When Charlie Met Joan: The Tragedy of the Chaplin Trials and the Failings of American Law

2026 New York Law School Otto L. Walter Distinguished Writing Award

Charlie Chaplin, the silent screen’s “Little Tramp,” was beloved by millions of movie fans until he starred in a series of salacious, real-life federal courtroom dramas. The 1944 trial was described by ace New York Daily News reporter Florabel Muir as “the best show in town.” The leading lady was a woman under contract to his studio—red-haired ingénue Joan Barry...