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Witness History: The Great Dictator

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21/12/2020 GMT

The Great Dictator

BBC World Service - Witness History, The Great Dictator

Charlie Chaplin's classic satirical film about Adolf Hitler was released in 1940

Charlie Chaplin's classic satirical film about Adolf Hitler and fascism was released in 1940

In late 1940, The Great Dictator was first released in the USA. In his first role in talking movies, Charlie Chaplin satirised Adolf Hitler and his Nazi followers, before America had joined World War II. The film was a commercial success, but at the time, many people thought it should never have been made. Louise Hidalgo hears the memories of Hollywood set designer, Laurence Irving, and Chaplin's official biographer, David Robinson. The programme was first broadcast in 2010.   

PHOTO: Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator (Bettmann/Getty Images)

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