Charlie Chaplin married actress Mildred Harris on October 23, 1918, in Los Angeles. Chaplin was 29 years old and Harris was 16. Harris was already working as a film actress when the relationship began. Contemporary and later biographical sources differ on whether her age was reported as 16 or 17, but multiple biographical sources identify her as 16 at the time of the marriage.
Chaplin and Harris had begun their relationship earlier in 1918. According to accounts of the marriage, Harris believed she was pregnant, and the couple married after the pregnancy was initially believed to be genuine. The pregnancy was later determined to have been a false alarm. Chaplin's official biographical archive describes the marriage as having taken place after Harris believed she was pregnant.
The marriage nevertheless resulted in a child. Harris became pregnant later, and on July 7, 1919, she gave birth to a son, Norman Spencer Chaplin. The child was in poor health and died three days after birth. Contemporary and biographical accounts identify the death of the infant as a significant event during the marriage.
The relationship deteriorated during the following months. Chaplin continued working on his films while the couple experienced marital difficulties. The couple separated in 1919, less than a year after their wedding.
Harris subsequently filed for divorce in California. Her divorce proceedings included allegations concerning Chaplin's treatment of her during the marriage. Contemporary newspaper reports described claims of mental cruelty, disagreements over domestic matters, and Chaplin's extended absences from the marital home. Chaplin disputed aspects of the allegations.
The divorce was granted in November 1920. Harris received a financial settlement and a portion of the couple's community property. Contemporary reporting placed the settlement at approximately $100,000 in some accounts, while other reports described a larger overall property arrangement.
The divorce occurred while Chaplin was completing work associated with The Kid, which was released in 1921. Chaplin's personal circumstances during this period have subsequently been discussed by biographers in connection with the production of the film, particularly because the film centered on a relationship between an adult character and an abandoned child.
Harris continued her career in the film industry after the divorce. She later married again and continued appearing in films during the 1920s and 1930s. She died in 1944 at the age of 43.
The Chaplin-Harris marriage is significant in accounts of Chaplin's personal life because Harris was a teenager when she married him, while Chaplin was 29. It was the first of Chaplin's four marriages and preceded his later marriages to Lita Grey, Paulette Goddard, and Oona O'Neill.
Chaplin's second marriage, to Lita Grey, would generate considerably more extensive public controversy. Grey was also a teenager when she became involved with Chaplin, and their subsequent divorce produced highly publicized court proceedings and allegations concerning Chaplin's conduct. Those events can be examined separately from the Harris marriage.
The historical record concerning Mildred Harris therefore consists of marriage and divorce records, contemporary newspaper reports, Chaplin's later autobiographical account, and subsequent biographies. Claims concerning private conduct should be distinguished from matters established by court records and other contemporary documentation.
Mildred Harris died on July 20, 1944, in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 42. She had continued working as an actress after her divorce from Charlie Chaplin, appearing in films during the 1920s and 1930s. Her death was attributed to pneumonia, following a period of declining health. Harris was buried at the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.
