Charlie Chaplin and Jackie Coogan
Charlie Chaplin (left) and Jackie Coogan starred together in The Kid (1921), a silent comedy that also included sentimental and dramatic moments, promising viewers “a smile … and perhaps a tear.” Chaplin, born in London in 1889, moved to the United States in 1912 and over the next two decades reigned as one of Hollywood’s most famous silent film stars. In 1919, he joined with D. W. Griffith, Mary Pickford, and other American directors and stars to create the independent studio United Artists. The Kid made the Los Angeles–born Coogan — discovered by Chaplin on the vaudeville stage — into America’s first child star. Library of Congress.