Charles Spencer Chaplin III (May 5, 1925 – March 20, 1968), known professionally as Charles Chaplin Jr., was an American actor. He was the elder son of Charlie Chaplin and Lita Grey, and is known for appearing in 1950s films such as ''

The Beat Generation ''The Beat Generation'' is a 1959 American crime film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starring Steve Cochran and Mamie Van Doren, with Ray Danton, Fay Spain, Maggie Hayes, Jackie Coogan, Louis Armstrong, James Mitchum, Vampira, and Ray Anthony. It i ...

'' and ''Fangs of the Wild''.

Early life

Chaplin was born in Beverly Hills, California. He was the elder son of actors Charlie Chaplin and Lita Grey. His half-siblings from his father's last marriage to

Oona O'Neill Oona O'Neill, Lady Chaplin (14 May 1925 – 27 September 1991) was an actress who was the daughter of Irish-American playwright Eugene O'Neill and English-born writer Agnes Boulton, and the fourth and last wife of English actor and film-maker Ch ...

are Geraldine, Michael, Josephine,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, Eugene, Jane, Annette, and Christopher. His elder half-brother, Norman, died as an infant. As young children, he and his younger brother, Sydney, were used as pawns in their mother's bitter divorce from Charlie Chaplin, during which a lot of the couple's "dirty linen" was aired in public, sensational divorce hearings. Following the divorce, the brothers were raised by their mother and maternal grandmother until the mid-1930s, when they began to make frequent visits to their father. Chaplin attended the

Black-Foxe Military Institute The Black-Foxe Military Institute was a private school in Hollywood, California, USA. It was located adjacent to the Wilshire Country Club to the west and south and the Los Angeles Tennis Club to the east. Black-Foxe was founded in 1928 by Charles ...

in Hollywood and the

Lawrenceville School The Lawrenceville School is a coeducational preparatory school for boarding and day students located in the Lawrenceville section of Lawrence Township, in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. Lawrenceville is a member of the Eight Scho ...

Lawrenceville, New Jersey Lawrenceville is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Lawrence Township in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States.

. He served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

in Europe during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Career

Chaplin acted in 13 films, appearing with his father in '' Limelight'' (1952). In 1959, he had a role in the film '' Girls Town'' which featured the son of another famous silent movie comedian, Harold Lloyd Jr. He appeared with his brother Sydney in the play ''

Ethan Frome ''Ethan Frome'' is a 1911 book by American author Edith Wharton. It is set in the fictitious town of Starkfield, Massachusetts. The novel has been adapted into a '' film of the same name''. Plot The novel is a framed narrative. The framing sto ...

'' at the Circle Theatre, now named

El Centro Theatre El Centro Theatre is a Hollywood theater. It was founded in 1946 and is located at 804 N. El Centro Ave. Hollywood, California 90038. History In 1946, students from UCLA, including William Schallert, Jerry Epstein, Kathleen Freeman, Sid Rushako ...

. In 1960, he wrote a book about his family life titled ''My Father, Charlie Chaplin''.

Death

Chaplin died of a

pulmonary embolism Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream ( embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include shortness of breath, chest pain particularly upon breathin ...

on March 20, 1968, in Santa Monica, California, aged 42. He is buried in the Abbey of the Psalms mausoleum at the

Hollywood Forever Cemetery Hollywood Forever Cemetery is a full-service cemetery, funeral home, crematory, and cultural events center which regularly hosts community events such as live music and summer movie screenings. It is one of the oldest cemeteries in Los Angel ...

with his maternal grandmother Lillian Carrillo Curry Grey (1888–1985).

Selected filmography

* '' Limelight'' (1952) as Clown (uncredited) * ''

Columbus Discovers Kraehwinkel ''Columbus Discovers Kraehwinkel'' (german: Columbus entdeckt Krähwinkel) is a 1954 West German comedy film directed by Ulrich Erfurth and Alexander Paal and starring Eva Kerbler, Rudolf Platte and two sons of Charlie Chaplin, Charles Chaplin ...

'' (1954) * '' High School Confidential'' (1958) * '' Girls Town'' (1959)Girls Town (1959) - Turner Classic Movies
/ref>

References

External links