The Great Dictator a ruthless fascist dictator and a persecuted Jewish barber. "The Great Dictator" was popular with audiences, becoming Chaplin's most commercially successful film. Modern critics have also praised it as a historically significant film and an important work of satire, and in 1997, it was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant". "The Great Dictator" was nominated for five Academy Awards – Outstanding Production, Best Actor, Best Writing (Original Screenplay), Best Supporting Actor for Jack Oakie, and Best Music (Original Score). In his 1964 autobiography, Chaplin
Roman dictator the earliest period, the official title of the dictator throughout the history of the Republic was "magister populi", or "master of the infantry". His lieutenant, the "magister equitum", was the "master of the horse" (that is, of the cavalry). However, the use of "dictator" to refer to the "magister populi" seems to have been widespread from a very early period. The appointment of a dictator involved three steps: first, the Senate would issue a decree known as a "senatus consultum", authorizing one of the consuls to nominate a dictator. Technically, a "senatus consultum" was advisory, and did not have the