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OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 950

Burlesque on Carmen

191531 minUnited States

Video edition: Wikimedia Commons
Original language: No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: English.
This copy runs: 31:01
Subtitles: No subtitle track in this language

Languages and subtitles

No subtitle track in this language

Wikimedia Commons · Charlie Chaplin · Public domain

Synopsis

Carmen tries to persuade the officer Darn Hosiery to let smugglers pass through the city gate. His attraction to her draws him into arguments, criminal company and jealousy over a bullfighter. The familiar tragic path becomes a comic performance in which military dignity, romantic passion and even the apparent final catastrophe are repeatedly exposed as theatrical poses.

Cast

Charles Chaplin

Jack Henderson

Edna Purviance

Leo White

DirectorsCharles Chaplin

Behind the scenes

Chaplin parodied DeMille's Carmen soon after its release. Essanay later expanded Chaplin's original two-reel version with additional material after he left the studio, creating a separate editing history that matters when comparing surviving copies.

Sources and availability

General references identify the work and its copy. A reference beside an editorial section is linked to the claims checked in that section.

Wikipedia — film reference Wikidata — film identity and credits

Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

The public-domain references concern the original films in the United States. Rights can differ for other countries, editions, restorations, music or translations. Sources are listed on each film page.

Availability checked on September 12, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

Charles Chaplin — Strauss-Peyton Studio, 1921; published in Photoplay no. 3 (1922); National Portrait Gallery / Wikimedia Commons. · Public domain in the United States (PD-US-expired)
Edna Purviance — Unknown photographer, 1923; J. Willis Sayre Collection of Theatrical Photographs, University of Washington Libraries, SAYRE 8372 / Wikimedia Commons. · Public domain in the United States (PD-US-expired)
Leo White — Witzel; Photoplay Magazine March, 1917; pg. 24 https://archive.org/stream/photoplayvolume11112chic#page/378/mode/2up · Public domain

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