Charlie Chaplin: World Conquest Through Comedy

This is an unpaid endorsement for an online class produced by the 92nd Street Y starting in a couple of weeks. I don’t usually shill for such things (and the class is a little pricey) but I thought it would be of particular interest to readers. It’s being led by Dan Kamin, the clown-mime who trained Robert Downey Jr. on his physical comedy bits in the movie Chaplin (1992). The three part series of talks is called Charlie Chaplin: World Conquest Through Comedy. The description emphasizes that the series “…reveals the craft behind Chaplin’s sublime cinematic artistry” and that he’ll get into how Chaplin’s life intersected with world events. My hope, in light of the title of the talk and the state of the world at the moment, is that it will stress the image of Charlie Chaplin as the advocate of peace and internationalism and sympathy for the poor that he supremely was, for that is a talk that everyone can use right now. Only one way to find out! Info and tickets are here.