Category Archives: Chinatown

Soft Shoes – Crossing Paths with Chaplin, Laurel, and Lloyd

Posted on June 18, 2022 by John Bengtson

Now streaming on the San Francisco Silent Film Festival’s website, Harry Carey’s 1925 action/drama Soft Shoes, in which Carey (right) seeks to rescue a young woman from a life of crime, was purportedly set in San Francisco. Yet the film’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Charlie Chaplin, Chinatown, Harold Lloyd, Stan Laurel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Modern Times – Citizen Kane – Humphrey Bogart Factory Gate

Posted on September 13, 2016 by John Bengtson

I recently watched Citizen Kane (1941) for the first time in years, broadcast on TCM, and enjoyed it thoroughly. Having seen it many times before, the scenes and the dialog were all familiar, but still powerful and engaging. But now … Continue reading →

Posted in Charlie Chaplin, Chinatown, Modern Times, Orson Welles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

How Charlie Chaplin made The Kid (older post)

Posted on June 11, 2013 by John Bengtson

In an early post I uploaded a PowerPoint presentation highlighting some of the historic settings in Chinatown and the Plaza de Los Angeles where Chaplin filmed his early masterpiece The Kid (1921).  You can download the 60 MB file here. … Continue reading →

Posted in Charlie Chaplin, Chinatown, The Kid | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Charlie Chaplin and Film Noir? – It’s Also True

Posted on September 3, 2011 by John Bengtson

Charlie Chaplin and and film noir?  It’s also true.  As with my prior post about Harold Lloyd, Chaplin also has a connection to The Turning Point (1952), a noir crime drama where William Holden plays a cynical reporter investigating a … Continue reading →

Posted in Charlie Chaplin, Chinatown, Film Noir, For Heaven's Sake, Harold Lloyd, Modern Times, The Turning Point | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Stan Laurel in Chaplin’s Footprints

Posted on June 11, 2011 by John Bengtson

Stan Laurel may have crossed paths with Buster Keaton (see former post), but for a time early in his career the English comedian was Charlie Chaplin’s understudy and room-mate, when they were both music hall entertainers touring the United States … Continue reading →

Posted in Charlie Chaplin, Chinatown, Stan Laurel, The Kid | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments