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Hannah Chaplin
Hannah Harriet Pedlingham Chaplin (née Hill; 6 August 1865 – 28 August 1928), also known by the stage name Lily Harley, was an English actress, singer and dancer who performed in British music halls from the age of 16.
Chaplin was the mother of actor and filmmaker Charlie Chaplin and his two half-brothers, the actor Sydney Chaplin and the film director Wheeler Dryden, and grandmother of Jefferson Airplane drummer and songwriter Spencer Dryden. As a result of mental illness, now thought to have been caused by syphilis, she was unable to continue performing from the mid-1890s. In 1921, she was relocated by her son Charlie to California, where she was cared for in a house in the San Fernando Valley until her death in August 1928.
Hannah Chaplin was born on 6 August 1865 at 11 Camden Street in the London district of Walworth. Her father, Charles Frederick Hill, the son of a bricklayer, was a shoemaker. Her mother, Mary Ann Hodges, the daughter of a mercantile clerk, had previously been married to a sign writer who had died in an accident.
At the age of 16, Chaplin left home to improve her fortunes by becoming an actress. Inspired by Lillie Langtry, one of the most successful female performers of the time, she adopted the stage name Lily Harley, performing as an actress and singer in the music halls. While taking part in an Irish sketch Shamus O'Brien in the early 1880s, she fell for her stage partner Charles Chaplin Sr, attracted by his charm and good looks. Reflecting on this period, Charlie Chaplin described his mother as "divine-looking". He was later told that she had been "dainty and attractive and had compelling charm".
In about 1883, at approximately 18 years, she became involved with Sydney Hawkes (possibly Sidney Hawke), who took her to the South African gold-mining district of Witwatersrand, where, according to the psychiatrist Stephen Weissman in his 2008 book Chaplin: A Life, she was forced into prostitution. In 1884, pregnant by Hawkes, she returned to London, where she again lived together with Charles Chaplin. In 1885, she gave birth to Sydney, Hawkes' son, and soon returned to the stage, performing at the Royal Music Hall in the northern French city of Le Havre.
She married Charles on 22 June 1885 at St John's Church, Walworth. While there is little record of performances by Charles in the mid-1880s, Hannah Chaplin appeared in Bristol and Dublin in 1885, and in Belfast, Glasgow, Peckham, Aberdeen and Dundee in 1886. Press notices referred to her as "the refined and talented artist Lily Harley" who had been "a most brilliant hit at Gaity and Star, Glasgow, four and five turns every night and heaps of flowers".
At the beginning of 1887, Chaplin was back in London, where she first commented on her poor state of health. She appeared with her husband that year in Bath and at music halls in the north of England. Despite her illness, she continued to perform in 1888. Her husband became increasingly popular, yet she did not progress in her career.
On 16 April 1889, she gave birth to a second son, Charles Spencer Chaplin, now better known as Charlie Chaplin. Hannah's relationship with her husband began to deteriorate, possibly as a result of his drinking or of his touring in North America during the summer of 1890.
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Hannah Chaplin
Hannah Harriet Pedlingham Chaplin (née Hill; 6 August 1865 – 28 August 1928), also known by the stage name Lily Harley, was an English actress, singer and dancer who performed in British music halls from the age of 16.
Chaplin was the mother of actor and filmmaker Charlie Chaplin and his two half-brothers, the actor Sydney Chaplin and the film director Wheeler Dryden, and grandmother of Jefferson Airplane drummer and songwriter Spencer Dryden. As a result of mental illness, now thought to have been caused by syphilis, she was unable to continue performing from the mid-1890s. In 1921, she was relocated by her son Charlie to California, where she was cared for in a house in the San Fernando Valley until her death in August 1928.
Hannah Chaplin was born on 6 August 1865 at 11 Camden Street in the London district of Walworth. Her father, Charles Frederick Hill, the son of a bricklayer, was a shoemaker. Her mother, Mary Ann Hodges, the daughter of a mercantile clerk, had previously been married to a sign writer who had died in an accident.
At the age of 16, Chaplin left home to improve her fortunes by becoming an actress. Inspired by Lillie Langtry, one of the most successful female performers of the time, she adopted the stage name Lily Harley, performing as an actress and singer in the music halls. While taking part in an Irish sketch Shamus O'Brien in the early 1880s, she fell for her stage partner Charles Chaplin Sr, attracted by his charm and good looks. Reflecting on this period, Charlie Chaplin described his mother as "divine-looking". He was later told that she had been "dainty and attractive and had compelling charm".
In about 1883, at approximately 18 years, she became involved with Sydney Hawkes (possibly Sidney Hawke), who took her to the South African gold-mining district of Witwatersrand, where, according to the psychiatrist Stephen Weissman in his 2008 book Chaplin: A Life, she was forced into prostitution. In 1884, pregnant by Hawkes, she returned to London, where she again lived together with Charles Chaplin. In 1885, she gave birth to Sydney, Hawkes' son, and soon returned to the stage, performing at the Royal Music Hall in the northern French city of Le Havre.
She married Charles on 22 June 1885 at St John's Church, Walworth. While there is little record of performances by Charles in the mid-1880s, Hannah Chaplin appeared in Bristol and Dublin in 1885, and in Belfast, Glasgow, Peckham, Aberdeen and Dundee in 1886. Press notices referred to her as "the refined and talented artist Lily Harley" who had been "a most brilliant hit at Gaity and Star, Glasgow, four and five turns every night and heaps of flowers".
At the beginning of 1887, Chaplin was back in London, where she first commented on her poor state of health. She appeared with her husband that year in Bath and at music halls in the north of England. Despite her illness, she continued to perform in 1888. Her husband became increasingly popular, yet she did not progress in her career.
On 16 April 1889, she gave birth to a second son, Charles Spencer Chaplin, now better known as Charlie Chaplin. Hannah's relationship with her husband began to deteriorate, possibly as a result of his drinking or of his touring in North America during the summer of 1890.