''Making a Living'' (also known as ''Doing His Best'', ''A Busted Johnny'', ''Troubles'', and ''Take My Picture'') is the first film starring

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (16 April 188925 December 1977) 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 o ...

. A one-reel comedy short, it was completed in three days at Keystone Studios in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and was released for distribution on February 2, 1914.Chaplin, Charles. ''My Autobiography''. New York: Simon and Schuster, pp. 143-144. In it Chaplin portrays a charming swindler who runs afoul of a news reporter and a Keystone Cop. In addition to co-writing the "scenario" and directing the production,

Henry Lehrman Henry Lehrman (30 March 1881 – 7 November 1946) was an American actor, screenwriter, director and producer. Lehrman was a very prominent figure of Hollywood's silent film era, working with such cinematic pioneers as D. W. Griffith and Mack Sen ...

performs as the principal supporting character.

Plot

In the film’s opening scene, Chaplin's character, the "Swindler", dressed smartly and wearing a top hat, attempts to convince a passerby (Henry Lehrman) to give him money. Reluctantly he gives a dollar coin. The man then goes to a florist to buy a smaller bunch of flowers than he originally intended. Chaplin is next shown flirting with a young woman and proposing marriage to her, giving her a ring, which she accepts. Lehrman, who portrays a news reporter, now approaches the woman and presents to her a bouquet of flowers and a ring, which she refuses to accept, pointing to the new ring. Lerhman sees Chaplin and a

slapstick Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such as ...

fight between the two immediately ensues. Later, while prowling for a news story, Lehrman's character witnesses and photographs an automobile accident, capturing on film a dramatic image of a car tumbling down a high, steep hill. As he and a crowd of onlookers are trying to help the unfortunate motorist, who is pinned beneath his wrecked car, Chaplin passes by and steals the camera that contains the sensational photograph. He then runs to the local newspaper office with the image and to report the auto accident, claiming them as his own. A short pursuit with the Keystone Cops follows, and then an infuriated Lehrman catches up with Chaplin, and they resume their fistfight on a downtown street. An oncoming streetcar scoops them up on its front

cowcatcher A cowcatcher, also known as a pilot, is the device mounted at the front of a locomotive to deflect obstacles on the track that might otherwise damage or Derailment, derail it or the train. In the UK, small metal bars called ''life-guards'', ...

and continues down the street and out of frame.

Cast

as Swindler *

as Reporter * Emma Clifton as jealous husband's wife * Virginia Kirtley as Daughter * Alice Davenport as Mother * Minta Durfee as Woman *

Chester Conklin Chester Cooper Conklin (January 11, 1886 – October 11, 1971) was an early American film comedian who started at Keystone Studios as one of Mack Sennett's Keystone Cops, often paired with Mack Swain. He appeared in a series of films with ...

as Policeman / Bum * Charles Inslee as Newspaper Editor (uncredited)

Production

Chaplin wears a large moustache and a top hat in the film; he also carries a walking cane. His famous "

Little Tramp : ''See The Tramp for the character played by Charlie Chaplin''. ''Little Tramp'' is a musical with a book by David Pomeranz and Steven David Horwich and music and lyrics by David Pomeranz. Based on the life of comedian Charles Chaplin and na ...

" screen persona did not appear until his next film, ''

Kid Auto Races at Venice ''Kid Auto Races at Venice'' (also known as ''The Pest'') is a 1914 American film starring Charles Chaplin. It is the first film in which his " Little Tramp" character makes an appearance before the public. The first film to be produced that fe ...

'', which was released by Keystone only five days after the studio began distributing ''Making a Living''. In recalling his work with Lehrman in ''Making a Living'', Chaplin maintained that the director had "deliberately" removed the best parts of his performance from the short's final cut. Lehrman, according to Chaplin, was "a vain man", who years later actually "confessed" to misediting the footage because he felt the young Englishman was arrogant and "knew too much".Weissman, Stephen
''Chaplin: A Life''
New York: Arcade Publishing, 2008, p. 211. Internet Archive. Retrieved February 22, 2021. In his extensive 1985 biography of the comedian, '' Chaplin: His Life and Art'', English film critic and historian David Robinson provides further insight into the short's production, including its filming locations, the evolution of the Chaplin's costume selections for his screen debut, and his acting style in some scenes: Although Lehrman and Reed Heustis are often credited with co-writing the film's scenario, Chaplin in his autobiography offers his view on the screenplay's status when production began. "We had no story", he writes, adding "It was to be a documentary about the printing press done with a few comedy touches." He then states that Lehrman appeared to be "groping for ideas", so as a "newcomer at Keystone" he began to make suggestions. "This", Chaplin continues, "was where I created antagonism with Lehrman." The footage of street scenes depicts various areas of downtown Los Angeles in 1914. In the scene with the swindler and newspaper reporter fighting in the road, the sign of the Fremont Hotel is shown briefly in the background. That hotel closed in the 1940s, and the entire structure was demolished in 1955.

Reception

In its February 7, 1914, issue, the widely read New York–based

trade journal A trade magazine, also called a trade journal or trade paper (colloquially or disparagingly a trade rag), is a magazine or newspaper whose target audience is people who work in a particular trade or industry. The collective term for this a ...

The Moving Picture World The ''Moving Picture World'' was an influential early trade journal for the American film industry, from 1907 to 1927. An industry powerhouse at its height, ''Moving Picture World'' frequently reiterated its independence from the film studios. ...

'' gives the comedy short a brief but very positive review: In the months following the film's release, as it circulated across the United States, many city and small-town newspapers, like '' The Sentinel-Record'' in

Hot Springs, Arkansas Hot Springs is a resort city in the state of Arkansas and the county seat of Garland County, Arkansas, Garland County. The city is located in the Ouachita Mountains among the U.S. Interior Highlands, and is set among several natural hot springs ...

, judged the short to be a "laugh", as yet another one of Keystone's "always good and boisterous comedies"; and they encouraged their readers to see it. The local paper in

Chickasha, Oklahoma Chickasha is a city in and the county seat of Grady County, Oklahoma, Grady County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,051 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a 0.1% increase from 2010. The city is named for and strongly ...

characterized ''Making a Living'' as "truly a scream from start to finish", while in

Bemidji, Minnesota Bemidji ( ) is a city and the county seat of Beltrami County, Minnesota, Beltrami County, in northern Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,574 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. According to 2022 census estimates, the ci ...

, the Majestic Theatre promoted it as a "

peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and Agriculture, cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called necta ...

", adding "If you never laughed before you will certainly do so if you see this comedy." In those and other remarks about the film in 1914 and in newspaper advertisements promoting the comedy, Charlie Chaplin and his fellow performers are rarely mentioned by name, which at that time was not an uncommon practice outside the realm of film-industry publications, especially with regard to new performers in one-reelers. In June 1914, however, the Dittmann Theatre in

Brownsville, Texas Brownsville ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Cameron County, Texas, Cameron County, located on the western Gulf Coast in South Texas, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border, border with Matamoros, Tamaulipas ...

, did mention in the town's newspaper that its screening of ''Making a Living'' included a "new comedian in the Keystone comedy", an entertainer the theatre identified as "Charles Chappel." Little did that theatre’s management or moviegoers in general know that by the end of the following year, Mr. Chappel would be an established national and international film celebrity and a growing cultural phenomenon.Robinson, pp. 152-153. One scene in particular in ''Making a Living'' excited audiences and even prompted film-industry observers in 1914 to comment about Lehrman's and Keystone's willingness to spend considerable amounts of money on their motion-picture projects, even on simple one-reel shorts. The scene is the car accident. '' The Motion Picture News'', another popular New York–based trade publication, reported the financial cost of staging that accident during production:

References and notes

External links