Charlie Chaplin: Interviews (Conversations With Filmmakers Series) (Paperback)

~ (Editor) "Mr. Chaplin threw up his hands..." (more)
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Silent cinema star Chaplin was a visual genius. He spoke in images, not words, which may explain his discomfort with reporters as well as why this book of interviews is a mixed bag. Hayes, an English professor at the University of Central Oklahoma, mined the more thoughtful interviews Chaplin gave between 1915 and 1967. They reveal his philosophies of filmmaking, his artistic spontaneity and his love of character over plot. Hayes minimizes the controversies that surrounded Chaplin—his marriages and his politics—and focuses on his aesthetic. The collection opens with a 1915 Motion Picture Magazine article that details his move to Essanay studio in order to write, direct and star, and ends with Chaplin's comments on his 1967 critical failure, The Countess from Hong Kong. Each decade of Chaplin's career is dutifully noted, and interesting tidbits abound, such as the inspiration for The Little Tramp's iconic walk and mustache. But the book's drawback is pronounced: the repetitive nature of celebrity interviews is such that almost every entry describes Chaplin's poverty-stricken childhood and his training in Fred Karno's vaudeville troupe. There are gems—Bosley Crowther's 1960 New York Times Magazine article is the most succinct and affords an insightful overview of Chaplin's life and career—but readers have to work to find them. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Description

In late 1914, Charlie Chaplin's name first began appearing on marquees. By the end of the following year, moviegoers couldn't get enough of him and his iconic persona, the Little Tramp. Perpetually outfitted with baggy pants, a limp cane, and a dusty bowler hat, the character became so beloved that Chaplin was mobbed by fans, journalists, and critics at every turn.

Although he never particularly liked giving interviews, he accepted the demands of his stardom, giving detailed responses about his methods of making movies. He quickly progressed from making two-reel shorts to feature-length masterpieces such as "The Gold Rush", "City Lights", and "Modern Times".

Charlie Chaplin: Interviews offers a complex portrait of perhaps the world's greatest cinematic comedian and a man who is considered to be one of the most influential screen artists in movie history. The interviews he granted, performances in and of themselves, are often as well crafted as his films. Unlike the Little Tramp, Chaplin the interviewee comes across as melancholy and serious, as the titles of some early interviews --- "The Sad Business of Being Funny" or "The Hamlet-Like Nature of Charlie Chaplin" --- make abundantly clear.

His first sound feature, "The Great Dictator" (1940), is a direct condemnation of Hitler. His later films such as "Monsieur Verdoux" (1947) and "Limelight" (1952) obliquely criticize American policy and consequently generated mixed reactions from critics and little response from moviegoers. During this late period of his filmmaking, Chaplin granted interviews less often. The three later interviews included here are thus extremely valuable, offering long, contemplative analyses of the man's life and work.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 150 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Mississippi (January 13, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578067022
• ISBN-13: 978-1578067022
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #92,429 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A long-awaited sampling ... proves that even Hollywood-stars give insightful interviews at times, May 28, 2007

By	Snorre Smari Mathiesen (Norway) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Once you're through reading Chaplin's memoirs and David Robinson's biography, you easily get the impression that's everything a Chaplin-fan needs to know about their hero. I assure you such is not the case; I can name several other books just as significant for any student of the comedian's life and work, and CHARLIE CHAPLIN: INTERVIEWS is certainly among them.

Kevin J. Hayes has done a wonderful job collecting some of the relatively few truly insightful interviews Chaplin ever did, beginning with "The Funniest Man on the Screen" by Victor Eubank (published 1915), in which Chaplin, who at that time had just signed his Essanay-contract, expressed some very reflected thoughts about comedy, being still just a newcomer in the movie-business. There are twenty-four interviews in all, other titles included are:

"Beneath the Mask: Witty, Wistful, Serious Is The Real Charlie Chaplin" (Grace Kingsley, 1916)
"Charlie Chaplin, Philosopher, Has Serious Side" (Frank Veeland, 1921)
"Shy Charlie Chaplin Opens His Heart" (Mordaunt Hall, 1925)
"Future of the Cinema: Mr. Charles Chaplin" (Robert Nichols, 1925)
"Chaplin Explains Chaplin" (Harry Carr, 1925)
"Chaplin Draws a Keen Weapon" (Robert van Gelder, 1940)
"Charlie Chaplin's MONSIEUR VERDOUX Press Conference" (George Wallach, 1947)
"Ageless Master's Anatomy of Comedy: Chaplin, An Interview" (Richard Meryman, 1967)
...etc.

The latter title is not really an interview, but rather an essay written by Chaplin where he covers both personal feelings and his view on the movie industry of today (which, of course, is the 1960's). Despite the fact that some interviews have nearly reached a century of age, they stand out as remarkably fresh and modern in their style and subjects. Naturally, some are better than others --the MONSIEUR VERDOUX press conference offers little except several attacks on Chaplin's politics and questions concerning Orson Welles' contributions to the screen-play-- but the very best are simply terrific.

The book includes no photos, but who needs that when all these great articles are available? CHARLIE CHAPLIN: INTERVIEWS is a unique sampling of some very sensitive and interesting interviews, which every admirer of the great comedian should read and own. I'll sure get Hayes' similar Buster Keaton-book one of these days.