I got a kick out of introducing my grandson to one of the most enduring and well-liked comedians of all time.
Six-year-old Jameson came out swinging at the television characters in my master bedroom after I called him from adjoining room and watched him view an outragiously funny scene from one of my all-time favorite Charlie Chaplin movies “City Lights.”
Chaplin, also known in silent motion pictures as the “Tramp,” fell in love with a blind girl who sold him flowers and wanted to get money to help her. He ends up in a boxing ring where he dodges one blow after another by hiding and running behind the much larger referee who blocked his opponent from landing any punches.
It is hilarious to see both fighters box each other around and then get “saved by the bell” before one of them is eventually knocked down in the old-time boxing ring and cannot get up by the count of 10. Jameson wanted the bell to ring each time he swung with what I considered to be a roundhouse punch with both arms flaring and a bright little smile arising out of the corner of his mouth.
Watching Charlie Chaplin with such a little kid like Jameson took me back more than 25 years to the moment when I introduced my son Nicholas (Jameson’s dad) to the Tramp in the 1925 movie “The Gold Rush.”
In the movie, Chaplin makes his way to Alaska to prospect for gold and was walking along a snow-covered trail when a bear starts to follow him from behind. Chaplin just keeps tramping along unaware of the animal’s prsence.
“Can you turn up the volume dad?” Nicholas quietly asks me less than two minutes after the start of the film provided by TMC.
“I’m sorry, Nick,” I said and quickly followed up with what considered was one of my most memorable fatherly teaching lessons. “This is what was known as a “Silent Movie” I told him. I added that there was no talking and no sound except for some music that might have been added later or recommended for playing in the movie house.
Chaplin helped me to connect with two different generation of kids – my son and my grandson – and I believe he’ll continue to help forge an appreciation of comedy for kids of all ages for eons to come.
Contoveros 
As a student of film – and I mean, I studied it in college and was it was one of my majors – I think the Silent Film era was one of the hardest ones for me to grasp and appreciate. There were several reasons for this, but one of the things I did find fascinating was how music was played via piano primarily in smaller theaters live to accompany the film footage. In larger theaters, they’d have full-on bands and even orchestras to accompany the visual footage. The power of music… that’s what I learned… and that’s still true today.
I love that you were able to share this with both your son and grandson. That’s…well, just beautiful on so many levels!
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Yes, the music was an ingenious accompiant to the early “motion pictures” all of which were provided at what we still refer to on occasion as the “movies.”
I didn’t watch many of them but recall that music was something that the Tramp himself provided us.
“Smile, though your heart is achin’
Smile, even though it’s breakin”
It’s a song whose melody was provided by Charlie Chaplin and given lyrics by someone else. He gave us a lot to smile about at any age.
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Charlie Chaplin was a genius. Nice to hear about the connection his movies bring for you with your son and grandson. These are nice memories to hold on to.
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Thanks a lot. I will cherish these memories and recall them whenever I watch another Charlie Chaplin movie.
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