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Tramp: The Life Of Charlie Chaplin
 
 
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Tramp: The Life Of Charlie Chaplin (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Born during the reign of Queen Victoria..." (more)
Key Phrases: reentry permit, New York, Los Angeles, United States (more...)
2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
Price: $21.95 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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  • This item: Tramp: The Life Of Charlie Chaplin by Joyce Milton

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Charlie Chaplin is an enigmatic figure: famous throughout the world in the early days of Hollywood, his celebrity as the silent movie tramp/clown endures; yet he was also active in radical social politics, and later went into exile amid a swirl of rumor and invective concerning his Communist Party connections. Chaplin wrote his own rather selective autobiography, and has been the subject of several memoirs. Milton deals with his tempestuous marriages and with his work, but concentrates on his political life. She analyzes his political naiveté and inconsistency, while locating the source of his left-wing sympathies. The image of the tramp, it transpires, was no accidental movie persona. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


From Publishers Weekly

Despite its title's potential as a double entendre, Milton's substantial biography of Chaplin is hardly dirt-dishing. Eschewing what she calls "pathography," Milton presents a well-researched, evenhanded portrait of a troubled entertainment genius. Starting with Chaplin's roots in late-19th-century British poverty?a history the actor himself obscured?the author traces his complex relationships to a manic-depressive mother, vaudeville theater and the infant film industry, as well as to the celebrity, controversy and exile that marked his later years. Chaplin, a socially awkward man of erratic moods and creative spurts, suffered internal conflicts over money?though immensely wealthy, he was a notorious penny-pincher?as well as over his liaisons with startlingly young women. Milton tackles these exploitable topics with respect, however, depicting the actor/director as a man whose ambition, fortune and left-leaning political sympathies have had far-reaching effects on the business and PR structure of Hollywood today?as has the public aftermath of his seemingly unsavory marriages and love affairs. Milton's clear rendering of one of the first film superstars, and of the fickle public scrutiny that followed him, doubles then?as did her superb life of the Lindberghs, Loss of Eden (1992)?as a sweeping look at the first half of the 20th century. Photos not seen by PW. Author tour; U.K., translation, first serial, dramatic rights: Barbara Lowenstein.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 588 pages
  • Publisher: Da Capo Press (March 21, 1998)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0306808315
  • ISBN-13: 978-0306808319
  • Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 1.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #727,377 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Joyce Milton
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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Born during the reign of Queen Victoria. Read the first page
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reentry permit
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New York, Los Angeles, United States, Charlie Chaplin, United Artists, Summit Drive, Joan Barry, First National, Mary Pickford, Rob Wagner, San Francisco, Beverly Hills, Charles Chaplin, City Lights, Alf Reeves, Soviet Union, Communist Party, Doug Fairbanks, Max Eastman, Mabel Normand, Modern Times, Harry Crocker, Rollie Totheroh, Tim Durant, Edna Purviance
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Customer Reviews

17 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
2.8 out of 5 stars (17 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars There ought to be a law . . . or at least a Fatal Mallet!, August 15, 2005
By Mark L. Lowentrout (Santa Clarita, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This merciless attack is filled with unsubstantiated pronouncements (not to mention typos) about Chaplin including a diagnosis of manic-depressive personality disorder offered nearly twenty years after his death and with no research nor expertise to support it. And is Joyce Milton herself qualified to make this judgment? Of course not. While this discourse is passed off as well-researched, one look at the notes and citations shows a limited selection of sources with a clear intention--to topple Chaplin whom Milton simply does not like. It seems as if the thesis of this book was in place well before the "research" began. Such is the tone of personal invective Milton fobs off as insight. I would never claim that Charlie Chaplin was a saint; no one can reasonably make that assertion about anyone. Unfortunately, Joyce Milton shows how imperfect a writer can be. Sadly for her, she picks up where Kitty Kelly leaves off. Shameful.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars In the tradition of Kenneth Anger..., November 11, 2005
Probably no biography is without some value, but this is one of the two worst Chaplin books published. The comedian was hardly a perfect man, and there are things about him even a long-time fan might find bothersome, but much of this biography is trashy and filled with unsubstantiated ugly rumors. David Robinson's CHAPLIN: HIS LIFE AND ART, published twenty years ago, remains the best way to learn about Mr. Chaplin's complex life and work, while Glenn Mitchell's CHAPLIN ENCYCLOPEDIA I have found very helpful. This book is best ignored and forgotten.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Tramp - no insight into Chaplin as a filmmaker, August 16, 2004
By Cesar Cruz (Albuquerque, NM) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I wish I had done a little research on this book before reading it. As it turned out when I was near the end of the book it struck me that I wish I hadn't bought or read it. Undoubtedly the author is a talented writer and an impressive researcher, but the book's almost nonexistant focus on Chaplin as a filmmaker should be a caution to any reader.

Before getting to the bulk of the book I will point out the one positive aspect of the book. Chaplin's childhood left me in awe. To say that it was tough doesn't even come close, and I couldn't help thinking how lucky he was to rise from nothing to the succesful filmmaker that he became. Then there is the rest of the story.

In the +500 pages of 'Tramp,' Joyce Milton concentrates on two aspects of Chaplin's life. First, the author details the many sad and destructive relationships Chaplin had with his wives, mistresses, and countless others in Hollywood. Almost no one comes out looking good in any of these relationships - not Chaplin or most of the women. For about thirty years, until his marriage to Oona O'Neill, it is one tarnished and ruined experience after another. Paulette Goddard is one of the few who comes out in any positive light. And of Oona O'Neill, the one woman that Chaplin seemed to be able to have anything resembling a successful relationship, we end up learning the very least.

Second, the author dedicates an excessive amount of space on Chaplin's Marxists views. The point is clear - it is the highest irony that a multimillionaire actor had such strong opposition to free enterprise. A lot can be said of that, and Milton takes every opportunity to do so. The endless cast of insigificant Communist sympathizers goes on and on. What a boring lot they were! Eventually I read over these parts with no care to retain any of the information. In the end it was just plain tiresome.

It was largely surprising how little space Milton spent on Chaplin as a filmmaker. Many of the chapter titles are Chaplin's own movie titles. Yet, for example, in the nearly 30-page chapter 'City Lignts,' if you were to string together the few paragraphs that actually deal with the movie 'City Lights' you'd be lucky to put together 2 or 3 pages. At the end of the book, Milton makes the point that if you want to know Chaplin as a filmmaker, watch his videos, they are readily available. I second that - rent or buy his videos, skip this book.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars not for chaplin fans
due to a snafu with my computer, the first review i wrote for this book was lost. i could have just given up, but i am determined to implore those of you considering adding this... Read more
Published on January 30, 2005 by S. Crisp

1.0 out of 5 stars horrid....
very biased & catty...she made him out as a monster, HATED this book, really
Published on May 5, 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT! AN ABSORBING GLIMPSE INTO A HOLLYWOOD LONG GONE
I just finished reading this book and couldn't put it down!

It is a truly engrossing look at the life, and the times, of an artist who truly defined the art of film-making... Read more

Published on February 16, 2004 by Lawrence Lomenzo

1.0 out of 5 stars A truely biased Bio. an epic waste of time and money.
I was at first rather impressed by the epic size of the book thinking it must contain something new about the comedian. Well, I was wrong. It was long, tedious and nasty. Read more
Published on May 29, 2003 by james bien

5.0 out of 5 stars American Slapstick
Joyce Milton's painstakable bio on Chaplin is amazing. She writes over 500 small-print pages of absolute detail from David Robinson's cover-all-ground novel, to Richard... Read more
Published on June 21, 2000 by AJ

5.0 out of 5 stars Possibly the best Chaplin biography written.
An unflinching look at Chaplin, the person. Often surprising, but never dull reading. In a word, very fair in the author's treatment of Chaplin. Read more
Published on May 4, 2000 by John Baldwin

4.0 out of 5 stars What a Story
Having known next to nothing about Charlie Chaplin, I was not sure if I would enjoy this book at first; however, by the time I had finished the first chapter, I was hooked. Read more
Published on April 16, 2000 by astaireophile

4.0 out of 5 stars A life reviewed from all angles.
Although parts of this biography of Sir Charles Chaplin are very. . . distrubing, it does also present Chaplin at his best. Read more
Published on December 18, 1999 by Deborah Lovelace

1.0 out of 5 stars Awful !
What can I say other than this book offers a poorly written cocked-eyed version of Chaplin's life. Try reading the first two chapers and you will know why.
Published on June 18, 1999

2.0 out of 5 stars Don't Bother
The author of this book obviously has no empathy for Chaplin and because of this the reader does not get a "feel" for the real man. Read more
Published on January 31, 1999 by puffinswan

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