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Radio comedy

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Radio comedy , or comedic radio programming , is a radio broadcast that may involve variety show , sitcom elements, sketches , and various types of comedy found in other media. It may also include more surreal or fantastic elements, as these can be conveyed on a small budget with just a few sound effects or some simple dialogue. Radio comedy began in the United States in 1930, based on the fact that as most United Kingdom music hall comedians such as Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel progressed to silent films , they moved to Hollywood and fed the radio comedy field. Another British music hall comic, George Formby , stayed in the British movie industry, and in 1940 joined the Entertainments National Service Association to entertain British World War II troops. UK radio comedy therefore started later, in the 1950s.

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142-662: Radio comedy began in the United States in 1930, and got a much later start in the United Kingdom because many of the British comedians (such as Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel ) emigrated to the U.S. to make silent movies in Hollywood , and the American comedians who did not become dramatic actors migrated to radio. Raymond Knight launched The Cuckoo Hour on NBC in 1930, along with

284-509: A "pale, puny, sullen-looking youngster" who "looked much too shy to do any good in the theatre". However, the teenager made an impact on his first night at the London Coliseum and he was quickly signed to a contract. Chaplin began by playing a series of minor parts, eventually progressing to starring roles in 1909. In April 1910, he was given the lead in a new sketch, Jimmy the Fearless . It

426-446: A comedy show thinly disguised as car advice, and Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! . Shows featuring comedic music are also popular; one of the better known national comedy music programs is the long-running weekly program hosted by Dr. Demento , and several other local stations (mostly college radio, freeform and eclectic formats) have similar programs. Several networks program 24 hours a day of stand-up comedy routines; several channels on

568-406: A comic genius". In January 1918, Chaplin was visited by leading British singer and comedian Harry Lauder , and the two acted in a short film together. Mutual was patient with Chaplin's decreased rate of output, and the contract ended amicably. With his aforementioned concern about the declining quality of his films because of contract scheduling stipulations, Chaplin's primary concern in finding

710-513: A depressing fear of being old-fashioned". In this state of uncertainty, early in 1931, the comedian decided to take a holiday and ended up travelling for 16 months. He spent months travelling Western Europe, including extended stays in France and Switzerland, and spontaneously decided to visit Japan. The day after he arrived in Japan, Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated by ultra-nationalists in

852-865: A four-hour selection of black-and-white videotaped programs each day. The tapes were recorded in Calgary and flown into a community with a transmitter, put on the air, and then transported to another community, often by the "bicycle" method used in television syndication . Transportation delays ranged from one week for larger centres to almost a month for small communities. The first stations were started in Yellowknife , Northwest Territories; Lynn Lake , Manitoba; and Havre-Saint-Pierre , Quebec, in 1967. Another station began operating in Whitehorse , Yukon in November 1968. Additional stations were added from 1969 to 1972. Most of

994-568: A gibberish song did, however, give the Tramp a voice for the only time on film. After recording the music, Chaplin released Modern Times in February 1936. It was his first feature in 15 years to adopt political references and social realism, a factor that attracted considerable press coverage despite Chaplin's attempts to downplay the issue. The film earned less at the box-office than his previous features and received mixed reviews, as some viewers disliked

1136-660: A home on Australia 's Radio National and in Ireland there are always a few comedy shows in the week's programming on RTÉ . A locally produced Australian comedic radio program is Hamish & Andy , and in the United Kingdom an example is The Burkiss Way . Radio in Canada is fragmented between the public broadcasters the CBC and Radio Canada in English and French respectively, and a number of independent stations and syndicated networks spread across

1278-777: A leading lady, Edna Purviance , whom Chaplin met in a café and hired on account of her beauty. She went on to appear in 35 films with Chaplin over eight years; the pair also formed a romantic relationship that lasted until 1917. Chaplin asserted a high level of control over his pictures and started to put more time and care into each film. There was a month-long interval between the release of his second production, A Night Out , and his third, The Champion . The final seven of Chaplin's 14 Essanay films were all produced at this slower pace. Chaplin also began to alter his screen persona, which had attracted some criticism at Keystone for its "mean, crude, and brutish" nature. The character became more gentle and romantic; The Tramp (April 1915)

1420-524: A network of radio stations formerly set up by a federal Crown corporation, the Canadian National Railway . The network was used to broadcast programming to riders aboard its passenger trains, with coverage primarily in central and eastern Canada. On November 2, 1936, the CRBC was reorganized under its present name. While the CRBC was a state-owned company, the CBC was a Crown corporation on the model of

1562-494: A neurotic state of wanting perfection". One advantage Chaplin found in sound technology was the opportunity to record a musical score for the film, which he composed himself. Chaplin finished editing City Lights in December 1930, by which time silent films were an anachronism. A preview before an unsuspecting public audience was not a success, but a showing for the press produced positive reviews. One journalist wrote: "Nobody in

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1704-466: A new distribution company, United Artists , in January 1919. The arrangement was revolutionary in the film industry, as it enabled the four partners – all creative artists – to personally fund their pictures and have complete control. Chaplin was eager to start with the new company and offered to buy out his contract with First National. They refused and insisted that he complete

1846-504: A new distributor was independence; Sydney Chaplin, then his business manager, told the press: "Charlie [must] be allowed all the time he needs and all the money for producing [films] the way he wants   ... It is quality, not quantity, we are after." In June 1917, Chaplin signed to complete eight films for First National Exhibitors' Circuit in return for $ 1   million. He chose to build his own studio, situated on five acres of land off Sunset Boulevard , with production facilities of

1988-460: A pair of Ottawa Valley "lads" or country bumpkins Delmer MacGregor and Cecil Wiggins, played by Gary Perrin and Mike O’Reilly. In real life Perrin was a station executive with little performance training. O'Reilly was an on-air personality, a seasoned bluegrass musician, and multi-instrumentalist. Together they produced a light comedy album, which included Meadow Muffin Blues about stepping in cow pies in

2130-522: A photograph of the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush , and later the story of the Donner Party of 1846–1847, he made what Geoffrey Macnab calls "an epic comedy out of grim subject matter". In The Gold Rush , the Tramp is a lonely prospector fighting adversity and looking for love. With Georgia Hale as his leading lady, Chaplin began filming the picture in February 1924. Its elaborate production, costing almost $ 1   million, included location shooting in

2272-585: A poll held by Pictures and the Picturegoer of the greatest British film actors, receiving 142,920 votes from readers. When the Essanay contract ended in December 1915, Chaplin, fully aware of his popularity, requested a $ 150,000 signing bonus from his next studio. He received several offers, including Universal , Fox and Vitagraph , the best of which came from the Mutual Film Corporation at $ 10,000

2414-435: A revised policy of improved training and methods for handling bullying and harassment complaints. The Rubin report "contained several recommendations on how the CBC can change its workplace culture. One of those recommendations included the creation of a work and human rights ombudsperson whom employees could use to raise concerns about the workplace." The CBC also severed its relationship "with two top executives, Chris Boyce,

2556-502: A romantic drama about ill-fated lovers. Chaplin intended it to be a star-making vehicle for Edna Purviance, and did not appear in the picture himself other than in a brief, uncredited cameo. He wished the film to have a realistic feel and directed his cast to give restrained performances. In real life, he explained, "men and women try to hide their emotions rather than seek to express them". A Woman of Paris premiered in September 1923 and

2698-553: A star of their Keystone Studios who intended to leave. Chaplin thought the Keystone comedies "a crude mélange of rough and rumble", but liked the idea of working in films and rationalised: "Besides, it would mean a new life." He met with the company and signed a $ 150-per-week contract in September 1913. Chaplin arrived in Los Angeles in early December, and began working for the Keystone studio on 5   January 1914. Chaplin's boss

2840-757: A theatrical agency in London's West End . The manager sensed potential in Chaplin, who was promptly given his first role as a newsboy in Harry Arthur Saintsbury 's Jim, a Romance of Cockayne . It opened in July 1903, but the show was unsuccessful and closed after two weeks. Chaplin's comic performance, however, was singled out for praise in many of the reviews. Saintsbury secured a role for Chaplin in Charles Frohman 's production of Sherlock Holmes , where he played Billy

2982-492: A third son, George Wheeler Dryden , fathered by the music hall entertainer Leo Dryden . The child was taken by Dryden at six months old, and did not re-enter Chaplin's life for thirty years. "I was hardly aware of a crisis because we lived in a continual crisis; and, being a boy, I dismissed our troubles with gracious forgetfulness." Chaplin, on his childhood Chaplin's childhood was fraught with poverty and hardship, making his eventual trajectory "the most dramatic of all

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3124-623: A very large country. Canadian radio licences are federally managed to limit monopolies. Consequently, programing including comedy, is inconsistent and variable quality. In Toronto Jake Edwards (radio personality) portrayed a punchdrunk boxer known as the Champ who manages to misunderstand social situations and overreact with fisticuffs. Performing musical comedians Maclean and Maclean created foul-mouthed original recordings which became underground hits despite limited airplay due to censorship and legal troubles. The Ottawa market on CHEZ-FM 106.1 featured

3266-403: A week. A contract was negotiated with Mutual that amounted to $ 670,000 a year, which Robinson says made Chaplin – at 26 years old – one of the highest-paid people in the world. The high salary shocked the public and was widely reported in the press. John R. Freuler, the studio president, explained: "We can afford to pay Mr. Chaplin this large sum annually because

3408-528: Is Peeper Radio Theatre . Veteran NPR Producer Joe Bevilacqua is creating new radio comedy for The Comedy-O-Rama Hour , which airs on XM Satellite Radio 's Sonic Theater Channel 163, five times per week. In the UK, recent standup and revue comedy performances are also now receiving airing on radio. Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (16 April 1889 – 25 December 1977)

3550-491: Is CBC" or "Ici Radio-Canada". This was later replaced by a different, and more familiar 11-note woodwind orchestral jingle, which was used until December 31, 1985. The updated one-colour version of the gem/pizza logo, created by Hubert Tison and Robert Innes, was introduced on January 1, 1986, and with it was introduced a new series of computer graphic-generated television idents for the CBC and Radio-Canada. These idents consisted of different background colours corresponding to

3692-597: Is covered by the "fair dealing" exemption of the Copyright Act . On May 13, 2021, the CPC lawsuit was dismissed in the Federal Court of Canada , with Justice Phelan's clarification that the CPC's use was fair and allowable. The decision made precedent. "Prior to this decision, Canadian jurisprudence held that to meet the requirements of criticism and review, the copyrighted work in use must be critiqued and analyzed. Furthermore,

3834-532: Is subject to updating following the review's completion. The CBC also submitted a paper to the Review Panel entitled "Our Culture, Our Democracy: Canada in the Digital World", which included various recommendations regarding the strengthening of public broadcasting within the global broadcasting market. The Review Panel submitted its final report and recommendations on January 29, 2020. As a Crown corporation ,

3976-454: Is the Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television . It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its English-language and French-language service units known as CBC and Radio-Canada , respectively. Although some local stations in Canada predate its founding, the CBC is the oldest continually-existing broadcasting network in Canada. The CBC

4118-445: Is the most widely recognized symbol of the corporation. The main on-air identification featured the logo kaleidoscopically morphing into its form while radiating outward from the center of the screen on a blue background. This animated version, which went to air in December 1974, is also known colloquially as "The Exploding Pizza". The appearance of this logo marked the arrival of full-colour network television service. The large shape in

4260-541: Is the weekly Saturday night broadcast Hockey Night in Canada . Personalities like Foster Hewitt , Dick Irvin Jr. , Harry Neale were amongst the light-blue jacketed commentators of the 20th century. Ron MacLean and Don Cherry were famous for their commentary during the first intermission Coach's Corner until Cherry was fired for remarks during broadcast on Remembrance Day 2019 that were widely condemned as anti-immigrant. The 1991 Broadcasting Act states that: ...

4402-505: The British Broadcasting Corporation , which had been reformed from a private company into a statutory corporation in 1927. Leonard Brockington was the CBC's first chairman. For the next few decades, the CBC was responsible for all broadcasting innovation in Canada. This was partly because, until 1958, it was not only a broadcaster but the chief regulator of Canadian broadcasting. It used this dual role to snap up most of

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4544-512: The Canadian digital television transition deadline of August 31, 2011, the CBC converted only about half of the analogue transmitters mandatory to digital (15 of 28 markets with CBC TV, and 14 of 28 markets with SRC). Due to financial difficulties reported by the corporation, the corporation published a plan whereby communities that receive analogue signals by re-broadcast transmitters in mandatory markets would lose their over-the-air (OTA) signals as of

4686-649: The Marble Mountains and the Henri Parmentier Museum . In Hanoi (the capital city of French Indochina) they visited the popular tourist destination Hạ Long Bay , and the couple then left from Hải Phòng to Hong Kong on board of a ship the Canton . The couple had refused to comment on the nature of their relationship, and it was not known whether they were married or not. Sometime later, Chaplin revealed that they married in Canton during this trip. By 1938,

4828-543: The May 15 Incident . The group's original plan had been to provoke a war with the United States by assassinating Chaplin at a welcome reception organised by the prime minister, but the plan had been foiled due to delayed public announcement of the event's date. In his autobiography, Chaplin recalled that on his return to Los Angeles, "I was confused and without plan, restless and conscious of an extreme loneliness". He briefly considered retiring and moving to China. Chaplin's loneliness

4970-587: The New Democratic Party of Canada , accusing them of using copyrighted footage from CBC news programming in their campaign advertising without permission. The Liberals and NDP complied with the letters, pulling the ads in question, while the Broadbent Institute and the Conservatives persisted. Eventually, however, rather than go to court, the Broadbent Institute and the Conservatives agreed to remove

5112-525: The Pacific Time Zone (UTC−8 or −7), originating from Vancouver , even though the audience resided in communities in time zones varying from UTC−5 to UTC−8; the reason for this was that the CBC originated its programs for the Atlantic Time Zone, and a key station in each time zone would record the broadcast for the appropriate delay of one, two or three hours; the programs were originated again for

5254-549: The Sirius XM Radio platforms focus on this format, as does the terrestrial All Comedy Radio network. Rock music stations often play bits of stand-up comedy within the bounds of their regular formats, usually under the banner of a "five o'clock funnies" feature. In Britain and Canada , however, the BBC and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation respectively have continued making new radio comedy and drama . British radio comedy also has

5396-570: The Third Liberty Bond campaign, touring the United States for one month to raise money for the Allies of the First World War. He also produced a short propaganda film at his own expense, donated to the government for fund-raising, called The Bond . Chaplin's next release was war-based, placing the Tramp in the trenches for Shoulder Arms . Associates warned him against making a comedy about

5538-619: The Truckee mountains in Nevada with 600 extras, extravagant sets, and special effects . The last scene was shot in May 1925 after 15 months of filming. Chaplin felt The Gold Rush was the best film he had made. It opened in August 1925 and became one of the highest-grossing films of the silent era, with a U.S. box-office of $ 5   million. The comedy contains some of Chaplin's most famous sequences, such as

5680-494: The advice of the prime minister. According to The Hill Times , a clause in Bill C-60 —an omnibus budget implementation bill introduced by the government of Stephen Harper in 2013—"appears to contradict a longstanding arm's-length relationship between the independent CBC and any government in power". The clause allows the "prime minister's cabinet to approve salaries, working conditions and collective bargaining positions for

5822-737: The clear-channel licences in Canada. It began a separate French-language radio network in December 1937. It introduced FM radio to Canada in 1946, though a distinct FM service was not launched until 1960. Television broadcasts from the CBC began on September 6, 1952, with the opening of a station in Montreal , Quebec ( CBFT ), and a station in Toronto , Ontario ( CBLT ) opening two days later. The CBC's first privately owned affiliate television station, CKSO in Sudbury , Ontario, launched in October 1953. At

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5964-623: The "Inebriate Swell", which drew him significant recognition. The tour lasted 21 months, and the troupe returned to England in June 1912. Chaplin recalled that he "had a disquieting feeling of sinking back into a depressing commonplaceness" and was, therefore, delighted when a new tour began in October. Six months into the second American tour, Chaplin was invited to join the New York Motion Picture Company. A representative who had seen his performances thought he could replace Fred Mace ,

6106-418: The 18-year-old had become an accomplished comedic performer. He struggled to find more work, however, and a brief attempt at a solo act was a failure. Meanwhile, Sydney Chaplin had joined Fred Karno 's prestigious comedy company in 1906 and, by 1908, he was one of their key performers. In February, he managed to secure a two-week trial for his younger brother. Karno was initially wary, and considered Chaplin

6248-447: The 1931 network debut of Stoopnagle and Budd on CBS . Comedians such as Fred Allen , Jack Benny , Judy Canova , Bob Hope and Red Skelton were top-rated in the decades that followed. Even after the big name comedians moved to television in the 1950s, radio comedy continued, notably from Bob and Ray (1946–1988), The Firesign Theatre (1966–1972), and segments heard on NBC's Monitor (1955–1975). Radio comedy did not begin in

6390-423: The 50th anniversary of the CBC. In 1992, the CBC updated its logo design to make it simpler and more red (or white on a red background). The new logo design, created by Swiss-Canadian design firm Gottschalk + Ash, reduces the number of geometric sections in the logo to 13 instead of the previous logo's 25, and the "C" in the centre of the logo became a simple red circle. According to graphic designer Todd Falkowsky,

6532-448: The American draft, but he was not summoned by either country. Despite this criticism, Chaplin was a favourite with the troops, and his popularity continued to grow worldwide. Harper's Weekly reported that the name of Charlie Chaplin was "a part of the common language of almost every country", and that the Tramp image was "universally familiar". In 1917, professional Chaplin imitators were so widespread that he took legal action, and it

6674-428: The CBC adopted a new logo for use at the end of network programs. Designed by scale model artist Jean-Paul Boileau, it consisted of the legends "CBC" and "Radio-Canada" overlaid on a map of Canada. For French programming, the "Radio-Canada" was placed on top. The "Butterfly" logo was designed for the CBC by Hubert Tison in 1966 to mark the network's progressing transition from black-and-white to colour television, much in

6816-427: The CBC became the first broadcaster in the world to use an orbiting satellite for television service, linking Canada "from east to west to north". The mission of CBC is contributing to the "moral economy of the nation". Starting in 1967 and continuing until the mid-1970s, the CBC offered a "Frontier Coverage Package" of limited television service to remote northern communities. Low-power television transmitters carried

6958-638: The CBC operates at arm's length (autonomously) from the government in its day-to-day business. The corporation is governed by the Broadcasting Act of 1991, under a board of directors and is directly responsible to Parliament through the Department of Canadian Heritage . General management of the organization is in the hands of a president, who is appointed by the Governor General of Canada in Council , on

7100-451: The CBC shut down all of its approximately 620 analogue television transmitters, following an announcement of these plans on April 4, 2012. This reduced the total number of the corporation's television transmitters across the country to 27. According to the CBC, this would reduce the corporation's yearly costs by $ 10 million. No plans have been announced to use subchannels to maintain over-the-air signals for both CBC and SRC in markets where

7242-481: The CBC spanned the years between 1965 and 1992, was a beloved and trusted news anchor for the news programme The National . Peter Mansbridge then took over the reins at the premiere Canadian news broadcast until July 1, 2017. For a time Mansbridge shared the anchor position with Wendy Mesley , who was forced to retire after a 38-year career under a cloud for inappropriate use of language in two closed editorial meetings. A staple in Canadian living rooms since 1952

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7384-646: The CBC" in his estimation. Levitt called the Rubin report a "whitewash" and reiterated his suggestion that a federal commission should conduct a more detailed inquiry into workplace issues at the public broadcaster. During the 2015 Canadian federal election campaign, the CBC issued cease-and-desist letters to the Broadbent Institute , the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC), the Liberal Party of Canada , and

7526-580: The CBC". On September 1, 2007, the CBC became subject to the federal Access to Information Act . In accordance with the Broadcasting Act , a board of directors is responsible for the management of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The board is made up of 12 members, including the chair and the president and CEO. A current list of directors is available from the Canadian Governor in Council here. As of April 2021 ,

7668-464: The CBC's board of directors page lists: English (CBC) French (Radio-Canada) For the fiscal year 2006, the CBC received a total of $ 1.53 billion from all revenue sources, including parliamentary funding via taxes, subscription fees, advertising revenue, and other revenue (e.g., real estate). Expenditures for the year included $ 616 million for English television, $ 402 million for French television, $ 126 million for specialty channels,

7810-507: The CBC's secondary radio networks, CBC Music and Ici Musique , introduced limited advertising of up to four minutes an hour, but this was discontinued in 2016. In 1929, the Aird Commission on public broadcasting recommended the creation of a national radio broadcast network. A major concern was the growing influence of American radio broadcasting as U.S.-based networks began to expand into Canada. Meanwhile, Canadian National Railways

7952-478: The CPC and its executive director, Dustin Van Vugt , that the party had "engaged in the unauthorized use of copyright-protected material". Furthermore, the CBC indicated that the clips in question were "taken out of context and are edited and relied on to make partisan points for the benefit" of the CPC. In response, the CPC stated that 17 seconds of footage had been used and the video in question had been removed before

8094-579: The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, as the national public broadcaster, should provide radio and television services incorporating a wide range of programming that informs, enlightens and entertains; ... the programming provided by the Corporation should: In June 2018, the Government of Canada launched a review of the Broadcasting Act as well as the Telecommunications Act , and the CBC mandate

8236-454: The Court held that for attribution of the source and author, the inclusion of the CBC's logo was sufficient" to meet Copyright Act requirements. The original logo of the CBC, designed by École des Beaux Arts student Hortense Binette and used between 1940 and 1958, featured a map of Canada (and from 1940 to 1949, Newfoundland ) and a thunderbolt design used to symbolize broadcasting. In 1958,

8378-927: The English-language CBC Television and the French-language Ici Radio-Canada Télé , along with the satellite/cable networks CBC News Network , Ici RDI , Ici Explora , Documentary Channel (partial ownership), and Ici ARTV . The CBC operates services for the Canadian Arctic under the names CBC North , and Radio-Canada Nord. The CBC also operates digital services including CBC.ca /Ici.Radio-Canada.ca, CBC Radio 3 , CBC Music /ICI.mu, and Ici.TOU.TV . CBC/Radio-Canada offers programming in English, French, and eight indigenous languages on its domestic radio service, and in five languages on its web-based international radio service, Radio Canada International (RCI). However, budget cuts in

8520-581: The Navy two years earlier – returned. Hannah was released from the asylum eight months later, but in March 1905, her illness returned, this time permanently. "There was nothing we could do but accept poor mother's fate", Chaplin later wrote, and she remained in care until her death in 1928. Between his time in the poor schools and his mother succumbing to mental illness, Chaplin began to perform on stage. He later recalled making his first amateur appearance at

8662-689: The Pacific zone. The northern stations picked up one of these two feeds, with the western NWT stations picking up the Pacific feed. Some in northern areas of the provinces were connected by microwave to a CBC broadcast centre within their own province. Some of these stations used non-CBC call signs such as CFWH-TV in Whitehorse, CFYK in Yellowknife, CFFB in Frobisher Bay and CHAK in Inuvik, while some others used

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8804-501: The Prevention of Cruelty to Children . Chaplin's father died two years later, at 38 years old, from cirrhosis of the liver. Hannah entered a period of remission but, in May 1903, became ill again. Chaplin, then 14, had the task of taking his mother to the infirmary, from where she was sent back to Cane Hill. He lived alone for several days, searching for food and occasionally sleeping rough, until Sydney – who had joined

8946-463: The Tramp eating his shoe and the "Dance of the Rolls". Macnab has called it "the quintessential Chaplin film". Chaplin stated at its release: "This is the picture that I want to be remembered by". While making The Gold Rush , Chaplin married for the second time. Mirroring the circumstances of his first union, Lita Grey was a teenage actress, originally set to star in the film, whose surprise announcement of pregnancy forced Chaplin into marriage. She

9088-477: The Tramp in his later films, which include Monsieur Verdoux (1947), Limelight (1952), A King in New York (1957), and A Countess from Hong Kong (1967). Chaplin wrote, directed, produced, edited, starred in, and composed the music for most of his films. He was a perfectionist, and his financial independence enabled him to spend years on the development and production of a picture. His films are characterised by slapstick combined with pathos , typified in

9230-480: The Tramp into the accidental star of a circus. Filming was suspended for ten months while he dealt with the divorce scandal, and it was generally a trouble-ridden production. Finally completed in October 1927, The Circus was released in January 1928 to a positive reception. At the 1st Academy Awards , Chaplin was given a special trophy "For versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing and producing The Circus ". Despite its success, he permanently associated

9372-460: The Tramp into the caretaker of a young boy. For this new venture, Chaplin also wished to do more than comedy and, according to Louvish, "make his mark on a changed world". Filming on The Kid began in August 1919, with four-year-old Jackie Coogan his co-star. The Kid was in production for nine months until May 1920 and, at 68 minutes, it was Chaplin's longest picture to date. Dealing with issues of poverty and parent–child separation, The Kid

9514-455: The Tramp's struggles against adversity. Many contain social and political themes, as well as autobiographical elements. He received an Honorary Academy Award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century" in 1972, as part of a renewed appreciation for his work. He continues to be held in high regard, with The Gold Rush , City Lights , Modern Times, and The Great Dictator often ranked on lists of

9656-426: The Tramp's world". During 1915, Chaplin became a cultural phenomenon. Shops were stocked with Chaplin merchandise, he was featured in cartoons and comic strips , and several songs were written about him. In July, a journalist for Motion Picture wrote that "Chaplinitis" had spread across America. As his fame grew worldwide, he became the film industry's first international star. In September 1915, Chaplin topped

9798-414: The United Kingdom until a generation later, with such popular 1950s shows as The Goon Show (started 1951) and Hancock's Half Hour (started 1957). Later, radio became a proving-ground for many later United Kingdom comedians. Chris Morris began his career in 1986 at Radio Cambridgeshire , and Ricky Gervais began his comedy career in 1997 at London radio station XFM . Although traditional comedy

9940-606: The United States and a different version of the shows can be heard on BBC Radio 4 Extra and RTÉ under the name Garrison Keillor's Radio Show . Old shows can be listened to online at the websites of "A Prairie Home Companion" or RTÉ. British radio comedy can be heard on BBC Radio 4 , BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 4 Extra . Minnesota Public Radio maintains a website where it is possible to listen to episodes of Comedy College . A British commercial station Oneword broadcast American vintage radio comedy as part of their 24-hour-a-day programming of books, comedy and drama and this

10082-429: The act was popular with audiences, but he was not satisfied with dancing and wished to form a comedy act. In the years Chaplin was touring with the Eight Lancashire Lads, his mother ensured that he still attended school but, by the age of 13, he had abandoned education. He supported himself with a range of jobs, while nursing his ambition to become an actor. At 14, shortly after his mother's relapse, he registered with

10224-621: The age of five years, when he took over from Hannah one night in Aldershot . This was an isolated occurrence, but by the time he was nine Chaplin had, with his mother's encouragement, grown interested in performing. He later wrote: "[she] imbued me with the feeling that I had some sort of talent". Through his father's connections, Chaplin became a member of the Eight Lancashire Lads clog-dancing troupe, with whom he toured English music halls throughout 1899 and 1900. Chaplin worked hard, and

10366-563: The character as his screen persona and attempted to make suggestions for the films he appeared in. These ideas were dismissed by his directors. During the filming of his 11th picture, Mabel at the Wheel , he clashed with director Mabel Normand and was almost released from his contract. Sennett kept him on, however, when he received orders from exhibitors for more Chaplin films. Sennett also allowed Chaplin to direct his next film himself after Chaplin promised to pay $ 1,500 ($ 46,000 in 2023 dollars) if

10508-521: The character. But the moment I was dressed, the clothes and the makeup made me feel the person he was. I began to know him, and by the time I walked on stage he was fully born. The film was Mabel's Strange Predicament , but " the Tramp " character, as it became known, debuted to audiences in Kid Auto Races at Venice  – shot later than Mabel's Strange Predicament but released two days earlier on 7   February 1914. Chaplin adopted

10650-634: The corporation has one digital transmitter. In fact, in its CRTC application to shut down all of its analogue television transmitters, the CBC communicated its opposition to the use of subchannels, citing, amongst other reasons, costs. CBC/R-C claims that only 1.7 percent of Canadian viewers actually lost access to CBC and Radio-Canada programming due to the very high penetration of cable and satellite. In some areas (particularly remote and rural regions), cable or satellite have long been essential for acceptable television. In 2015, after allegations that CBC Radio host Jian Ghomeshi had harassed colleagues, Ghomeshi

10792-457: The couple had drifted apart, as both focused heavily on their work, although Goddard was again his leading lady in his next feature film, The Great Dictator . She eventually divorced Chaplin in Mexico in 1942, citing incompatibility and separation for more than a year. Radio Canada The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation ( French : Société Radio-Canada ), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada ,

10934-416: The critic James Agee hails the closing scene as "the greatest piece of acting and the highest moment in movies". City Lights became Chaplin's personal favourite of his films and remained so throughout his life. City Lights had been a success, but Chaplin was unsure if he could make another picture without dialogue. He remained convinced that sound would not work in his films, but was also "obsessed by

11076-434: The deadline. Rebroadcast transmitters account for 23 of the 48 CBC and SRC transmitters in mandatory markets. Mandatory markets losing both CBC and SRC over-the-air signals include London, Ontario (metropolitan area population 457,000) and Saskatoon , Saskatchewan (metro area 257,000). In both of those markets, the corporation's television transmitters are the only ones that were not converted to digital. On July 31, 2012,

11218-589: The early 2010s have contributed to the corporation reducing its service via the airwaves, discontinuing RCI's shortwave broadcasts as well as terrestrial television broadcasts in all communities served by network-owned rebroadcast transmitters , including communities not subject to Canada's over-the-air digital television transition . The CBC's funding is supplemented by revenue from commercial advertising on its television broadcasts. The radio service employed commercials from its inception to 1974, but since then its primary radio networks have been commercial-free. In 2013,

11360-447: The film was unsuccessful. Caught in the Rain , issued 4   May 1914, was Chaplin's directorial debut and was highly successful. Thereafter, he directed almost every short film in which he appeared for Keystone, at the rate of approximately one per week, a period which he later remembered as the most exciting time of his career. Chaplin's films introduced a slower form of comedy than

11502-431: The film with the stress of its production; Chaplin omitted The Circus from his autobiography, and struggled to work on it when he recorded the score in his later years. I was determined to continue making silent films   ... I was a pantomimist and in that medium I was unique and, without false modesty, a master. By the time The Circus was released, Hollywood had witnessed the introduction of sound films . Chaplin

11644-402: The film's production. When filming began at the end of 1928, Chaplin had been working on the story for almost a year. City Lights followed the Tramp's love for a blind flower girl (played by Virginia Cherrill ) and his efforts to raise money for her sight-saving operation. It was a challenging production that lasted 21 months, with Chaplin later confessing that he "had worked himself into

11786-430: The final six films owed. Before the creation of United Artists, Chaplin married for the first time. The 16-year-old actress Mildred Harris had revealed that she was pregnant with his child, and in September 1918, he married her quietly in Los Angeles to avoid controversy. Soon after, the pregnancy was found to be false. Chaplin was unhappy with the union and, feeling that marriage stunted his creativity, struggled over

11928-413: The first movie star to be featured on a Time cover . It was an unhappy marriage, and Chaplin spent long hours at the studio to avoid seeing his wife. In November 1926, Grey took the children and left the family home. A bitter divorce followed, in which Grey's application – accusing Chaplin of infidelity, abuse and of harbouring "perverted sexual desires" – was leaked to

12070-759: The first such coverage in 1985, though because it happened during the Stanley Cup playoffs, equipment was already spoken for, so CBC rented the equipment of CITV-TV Edmonton to use in Whitehorse that evening. The CRTC ordered that in 28 "mandatory markets", full power over-the-air analogue television transmitters had to cease transmitting by August 31, 2011. Broadcasters could either continue serving those markets by transitioning analogue transmitters to digital or cease broadcasting over-the-air. Cable, IPTV, and satellite services are not involved or affected by this digital transition deadline. While its fellow Canadian broadcasters converted most of their transmitters to digital by

12212-495: The first time in almost a decade. He wrote a book about his journey, titled My Wonderful Visit . He then worked to fulfil his First National contract, releasing Pay Day in February 1922. The Pilgrim , his final short film, was delayed by distribution disagreements with the studio and released a year later. Having fulfilled his First National contract, Chaplin was free to make his first picture as an independent producer. In November 1922, he began filming A Woman of Paris ,

12354-407: The first water". For his second appearance in front of the camera, Chaplin selected the costume with which he became identified. He described the process in his autobiography: I wanted everything to be a contradiction: the pants baggy, the coat tight, the hat small and the shoes large   ... I added a small moustache, which, I reasoned, would add age without hiding my expression. I had no idea of

12496-610: The former head of CBC Radio, and Todd Spencer, the head of human resources for English services". In a Toronto Star article by Jacques Gallant from May 11, 2016, public relations expert Martin Waxman spoke of a "damning indictment" of the CBC which included the following comment. "Yes, they did their inquiry, but if I were the CBC, I would think strongly about what is wrong with the culture and what they can do to repair it", he said. The Star also quoted employment lawyer Howard Levitt stating that "harassment has not been fully addressed at

12638-581: The greatest films . Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. was born on 16 April 1889 to Hannah Chaplin (née Hill) and Charles Chaplin Sr. His paternal grandmother came from the Smith family, who belonged to Romani people . There is no official record of his birth, although Chaplin believed he was born at East Street , Walworth , in South London . His parents had married four years previously, at which time Charles Sr. became

12780-466: The happiest period of his career. However, Chaplin also felt that those films became increasingly formulaic over the period of the contract, and he was increasingly dissatisfied with the working conditions encouraging that. Chaplin was attacked in the British media for not fighting in the First World War . He defended himself, claiming that he would fight for Britain if called and had registered for

12922-514: The highest order. Charlie Chaplin Studios was completed in January 1918, and Chaplin was given freedom over the making of his pictures. A Dog's Life , released April 1918, was the first film under the new contract. In it, Chaplin demonstrated his increasing concern with story construction and his treatment of the Tramp as "a sort of Pierrot ". The film was described by Louis Delluc as "cinema's first total work of art". Chaplin then embarked on

13064-440: The late 1990s, CBC Radio was rebranded as CBC Radio One and CBC Stereo as CBC Radio Two. The latter was rebranded slightly in 2007 as CBC Radio 2 .) On July 1, 1958, the CBC's television signal was extended from coast to coast. The first Canadian television show shot in colour was the CBC's own The Forest Rangers in 1963. Colour television broadcasts commenced on July 1, 1966, and full-colour service began in 1974. In 1978,

13206-421: The lawsuit was filed, and expressed "grave concern that this decision was made on the eve of an election that CBC is to be covering fairly and objectively". Intellectual property academic Michael Geist stated that the use of the footage was likely covered by fair dealing provisions. CBC President and CEO Catherine Tait contends that she does not believe that the use of journalistic material for partisan ads

13348-434: The legal guardian of Hannah's first son, Sydney John Hill . At the time of his birth, Chaplin's parents were both music hall entertainers. Hannah, the daughter of a shoemaker, had a brief and unsuccessful career under the stage name Lily Harley, while Charles Sr., a butcher's son, was a popular singer. Although they never divorced, Chaplin's parents were estranged by around 1891. The following year, Hannah gave birth to

13490-737: The logo's red colour also represents Canada in a symbolic way. With the launch of the current design, new television idents were introduced in November of that year, also using CGI. Since the early 2000s, it has also appeared in white (sometimes red) on a textured or coloured background. It is now CBC/Radio-Canada's longest-used logo, surpassing the original incarnation of the Gem logo and the CBC's 1940 logo. CBC television slogans have been periodically updated: Notable CBC alumni have included future Governors General of Canada Jeanne Sauvé , Adrienne Clarkson , and Michaëlle Jean , as well as future Quebec premier René Lévesque . Knowlton Nash , whose career at

13632-542: The manner of the NBC peacock logo . It was used at the beginning of programs broadcast in colour and was used until all CBC television programs had switched to colour. A sketch on the CBC Television program Wayne & Shuster once referred to this as the logo of the "Cosmic Butterfly Corporation". The fourth logo, known internally as "the gem", was designed for the CBC by graphic artist Burton Kramer in December 1974, and it

13774-400: The middle is the letter C, which stands for Canada; the radiating parts of the C symbolize broadcasting, and the blue circle the logo was placed in represented the world, so the entire logo, according to Kramer, represented the idea of "Canada broadcasting to the world". The original theme music for the 1974 CBC ident was a three-note woodwind orchestral fanfare accompanied by the voiceover "This

13916-403: The offending material, and as such, the CBC did not pursue them further for these alleged infractions in 2015. In October 2019, two weeks before the 2019 Canadian federal election , the CBC sued the CPC for using excerpts from its leaders' debates in campaign material. The CBC petitioned for an injunction against the CPC continuing to use the excerpts as well as seeking an acknowledgement from

14058-484: The pageboy in three nationwide tours. His performance was so well received that he was called to London to play the role alongside William Gillette , the original Holmes. "It was like tidings from heaven", Chaplin recalled. At 16 years old, Chaplin starred in the play's West End production at the Duke of York's Theatre from October to December 1905. He completed one final tour of Sherlock Holmes in early 1906, before leaving

14200-555: The pasture. Many of the BBC's most successful television comedies began life as BBC Radio 4 shows. These include Hancock's Half Hour , Goodness Gracious Me , Knowing Me, Knowing You , The League of Gentlemen , Whose Line Is It Anyway? , Room 101 , Have I Got News For You , (based on Radio 4 's The News Quiz ), Dead Ringers , Mitchell and Webb and The Mighty Boosh , and most recently Little Britain and Absolute Power . The science fiction comedy Red Dwarf

14342-401: The play after more than two-and-a-half years. Chaplin soon found work with a new company and went on tour with his brother, who was also pursuing an acting career, in a comedy sketch called Repairs . In May 1906, Chaplin joined the juvenile act Casey's Circus, where he developed popular burlesque pieces and was soon the star of the show. By the time the act finished touring in July 1907,

14484-862: The politicising. Today, Modern Times is seen by the British Film Institute as one of Chaplin's "great features", while David Robinson says it shows the filmmaker at "his unrivalled peak as a creator of visual comedy". Following the release of Modern Times , Chaplin left with Goddard for a trip to the Far East. Chaplin, Goddard and a Japanese servant named Yonnemori arrived in Saigon in April 1936, and visited multiple locations in French Indochina . They then visited Phnom Penh to view Angkor Wat , and Da Lat , followed by Huế , arriving in Đà Nẵng where he visited

14626-416: The press. Chaplin was reported to be in a state of nervous breakdown, as the story became headline news and groups formed across America calling for his films to be banned. Eager to end the case without further scandal, Chaplin's lawyers agreed to a cash settlement of $ 600,000  – the largest awarded by American courts at that time. His fan base was strong enough to survive the incident, and it

14768-445: The production of his film Sunnyside . Harris was by then legitimately pregnant, and on 7   July 1919, gave birth to a son. Norman Spencer Chaplin was born malformed and died three days later. The marriage ended in April 1920, with Chaplin explaining in his autobiography that they were "irreconcilably mismated". Losing the child, plus his own childhood experiences, are thought to have influenced Chaplin's next film, which turned

14910-426: The public wants Chaplin and will pay for him." Mutual gave Chaplin his own Los Angeles studio to work in, which opened in March 1916. He added two key members to his stock company, Albert Austin and Eric Campbell , and produced a series of elaborate two-reelers: The Floorwalker , The Fireman , The Vagabond , One A.M. and The Count . For The Pawnshop , he recruited the actor Henry Bergman , who

15052-408: The rags to riches stories ever told" according to his authorised biographer David Robinson . Chaplin's early years were spent with his mother and brother Sydney in the London district of Kennington . Hannah had no means of income, other than occasional nursing and dressmaking, and Chaplin Sr. provided no financial support. As the situation deteriorated, Chaplin was sent to Lambeth Workhouse when he

15194-632: The standard CB_T callsign but with five letters (e.g. CBDHT). Uplinks in the North were usually a temporary unit brought in from the south. A ground station uplink was later established in Yellowknife, and then in Whitehorse and Iqaluit. Television programs originating in the North began in 1979 with the monthly news magazine Our Ways , produced in Yellowknife, and graduated to half-hour newscasts ( Northbeat and Igalaaq ) on weekdays in 1995. Until then, there were occasional temporary uplinks for such things as territorial election returns coverage; Yukon had

15336-530: The stations were reconfigured in 1973 to receive CBC Television programming from the Anik satellite in colour and live with the rest of Canada. Those serving the largest centres signed on with colour broadcasts on February 5, 1973, and most of the others were added before spring of that year. Broadcasts were geared to either the Atlantic Time Zone (UTC−4 or −3), originating from Halifax and later St. John's , or

15478-420: The studio. By early June, however, Chaplin "suddenly decided he could scarcely stand to be in the same room" as Collins, but instead of breaking off the engagement directly, he "stopped coming in to work, sending word that he was suffering from a bad case of influenza, which May knew to be a lie." Ultimately work on the film resumed, and following its September 1921 release, Chaplin chose to return to England for

15620-418: The time of the day behind a translucent CBC gem logo, accompanied by different arrangements of the CBC's new, synthesized five-note jingle. The logo was changed to one colour, generally dark blue on white, or white on dark blue, in 1986. Print ads and most television promos, however, have always used a single-colour version of this logo since 1974. During 1986, they use gold platings on their idents to commemorate

15762-546: The time, all private stations were expected to affiliate with the CBC, a condition that relaxed in 1960–61 with the launch of CTV . From 1944 to 1962, the CBC split its English-language radio network into two services known as the Trans-Canada Network and the Dominion Network . The latter, carrying lighter programs including American radio shows, was dissolved in 1962, while the former became known as CBC Radio. (In

15904-435: The typical Keystone farce, and he developed a large fan base. In November 1914, he had a supporting role in the first feature length comedy film, Tillie's Punctured Romance , directed by Sennett and starring Marie Dressler , which was a commercial success and increased his popularity. When Chaplin's contract came up for renewal at the end of the year, he asked for $ 1,000 a week, an amount Sennett refused as he thought it

16046-522: The war but, as he later recalled: "Dangerous or not, the idea excited me." He spent four months filming the picture, which was released in October 1918 with great success. After the release of Shoulder Arms , Chaplin requested more money from First National, which was refused. Frustrated with their lack of concern for quality, and worried about rumours of a possible merger between the company and Famous Players–Lasky , Chaplin joined forces with Douglas Fairbanks , Mary Pickford and D. W. Griffith to form

16188-581: The workplace would increase unemployment levels. It was these concerns that stimulated Chaplin to develop his new film. Modern Times was announced by Chaplin as "a satire on certain phases of our industrial life". Featuring the Tramp and Goddard as they endure the Great Depression , it took ten and a half months to film. Chaplin intended to use spoken dialogue but changed his mind during rehearsals. Like its predecessor, Modern Times employed sound effects but almost no speaking. Chaplin's performance of

16330-429: The world but Charlie Chaplin could have done it. He is the only person that has that peculiar something called 'audience appeal' in sufficient quality to defy the popular penchant for movies that talk." Given its general release in January 1931, City Lights proved to be a popular and financial success, eventually grossing over $ 3   million. The British Film Institute called it Chaplin's finest accomplishment, and

16472-509: Was The Great Dictator (1940), which satirised Adolf Hitler . The 1940s were marked with controversy for Chaplin, and his popularity declined rapidly. He was accused of communist sympathies , and some members of the press and public were scandalised by his involvement in a paternity suit and marriages to much younger women. An FBI investigation was opened, and Chaplin was forced to leave the U.S. in 1952 and settle in Switzerland. He abandoned

16614-412: Was Mack Sennett , who initially expressed concern that the 24-year-old looked too young. He was not used in a picture until late January, during which time Chaplin attempted to learn the processes of filmmaking. The one-reeler Making a Living marked his film acting debut and was released on 2   February 1914. Chaplin strongly disliked the picture, but one review picked him out as "a comedian of

16756-508: Was 16 and he was 35, meaning Chaplin could have been charged with statutory rape under California law. He therefore arranged a discreet marriage in Mexico on 25 November 1924. They originally met during her childhood and she had previously appeared in his works The Kid and The Idle Class . Their first son, Charles Spencer Chaplin III , was born on 5   May 1925, followed by Sydney Earl Chaplin on 30 March 1926. On 6 July 1925, Chaplin became

16898-408: Was a big success, and Chaplin received considerable press attention. Karno selected his new star to join the section of the company that toured North America's vaudeville circuit, a section which also included Stan Laurel . The young comedian headed the show and impressed reviewers, being described as "one of the best pantomime artists ever seen here". His most successful role was a drunk called

17040-540: Was acclaimed for its innovative, subtle approach. The public, however, seemed to have little interest in a Chaplin film without Chaplin, and it was a box office disappointment . The filmmaker was hurt by this failure – he had long wanted to produce a dramatic film and was proud of the result – and soon withdrew A Woman of Paris from circulation. Chaplin returned to comedy for his next project. Setting his standards high, he told himself "This next film must be an epic! The Greatest!" Inspired by

17182-480: Was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film . He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp , and is considered one of the film industry's most important figures. His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both accolade and controversy. Chaplin's childhood in London

17324-504: Was charged by police with multiple counts of sexual assault but was found not guilty of all but one of these in March 2016. He was to be tried in June on the last remaining charge, relating to a complainant who had also worked at CBC; her name was later revealed to be Kathryn Borel . On May 11, 2016, however, the Crown withdrew the charge after Ghomeshi signed a peace bond (which does not include an admission of guilt) and apologized to Borel. Borel

17466-463: Was committed to Cane Hill mental asylum; she had developed psychosis seemingly brought on by an infection of syphilis and malnutrition. For the two months she was there, Chaplin and his brother Sydney were sent to live with their father, whom the young boys scarcely knew. Charles Sr. was by then severely alcoholic, and life there was bad enough to provoke a visit from the National Society for

17608-408: Was considered a particular turning point in his development. The use of pathos was developed further with The Bank , in which Chaplin created a sad ending. Robinson notes that this was an innovation in comedy films, and marked the time when serious critics began to appreciate Chaplin's work. At Essanay, writes film scholar Simon Louvish , Chaplin "found the themes and the settings that would define

17750-630: Was critical of the CBC for its handling of her initial complaint about Ghomeshi's behaviour. "When I went to the CBC for help, what I received in return was a directive that, yes, he could do this and, yes, it was my job to let him", she told the assembled media representatives. The CBC apologized to Borel publicly on May 11 in a statement by the head of public affairs Chuck Thompson. "What Ms. Borel experienced in our workplace should never have happened and we sincerely apologize ...", he stated. The corporation has also maintained that it had accepted Rubin's report and had "since made significant progress" on

17892-464: Was cynical about this new medium and the technical shortcomings it presented, believing that "talkies" lacked the artistry of silent films. He was also hesitant to change the formula that had brought him such success, and feared that giving the Tramp a voice would limit his international appeal. He, therefore, rejected the new Hollywood craze and began work on a new silent film. Chaplin was nonetheless anxious about this decision and remained so throughout

18034-533: Was developed from ideas in a radio show called Son Of Cliché . Another science fiction comedy The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was created for radio , but also went on to great success in book , television and film formats. Examples of American radio comedy can be heard on streaming internet radio stations. Humorous storytelling is the focus of The Moth Radio Hour . Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion can be heard on public radio stations in

18176-532: Was established on November 2, 1936. The CBC operates four terrestrial radio networks: The English-language CBC Radio One and CBC Music , and the French-language Ici Radio-Canada Première and Ici Musique (international radio service Radio Canada International historically transmitted via shortwave radio, but since 2012 its content is only available as podcasts on its website). The CBC also operates two terrestrial television networks,

18318-607: Was making a radio network to entertain its passengers and give it an advantage over its rival, CP. This, the CNR Radio, is the forerunner of the CBC. Graham Spry and Alan Plaunt lobbied intensely for the project on behalf of the Canadian Radio League . In 1932, the government of R. B. Bennett established the CBC's predecessor, the Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission (CRBC). The CRBC took over

18460-635: Was once a significant part of American broadcast radio programming , it is now mainly found in the archives of Old Time Radio enthusiasts and on the Internet streaming of comedy recordings . The majority of mainstream radio comedy now consists of personality-driven shows hosted by talk-radio hosts such as Howard Stern or comedic duos such as Armstrong & Getty and Bob & Tom . Exceptions to this are WSRN's "Audience of Two", Garrison Keillor 's work on Minnesota Public Radio : A Prairie Home Companion and Comedy College , and NPR 's Car Talk ,

18602-461: Was one of poverty and hardship. His father was absent and his mother struggled financially—he was sent to a workhouse twice before age nine. When he was 14, his mother was committed to a mental asylum . Chaplin began performing at an early age, touring music halls and later working as a stage actor and comedian. At 19, he was signed to the Fred Karno company, which took him to the United States. He

18744-464: Was one of the earliest films to combine comedy and drama. It was released in January 1921 with instant success, and, by 1924, had been screened in over 50 countries. Chaplin spent five months on his next film, the two-reeler The Idle Class . Work on the picture was for a time delayed by more turmoil in his personal life. First National had on 12 April announced Chaplin's engagement to the actress May Collins , whom he had hired to be his secretary at

18886-492: Was one of the world's best-paid and best-known figures. In 1919, Chaplin co-founded the distribution company United Artists , which gave him complete control over his films. His first feature-length film was The Kid (1921), followed by A Woman of Paris (1923), The Gold Rush (1925), and The Circus (1928). He initially refused to move to sound films in the 1930s, instead producing City Lights (1931) and Modern Times (1936) without dialogue. His first sound film

19028-595: Was placed on leave; his employment was terminated in October when the CBC indicated that they had "graphic evidence" that he had injured a female employee. The corporation commissioned an independent investigation. The resulting report by Janice Rubin, a partner at the law firm Rubin Thomlinson LLP, discussed employee complaints about Ghomeshi that were not seriously considered by the CBC. Rubin concluded that CBC management had "failed to take adequate steps" when it became aware of Ghomeshi's "problematic behaviour". Ghomeshi

19170-609: Was relieved when he met 21-year-old actress Paulette Goddard in July 1932, and the pair began a relationship. He was not ready to commit to a film, however, and focused on writing a serial about his travels (published in Woman's Home Companion ). The trip had been a stimulating experience for Chaplin, including meetings with several prominent thinkers, and he became increasingly interested in world affairs. The state of labour in America troubled him, and he feared that capitalism and machinery in

19312-488: Was reported that nine out of ten men who attended costume parties, did so dressed as the Tramp. The same year, a study by the Boston Society for Psychical Research concluded that Chaplin was "an American obsession". The actress Minnie Maddern Fiske wrote that "a constantly increasing body of cultured, artistic people are beginning to regard the young English buffoon, Charles Chaplin, as an extraordinary artist, as well as

19454-495: Was scouted for the film industry and began appearing in 1914 for Keystone Studios . He soon introduced and adopted the Tramp as his screen persona. He directed his own films and continued to hone his craft as he moved to Essanay Studios , where the Tramp persona was developed emotionally in The Tramp (1915). He then attracted a large fanbase and demanded more money as he moved to Mutual and First National corporations. By 1918, he

19596-478: Was seven years old. The council housed him at the Central London District School for paupers , which Chaplin remembered as "a forlorn existence". He was briefly reunited with his mother 18 months later, but Hannah was forced to readmit her family to the workhouse in July 1898. The boys were promptly sent to Norwood Schools, another institution for destitute children. In September 1898, Hannah

19738-468: Was soon forgotten, but Chaplin was deeply affected by it. Less than five months after the divorce, Grey's former butler Don Solovich was murdered in Utah, and articles speculated about connections between Chaplin and the murder. Before the divorce suit was filed, Chaplin had begun work on a new film, The Circus . He built a story around the idea of walking a tightrope while besieged by monkeys, and turned

19880-435: Was streamed on the internet until the station closed in 2008. Interest in radio comedy and radio drama is currently enjoying a resurgence. Epguides.com, which provides encyclopedic information on television shows, has recently begun to build a similar list of radio shows. In America, new groups have formed to try to bring about a renewed interest in the art-form. At the forefront of this new wave of audio-only comedic groups

20022-659: Was to work with Chaplin for 30 years. Behind the Screen and The Rink completed Chaplin's releases for 1916. The Mutual contract stipulated that he release a two-reel film every four weeks, which he had managed to achieve. With the new year, however, Chaplin began to demand more time. He made only four more films for Mutual over the first ten months of 1917: Easy Street , The Cure , The Immigrant and The Adventurer . With their careful construction, these films are considered by Chaplin scholars to be among his finest work. Later in life, Chaplin referred to his Mutual years as

20164-413: Was too large. The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company of Chicago sent Chaplin an offer of $ 1,250 a week, with a signing bonus of $ 10,000. He joined the studio in late December 1914, where he began forming a stock company of regular players, actors he worked with again and again, including Ben Turpin , Leo White , Bud Jamison , Paddy McGuire , Fred Goodwins and Billy Armstrong . He soon recruited

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