Born on April 16th, 1889, Charlie Chaplin was a British comedian and actor who is nowadays considered the greatest comic artist of the screen.
Chaplin becoming one of the world’s biggest superstars is a true rags-to-riches story. His father was a notorious drinker who left his family that was already struggling financially. His mother was a singer that would later suffer severe mental illness. However, before losing her voice and being committed to an asylum, Lily Harley introduced her son to the spotlight.
The young boy replaced his mother on stage at only five years old. Chaplin was determined to make it big in the show business, so between jobs, he called all of his mother’s contacts to get any small role.
He made his first acting debut when he was about twelve, but it was after moving to the United States that he became hugely popular by playing his tramp character.
Charlie Chaplin will forever be remembered for making people laugh without saying a word. He will remain an iconic silent-film legend whose legacy will live on forever.
Here are 50 Charlie Chaplin Quotes on Life, Love, Laughter and Pain:
Charlie Chaplin quotes about life
Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot.
Life can be wonderful if you’re not afraid of it. All it takes is courage, imagination… and a little dough.
Life is a beautiful magnificent thing, even to a jellyfish.
You'll never find a rainbow if you're looking down
Nothing is permanent in this wicked world, not even our troubles.
Life could be wonderful if people would leave you alone.
We no longer need to fear arguments, confrontations or any kind of problems with ourselves or others. Even stars collide, and out of their crashing new worlds are born. Today I know ‘That is life’!
A man's true character comes out when he's drunk.
Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself.
I suppose that’s one of the ironies of life doing the wrong thing at the right moment.
What do you want a meaning for? Life is a desire, not a meaning.
Words are cheap. The biggest thing you can say is ‘elephant’.
That’s the trouble with the world. We all despise ourselves.
The way of life can be free and beautiful. But we have lost the way.
Think about yourself at least once in your life otherwise you may miss the best comedy in this world.
Imagination means nothing without doing.
To help a friend in need is easy, but to give him your time is not always opportune.
Despair is a narcotic. It lulls the mind into indifference.
The saddest thing I can imagine is to get used to luxury.
I do not need drugs to be a genius, do not take a genius to be human, but I need your smile to be happy.
Charlie Chaplin quotes about love
Perfect love is the most beautiful of all frustrations because it is more than one can express.
Only the unloved hate; the unloved and the unnatural.
Love is life on a higher plain of existence, working through man to unite the forces of nature into a perfect whole. It is the merging force binding every element in existence into a perfect whole.
You need Power, only when you want to do something harmful otherwise Love is enough to get everything done.
Your naked body should only belong to those who fall in love with your naked soul.
A tramp, a gentleman, a poet, a dreamer, a lonely fellow, always hopeful of romance and adventure.
We think too much and feel too little.
Charlie Chaplin quotes about pain
I always like walking in the rain, so no one can see me crying.
The mirror is my best friend because when I cry it never laughs.
My pain may be the reason for somebody’s laugh. But my laugh must never be the reason for somebody’s pain.
Smile, though your heart is aching. Smile, even though it's breaking.
To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it!
Charlie Chaplin quotes on laughter
A day without laughter is a day wasted.
I believe in the power of laughter and tears as an antidote to hatred and terror.
You’ll find that life is still worthwhile, if you just smile.
Anyone can make them cry, but it takes a genius to make them laugh.
Laughter is the tonic, the relief, the surcease for pain.
All I need to make a comedy is a park, a policeman and a pretty girl.
I have many problems in my life. But my lips don’t know that. They always smile.
In the end, everything is a gag.
Life is a play that does not allow testing. So, sing, cry, dance, laugh and live intensely, before the curtain closes and the piece ends with no applause.
Charlie Chaplin quotes on self love
As I began to love myself I found that anguish and emotional suffering are only warning signs that I was living against my own truth. Today, I know, this is ‘authenticity’.
As I began to love myself I understood how much it can offend somebody if I try to force my desires on this person, even though I knew the time was not right and the person was not ready for it, and even though this person was me. Today I call it 'RESPECT'.
As I began to love myself I stopped craving for a different life, and I could see that everything that surrounded me was inviting me to grow. Today I call it 'MATURITY'.
As I began to love myself I understood that at any circumstance, I am in the right place at the right time, and everything happens at the exactly right moment. So I could be calm. Today I call it 'SELF-CONFIDENCE'.
As I began to love myself I quit stealing my own time, and I stopped designing huge projects for the future. Today, I only do what brings me joy and happiness, things I love to do and that make my heart cheer, and I do them in my own way and in my own rhythm. Today I call it 'SIMPLICITY'.
As I began to love myself I freed myself of anything that is no good for my health – food, people, things, situations, and everything that drew me down and away from myself. At first I called this attitude a healthy egoism. Today I know it is 'LOVE OF ONESELF'.
As I began to love myself I quit trying to always be right, and ever since I was wrong less of the time. Today I discovered that is 'MODESTY'.
As I began to love myself I refused to go on living in the past and worrying about the future. Now, I only live for the moment, where everything is happening. Today I live each day, day by day, and I call it 'FULFILLMENT'.
As I began to love myself I recognized that my mind can disturb me and it can make me sick. But as I connected it to my heart, my mind became a valuable ally. Today I call this connection 'WISDOM OF THE HEART'.
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