The Circus (silent film)
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The Circus is a 1928 silent film which finds Charlie Chaplin's Little Tramp character being chased by a policeman at a circus. The ringmaster thinks his antics are hysterical, and hires him, but finds that The Tramp can't be funny on purpose, so the ringmaster makes him a janitor who always happens to be in the ring when things start happening. It stars Chaplin, Al Ernest Garcia, Merna Kennedy, Harry Crocker, George Davis and Henry Bergman.
The movie was written by Chaplin and Joseph Plunkett (prologue, uncredited) and directed by Chaplin. It became the 7th highest grossing silent film in cinema history taking in more than $3.8 million dollars in 1928.
It was nominated for Academy Award for Best Actor (Charlie Chaplin). In addition, the Academy awarded Chaplin a Special Award "For versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing and producing The Circus."