Paulette Goddard | American Actress, Modern Times, Charlie Chaplin (2024)

American actress

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Also known as: Paulette Remarque, Pauline Marion Goddard Levy

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Quick Facts

Original name:
Pauline Marion Goddard Levy
Born:
June 3, 1905, Great Neck, Long Island, N.Y., U.S.
Died:
April 23, 1990, Ronco, Switz. (aged 84)
Notable Works:
“The Lady Has Plans”
Notable Family Members:
spouse Burgess Meredith

See all related content →

Paulette Goddard (born June 3, 1905, Great Neck, Long Island, N.Y., U.S.—died April 23, 1990, Ronco, Switz.) was an American actress known for her spirited persona and for her association with Charlie Chaplin.

Goddard worked as a fashion model in her early teens, and at age 16 she appeared as a chorus girl in the Broadway revue No Foolin’. Within the next four years, she married, divorced, and moved to Hollywood to become a movie star. To that end, she worked as an extra in a number of Hal Roach short comedies and as a chorus girl in several Eddie Cantor movies, including The Kid from Spain (1932). Although still unknown as a performer, she attracted the attention of Charlie Chaplin. They were soon living together and, before she had even starred in a film, Goddard became well known to movie fans as Chaplin’s beautiful companion (there is much uncertainty as to whether they were ever married). For two years Chaplin tutored Goddard in the art of acting, and he displayed the results in his final silent film, Modern Times (1936), in which Goddard portrayed the Gamine, an effervescent female companion to Chaplin’s famous Little Tramp.

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Her performance in that film brought her to the attention of other producers, but her relationship with Chaplin caused her to lose a part that could have changed her career, that of Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the Wind (1939). Producer David O. Selznick thought she was perfect for the role, but he withdrew his offer when she could not produce a marriage license validating her relationship to Chaplin.

Despite this setback, Goddard did not lack for work. She teamed with Bob Hope for the comedies The Cat and the Canary (1939), The Ghost Breakers (1940), and Nothing but the Truth (1941); she was part of the all-female cast of The Women (1939); and she starred in the drama Hold Back the Dawn (1941). In 1940 she again worked with Chaplin in his first all-talking feature, The Great Dictator (1940), but in 1942 she and Chaplin officially divorced—though it still was not clear they had ever married. Goddard met actor Burgess Meredith while filming Second Chorus (1940) with Fred Astaire. They married in 1944 and divorced in 1949.

Cecil B. DeMille cast her in several films, including Northwest Mounted Police (1940), Reap the Wild Wind (1942), and Unconquered (1947). Her supporting performance as an armed forces nurse in So Proudly We Hail! (1943) earned Goddard her only Oscar nomination.

Though she had been one of the most popular stars of the early 1940s, Goddard was not in demand by the end of the decade. Her final Hollywood film was Charge of the Lancers (1954); thereafter she worked intermittently in television. In 1958 she married novelist Erich Maria Remarque and moved to Switzerland, where she lived as a private citizen. She returned to the screen one more time in 1964 for the Italian production Gli indifferenti (Time of Indifference).

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.

Paulette Goddard | American Actress, Modern Times, Charlie Chaplin (2024)

FAQs

What is the story of Charlie Chaplin in modern times? ›

Who played Paulette in Chaplin? ›

Chaplin (1992) - Diane Lane as Paulette Goddard - IMDb.

What jobs did Chaplin have in modern times? ›

Cast
  • Charlie Chaplin (A Factory Worker)
  • Paulette Goddard (A Gamin)
  • Henry Bergman (Café Proprietor)
  • Stanley Sandford (Big Bill)
  • Chester Conklin (Mechanic)
Aug 21, 2024

Does Charlie Chaplin talk in modern times? ›

The film did attract criticism for being almost completely silent. Chaplin feared that the mystery and romanticism of the Tramp character would be ruined if he spoke, and also that it would alienate his fans in non-English speaking territories.

What happens at the end of Modern Times? ›

He proves a huge success. Happiness seems close now, but the juvenile welfare officers have finally tracked the girl down. They attempt to take her into custody, but Charlie foils them and escapes with the girl. Together they trudge down the lonely road, ready to face whatever the future may bring.

What is the message of the film Modern Times? ›

Often described as a satire of the machine age, Modern Times has in fact a broader theme: the dehumanizing effects of many aspects of modernity, including industrialization, bureaucracy, urbanization, and law enforcement.

What is Paulette Goddard famous for? ›

Paulette Goddard (born June 3, 1905, Great Neck, Long Island, N.Y., U.S.—died April 23, 1990, Ronco, Switz.) was an American actress known for her spirited persona and for her association with Charlie Chaplin.

What actress is related to Charlie Chaplin? ›

Oona Chaplin is a Spanish actress. Her mother is Geraldine Chaplin. She is also the granddaughter of English film actor Charlie Chaplin, and great-granddaughter of American playwright Eugene O'Neill. She is best known for playing Talisa Maegyr in the HBO TV series Game of Thrones and Zilpha Geary in Taboo.

Is Robert Downey Jr. related to Charlie Chaplin? ›

The connection between Robert Downey Jr. and Charlie Chaplin was that Downey starred in the well-done 1992 biopic Chaplin,directed by Richard Attenborough. Downey & Chaplin never met, Chaplin having died in 1977, & Downey beginnng his Hollywood acting career in Weird Science in 1985, when he was 20 years old.

What was Charlie Chaplin's famous quote? ›

"A day without laughter is a day wasted." "To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it!" "You'll never find a rainbow if you're looking down." "Failure is unimportant.

What is the point of Modern Times? ›

“Modern Times” is perhaps more meaningful now than at any time since its first release. The twentieth- century theme of the film, farsighted for its time—the struggle to eschew alienation and preserve humanity in a modern, mechanized world—profoundly reflects issues confronting the twenty-first century.

Why was Charlie Chaplin exiled? ›

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.

Who did Charlie Chaplin love? ›

Oona O'Neill
Resting placeCimetière de Corsier-sur-Vevey, Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland
CitizenshipUnited States (1925–1954) United Kingdom (1954–1991)
EducationBrearley School
TitleLady Chaplin
7 more rows

Why is Charlie Chaplin so popular? ›

Chaplin's comedic explorations into the human condition transformed cinema, mostly comedies, from a mere novelty into a zoetic art form, because his films were able to address real issues with dimensional characters in a way that made them easier to talk about.

How tall was Charlie Chaplin? ›

The comic actor and filmmaker Charlie Chaplin may only have been 1.65 metres tall, but he was one of the greats. He died on Christmas Day 1977 at the age of 88, having lived an eventful life.

What social issues does Charlie Chaplin's film Modern Times highlights? ›

Chaplin's film Modern Times (1936) marked a significant shift in his career. The subject of his film concerns the pressing social problems of the day, including the dehumanizing effects of a mechanized future, the hardships of modern life due to the Great Depression, and how consumerism connotes social control.

How did Charlie Chaplin change the world? ›

Thankfully, Charlie Chaplin came to Hollywood just as cinema was beginning to develop. Chaplin's humble and quirky film performances brought sanity to modern society and humanized the hardships of daily life in this technologically advanced world.

What is the Fordism in Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times? ›

The Fordism of 'Modern Times'

His point of view was clear: “Unemployment is the vital question. Machinery should benefit mankind. It should not spell tragedy and throw it out of work” (Chaplin Today: Modern Times, 2003).

Why is Charlie Chaplin famous in the 1920? ›

In fact, Chaplin should be considered the greatest influence of the film industry in the 1920s because of his fame in silent film, his career as a director, his controversial satire, and the popularity of The Tramp. When one thinks of silent films most likely that person thinks about is Charlie Chaplin.

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