Charlie ♥s Edna

Charlie & Edna share a smooch in "Behind the Screen"

Of all the Chaplins I love, I confess to loving Keystone Chaplin (1913-1914) the least. Engaging, revolutionary, amusing – yes. Knowing what is to come, we see all of the ingredients of greatness there… all except one. This nasty, pushy, funny little Tramp has no soulfulness. He is not yet “Chaplinesque.” But soon, the Tramp would grow.

Keystone Charlie - the Tramp sans romance

When Chaplin moved from Keystone to Essanay in late 1914, he needed a new leading lady. As he would do throughout most of his career, he sought an actress with no experience, hoping to mold her into his vision of the perfect object of the Tramp’s attention. What he found was the perfect object for the Tramp’s affection.

Edna

While scouting out his muse, Chaplin met Edna Purviance in San Francisco.  Edna, 19 at the time, hailed from Lovelock, Nevada and was working as a stenographer. Legend has it that they were introduced by the owner of a café.  Edna was not a professional actress, but Charlie saw something there and, for the next 8 years and over 30 films, from Essanay to Mutual to First National, Edna Purviance became Charlie Chaplin’s exclusive leading lady and provided the missing ingredient that helped change the common comedian to a great artist. With Edna as the object of his affection, the Tramp became pathetic and sympathetic. We knew he had a heart, because it ached beautifully for the beautiful Edna.

More smooching in "The Champion"

Not surprisingly, for a time, Charlie and Edna were real-life lovers, as well as on-screen sweethearts. They were adorably happy for a time, witness this love note from Charlie to his Edna:

My Own Darling Edna,My heart throbbed this morning when I received your sweet letter. It could be nobody else in the world that could have given me so much joy. Your language, your sweet thoughts and the style of your love note only tends to make me crazy over you. I can picture your darling self sitting down and looking up wondering what to say, that pert little mouth and those bewitching eyes so thoughtful. If I only had the power to express my sentiments, I would be afraid you’d get vain…

But, by the time Edna attained the ripe old age of 28, Chaplin had had 1 ex-wife and was on the way to marrying 16 year old and pregnant Lita Grey, and he deemed her too matronly to continue in the role of his romantic muse. But Charlie was loyal and tried to help Edna continue a career independent of him, first as the star of 1923’s “Woman of Paris”, and later in the Josef Von Sternberg directed (but never released) “Woman of the Sea”. Von Sternberg remembered Edna as sweet and obedient, but unbelievably timid in front of the camera. Without Charlie, there would be no more Edna on the screen.

While both held a life-long affection for one another, Charlie went on to quite a few more loves while Edna, after being involved in an unfortunate New Year’s Day shooting scandal and as a peripheral witness in the William Desmond Taylor murder, finally found lasting love in her marriage to a pilot and airline executive.

But Charlie was never far from her mind. In 1956, Edna, now a widow and suffering from the throat cancer that would eventually take her life, wrote this little note to her old boss and ex-flame:

Dear Charlie,Here I am again with a heart full of thanks, and back in the hospital (Cedars of Lebanon) taking cobalt x-ray treatment on my neck. There cannot be a hell hereafter!... Am thankful my innards are O.K., this is purely and simply local, so they say. All of which reminds me of the fellow standing on the corner of Seventh and Broadway tearing up little bits of paper and throwing them to the four winds. A cop comes along and asks him what was the big idea. He answers, “Just keeping the elephants away.” The cop says, “There aren’t any elephants in this district.” The fellow answers: “Well, it works, doesn’t it?” This is my silly for the day, so forgive me.Hope you and the family are well and enjoying everything you have worked for.Love always,Edna

And Charlie, who famously kept Edna on his studio payroll until her death in 1958, wrote in his 1964 autobiography that the time they worked together at Mutual was the happiest of his life. Commenting on her death, he wrote: "And so the world grows young. And youth takes over. And we who have lived a little longer become more estranged as we journey on our way." 

Real love can be fleeting, but the heart of the reel love of Charlie and Edna still beats upon the screen.

This is my entry in the Charlie Chaplin Blogathon hosted by Little Bits of Classics and Christina Wehner. Check out their sites for more about the great man.

A Kiss is Just a Kiss: Charlie ♥s Edna Forever

A kiss is just a kiss. True, but it depends on whether you are the kisser or the kissee or - as are we movie-goers, an observer.

Now, kisser and kissee could be steamy and passionate...

Or, they could be innocent and chaste.

As a kisser (or kissee) I shall keep my preferences to my self (of course if Cary Grant is either one... oh, but I digress...).

No, we are here as observers, and as an observer it is the romantic kiss that pleases me most of all. You know, the kiss that is not quite innocent, but not quite lusty, coming just at the dawn of of love. Like a flower opening to the sun, it is full of promise and joy. It is the end of single and the beginning of plural, and, for me, there is no sweeter plural than Charlie Chaplin and his lovely leading lady, Edna Purviance.

 ♥ Charlie and Edna Forever ♥

Before Edna, Charlie was a troublesome tramp. Once Edna entered the picture (and Charlie's real life for a time), the Little Fellow became a sweeter,gentler character. The Tramp still had tricks, but Edna awakened the romance in his soul.

Best Kisses

Charlie ardently pursued Edna through 34 films from 1915 through 1923. Here's some of their 5-star smooches:

The Immigrant

Charlie and Edna are two poor immigrants who find love and luck in the land of liberty.

Behind the Screen

Charlie and Edna find love at a movie studio (even through he thinks she might be a boy).

A Burlesque on Carmen

As thwarted lover Darn Hosiery, Charlie gives his Carmen the kiss of death (sort of).

But enough observing. Sometimes, lovers need privacy...

And just in case you want to try kissing Charlie for yourself (sort of), here's a cute little game. See how many kisses you can steal!

Charlie Chaplin Kissing Game

This is my entry into the Kiss is Just a Kiss Blogathon. Put some oomph into your Valentine's Day and head on over to Second Sight Cinema for more super smooches.

Scandal! Mabel and Edna's New Year's Celebration

Welcome to 2013 - a year of scandals at A Person in the Dark. Yes, I love movies, but I confess I am a sucker for those juicy Hollywood scandals of old.

May's scandal: Mabel Normand and Edna Purviance party down!

Best buds Mabel & Edna party with playboy Courtland Dines on his yacht

Poor Mabel Normand! Trouble seemed to just follow the high spirited and beautiful comedic actress wherever she went. First, her engagement with erstwhile suitor Mack Sennet was busted up, literally, when Mabel caught Mack in a compromising position with actress Mae Busch, who conked Mabel over the head with a vase and put the poor dear in the hospital. She then engaged in an affair with Samuel Goldwyn that may or may not have produced a stillborn child. Next, she had the very bad luck to be the last person (except the killer) to see doomed director William Desmond Taylor alive (Click here for more about the 1922 Taylor murder). Although Mabel was never a real suspect, tales of drug abuse surfaced and her reputation was badly tarnished.

Mabel had managed to make a comeback in 1923 (working with Sennet again) with 2 popular films – “Suzanna” and “The Extra Girl” – but on New Year’s Day 1924 trouble again found Mabel.

 

Lovely Mabel Normand

Edna Purviance is chiefly known as Charlie Chaplin’s leading lady from 1915-1923. Not only was she his love interest on the screen, for some time she served as his love interest off the screen. Charlie being Charlie, Edna was eventually replaced by a younger model. But, Edna didn’t let any grass grow under her pretty feet.

The Beautiful Edna Purviance

Courland Dines was a Denver socialite and business man who was sweet on Edna and even sweeter on booze. After a second divorce in 1923, Dines went west to Los Angeles to seek a fortune in oil.  There he met Edna and her pal, Mabel, and a happy little threesome was formed. Courtland’s parents were not so pleased that he was dating an actress, but he and Edna and Mabel were just having a swell time together.

All hands (and other body parts) on deck.

New Year's Day found Edna and Mabel at Dines' apartment. Around 7 p.m. Mabel's chauffeur, Horace Greer, showed up at the apartment, later stating that he had been called to pick up Mabel and take her home. For reasons that were never clear, Greer thought that Mabel was being held in the apartment against her will. Pretending to be a deliveryman. Gaining entry to Dines' apartment, Greer found Mabel on the couch, Dines sitting at a table and Edna in the bedroom (allegedly powdering her nose). According to Greer, when Mabel reluctantly agreed to leave with her driver, Dines tried to prevent them from leaving by threatening to hit Greer with a liquor bottle. Greer's reaction to this was to shoot Dines three times. With Mabel's gun. Ouch.

Mabel's gun

Throwing her powder puff aside, Edna rushed to the living room to find Dines shot and without a bottle in his hand. Instead of calling an ambulance, the 2 ladies and Greer got Dines into bed and tried to provide some first aid. This, apparently, didn't go too well, and, Greer decided to leave the patient and drive to the nearest police station, where he turned himself in. This prompted both the police and the medics to descend upon Dines' abode, where the wounded one was found bleeding and smoking a cigarette. The press described both Mabel and Edna as elegantly dressed and "excited" (which was a code word for one gimlet too many).

It was never really clear why Greer shot Dines. It was speculated that he had a secret crush on his employer, but Mabel denied it. Courtland Dines pulled through just fine and declined to appear in court at Greer's trial (claiming he was too drunk that night to remember what happened). While Greer refused to testify in his own behalf (for fear of harming Mabel), both she and Edna were painted as examples of Hollywood's worst behavior. The scene at the apartment was described as a debauched and drunken affair with - gasp - Dines only in an undershirt. Greer was acquitted (but arrested 2 hours later for possession of liquor).

After the Fatty Arbuckle and William Desmond Taylor scandals, the public saw this as yet another example of Hollywood's wanton ways. Mable's films suffered at the box office and Edna's film, Chaplin's "A Woman of Paris," also suffered because of the scandal.

Trouble always seemed to find Mabel, who succumbed to tuberculosis in 1930. Edna retired from film and, while she didn't marry Courtland Dines, she did have a later happy marriage to airline pilot and executive, Jack Squires. Courtland Dines went on to marry a total of four times before dying at age 55 in Denver.

For a loving tribute to these fun loving ladies, see 1987's "Good Morning, Babylon," and Italian film about brothers who come to Hollywood to work on D.W. Griffith's massive sets for "Intolerance." There they meet and fall for two beautiful and struggling actresses named Edna and Mabel.

The Kid: Correcting Life Through Art

This is my entry in The Kid in the Front Row's global challenge to bloggers to watch the same movie at the same time and then blog about it today. Since he is the Kid in the Front Row, he has requested that the film we watch and write about be Charlie Chaplin's "The Kid."

Do you believe in the mystic powers of the universe? Do you believe that a force must make itself be head at all costs? Do you believe that the notes from a song, an image, an email from afar or a dream could all be part of the message that must be acknowledged?

I have loved Charlie Chaplin for a very long time now, but as with many of my obsessions, my passion waxes and wanes. It had been a bit on the waning side of late, owing to other pressing issues (like Cary Grant), but something has been stirring. First, a new show opened on Broadway called “Chaplin: The Musical.” I saw it twice in three weeks. I simply couldn't resist. While at the show, I picked up a book (Chaplin: A Life) written by psychiatrist Dr. Stephen Weissman and have immersed myself in the psychology of Mr. C, particularly how his childhood shaped his work. Meanwhile, Charlie has been creeping more and more into my blog. He is a persistent fellow.

Being immersed in this story, I did a Google on the word “Chaplinesque” and wrote a blog about it. The poet, Hart Crane, coined the word in his poem after seeing  “The Kid.” So, I felt it appropriate to help define the word in Charlie’s own words about that film ("a smile - and perhaps, a tear").

Right after I posted the article (and I do mean right after), I received an email regarding the challenge and the chosen film. Okay universe, I am listening.

So now, what can I say, Charlie, except that besides being a genius, an artist, and a poet, you are a mystical wizard who reaches across the decades and pulls us towards you again and again and again. As with your dream of angels and love in the film, so does your Little Tramp continue to pull at our heartstrings, haunt our dreams and invade our subconscious.

If you have seen "The Kid," I do not have to tell you how funny and heartbreaking and beautiful this film is. If you haven't seen it, I hope my enthusiasm for it will inspire you to seek it out. The story, created by Chaplin shortly after the death of his infant son, is a story of abandonment, poverty and homelessness that parallels Chaplin's own Dickensian London childhood. But, because the artist has control of the story, art does not have to imitate life. In film, the child is loved and ultimately reunited with a loving mother.

Charlie is not sure he wants to take on this responsibility!

In addition to the beautiful balm that Chaplin puts on his poverty-stricken childhood, "The Kid" offers many other wonders. A few of my favorites:

The magical Jackie Coogan: As a pint-sized Charlie, he is second to none in adorableness and skill. When  he cries for his papa it is impossible not to be moved. When he smiles, you heart can not help but melt. He may have been totally coached by Charlie, but Jackie proved to be Chaplin's most worthy co-star and is a total scene-stealer.

The beautiful Edna Purviance in her only feature length film with Chaplin: Edna was nearing the end of her on-screen relationship with Charlie, but here she is presented as a beautiful woman and loving mother and she is lovely and moving. She deserves every loving close-up he gives her.

Some awfully funny Chaplin gags: his initial ambivilence about caring for the baby, his makeshift nursery, and his crooked glazier business are all side splitting, but the one that gets me every time is Charlie's outrageous flirtation with the woman whose window Jackie has broken.

A peek into the mean streets of Chaplin's London boyhood: although filmed in Los Angeles, the feel is Oliver Twist and we feel Chaplin knows this landscape.

 So, thank you, Kid in the Front Row, for creating a global bow and tip of the hat to that most universal master of film. Not into silents? Think of this film as a concert for the eyes. Set to Chaplin's own 1971 musical score, every move tells a story, and every gesture gives us a precious glimpse into the heart of a true artist of the cinema: our beloved Little Tramp, our Lion, Charlie Chaplin.

♥ Silent Sweethearts: Charlie Chaplin and Edna Purviance ♥

One of the reasons I love Charlie Chaplin's Little Tramp above all others is that he is romantic. Yes, he is clever, acrobatic and hysterically funny, but there is a depth to his character that was introduced through the element of romance. Before Edna Purviance (his leading lady from 1915-1923), Charlie was a true ruffian with more than just a tiny mean streak. Once he found the beautiful and gentle Edna, the stirrings of romance filled out his character and gave it a new substance and pathos.

They are the perfect Valentine's Day couple.

Struck by Cupid's arrow and bound for life

Before Edna, Charlie lusted for women; after Edna he longed for them. Before Edna, he was crude; after Edna, he was a gentleman. See what the love of a good woman can do for a Little Tramp?

Once Charlie found Edna, he understood how to be a good Valentine:

Take your date out for a nice, romantic dinner

A walk in the rain can be romantic when you're in love

A fancy party will win her heart

Show her that you were paying attention 
during "Dancing With The Stars"

Serenade her with a love song

Take her on a boat ride and bring 
Mom along for extra brownie points

Fight for her honor

Help around the house

Never lose the ability to be distracted by her ankle

Give her a puppy

Rub noses like you mean it!

Charlie and Edna were Valentines in real life, too, for a time. Their love affair did not stand the test of time, but the films that they made together are timeless. Just like true romance.

♥♥♥ Happy Valentine's Day! ♥♥♥

Hoping your day is filled with the love of romance, family, good friends and most of all - good movies!


Click here for a complete listing of Edna's films.

Chaplin vs. Keaton for President

Politics got you down? Forget about those nasty Democrats and Republicans. Two of the silent cinema's greatest artists have thrown their hats in the ring! America - watch out!

The Porkpie
VS.

The Derby

Meet the Candidates

Charlie Chaplin

Political Party 

The Silent Society

Platform

"I am for people. I can't help it."

Motto

"A day without laughter is a day wasted."

On Immigration

Charlie likes immigrants. In fact, he was one once.

On the Economy

Charlie believes that manufacturing is the way out of the recession. Americans must roll up their sleeves, jump right in there and make things!

On Foreign Relations 

Charlie believes we are all citizens of his world!

But he has a special relationship with the French:

Running Mate and Cabinet

Charlie will surround himself with trusted friends and advisors

First Lady

Edna Purviance

Military Service

Served as an Army Private in WWI:

Other Jobs

Law Enforcement,Cook, Musician

Hobby

Horticulture

Potential Scandal

Has done jail time; has been known to dress in women's clothes

Why you should vote for me

Charlie Chaplin in his own words

"I remain just one thing, and only one thing, and that is a clown. It places me on a far higher plane than any politician."

Buster Keaton:

Political Party 

The Deadpan Proletariat

Platform

 2x4, pine

Motto

 "Think slow and act fast."

On Immigration

Buster believes the desert needs water

On the Economy

Buster believes that repairing our infrastructure and strengthening our rail system will boost the economy

On Foreign Relations

Buster thinks it's good for Americans to learn about other cultures

Running Mate and Cabinet:

Buster tends to be a one-man band and does not delegate. Buster takes full responsibility!

First Lady

Brown Eyes

Military Service

Served as a  Confederate Soldier in the CSA and as a US Army Private in WWI (quite an accomplishment)

Other Jobs

Architect, Deep Sea Diver, Projectionist

Hobbies

Sailing and Horseback Riding

Potential Scandals

Has done jail time; has been associated with bomb-throwing anarchists

Why you should vote for me

Buster Keaton in his own words

"Silence is of the gods; only monkeys chatter."

Charlie or Buster? Let's stop all of that noisy chatter and get one of these men elected!

Cast your vote in the voting booth to the right and 2 flights up

(sorry. voting has closed).