Silent Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Silent Film - Essay Example Accessing these materials is, however, not a straightforward path, especially when investigating a new topic. Proper researching, though, leads one to find these archives that contain materials that are so much back dated. This paper, therefore, seeks to explore the archives bearing information on Charlie Chaplain with an aim of stating the lesson learnt from the topic. It will then explain how the topic was identified, the interest it raised over time, how the topic was narrowed, and the obstacles and dead-ends met during the research and the keywords searched that worked best and why they worked. Charlie Chaplain was a wealthy man who made millions through acting in the period of silent films. He was one of the funniest men during his era. He is a funny character who speaks better for himself even though his speech is of silent nature. He could send everyone who watched him into laughter, including those who did not want to laugh. Chaplain inhabited four hubs of jocularity between Fifth Avenue and Dearborn where he brought laughter to the shifting crowds (Kitty 10). His mode of dressing entailed a miserable pair of trousers and a bedraggled coat tails. He was also familiarized with an amusing midst of a minute mustache (Kitty 14). Chaplain was a big name, celebrated for the hilarious performances made in public concerts. He could receive several performance invitations, including the one mentioned in the Los Angeles Times. It provided, â€Å"Chaplain to shine: A citizen’s Vigilance Committee from Venice was out last night searching for one Charlie Chaplain, who is to be in the parade and catch the first ball in the opening game of San Francisco – Venice series.† (Green III1). Chaplain became so famous that at one time a crowd of about 500 people mistook Francis LaPlant and followed him down state street thinking that it was Chaplain. LaPlant thought the crowd wanted to lynch him and ran to a nearby medicine store where police ‘saved ’ him by taking him to his home (Hartford Courant 9). Chaplain produced several humorous antics, which included ‘For the Commonwealth’, ‘Who Pays’ and ‘Work’. As a result of his fame, Chaplain’s value rose. According to the Madison Square Theatre Schedule in New York, Chaplain was valued at $12,500 per week by 1915. According to an article, the management of the theatre offered Chaplain a lump of up to $25,000 as salary in order to engage him (Kingsley III4). Charlie Chaplin was so funny that in some instances he was referred to as the funniest and most vulgar human in the entire universe. In his piece, ‘The Woman’, for example, decent people would be infuriated due to the vulgarity in it. Its nature left the audience angry in their own laughter. This, however, is seen as demeaning his work as he seems to have no self – limit. His talent enables him turn impossible crowds into sheers of laughter. When he gets h is trousers down, however, mixed reactions will mostly likely fill the air, and parents might start restricting their children from attending Chaplin’s concerts. Harry Hamill was once quoted saying, â€Å"†¦In my judgment Chaplin descends to the lowest depths of vulgarity in almost every case.† Another man, A. C. F. said: Even the men will no longer think him funny or clever if he continues