Charles Lapworth (13 June 1878 – 26 October 1951) was a socialist activist, journalist and film promoter. He was born in Willenhall, Staffordshire on 13 June 1878, the son of a coal miner. Lapworth toured with

Eugene V. Debs Eugene Victor "Gene" Debs (November 5, 1855 – October 20, 1926) was an American socialist, political activist, trade unionist, one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), and five times the candidate of the Soc ...

in 1908, promoting the

Industrial Workers of the World The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), members of which are commonly termed "Wobblies", is an international labor union that was founded in Chicago in 1905. The origin of the nickname "Wobblies" is uncertain. IWW ideology combines general ...

and speaking about socialism in Britain. He returned to Britain to stand in Sheffield Brightside at the January 1910 general election for the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Fo ...

, but took only 4.7% of the vote. He then toured Italy with his wife, investigating the socialist movement there, and wrote ''Tripoli and the Young Italy'' with Helen Zimmern. In 1912, Lapworth again returned to Britain, to take up the editorship of the '' Daily Herald''. Although he increased circulation, he upset its publisher,

George Lansbury George Lansbury (22 February 1859 – 7 May 1940) was a British politician and social reformer who led the Labour Party from 1932 to 1935. Apart from a brief period of ministerial office during the Labour government of 1929–31, he spe ...

, by strongly criticising

Philip Snowden Philip Snowden, 1st Viscount Snowden, PC (; 18 July 1864 – 15 May 1937) was a British politician. A strong speaker, he became popular in trade union circles for his denunciation of capitalism as unethical and his promise of a socialist utop ...

, and Lansbury himself replaced Lapworth as editor in late 1913. Lapworth worked as night editor of the '' Daily Mail'' for a short time, before returning to the United States, which he toured with his family in an early

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

. In 1918, he interviewed Charlie Chaplin, and briefly worked with him as a writer and consultant on '' A Dog's Life''. During the 1920s, he edited the '' Los Angeles Graphic'' newspaper, and also acted as

Sam Goldwyn Samuel Goldwyn (born Szmuel Gelbfisz; yi, שמואל געלבפֿיש; August 27, 1882 (claimed) January 31, 1974), also known as Samuel Goldfish, was a Polish-born American film producer. He was best known for being the founding contributor a ...

's agent in London. In 1925, he joined the board of

Gainsborough Pictures Gainsborough Pictures was a British film studio based on the south bank of the Regent's Canal, in Poole Street, Hoxton in the former Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch, north London. Gainsborough Studios was active between 1924 and 1951. The com ...

, where he wrote film scripts including '' The Sea Urchin'' and the original story of the early

Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

movie, ''

The Mountain Eagle ''The Mountain Eagle'' is a 1926 silent drama film, and Alfred Hitchcock's second as director, following '' The Pleasure Garden''. The film, a romantic melodrama set in Kentucky, is about a widower (Bernhard Goetzke) who jealously competes wi ...

''. He also worked as production manager with the short-lived Société Générale des Films, who made ''

The Passion of Joan of Arc ''The Passion of Joan of Arc'' (french: link=no, La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc) is a 1928 French silent historical film based on the actual record of the trial of Joan of Arc. The film was directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer and stars Renée Jeanne ...

''. In 1931, he returned to Los Angeles, as editor of ''Film Quarterly''. Among his other projects was the co-ownership of the ''Rye Courier'', a small newspaper based in

Rye, New York Rye is a coastal suburb of New York City in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is separate from the Town of Rye, which has more land area than the city. The City of Rye, formerly the Village of Rye, was part of the Town until it r ...

. In 1942, Lapworth launched the short-lived ''Malibu Bugle'', the first newspaper in the city.Malibu Development: War Years to Late 1940s
Malibu Complete He died in Los Angeles, California on 26 October 1951. He left a wife and two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lapworth, Charles 1878 births 1951 deaths British film producers British newspaper editors British socialists Social Democratic Federation members Industrial Workers of the World members 20th-century British people