Chaplin my autobiography

The recent release of Salinger draws attention to a historical figure not widely associated with the eponymous author: Charlie Chaplin.

The filmadvances the theory that the author never fully recovered from the heartbreak of having Oona O&#;Neill (daughter of playwright Eugene O&#;Neill) choose Chaplin over him. The following text is excerpted from a review  that was first published in Films in Review magazine in December, Highlights from the Salinger Q&A can be found here.

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Chaplin&#;s Autobiography: Is Disappointing and Defective As Film History And Mediocre As Literature
By Jack Spears

It is noteworthy that My Autobiography is by Charles, not Charlie Chaplin.

Although Mr. Chaplin is currently a different person from the Charlie who first made movie audiences laugh and cry half a century ago, he is still unable to tell the truth about his parents and childhood, and about his strange ambivalence toward Communism.

&#;The Chaplin who comes through in these pages seems to me a cold and essentially self-centered man&#;

My Autobiography has to be read by all who are interested in the movies, but it is far from the contribution to film history it should have been, or that Chaplin could have made it had he so desired. And it is not likely to be read rewardingly by the general public, for, judged as a literary production, it is a casual and even lazy piece of work, and bears many evidences of having been dictated by a man who either doesn&#;t know himself or is unwilling to reveal the man he knows himself to be.

The Chaplin who comes through in these pages seems to me a cold and essentially self-centered man, and not a pleasant character in many respects. He arouses sympathy only in the passages dealing with his insane mother, yet even of her he says unkind things, and there is a faint note of resentment because she failed him as a parent. Chaplin&#;s attempt to explain his conduct &#; social, moral and political &#; as the end-product of ch

“It was strange to listen to slick young Nazis along Fifth Avenue haranguing small gatherings from little mahogany pulpits. One spiel went as follows: "The philosophy of Hitler is a profound and thoughtful study of this industrial age, in which there is little room for the middleman or Jew."

A woman interrupted. "What kind of talk is that!" she exclaimed. "This is America. Where do you think you are?"

The young man, an obsequious, good-looking type, smiled blandly. "I'm in the United States and I happen to be an American citizen," he said smoothly.

"Well," she said, "I'm an American citizen, and a Jew, and if I were a man I'd knock your block off!"

One or two endorsed the lady's threat, but most of them stood apathetically silent. A policeman standing by quieted the woman. I came away astonished, hardly believing my ears.”
&#; Charlie Chaplin, My Autobiography

“… Like all people I am who I am: a unique and different individual who inherited his impulses and aspirations from your ancestors; a story of dreams, desired and accumulated experience that summarizes me.&#;

When you find your grandmother&#;s treasure book in your old library, you can&#;t help but read it. I came across My Autobiography by Charlie Chaplin on the last day of November. The Bulgarian language edition was from , only 4 years after it was first published. It became a little strange to me how the book was there all the time, among the other grandmother&#;s books, without noticing it before. Finding it once again convinced me that there is some mysterious magic around all the books in this world and some books always find you when it’s time to read them.

I immediately began to read with trembling and remained amazed from the front pages. Charlie Chaplin talks with ease and elegance about his life in London, where he was born, about his difficult childhood, about his mother Hannah and his brother Sydney, for his father Charlie, to whom he was named. It was this first part of the book that was the most interesting, most personal, most outspoken. The misery and poverty, among whom Charlie spent the days of his childhood, shocked me. His parents divorced while he was still young, and his father, who struggles with alcohol, leaves the care of his mother Hannah&#;s family. She is an actress and Charlie is the first time on stage when he is five to &#;save&#; her mother, who suddenly loses her voice. That&#;s how it all starts…

From Fred Karno&#;s prestigious comedy company, with which he goes to America, through the image of the Tramp, which becomes recognizable around the world, through several unsuccessful marriages and many more films in which his undeniable magic is recognizable, My Autobiography fills the reader with sincere admiration in all its hundreds of pages.

The curiosity about the actor&#;s love l

Hardcover. Condition: Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Fair. 1st Edition. London: The Bodley Head, , First Edition. SIGNED by the author to the dedication page. In full red cloth binding with gilt titles to the spine and front board, signed by the author and dedicated to Lieut. J Chamberlain to the dedication page, signature date 'Nov 13th 64'. In the original dustjacket which is worn and creased with closed tears and one tear with loss to the top of the spine. Signed first editions of this title are scarce, with only a few for sale online. First edition, first printing of Charlie Chaplin's autobiography illustrated with photographs. Uncommon signed and inscribed. From the dust jacket "It begins in the vanished London of the 'nineties, in the shabby Bohemian atmosphere of the Kennington Road, with its drab side-streets. Here, as a child, the cruel realities of life were brought home to him, and he tells of the poignant adventures and heartbreaks that he went through. He recounts his first professional appearance at the age of eight, as a clog-dancer, and does not hesitate to describe the shock and shame of his first flop." Etc etc. Pagination: [xiv], pp. Provenance: inscription to Lieut. J Chamberlain to the dedication page. Size: approximately 8 � inches tall (cm). Condition Report Externally Spine good condition cloth spine, gently worn and faded, marks, gilt titles. Joints good condition sound, rubbed and worn, marks. Corners good condition bumped and worn. Boards good condition rubbed and worn to the edges, with a dent to the top and base of the rear board, minor marks, gilt titles to front board. Page edges good condition gently marked and tanned. Dust Jacket fair condition original jacket, creased, misfolded, torn with loss see photos. See above and photos. Internally Hinges very good condition sound. Paste downs good condition tanned. End papers good condition tanned. Title good condition. Pages good condition. Binding good condition.