The heart-tugging reunion in The Kid (1921) played between Charlie Chaplin’s Little Tramp and his “adopted” son (Jackie Coogan) remains one of the most emotionally charged scenes in all of film history. Remarkably, the setting for this iconic scene remains standing, and is passed unknowingly by hundreds of tourists every day. As shown here, the reunion took place on Olvera Street, a colorful Mexican marketplace and cultural center, just north of the Plaza de Los Angeles, that has been a top downtown tourist spot for over 80 years.
Originally named Wine Street, Olvera Street was renamed in honor of Judge Augustin Olvera, a signatory to the Mexican surrender to the United States in January 1847, and later the first Superior Court Judge of Los Angeles County. The street is home to the oldest building in town, the Avila Adobe, built in 1818, and the Pelanconi House, the oldest brick house in the city, dating from 1855. Olvera Street runs south towards the Plaza de Los Angeles, where Felipe de Neve and a band of settlers founded the city on September 4, 1781. Other city landmarks surround the Plaza, including the Plaza Fire Station, built in 1884, which has appeared both in Buster Keaton’s The Goat (1921) and the contemporary television crime drama Bones.
You can read a complete overview of all of The Kid locations at this post How Charlie Chaplin Filmed The Kid.
Chaplin fashioned his tenement set for his earlier short film Easy Street (1917) after Methley Street, in his boyhood London neighborhood Lambeth. To add greater realism, he also filmed at the Plaza de Los Angeles (below), and at the same Olvera Street spot where he filmed The Kid.
In 1928, when civic leader Christine Sterling learned that the Avila Adobe was set to be demolished, she rallied a campaign to restore the building, while converting Olvera Street into a Mexican cultural center. Olvera Street opened on Easter Sunday, 1930, and has been a popular tourist destination ever since.
Gerald Smith, Bonnie McCourt, and David Totheroh, the grandson of Chaplin’s cameraman Rollie Totheroh, discovered this location, in part, from clues revealed during a 1964 family interview with the senior Totheroh. To read more about The Kid and Easy Street, check out my book Silent Traces.
Please help support naming the alley by posting a review on Google Maps. Prototype alley sign design by noted Dutch graphic artist – Piet Schreuders. Download a 4-page brochure about the alley HERE. This video further explains the alley – if you can, please leave a thumbs up and share it with others.
All images from Chaplin films made from 1918 onwards, copyright © Roy Export Company Establishment. CHARLES CHAPLIN, CHAPLIN, and the LITTLE TRAMP, photographs from and the names of Mr. Chaplin’s films are trademarks and/or service marks of Bubbles Incorporated SA and/or Roy Export Company Establishment. Used with permission.
I’d rather view side-by-side shots than see these photo images that blink back and forth, which I find distracting and headache-inducing. Just my two cents worth. Keep up the good work.
LikeLike
Thanks Andrew. I learned a new trick, making animated GIF images, so thought I’d give it a try.
John
LikeLike
What a great find. Just one more reason to take visitors down to Olvera Street! Even if they don’t watch silent movies, they probably have seen that iconic scene and would be able to appreciate the connection to Chaplin.
LikeLike
Pingback: How Charlie Chaplin filmed The Kid | Chaplin-Keaton-Lloyd film locations (and more)
I personally like the gifs provided they provide a smooth transition between then and now.
I’m visiting my family to present them with my son, and am taking the opportunity of taking back my copy of Silent Traces. It encouraged me to soldier on with my own site, Traces of Evil (a name chosen before I encountered your book!)
LikeLike
Pingback: The Kid – Cops – Safety Last! Three comic masterpieces filmed at a common Hollywood alley you can still visit today | Chaplin-Keaton-Lloyd film locations (and more)
Pingback: Chaplin Leads the Gang to the Hollywood Police | Chaplin-Keaton-Lloyd film locations (and more)
I just visited Olvera St for the first time a few weeks ago–how fun to hear about this Chaplin connection! Thanks.
LikeLike
kindly Sir send me link of the Kid film in 1921 same location is now in 2014 .It would be so surprising for me I am impatient to see how that place of 1921 now seen in 2014.I love to see that
LikeLike
Pingback: film forum charlie chaplin - Search Yours
Pingback: moviemorlocks.com – The TCM Movie Locations Tour is a year old!
Pingback: The Chaplin – Keaton – Lloyd Hollywood Alley | Chaplin-Keaton-Lloyd film locations (and more)