On April 22, 1916, a large Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest is held at the Bon Marché park (later Westlake Park) in downtown Seattle. The event is organized by local movie exhibitor John Hamrick (1876-1956), who had recently secured the film Charlie Chaplin's Burlesque on Carmen (Essanay, 1916) for his Rex Theatre. The contest draws some 300 participants and ties up part of the downtown area for several hours.
Charlie Chaplin's Burlesque
Charles Chaplin's (1889-1977) satirical take on the opera Carmen was released in early 1916, on the heels of two larger (and more serious) movie adaptations starring Theda Bara (1885-1955) and Geraldine Farrar (1882-1967) respectively. In Chaplin's parody, his character (Don Jose in the original) became Darn Hosiery, with Edna Purviance (1895-1958) assuming the Carmen role. The film was originally shot in late 1915 as a two-reel (approximately 20-minute) film, and was the last picture Chaplin shot for Essanay before signing a new contract with Mutual Film Corporation, a competitor.
With the departure of their noted screen comedian, Essanay took possession of Chaplin's film and decided to maximize their profit potential. The company held the picture for several months while it expanded the storyline from two reels to four, thereby elevating the film from a short to a feature and increasing the rental price Essanay could charge exhibitors. Chaplin's original cut was spliced together with outtakes, bolstered with new scenes shot after the comedian's departure (some of which introduced entirely new characters), then released to great fanfare.
The comedian was incensed by this move, and in May 1916 brought legal action against Essanay, arguing, in part, that he had not approved the finished film, that it damaged his professional reputation, and that it misled the moviegoing public. Chaplin's suit was eventually dismissed, a decision that would embolden Essanay to raid their vaults for even more Chaplin material. Two years following the release of Charlie Chaplin's Burlesque on Carmen, the studio released Triple Trouble (Essanay, 1918), another hodge-podge of the comedian's discarded material loosely framed with a new storyline and new characters. "In one scene," biographer David Robinson remarked of Triple Trouble, "Charlie the kitchen boy throws a pail of garbage over a fence in sunny California, 1915; it lands on the other side, in wintery Chicago, 1918" (Robinson, p. 151). Chaplin took no legal action against Essanay following the release of Triple Trouble.
Big $$, Big Show
But the comedian was such an enormous film star that few were interested in the Chaplin/Essanay intrigue -- certainly not John Hamrick. Calling the film "the biggest comedy ever produced," Hamrick outbid other local exhibitors for the comedy film, a fact that he was more than eager to trumpet to the public. At $2,500, it was said to be the highest bid ever for a film to screen in Seattle. (To make this claim, however, Hamrick's publicity man stretched the facts. Nine months earlier, in June 1915, James Clemmer bid a reported $15,000 for the Seattle rights to D. W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation.)
Hamrick's people must have made their distinction thusly: Clemmer bid on a 12-reel (2½ hour) feature film that played five full weeks in a larger venue, while John Hamrick bid on a four-reel comedy film that would play only two weeks in a small 500-seat theatre.) "Hamrick's bid was a shock to other exhibitors," the Star reported on the manager's business coup, "as there was much rivalry in the efforts to land this new Chaplin which, by the way, is the best thing the inimitable Charlie ever produced" ("Chaplin Stays One Week More"). Hamrick also promoted the film as "the only genuine Chaplin picture released in 6 months," although in reality the gap in Chaplin releases was simply due to the fact that the comedian had changed studios and he hadn't yet released his first Mutual film.
Regardless of the circumstances surrounding the film's acquisition in Seattle, John Hamrick knew he had a winner on his hands. "If you are `down on your luck' and have the blues, don't miss this -- it will do you good," claimed the theater (Rex Advertisement -- April 15, 1916). Shows were plentiful -- a new screening at the Rex began every hour on the hour between 9 a.m. and 11 p.m., and for a mere 15 cents admission.
Referencing the comedian's new Mutual contract, the unnamed photoplay editor for the Seattle Star felt Hamrick's new offering was worth every penny he spent to get it.
"If you wonder why they're paying Charlie Chaplin a salary of $670,000 a year to be funny before the camera, and why John Hamrick, manager of the Rex, had to bid $2,500 to get the new Chaplin burlesque, just released, drop into the Rex and look it over.
"If Charlie, as Darn Hosiery, doesn't get a laugh out of you, why, there's something wrong, that's all, and you ought to see a doctor.
"If you saw Geraldine Farrar's or Theda Bara's rendition of Carmen, you'll scream when you see Charlie's.
"The famous opera is staged and costumed in the correct style. Chaplin introduces the humor. Everything seems at one moment to be going just as a nice, well-behaved opera should go.
"Then, in the next, Charlie has you punching the stranger next to you in the ribs in your merriment.
"Hamrick is entitled to do a capacity business for the week." ("Chaplin Comes High But He's Worth It")
In Case the Film Wasn't Enough
The idea for the Chaplin parade appears to have been dreamed up by John Hamrick and the film's Northwest distributor, Tom North. They approached the Seattle Star about getting in on the action, and the paper gave the contest front-page coverage several times throughout the week.
The initial plans were grandiose: at 11:45 am on Saturday, April 22, Hamrick anticipated that more than 1,000 local boys costumed to look like Chaplin's Tramp would assemble before the Metropolitan Theatre on University Street, between 4th and 5th avenues. Accompanied by a marching band (and perhaps some floats for good measure), the parade would start with a burst of daylight fireworks provided by the management of the Metropolitan. The throng would then head southward on 4th Avenue to Columbia Street, head down to 2nd Avenue, then head north until reaching Pike Street. At Pike the procession would head up to 3rd Avenue, travel a block southward to Pine Street, then turn east and head into the Bon Marché park for the formal judging ("Chaplins to March in Parade").
Hamrick announced a prize of $25 cash for first place, with Tom North contributing a $25 watch for the second-place winner. Third prize, announced later in the week, was a $25 suit of clothes donated by restaurateur Chauncey Wright, with season passes for two to the Rex given to the fourth- and fifth-place winners. Judges for the event included Hamrick, North, actor Norman Hackett (then appearing in a stage production at the Metropolitan), Jimmy Crehan (secretary to Seattle Mayor Hiram Gill [1866-1919]), and D. S. Tobias of the Northern Pacific Railroad.
Originally it was announced that all contestants should be aged 16 or under, and would need to register by the Friday before the parade either at the Rex box office or by writing the photoplay editor of the Star. Contestants were required to give their name, age, and address when entering the contest. Almost immediately, however, Hamrick revised the contest rules to remove the age limit, probably to ensure a maximum turnout ("Age Limit Taken Off in Charlie Chaplin Parade"). "Most boys try, occasionally, to imitate the Charlie Chaplin walk," the Star noted. "Some of them are very proficient in the little tricks which have made Charlie a millionaire ... . All right then. Get an old derby, a cane, a pair of baggy pants, a floppy pair of shoes, and get into the parade. There'll be a band to lead you" ("$75 in Prizes for Charlie Chaplins").
Throughout the week leading up to the Chaplin parade, John Hamrick continued to enhance the contest. It was announced that all costumed participants, for example, would be guaranteed a free pass to see Charlie Chaplin's Burlesque on Carmen during its run at the Rex. He also announced that some of the best imitators may be engaged to appear at the Rex along with the film, which was already being held over an extra week due to its popularity with Seattle moviegoers. And, to get the full Chaplin experience, the manager also arranged for movie cameras to be on hand for the event, grinding away at newsreel films that would eventually be shown at the Rex during the film's second week.
A Rough-and-Tumble Display
Despite plans for almost 1,000 young Chaplins marching the streets of Seattle, in reality only about 300 took part in the parade. The event started with a bang -- the Metropolitan Theatre, in front of which the boys were to congregate, arranged for a series of "daylight bombs" to open the procession, which exploded in the air and rained free passes to the Metropolitan on the crowd below. Tom North led the group in his automobile, followed closely behind by a small marching band, the 300 impersonators, and finally several other automobiles bringing up the rear, including one that held the judges.
Based on accounts in the Star, Hamrick's Chaplin parade was nothing short of controlled chaos. The boys (and it seems to have been all boys -- there wasn't any mention of girl contestants) did their best funny walks all over the street, batting each other with canes and making funny faces at pedestrians, shopkeepers, and traffic cops. Some stood out from the crowd, like 13-year-old Eddie Moats, who was the only red-headed Chaplin in the crowd, and who had pasted some of his own locks to his upper lip in order to make the comedian's trademark mustache. Other boys stood out for the wrong reasons, such as the one who climbed onto a moving truck and proceeded to smack the driver upside the head several times with his cane. (This must have been more delightful to see than to read about. Instead of chastising the boy's dangerous and disorderly behavior, the Star praised him for being "enterprising" [300 Boys March in Noon Parade"]).
Crowning a Champion
Once the procession fully arrived at the Bon Marché park, John Hamrick presided over the contest from a grandstand constructed for the occasion. Organizers went through the crowd and hand-selected several of the boys for a public demonstration, which helped the judges finalize their decisions. It was here that Eddie Moats, the red-headed Chaplin, made his mark on the gathered crowd, though perhaps not in the way he imagined. Plucked from the gaggle of boys for a solo performance, and before a large crowd of onlookers in the park, Moats proceeded to do his best Chaplin walk -- only to have his baggy pants slip down around his ankles. Moats' public "apology" in the Seattle Star provided a humorous framework for the paper's coverage of the event ("Young Chaplin Makes Apology").
One wonders if the accident (assuming it really was an accident) helped or hindered Moats -- he claimed second place overall, and became the new owner of a $25 watch. First place went to 13-year-old Felix Smith of 2010 Western Avenue, and third place went to 21-year-old James Backis, who gave his residence as the Washington Hotel. Urban Hart, age 8, and George Nelson, age 14, were named runners-up and won season's passes for two to the Rex ("Young Chaplin Makes Apology"). Felix Smith was subsequently engaged by the Rex to appear in costume at screenings throughout the week following his contest victory.
Last Week of Burlesque
Charlie Chaplin's Burlesque on Carmen continued for an additional week at the Rex Theatre before giving way to the feature film The Eternal City (Famous Players, 1915), starring actress Pauline Frederick (1883-1938). Late in the week, as the venue was preparing to show the film for the last times, John Hamrick reduced the 15-cent admission price to just a nickel for children attending early screenings (9 a.m. – 6 p.m. weekdays, 9 a.m. – Noon on Saturday).
John Hamrick's publicity effort for Charlie Chaplin's Burlesque on Carmen wasn't the nation's first contest of its kind, but it netted him a good deal of favorable publicity. A. R. M. Sutton, Pacific Northwest representative for the trade magazine Motography, singled out Hamrick and his publicity schemes (in particular the Chaplin contest) for a lengthy write-up in the magazine's May 27th issue, trumpeting it as "the greatest advertising stunt ever seen in Seattle" (Sutton).
For Hamrick, who continued as a Seattle exhibitor well into the 1950s, the promotion would be just one of many successes.
