Sir Charles Spencer “Charlie” Chaplin was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, “The Tramp”, and is considered one of the most important figures in the history of the film industry. His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both adulation and controversy.
He received an Honorary Academy Award for “the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century” in 1972, as part of a renewed appreciation for his work. He continues to be held in high regard, with The Gold Rush, City Lights, Modern Times, and The Great Dictator often ranked on lists of the greatest films of all time.
Some of the best quotes from Charlie Chaplin are listed below.
- “A man’s true character comes out when he’s drunk.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “A tramp, a gentleman, a poet, a dreamer, a lonely fellow, always hopeful of romance and adventure.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “All I need to make a comedy is a park, a policeman and a pretty girl.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “All my pictures are built around the idea of getting in trouble and so giving me the chance to be desperately serious in my attempt to appear as a normal little gentleman.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Despair is a narcotic. It lulls the mind into indifference.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Dictators free themselves, but they enslave the people.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I always like walking in the rain, so no one can see me crying.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I am at peace with God. My conflict is with Man.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I am for people. I can’t help it.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I believe in the power of laughter and tears as an antidote to hatred and terror.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I do not have much patience with a thing of beauty that must be explained to be understood. If it does need additional interpretation by someone other than the creator, then I question whether it has fulfilled its purpose.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I do not need drugs to be a genius, do not take a genius to be human, but I need your smile to be happy.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I don’t believe that the public knows what it wants; this is the conclusion that I have drawn from my career.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I had no idea of the character. But the moment I was dressed, the clothes and the make-up made me feel the person he was. I began to know him, and by the time I walked onto the stage he was fully born.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I remain just one thing, and one thing only, and that is a clown. It places me on a far higher plane than any politician.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I suppose that’s one of the ironies of life doing the wrong thing at the right moment.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I went into the business for the money, and the art grew out of it. If people are disillusioned by that remark, I can’t help it. It’s the truth.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “I’d sooner be called a successful crook than a destitute monarch.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Imagination means nothing without doing.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “In the end, everything is a gag.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “In the light of our egos, we are all dethroned monarchs.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Laughter is the tonic, the relief, the surcease for pain.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Life can be wonderful if you’re not afraid of it. All it takes is courage, imagination … and a little dough.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Life could be wonderful if people would leave you alone.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Life is a play that does not allow testing. So, sing, cry, dance, laugh and live intensely, before the curtain closes and the piece ends with no Applause.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Man as an individual is a genius. But men in the mass form the headless monster, a great, brutish idiot that goes where prodded.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Movies are a fad. Audiences really want to see live actors on a stage.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “My pain may be the reason for somebody’s laugh. But my laugh must never be the reason for somebody’s pain.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Nothing is permanent in this wicked world – not even our troubles.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Only the unloved hate; the unloved and the unnatural.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Patriotism is too deep a feeling to depict in the posing for a photograph.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Perfect love is the most beautiful of all frustrations because it is more than one can express.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “That’s the trouble with the world. We all despise ourselves.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “The mirror is my best friend because when I cry it never laughs.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “The saddest thing I can imagine is to get used to luxury.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Think about yourself at least once in your life otherwise you may miss the best comedy in this world.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “This is a ruthless world and one must be ruthless to cope with it.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “To help a friend in need is easy, but to give him your time is not always opportune.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it!” – Charlie Chaplin
- “We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other’s happiness, not by each other’s misery.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “We think too much and feel too little.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “What do you want a meaning for? Life is a desire, not a meaning.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Why should poetry have to make sense?” – Charlie Chaplin
- “Words are cheap. The biggest thing you can say is ‘elephant’.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “You are not machines! You are not cattle! You are men!” – Charlie Chaplin
- “You’ll find that life is still worthwhile, if you just smile.” – Charlie Chaplin
- “You’ll never find a rainbow if you’re looking down.” – Charlie Chaplin
