Battle of the Century: Charlie Chaplin, World War II, and THE GREAT DICTATOR
Date : Sunday, October 19, 2025
Duration : 1 hours 30 minutes
Sunday, October 19, 2025 11:00AM – 12:30PM
Sunday, October 19, 2025 11:00AM – 12:30PM
Deadline to register: Wednesday, October 15, 2025
When The Great Dictator was released in October 1940 it was both a hysterical event and a historical event, for the funniest man in the world was going head-to-head with the scariest. Chaplin not only employed all the tools in his comic arsenal to lampoon Hitler, he also put his fame, his fortune and his life itself on the line to skewer Hitler’s anti-Semitic bilge and mad quest for world domination. It is a great and courageous film, but he paid a steep price for breaking Hollywood’s silence on the subject.
You will get the most out of the class if you watch The Great Dictator before this program! You can find it on various streaming channels such as Kanopy or check out a DVD from a library.
When Dan Kamin speaks about Charlie Chaplin people listen, because, as Robert Downey, Jr., says, “Dan’s insights are amazing.” That’s why Downey got Dan hired to create the Chaplinesque comedy scenes for the biopic Chaplin, and to train him for his Oscar-nominated performance. The author of several acclaimed books on Chaplin, Dan also did the commentary track on the Criterion Collection DVD release of The Great Dictator. A renowned performer in his own right, Dan tours internationally, and often appears as a guest artist with symphony orchestras.
Schedule
Adaptation Generation: The Jewish Holiday Edition
Behind the Scenes at Theater J – A Season Class
Climb Ev'ry Mountain: The Legacy of Oscar Hammerstein II
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