How They Became Famous Charlie Chaplin was born in England but made his most famous films in Hollywood, eventually becoming an American citizen. Chaplin was the highest earning and most recognizable actor in all of cinema from the 1910s through to the 1930s. His fame centred on a physical, slap-stick comedy style, and an uncanny ability to make us empathise with his characters without words. Comedy in silent cinema was quickly mastered by Chaplin, and though his popularity began to diminish into the 1930s after the advent of sound, his genius did not - City Lights and Modern Times two films which provide emphatic evidence of this. What They Did Next Though he clung on for as long as possible, the silent film had had its day by the late 1930s. A final swansong was planned to be The Great Dictator, a passionate critique of the Hitler-Germany regime in Europe and all dictators in general. Like all Chaplin films it was very good and very, very funny. What was an extraordinary departure in this movie, however, was that Chaplin actually spoke. Just once, and only briefly, but he looked into the camera and delivered lines. What's more remarkable is the content of his speech, now one of the most famous in cinema, as he rallies his audience against injustice and political despots. Totally sincere, and still memorable to this day.
