"Modern Times": Charlie Chaplin at Angkor

by Darryl Leon Collins

In March 1936, excited rumors fuelled by reports from Singapore began circulating through the Indochina press based in Saigon. It now seemed a certainty that one of the most famous stars in motion-picture history, Charles Chaplin (1889-1977), more familiarly known throughout Indochina by his French name ‘Charlot', was to visit Cambodia!

Chaplin had continued his great role of ‘the Tramp' in his first two sound films for United Artists Corporation, City Lights (1931) and Modern Times (1936). It was in the latter film that Chaplin aimed his satiric wit at the new machine age by dabbling in Marxian themes of ‘man versus machine.' Les Temps Modernes was to be his last ‘silent' film - silent only in the lack of speech, for Chaplin composed the music and added special sound effects.

On 12 February 1936, five days after the première of Modern Times at Grauman's Chinese Theater, Hollywood, Chaplin and his party sailed from the United States on the S.S. ‘President Coolidge' for a trip to Hawaii and ports on the Asia-Pacific rim. Paulette Goddard, his ‘dazzling' co-star of Modern Times accompanied him on the 5-month voyage. A wire report soon after their departure informed the world Charlie and Paulette had been married in Singapore (other sources mention Canton), although years later in his autobiography Chaplin would only confirm they were married in the Orient leaving the location unidentified by name. In fact, Goddard had been Chaplin's resident mistress at his Summit Drive Beverley Hills mansion since 1932. Inexplicably all members of the party were listed as living at ‘1103 Coneway Avenue, Beverley Hills, California' on the ship's passenger list.

Quoted in the press of the day, as a 21 year-old, Paulette was in fact more likely some 25 years of age. One inquisitive Indochina reporter immediately inquired of the starlet about the latest ‘big news.' Had Miss Goddard become Mrs Charlie Chaplin or not? Her reply was evasive. The pretty actress did not deny she had the right to wear a diamond and platinum wedding ring on her left third finger, but she claimed that this did not mean her husband was Charlie Chaplin. She cut short further questions by declaring that she was strongly opposed to discussing her private affairs in public.

Charlie Chaplin's party, comprising actress Miss Paulette Goddard, her mother, Mrs Goddard and Frank Yonamori, a Japanese major-domo - through the agency of Thos. Cook & Son, sailed on the ‘Suwa Maru' from Shanghai to Singapore, arriving on 19th March 1936. On the 22nd March, they passed through the Malacca Straits, visited Bali and then Java, before returning to Singapore on the 3rd April.

The travelers arrived in Saigon on 12th April 1936 aboard the vessel ‘Äramis', then drove to Phnom Penh where they arrived at Hôtel Le Royal on the 18th - on Wednesday morning of the 19th, the party departed for Angkor.

After their arrival at the hotel on Tuesday evening, reporters flocked to the Le Royal to interview the stars. Their visit to Phnom Penh was short - a mere 24 hours. Members of the press, representing no less than five of Indochina daily newspapers, covered Chaplin's movements and impressions of Cambodia. He received reporters with ‘much courtesy and charm' - at the hotel, ‘we were not only simply to interview him, but able to have 2 hours of agreeable conversation with him around a bar table.'

“The Cambodian capital is a charming little town. The Royal Palace as well as the Silver Pagoda are delightfully pretty.” The local life had captured his attention and he added, “the Cambodian houses are very picturesque.”

Chaplin continued, the reporter noting his poetic but never-the-less sincere comments. He had nothing but laudatory remarks for the older Cambodian (French) colonists, but had one sole criticism - once again, related to domestic architecture. This was the quasi-elegance of the European houses which he was surprised to see built in the style of suburban villas exhibiting (‘which one knows is open to question'), a general lack of comfort.

Earlier that same day Chaplin had visited the Royal Palace (where he was happy to have seen His Majesty, King Sisowath Monivong in the setting of his palace) and the Silver Pagoda. He had wandered through the city and was obviously impressed by what he saw. Chaplin is reported to have appreciated the scenes of local life and taken by the liveliness evident during his stroll in the ‘Asiatic quarters' - a reference perhaps, to the Quartier chinois - the Chinese sector in the vicinity of the Grand Marché (Psah Thmei) that was then under construction.

Oddly enough, he explained with surprise, he found himself in a city where he considered certain reclaimed avenues (that had recently been laid over former canals) as being ‘little sisters' to the grand Champs Elysées in Paris.

Members of the press could not resist speculating on a possible movie based on his visit to Indochina. Unfortunately, this film never materialized.

“Without a doubt, one-day we will be seeing on Indochina screens, a film inspired by the trip to Cambodia by the great mime artist ..... “.

“But we will never-the-less have to be patient as Charlie did not hide from us that he didn't plan to abandon the wise measure (that he has had for several years now) of limiting his film activity to one film every five years.”

“In response to our question about whether he planned to profit from his stay in Indochina to take part in some great hunting, he simply told us that he had never fired a rifle in his life and felt no desire to kill. The only game that interested him was the elephant - which he only desired to capture and not kill.”

The great comedian concluded the evening interview with the observation that his drive through Indochina had been productive, in terms of new and unexpected sights. He offered his services to carry out intensive publicity on behalf of Indochina tourism on his return to the United States. The following morning, the party was driven to Siem Reap.

Victor Goloubew (1878-1945), a wealthy aristocrat from St Petersburg who was well connected in Parisian society (he knew the artist Auguste Rodin personally) and possessed a taste for the fashionable life was one of the archaeologists working at Angkor. It was in a scholarly role of École Française d'Extrême-Orient art historian that he hosted the party's 1936 April tour of the temples. Following their visit to the sites, the travelers returned to Saigon via Phnom Penh for the remainder of the Indochina tour that included the cities of Dalat, Hue and Hanoi.

When the alleged honeymooners returned to California in June 1936, Goddard played out her well-rehearsed cat-and-mouse games with consummate skill - this time with American reporters.

“I never discuss my private life. I find that my private life is one thing and my career another.”

The enigma persists to this day and the journalists' questions will in all probability remain unanswered - did Goddard marry Chaplin in the East, or was it all simply a charade? Biographer Kenneth S. Lynn in his recent book Charlie Chaplin and His Times (1998) suggests that, "The overwhelming likelihood is they [Paulette & Charlie] had never been married, and that the divorce proceeding was undertaken at Goddard's insistence..." Following several subsequent affairs, Chaplin married Oona O'Neill on 16 June 1943.

Postscript. It is now over 60 years since Charlie Chaplin ventured into Indochina. As evidenced by Phnom Penh movie advertisements of the 20s and 30s, he was incontestably popular. His fame remains undiminished. In the 50s ‘Huor In', a Phnom Penh Chinese-run business had a sign that stretched the full length of the shop-house promoting ‘Charlot Traditional Wine Medicine'. While in 2002, video-sellers at Psah Thmei (the ‘New Market') offer for sale compilations of Chaplin's most famous films.

Charlie's image of the down-but-not-out tramp still flourishes throughout Cambodia. Currently, there are several popular Cambodian comedians (typically mustached with dark-ringed eyes and curly, slightly disheveled hair) that model their attitudes of mime and manner on Chaplin. The debt to Chaplin does not stop here. His pervasive presence is also found in the Lakhaon Bassac folkloric theatre where young Cambodian performing arts students learn to apply the same makeup to recreate his facial character. This genre, strongly reminiscent of Chinese opera, incorporates diverse influences, including that of Vietnamese classical theatre, Khmer theatre and even Hindi and western movies - one could add Charlie's name to this list, for he seems to have left an indelible impression on this theatre school.

In Cambodia, the legacy of ‘the little fellow' is preserved for future generations to continue laughing at ‘the funniest man in the world.' Contemporary Cambodian comedians Neay Krim, Neay Pek Kuork, Neay Laosy and Neay Lotto would have to agree!

BOHN, Thomas W.: Mountain View , Light and Shadows: A History of Motion Pictures , Mayfield Publishing Company, 1987

HARRIS, Andrew: New York , The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929-1968 , E.P. Dutton, 1968