Charlie Chaplin's 122nd birthday celebrated with special Google doodle
Google honors Charlie Chaplin on his 122nd birthday, which is April 16th, with a Youtube video.
YouTube screengrab
Google celebrates silent-film comedian, actor, and director Charlie Chaplin today, on what would be his 122nd birthday.
International versions, including Australia, Hong Kong, France, India, and the UK, got a sneak peak of the special video hours ahead of the US. Depending on the country that you reside in, you'll notice a special black-and-white video in place of the usual Google logo.
The silent-film, accompanied with a musical score, is a slapstick comedy done in the style of Charlie Chaplin by members of the Google team.
In the new video, Chaplin starts out sitting on a park bench reading a Google newspaper, he has an argument with a policeman and is told to move on. He then interacts with an artist painting a Google still-life, and tries to get some baked goods without paying for them.
Chaplin was born Charles Spencer Chaplin in London, in 1889, to a mother and father who both were accomplished as singers and actors. Young Charlie began his acting career before he reached the age of 10. During his career, he experienced two world wars and The Great Depression. The 1930s and 40s were a vital time to bring laughter during those hard times. In 1936, he acted and directed in the film "Modern Times," which was about his iconic "Little Tramp" character struggling to survive in the industrial world. In 1940, he wrote, directed, and acted in his first talking film, "The Great Dictator."
Chaplin married four times and had 11 children; he died on Christmas day in 1977.
This isn't the first time Google has made their homepage interactive. Do you remember the secret message hidden in the bouncy ball logo? Or the Imagine animation to celebrate the 70th birthday of former Beatle John Lennon? Or blasted into space to celebrate cosmonaut Yuri Gagrin's first human space flight.