My Autobiography (Plume)

Book Description

Charles Chaplin was born in London in 1889 to actor parents. His career in films started in 1914 with a string of single-reelers for Keystone Comedy Film Company. Success was immediate, and nine years later, to get better terms, he helped form United Artists.

Chaplin's life was full of controversy, from his memorable arguments with the government about taxes to his marriage late in life to Oona O'Neill, daughter of playwright Eugene and two generations his junior. By her he sired an extensive brood. She in turn cared for him devotedly through the remainder of his long life (he died on Christmas Day, 1977).

"From a destitute childhood in Victorian London to fame without frontiers...one of the success extravaganzas of the century." (Publisher's Source)

Customer Reviews:

The Hobo Philosopher.......2007-09-12

Charlie Chaplin was always a sort of mystery to me. I never understood the political mystique, the teary-eyed love of all his fans, the emotional attachment. But I do now. He was a wonderful and courageous individual. He was human. He had weaknesses; he had loves. The story of his childhood in England and his mother was a Dickens novel in itself. I could hardly believe it. What a book. I thoroughly enjoyed it - from cover to cover.

The Life of Charlie Chaplin.......2007-05-01

CHARLES CHAPLIN: MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY tells the revealing life of one of the most beloved and iconic American silver screen legends of the twentieth century. In his well-known bowl hat, toothbrush mustache, floppy shoes, and bamboo cane, Chaplin had a long illustrious film career that spanned from 1914 to 1957 where he made about 88 films. Through his modest upbringing in Victorian era England by former stage performers, Charles and Hannah Chaplin, Charles picked up where his parents left off. He was an entertainer as he was an articulate man who lived a somewhat vagabond life, which included travels all over the world, but between directing and performing, he spent his time reading the classics from history to philosophy; he was observant of the world around him, but dealt with the subject of history as poetic and a breath of skepticism. Chaplin states, "After all, there are more valid facts and details in works of art than there are in history books" (323).

MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY does not cover controversial terrain. Chaplin is honest and respectful of the people he encountered throughout his career, and this is conveyed within his narrative. Charlie Chaplin lived and worked during the most serious periods in world history, the two World Wars and the controversy of looming accusations that he was tied to communist sentiment. Chaplin had the opportunity to become acquainted with the most towering dignitaries of the world, Sir Winston Churchill, Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein, US presidents Herbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt. However, he offers little hints of particular encounters, such as with his meeting with Herbert Hoover, but does not elaborate on the details and leaves it up to the readers to come to their own conclusions. Indeed, he had a deep concern for humanity. He clearly was cognizant in translating his concerns through his creative endeavors, such as in his full-length films, "City Lights" and "The Great Dictator." One of the interesting aspects of Chaplin's discussion of "Dictator" is that he includes the transcript to the last lines to the film in this book.

As a fixture of Hollywood, Chaplin shared the limelight with his peers. His most revered friendships were with Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, William Randolph Hearst, H.G. Wells, and mentor Upton Sinclair. He also experienced less than stellar relationships with different women that led to three failed marriages, but finally succeeded in finding happiness with his fourth wife, Oona O'Neill, daughter of playwright Eugene O'Neill, when she was only eighteen years old and shockingly, he was in his 50's.

Overall, Charlie Chaplin shares with readers his most creative and colorful life. The only weakness to the book is that Chaplin seldom mentions any particular date to an event, thus readers are assumed to have knowledge of history and the individuals in which he speaks about in order to parallel these events to his own life. Nevertheless, MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY will enlighten the Chaplin aficionado or curious reader.

My Review.......2006-09-22

Once grown up, sort of, I never lingered long at the video shop over Chaplin's oeurve, passing his famous movies by for another day and then renting the Mambo Kings or True Grit, whatever. Finding his autobiography on a sale rack at Gecko Books in Chiang Mai stopped me though, and a few perused pages were enough to intrigue me as the man wrote affectionately and well. How the world has changed! Chaplin will acquaint you with turn-of-the-century London with its vibrant theatrical entertainment juxtaposed with 'work houses' and 'loony bins'. His initial tours as a stage actor in America are wonderfully rendered, filled with anecdotes worthy of Dos Passos, then followed by his swift ascent to fame and fortune working in and transforming the nascent movie industry in Los Angeles. After that sweet ride Chaplin confronted the 'talkies', a somewhat diminished energy and, eventually, the crude machinations of a voracious media and paranoid government. These latter periods are peppered throughout with overly long renditions of the rich and famous who sought him out or he them; mostly they ate and drank together. The look into celebrityhood is, at the very least, quite entertaining as a test of trivia. My Autobiography is a fine book and very well written, by one of the most engaging men of the twentieth century - I've got to rent those videos.

A Chaplinisque Tear Jerker.......2005-08-03

Chaplin is Chaplin. This is enough to make his autobiography interesting. It is his honesty and sensitivity and attempts to be in touch with himself at various points of his life that makes this book remarkable. And it is through sharing his inadequacies and traumas that the comic tramp makes me cry.

This book is invaluable in getting an insight into early days of Hollywood. It also provides a great account of Charlie's life and struggles. So the learning is tremendous.

However, the best part of the book is its humanness - fallible, confused, hesitant, and shy and yet successful, rich, adored, and mobbed by fans.

What struck my heart is the loneliness in the midst of a celebrity status and Charlie's ability to get in touch with it and share it.

What is also moving is his trauma during the McCarthy era and his eventual 'reverse migration' to Europe.

Even JFK could not get him back.

In his own words..........2005-05-08

Charles Chaplin was easily the first international superstar the world had ever known, but his story is an intriguing tale of a person with hopes, dreams and faults. The towering successes in Chaplin's life are mirrored by his failures, especially during the early part of his life while he was struggling to perfect his craft. By all means, Chaplin was a comedic genius of the first magnitude, but with it came a price only perfection can demand.

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Charles Chaplin: My Autobiography

Manufacturer: Simon and Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: B000E14A0G

Product Description

As a child, Charlie Chaplin was awed and inspired by the sight of the glamorous vaudeville stars passing by his home, and from then on he never lost his ambition to become an actor. Chaplins film career as the Little Tramp adored by the whole world is the stuff of legend, but this frank autobiography shows another side: his childhood of grinding poverty in the south London slums and early debut on the music hall stage, his lucky break in America, the struggle to maintain artistic control over his work, the string of failed marriages, and eventual exile from Hollywood after persecution for his left-wing politics and personal scandals. My Autobiography is an evocative and compelling account of one of the twentieth centurys most remarkable lives. Tells so much about this curious, difficult man ... a wonderfully vivid imagination The New York Times

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My Autobiography
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Manufacturer: Simon&Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NSJYXS

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My Autobiography
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Manufacturer: Pocket Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0671782401

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Charles Chaplin, My Autobiography
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Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HIHIO6

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CHAPLIN: MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY
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Manufacturer: Simon and Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GP3NFS

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My Autobiography
Charles Chaplin
Manufacturer: Simon and Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000ONAXV4

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My Autobiography
Charles Chaplin
Manufacturer: Pocket Books, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000NSFBLC

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Charles Chaplin
Manufacturer: Readers Union/Bodley Head
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MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY
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Manufacturer: PENGUIN
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000S5NV8A

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Fifteen popular Cat Stevens songs including Moonshadow and Morning Has Broken. Easy-to-read, simplified arrangements for the pianist, with chord symbols.

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CALL OF CTHULHU is Chaosium's classic roleplaying game of Lovecraftian horror in which ordinary people are confronted by the terrifying and alien forces of the Cthulhu Mythos. CALL OF CTHULHU uses Chaosium's Basic Roleplaying System, easy to learn and quick to play. This bestseller has won dozens of game-industry awards and is a member of the Academy of Adventure Game Design Hall of Fame. In 2001 CALL OF CTHULHU celebrated its 20th anniversary. In 2003 CALL OF CTHULHU was voted the #1 Gothic/Horror RPG of all time by the Gaming Report.com community. CALL OF CTHULHU is well-supported by an ever-growing line of high quality game supplements. This is the softcover 6th edition of this classic horror game, completely compatible with all of previous editions and supplements for CALL OF CTHULHU. This is a complete roleplaying game in one volume. All you need to play is this book, some dice, imagination, and your friends.

Customer Reviews:

RPG.......2007-09-03

Become an investigator, and soon realise that the most important thing in the world is trying to hang on to your sanity. Avoiding being
destroyed by creeping monsters and crazed cultists, is good, too, but a quick axe murder might be preferable in some cases to a life and existence of crazed, terrified insanity.

Perfect roleplaying game for over 30's!.......2007-08-08

It's been a good 20 years since I've played a roleplaying game, and was reluctant to go back to hacking up Orcs with a +2 Broadsword.
After some research I learnt about Cthulhu. Unsure of whether to use the original rulebook ( this one ) or the revised (controversial) D20 version, I proceeded to warm my credit card and get both ( the d20 out-of-print version costing double the cost of this book ).

The d20 book arrived first, and I was quite disappointed. The artwork was juvenile, the game system over complicated. There's just something about adding up endless numbers and then rolling a 20-sided dice that is just, well, uncompelling. The d20 version also has none of the 1920's theme that (for me) was half the movie.

Two weeks later, this book arrived. Call me old fashioned, but what a treat. Emotive, moody black and white illustrations,numberous Lovecraft quotes(even the full Cthulhu short story), and straightforward game system that appeals to an adult that doesn't have time for convoluted bollocks.
The writing style is both simple, engaging and quite tongue in cheek.
Even if you never plan to drag your married friends around a table and force them to roll funny little dice, the book holds up as beautifully realized tribute to Lovecraft and pulp supernatural horror.

I now understand what all the fuss was about between d20 and the original.

Sandy's version wins. Hands down.

PS. mint condition d20 cthulhu rulebook for sale :)

d100.......2007-07-25

This is the old system based on d100 for skills. The rules are easy to understand, enough examples are included and not too much as to make it tedious. The book was inspiring.

A great book / supplement..........2007-02-17

If you have an interest in the Cthulhu Mythos, even if you don't roleplay, you're going to love this book. It's worth buying just for the three story scenarios in the back. They are impeccably written, and more atmospheric than most of the Lovecraft pastiche you see floating around now days.

Fun Evening.......2006-12-15

A gamer friend introduced our social group to this game about a year ago. Many people think these games are just for kids. They aren't. We are 30 something to 50 something in age and we had a great time working together to solve our "case." If you have never played one of these role playing games, they aren't all about weapons and fighting. Yes there are monsters to deal with but this series is ripe with 1920's ambiance that makes the characters fun to play. This rule book contains several adventures to get you started and from there you can choose other scenerio's like San Franciso or New York during the same time period. Share the fun with friends and a good bottle of wine. You won't be disappointed.

Call Of Cthulhu: Horror Roleplaying In the Worlds Of H.P. Lovecraft (5.6.1 Edition / Version 5.6.1)

Average customer rating:

ia ia Cthulhu fhtagn!!!
Useful even to non-lovecraft fans...
In his house at R'lyeh, dead Cthulhu waits dreaming...
Yet another 5-star review
An Unforgetable Experience

Call Of Cthulhu: Horror Roleplaying In the Worlds Of H.P. Lovecraft (5.6.1 Edition / Version 5.6.1)
Sandy Petersen , and Lynn Willis
Manufacturer: Chaosium, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 1568821484

Customer Reviews:

ia ia Cthulhu fhtagn!!!.......2005-04-19

I have been gaming for over 15 years, ond only recently picked this up and played at a con. I love it. It's simple, easy to learn and play, and has an inherent flexibilty that makes it easy for Keeper's to make a judgement call on events not covered in the rules. (When in doubt, the Luck roll is a good bet).

If you want real horror, ignore the WoD and make it Cthulhu!

Useful even to non-lovecraft fans..........2005-04-03

The Call of Cthulhu system, as written in the 5.5 and 6.0 versions, is one of the most complete systems I've ever found.

That is amazing, considering exactly how LITE the rules system is. There are very few hard and fast rules, with almost everything being handled by percentile dice. The system is very organic, with characters increasing in skill by performing them.

The characters in a Call of Cthulhu game are more 'real' than some similar games from other companies. They have a great sense of depth due to the occupation system used. Also, considering how lethal combat is in the game, you are greatly encouraged to think your way out of problems.

One other area that has been found by my group to be important is the ease of transfer from one 'style' of play to another. Whenever we are wanting to run any type of realistic game set in any era, we always look to the Call of Cthulhu rulebook for ideas. So far, we have run a wild west game and several other genres using the rules in this book.

In his house at R'lyeh, dead Cthulhu waits dreaming..........2004-06-22

The works of master horror writer H.P. Lovecraft of the 1920s have influenced almost every single good horror writer to date, from Ann Rice to Stephen King. COC is likely the best RPG ever put to print, and the publisher Chaosium just makes things easier for players by adding content from their various supplements with each new edition. A typical game session has your characters snooping around for clues, and interrogating various NPCs (non player characters), and then implementing a course of action. The climax of a campaign also often (unfortunately for players) includes one of the hideous deities of the Cthulhu Mythos, such as Azathoth, Cthulhu himself, Dagon, or, possibly the worst, Nyarlathotep, trickster god with a thousand avatars or "masks". COC is the only game that has ever given me, as the gamemaster, chills reading a supplement in the middle of the day. I also recommend picking up one of the numerous Cthulhu Mythos anthologies of short stories. Prepare to be scared

Yet another 5-star review.......2004-01-13

Doesn't it tell you something, that *every* review for this edition of this book gives it 5 stars? (Some of the out-of-print editions have reviews here too.) And let's face it, us RPG enthusiasts are not the sort of folks to shy away from criticizing.

Some people will say the Basic Roleplaying rule-set is outdated. It's true that games like Unknown Armies and Godlike are pretty cool, and I know people who are using those rules for their CoC games. But just try introducing a newcomer to those rules, or getting someone who's only played D&D before to convert. They get dizzy, I tell you. Nope, for a simple, elegant rule-set that just about anyone can grasp right off the bat, Call of Cthulhu's Basic Roleplaying has still got it, after more than 20 years. The rules fade into the background, where they belong.

And unlike other games with their multivolume core rulebooks and endless splatbooks that you *need* if you want a fully fleshed-out campaign, everything you really need is right there in this one rulebook. Heck, every time Chaosium does a new edition, they comb all the supplements for spells, monsters, skills, and so on, and add them into the new edition--to save you time and money! Chaosium even printed the entire short story, "The Call of Cthulhu," in this edition, so newbies can get a taste of what it's all about.

If you've got an older edition of CoC, you don't need to buy this one--the rule changes are quite minor. Unlike D&D, a new edition doesn't make everything you already know obsolete--"editions" of CoC are back-compatible with older editions and old supplements. Chaosium does new editions to keep the book in print and to make it a little better every time, not to force the fans to spend money. I bought it because my old book was getting worn out, and I wanted a more durable hardcover edition. Now I can loan out the old book to players. But I'm really happy with the little changes, and it's nice to have some of the information that used to be in adventures and supplements all gathered together in one book.

An Unforgetable Experience.......2003-03-11

I first read these tales in an "Armed Services Edition" of HP Lovecraft stories, back in 1944! Sitting underseas in a US Navy Submarine in the South Pacific, scared to death, and lonely for home, these stories gripped me so completely, I forgot my real fears of war.

That old book, now tattered and yellowed with age, was read by my son and daughter, who now want to pass it on to my grandchildren. It's time for me to replace it with a new Penguin edition before is falls apart, totally!

Lovecraft's writing has many weaknesses, flowery language, poor characterizations and vague plots. I see all these faults now, but they never bothered me when I first read him. Women don't seem to be a part of Lovecraft's world, and that is a shame. His stories were too short to correct these faults. Modern full novels, in the Lovecraft tradition, like "The Riddle of Cthulhu," are written with many of HPL's faults corrected; like the inclusion, for example, of unforgetable characters, romance and a believable plot. Still, the "Call" is the source and the classic horror book. You must experience these classic stories, then move on to today's modern "Lovecraft Style" novels!

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Call of Cthulhu - Horror Roleplaying in the Worlds of H.P. Lovecraft
Sandy; Willis, Lynn; Herger, Keith; Morrison, Mark; Workman, William A. Call of Cthulhu & Chaosium; Peterson
Manufacturer: Chaosium, Incorporated
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Willis, Lynn | ( W ) | Authors, A-Z | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Horror Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: B000P0ZUHI

Average customer rating:
Call of Cthulhu - Horror Roleplaying in the Worlds of H.P. Lovecraft - 5.2 Edition
Sandy; Willis, Lynn; Herger, Keith; Morrison, Mark; Workman, William A. Call of Cthulhu & Chaosium; Peterson
Manufacturer: Chaosium, Incorporated
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Willis, Lynn | ( W ) | Authors, A-Z | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Horror Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: B000P0ZUHS

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Call of Cthulhu: Horror Roleplaying in the Worlds of H. P. Lovecraft (20th Anniversary Leatherbound Edition)
Sandy Peterson , and Lynn Willis
Manufacturer: Chaosium
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Willis, Lynn | ( W ) | Authors, A-Z | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Horror Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 1568821514

Product Description

In honor of the 20th Anniversary of the award-winning Call Of Cthulhu RPG, Chaosium is proud to release a premium, bonded leather-bound edition of the core rulebook. This special limited edition features high-quality paper stock, a new interior layout designed to evoke that "ancient tome" look and feel, sienna ink, and a durable Smythe-sewn binding that collectively make this 300-page work of art the one edition that every Cthulhu player and Keeper will have to have. It would also make a stunning prop for Cthulhu Live. This is a once-in-a-lifetime gift, a very limited edition that will never be reprinted.

Book Description

Michael: At the last curtain call made the gesture of "being quiet" with my finger to my mouth. That was my signal to the house and to those around usan to myselfthat there would be no more words from Kramer.

Julia: Elaine was someone who single women laughed at because she wrestled with her worst secrets and biggest fears. Let's face it, she embodied lots of problems. In fact she was a jerk. Anyone who chooses Elaine as a role model should be in therapy.

Jason: When people reflected on their own lives in comparison to George's, they felt pretty good. They could tune in and see it was far worse for this poor slob. In a sick way that was comforting.

Jerry: After nine years, how do you say good-bye to the experience, the people, the accomplishments? Emotionally, I just hoped not to get crushed, yet all the while I knew I would.

Customer Reviews:

Just what I, a big Seinfeld fan, was looking for.......2004-12-03

This book is mostly imagery--photography--with "commentary" by the cast. At the same time, for the more intellectual/reader-type Seinfeld fan, the sentences beside each photograph are extremely interesting and usually funny too. These commentaries are by the 4 main members of the cast. If there is anything bad said about this book, it must only be because the rater expected more text or something. The photographs are excellent--they tell enough themselves.
After reading this book, the re-runs won't be the same to me again. (in a great way!)

WOW!.......2004-06-18

This book is truly moving in the way it presents the lasts days of one of the most remembered sitcoms in television history. With its stunning photos (black and white) and riveting commentary this is a must for all Seinfeldians.

Seinfeld.......2003-07-26

Mr James N Simpson, you do not seem to be a very good Seinfeld fan. It is a well known fact that the finale was only one whole episode, which aired for a 60 minute time slot. The re-runs are the ones split up into two sections. Obviously you only had a chance to watch re-runs and none of the original airings.
I suggest you do not claim yourself a true Seinfeld Fan as you don't seem to get the facts straight.

Behind the Scenes.......2003-06-21

This book takes the reader behind the scenes of Seinfeld's final two episodes. There's heaps of one line or paragraph interviews from each of the four main stars throughout this book. Most of the book will have a black and white photograph on one page with one paragraph on the opposite page.

You don't learn a great deal that you haven't heard elsewhere, but there are lots of photographs of the set and of the cast that you won't have seen before. The only downside is that all the photographs are black and white and none are colour and that there isn't more information.

I would actually recommend Jerry Seinfeld the Entire Domain instead of this book as it has a lot more information.

Since the final episodes are never shown as a one hour episode any more this book does cover both of the final two episodes. I realise the final episode was a one day special in the USA but not everyone lived in America and saw the two episodes as one when they were aired and a lot of people do enjoy watching them over and over again as the two. The book itself mentions they are two now as well. Either way if you are talking about one episode or two episodes it is the same episode and that is what this book is about.

If you are a Seinfeld fan... this is a MUST!.......2002-02-02

This is a great book... wonderful pictures! From "Hello Newman!" to watching Kramer run into Jerry's apartment, but from KRAMER'S side... These are all execellent pictures and excellent moments. Each of the cast members ideas and thoughts about the serious. Plus, you get pictures of EVERYONE, even Babu, Soup Nazi, Mr. Pit, the Constanzas, the Susan's parents, and many more...

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