July 28, 2015

Mystery Photo

I came across this photo online a few years ago and have never been able to figure out when or where it was taken or who else is in the photo. Judging from CC's appearance, I believe this was probably taken circa mid-1920s, although it's hard to tell if his hair is dyed or not. Due to the glum faces, my first thought was that this was a meeting between Charlie and his legal team. The man to his right might be his longtime attorney Loyd Wright, who was about his age, but I have been unable to find any photos of Wright as a young man to make any real comparisons (there are some photos of him as an older man on ebay). I also thought it could also be a press conference but everyone looks so serious. Charlie usually put on his "prop smile" for those. Any ideas?


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8 comments:

  1. AnonymousJuly 28, 2015 at 2:14 PM

    Wow, this is a mystery! I had an equally problematic (non-Chaplin) orphan work when I was doing my thesis, have you contacted BFI? If you are following up on this photo, I would love to hear what you discover!
    I love a good mystery!
    Take Care!
    Summer

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  2. HatshepsutJuly 28, 2015 at 5:03 PM

    The desk, curtains and chair he is sitting in look familiar, being either in his studio office or a NY hotel room he has been photographed in before. Let me get out my Ouija.

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  3. PaulinaJuly 28, 2015 at 11:39 PM

    Could it be possible that the photo was taken in 1925 during the press conference he had in New York after his breakdown? Or maybe this was during the divorce from Lita, An is just a rarely seen photo from either day

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    Replies
    1. Jessica July 29, 2015 at 8:12 AM

      The press conference you're referring to was in January 1927. This was taken at that time. His hair was different and he was wearing a different suit. It's possible that it's from later 1927 and he is meeting with his lawyers about the divorce.

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  4. Carrie PomeroyJuly 28, 2015 at 11:43 PM

    The way he looks reminds me of some of a photo I've seen of him testifying in the Charles Amador/Charlie Aplin case in 1925. Maybe it's from around then?

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    Replies
    1. Jessica July 29, 2015 at 8:33 AM

      Yes, this is the time I am leaning towards.

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    2. Carrie PomeroyJuly 29, 2015 at 8:49 AM

      I looked at your post about that trial again and was struck that even his body language seems very similar from that photo to this one. His hair looks a bit different, but maybe it was just a little more slicked down from one day to the next. The suit seems similar, too.

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    3. Jessica July 29, 2015 at 9:37 AM

      His hair is very different here. He didn't often part it that way. I agree the body language is similar too. I wish we could see the faces of the other people. The one older man on the right resembles Gavin McNab who had sort of a long nose but I don't know if he wore glasses.

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