Chaplin and American culture : the evolution of a star image /

Though neither a replacement for nor superior as biography to David Robinson's Chaplin: His Life and Art (CH, Feb '86) or even Chaplin's My Autobiography (CH, Nov '64), this excellent study nonetheless fills a glaring void in Chaplin studies. No study prior to Maland's has focused so clearly and perceptively on Chaplin and American society, tracing "the evolution of Chaplin's star image in America by exploring the interactions between Chaplin and various public institutions, especially the press, the government, and pressure groups." In five carefully developed parts, Maland undergirds his study with a strong belief in F.O. Matthiessen's comment that the work of artists is "the most sensitive index to cultural history." Indeed, this thoroughly documented study is as much a dissection of American cultural history from the teens to the present as it is an examination of Chaplin's art as a filmmaker, attitudes toward the man and artist, the price paid by Chaplin for his image, and the divergent points of view taken by the press and public. Ultimately, Maland shows that Chaplin, upon his return to the US in 1972, 20 years after his exile, had been transformed from the "dangerous leftist of the 1950s" into "the wronged genius of the 1970s." This important study concludes with a fascinating glimpse at Chaplin's image today, especially as represented by "Charlie" in IBM's advertising campaign for computers. Highly recommended for all academic and most public libraries. -D. B. Wilmeth, Brown University

In the centenary of his birth, much has already been published about one of the most closely scrutinized figures in film history. Maland's intention is take Charlie in the ``context'' of his times, to examine how he fell from grace (and was rehabilitated), both as a film artist and as a public figure. Maland is stronger on the latter, detailing Chaplin's agonizing paternity suit and his subsequent political persecution and final exile to Switzerland. But there is little new here, either in material unearthed or fresh insights. The superior work on the same subject is David Robinson's Chaplin: The Mirror of Opinion (LJ 11/1/83).-- Thomas Wiener, formerly with ``American Film'' (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.