencer Chaplin in London, England, on April 16, 1889, Chaplin's rise to fame is a true rags-to-riches story. His father, a notorious drinker, abandoned Chaplin, his mother and his. 1) Charlie Chaplin was a silent film actor, director and comedian, best known for his recurring character 'the little tramp'. Besides performing and directing, he also composed music to be played alongside his movies. 2) Charlie Chaplin (born Richard Bennett is a Jamaican dancehall and ragga deejay and singer.
In February 1921, the Morning Telegraph noted that “THE KID will live when other pictures have died. Its pathos is universal in its appeal. Its humor is classic. Chaplin is a humanitarian. He understands the hearts of the irresponsible, the children and the willing failures of the world. The joys of THE KID cannot be catalogued, they must be seen.”
THE KID is still a hit with audiences 100 years on. It is no surprise that the honorary Academy Award presented to Chaplin in 1972 was for the incalculable effect he had had in making motion pictures the art form of the 20th century. In 2011, THE KID was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”
Oona Chaplin
You can learn more on THE KID section of our website, watch some classic clips on our Youtube channel and listen to the soundtrack on Spotify.
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