Charlie Chaplin and A Woman of Paris : The Genesis of a Misunderstood Masterpiece

Charlie Chaplin's A Woman of Paris (1923) was a groundbreaking film which was neither a simple recycling of Peggy Hopkins Joyce's story, nor quickly forgotten. Through heavily-documented "period research," this book lands several bombshells, including Paris is deeply rooted in Chaplin's previous films and his relationship with Edna Purviance, Paris was not rejected by heartland America, Chaplin did "romantic research" (especially with Pola Negri), and Paris' many ongoing influences have never been fully appreciated. These are just a few of the mistakes about Paris . Dedication 6 Table of Contents 8 Foreword • Anthony Slide 10 Preface and Acknowledgments 12 Prologue: Searching for an Artist’s Lost Shadow 14 1. Chaplin’s Biography Prior to A Woman of Paris: (A Darkly Farcical Perspective) (1889–1923) 22 2. “Chaplinitis”: The Initial Fame Factor and Early Chaplin Films with Tangential Ties to A Woman of Paris 35 3. The Messiah-like World War I Bond Tour: “Chaplinitis” in Overdrive 59 4. Further Glass Ceiling Breaking: The Precedent Shattering Dark Comedy Shoulder Arms (1918) 75 5. Edna Purviance: A Less Than “Sunnyside” (1919) March to The Kid (1921) and A Woman of Paris (1923) 86 6. More Revisionism: A Short Subject and The Kid (1921) Continue to Anticipate A Woman of Paris (1923) 100 7. The Kid (1921) More Than Fulfills the “Letter to a Genius” Opening to Chapter 6 120 8. Charlie Chaplin Goes to Europe (1921) 131 9. Continuing the Path to A Woman of Paris (1923): A Unique Literary Year and Two Seminal Shorter Works 147 10. Prologue to A Woman of Paris (1923): The Pilgrim (1923), and the Women Impacting Paris 168 11. Making A Woman of Paris (1923) and Its Response 186 12. Correcting More Errors About Both the 1923 Release and the 1970s Rebirth of A Woman of Paris 202 Epilogue: A Woman of Paris (1923) and the United States of Amnesia 222 Filmography 228 Chapter Notes 230 Bibliography 246 Index 258 "Popular with middle America throughout the 1920s, Charlie Chaplin's A Woman of Paris (1923) has had an enduring influence on cinema history. Contrary to some criticism, the film was not just Chaplin's recycling of the Peggy Hopkins Joyce story. Indeed, he drew on a series of romances for inspiration during production-including the films of Pola Negri-as well as his own earlier movies. Based on extensive new research, this book covers the making of the film in detail and reveals what other works on A Woman of Paris got wrong"-- Provided by publisher