The Kid (1921 film) The Kid (1921 film) The Kid is a 1921 American silent comedy-drama film written by, produced by, directed by, and starring Charlie Chaplin, and features Jackie Coogan as his adopted son and sidekick. This was Chaplin's first full-length film as a director (he had been a co-star in 1914's "Tillie's Punctured Romance"). It was a huge success, and was the second-highest-grossing film in 1921, behind "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse". In 2011, "The Kid" was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Innovative in
Charlie Chaplin himself. Chaplin finished editing "City Lights" in December 1930, by which time silent films were an anachronism. A preview before an unsuspecting public audience was not a success, but a showing for the press produced positive reviews. One journalist wrote, "Nobody in the world but Charlie Chaplin could have done it. He is the only person that has that peculiar something called 'audience appeal' in sufficient quality to defy the popular penchant for movies that talk." Given its general release in January 1931, "City Lights" proved to be a popular and financial success – eventually grossing over $3 million. The