CHARLIE CHAPLIN & YOUNG BRIDE TO RETURN TO HOLLYWOOD FROM MEXICO
Los Angeles, California (JFK+50) On November 26, 1924, The Washington Times reports Charlie Chaplin* and his young bride will return to Hollywood from Empalme, Sonoro, Mexico where they were married on November 24th.
The couple will be going "on location" for Chaplin's newest film, "The Gold Rush**."
Charlie's bride, Lita Grey Chaplin***, has been his leading lady since last spring.
JFK+50 NOTE
The Washington Times article says that Lita Grey was 18 years old at the time of her marriage. Since she was born in April 1908, Miss Grey would have actually been 16 in November 1924.
Young women getting married in their mid-teens was not uncommon in those days even among non-celebrities. My grandmother married my grandfather when she was 16 years old. She told me that she & Harris "went together" for 3 years, then he said, "Maude, I think we've been going together long enough." She thought he was going to dump her. But it was his way of proposing. They married on Dec 7, 1912.
*Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (1889-1977) was born in London & became one the silent movie industry's comedic stars in the 1920s. CC was "smeared in the press...for...affairs with young women, condemned for...alleged communist ties, & (was) banned from...the United States."
**The Gold Rush, premiering in 1925, was written, produced, directed & starred in by Charlie Chaplin. He portrayed his famous "Little Tramp" character. The film's budget was less than a million, but it grossed $4 million world-wide.
***Lita Louise Grey (1908-1995) was born in Hollywood, California & met CC when she was 8 years old. At the time of their marriage in 1924 she was pregnant with the 1st of their 2 children. The couple divorced in 1927.
SOURCES
"Chaplins To Cut Short Honeymoon And Make New Film," The Washington Times, November 26, 1924, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
"The Exile of Charlie Chaplin," by Scott Syman, NPR's Fresh Air, November 22, 2024, www.npr.org/
