Charlie Chaplin
Comic Strip Hero
Charlie Chaplin was born on this day (16th April 1889).
Much has been written about his life and career. But for this blog I am going to talk about the longevity of his comic strip Little Tramp persona.
Chaplin is quoted as saying that one of the key influences behind the Little Tramp character was in fact a comic strip he would often read during his childhood in Kennington."If you want the simple Chaplin truth behind the Chaplin legend, I started the little tramp simply to make people laugh and because those other old tramps, Weary Willie and Tired Tim, had always made me laugh."
Weary Willy and Tired Tim were a pair of itinerant tramps forever getting into hilarious scrapes in a strip in Arthur Harmsworth's pioneering Amalgameted Press comic 'Illustrated Chips'. They first appeared in the 1890s. Created by the artist Tom Browne who died in 1910, the characters outlived him by another 40 years until the early fifties.
The comic duo even appeared in an early short silent comedy movie. 'Weary Willie and Tired Tim Turn Barbers' (1903) was based on a Tom Browne sketch. It was directed by pioneer of British cinema, William Haggar, and starred two of his relatives, James and Walter Haggar, as the tramps who take over a vacant barber shop.
Chaplin's own journey as a comic strip character, based on his bowler hatted Little Tramp, began on both sides of the Atlantic in 1915. In America 'Charlie Chaplin's Comic Capers' was published in the Chicago Herald. It ran until 1917 and was drawn by E.C. Segar, who also created the character of Popeye. In 1917 collections the strips were also published in book form, doubling up as colouring-in books. Titles included Charlie Chaplin in the Movies, Charlie Chaplin Up in the Air, Charlie Chaplin in the Army and Charlie Chaplin's Funny stunts.
— Chaplin in 1957
Weary Willy and Tired Tim were a pair of itinerant tramps forever getting into hilarious scrapes in a strip in Arthur Harmsworth's pioneering Amalgameted Press comic 'Illustrated Chips'. They first appeared in the 1890s. Created by the artist Tom Browne who died in 1910, the characters outlived him by another 40 years until the early fifties.
The comic duo even appeared in an early short silent comedy movie. 'Weary Willie and Tired Tim Turn Barbers' (1903) was based on a Tom Browne sketch. It was directed by pioneer of British cinema, William Haggar, and starred two of his relatives, James and Walter Haggar, as the tramps who take over a vacant barber shop.
Chaplin's own journey as a comic strip character, based on his bowler hatted Little Tramp, began on both sides of the Atlantic in 1915. In America 'Charlie Chaplin's Comic Capers' was published in the Chicago Herald. It ran until 1917 and was drawn by E.C. Segar, who also created the character of Popeye. In 1917 collections the strips were also published in book form, doubling up as colouring-in books. Titles included Charlie Chaplin in the Movies, Charlie Chaplin Up in the Air, Charlie Chaplin in the Army and Charlie Chaplin's Funny stunts.
In the UK a Charlie Chaplin comic strip written and drawn by Bertie Brown (no relation to Tom Browne) began on the pages of Funny Wonder (also an Amalgamented Press title) in 1915. Amalgamated Press also published the Charlie Chaplin Fun Book in the same year. The UK comic strip outlasted its American counterpart by a couple of decades, moving to Film Fun in the 40s and retitled as Charlie Chaplin - Film Fun Maker. In 1953 Illustrated Chips was merged into Film Fun.
In France a syndicated Charlie Chaplin strip called 'Charlot's Acrobatic Adventures' began in 1922 and appeared in several French language comics in a run that lasted twenty years. Different artists were associated with the strip. The last being Jean-Claude Forest, who went on to create the comic book character of Barbarella, famously made into a 1960's movie, starring, Brigette Fonda.
Another Chaplin comic strip emerged in the 1940s in Romania, and in the 1970s a Spanish Chaplin strip was translated into German, Dutch and Norwegian, as well as being published in English as an annual in 1974.
Chaplin died on Christmas Day 1977. It must have been touching for him to see how often the Little Tramp character was depicted in comics, the medium through which he drew his early inspiration.
More Movie Related Stuff
I'll be exploring more Kenning movie related stuff with my guided walk on April 21st, taking in the locations and stories behind the 1971 Alan Parker scripted cult classic 'Melody'. Details in the Eventbrite link. Use the code 'Beegees' for a 50% discount if you would like to join me.
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