Charlie Chaplin’s House

One of the most notable figures to pass through Hollywood is Charlie Chaplin.

We posted earlier about how Chaplin’s old movie studio still exists just south of Sunset Blvd on La Brea Ave.

Chaplin was born in England on April 16, 1889 and his younger years were anything but privileged.  His story is said to be the most dramatic rags to riches tale ever told. He entered the theatre while still in London and eventually landed some vaudeville tours in the United States.

Success began to follow the tours, in particular after his role in The Tramp. In addition to his acting and production credits, Chaplin joined forces with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith to form United Artists.  It was a revolutionary idea in the film industry where the artists personally had complete control over the creation and distribution of their pictures by funding the productions themselves.

In 1917 he acquired a five acre orange grove with a mansion on the property to become his new studios.  The idea was that he would live in the house.  He never did.

Instead he resided at a nearby stately mansion in Beachwood Canyon at 6147 Temple Hill Drive.  You’ll be able to find it easily enough punching it into your navigation, but beware.  The roads leading up to it are steep, winding and often only wide enough for one car at a time.

I found I didn’t much enjoy having to back down the steep winding road to let others pass, but the house is beautiful.  He did live in a number of other homes but this is the one he lived in when the studio was built and through the twenties until he moved to Beverly Hills in the thirties.

More photos after the break…