The Freak
''The Freak'' was an unfinished dramatic comedy from Charles Chaplin. The story revolved around a young South American girl who unexpectedly sprouts a pair of wings. She is kidnapped and taken to London, where her captors cash in by passing her off as an angel. Later she escapes, only to be arrested because of her appearance. She is further dehumanized by standing trial to determine if she is human at all. Chaplin began work in and around 1969 with his daughter Victoria Chaplin, Victoria in mind for the lead role. However, Victoria's abrupt marriage and his advanced age proved roadblocks and the film was never made. Chaplin biographer Jeffrey Vance maintains that Chaplin script for ''The Freak'' "borrows many themes, ideas, and even phrases from his three previous films but is nevertheless an original story filled with marvelous Chaplin comedy touches". Vance, who interviewed Victoria Chaplin, believes ''The Freak'' "had strong potential for being a very moving—and fitting—s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Charles Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is considered one of the film industry's most important figures. His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both adulation and controversy. Chaplin's childhood in London was one of poverty and hardship. His father was absent and his mother struggled financially — he was sent to a workhouse twice before age nine. When he was 14, his mother was committed to a mental asylum. Chaplin began performing at an early age, touring music halls and later working as a stage actor and comedian. At 19, he was signed to the Fred Karno company, which took him to the United States. He was scouted for the film industry and began appearing in 1914 for Keystone Studios. He soon de ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two millennia. The City of London, its ancient core and financial centre, was founded by the Romans as '' Londinium'' and retains its medieval boundaries.See also: Independent city § National capitals The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century, the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which largely comprises Greater London, governed by the Greater London Authority.The Greater London Authority consists of the Mayor of London and the London Assembly. The London Mayor is distinguished fr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Victoria Chaplin
Victoria Agnes Thierrée-Chaplin (born May 19, 1951) is a British-American circus performer. She is the daughter of film actor and comedian Charlie Chaplin from his fourth wife, Oona O'Neill, and the granddaughter of playwright Eugene O'Neill. Chaplin was born at Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, but grew up in Switzerland. As a teenager, she appeared as an extra in her father's last film, ''A Countess from Hong Kong'' (1966). Her father also wanted her to star in the main role of a winged girl found from the Amazonian rainforest in his next planned film, ''The Freak'', in 1969. However, the project was never filmed because of his declining health and because Victoria eloped with the French actor Jean-Baptiste Thierrée.Interview with James Thiérrée, The New Yorker, 7 January ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jeffrey Vance
Jeffrey Vance (born May 21, 1970) is an American film historian and author who has published books on movie stars including Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. Career While working as an archivist for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists he met Eleanor Keaton, Buster Keaton's widow, and began organizing her collection of photographs, leading to the illustrated biography ''Buster Keaton Remembered'' (2001). He later served as archivist for the Chaplin family's Roy Export S.A.S., The Harold Lloyd Trust, and the Mary Pickford Foundation where he helped preserve both film and photographs from these important collections. As a producer, he packaged the ''Harold Lloyd Classic Comedies'' for Turner Classic Movies, later released to home video. As a filmmaker, he produced and directed the short film ''Rediscovering John Gilbert'' (2010) which aired on cable television as well as released to home video. Publications *''A Star Is Born: Judy Garland and the Film That Got Away'' (TCM/Running ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Short Films Directed By Charlie Chaplin
Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as the Short Arts, entertainment, and media * Short film, a cinema format (also called film short or short subject) * Short story, prose generally readable in one sitting * ''The Short-Timers'', a 1979 semi-autobiographical novel by Gustav Hasford, about military short-timers in Vietnam Brands and enterprises * Short Brothers, a British aerospace company * Short Brothers of Sunderland, former English shipbuilder Computing and technology * Short circuit, an accidental connection between two nodes of an electrical circuit * Short integer, a computer datatype Finance * Short (finance), stock-trading position * Short snorter, a banknote signed by fellow travelers, common during World War II Foodstuffs * Short pastry, one which is rich in butt ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |