23. The Lovable Tramp’s Many Scandals
Charlie Chaplain also had a penchant for… group activities. Naked ones. He liked to organize them with his friend and fellow comedic film star, Fatty Arbuckle – who has his own scandalous entry, below. Those activities came to an abrupt halt in the aftermath of a scandal that rocked the country in 1921 when Fatty Arbuckle was accused of an assault that led to a woman’s death and was tried for murder. Although acquitted, the Chaplin-Arbuckle parties never resumed. Chaplin’s greatest scandals however arose from his propensity to rob the cradle: he liked much younger women.
FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, a pervert himself if ever there was one, had long disliked Chaplin’s political leanings. So he used the actor’s scandals to launch a smear campaign against him. In 1944, he had Chaplin prosecuted for violations of the Mann Act, which prohibits the transportation of women across state lines for explicit purposes. Chaplin was acquitted, but his reputation was severely damaged. In 1952, while Chaplin was in London for a film premiere, the US Department of Justice revoked his visa. To gain re-entry to the US, he would have to submit to an interview about his politics and morality. Chaplain decided not to bother, cut his ties with America, and settled in Switzerland.