Josephine Chaplin – actor and daughter of Charlie Chaplin – dies, aged 74
Josephine was the daughter of Charlie Chaplin and his fourth wife Oona O'Neill.
Josephine Chaplin, international film star and the daughter of iconic actor Charlie Chaplin, has died aged 74.
Her family said in a statement: "Charly, Julien, Arthur, his sons, are sad to announce the death of Mrs Josephine Gardin-Chaplin which occurred on July 13, 2023, at the age of 74, in Paris. The funeral will take place in Paris, in the intimacy of the family."
Chaplin was born in California in 1949 to her father Charlie and his fourth wife Oona O’Neill, and was the sixth of 11 children fathered by the comedy icon.
She went on to have an acting career of her own, and was most famous for starring in Pier Paolo Pasolini's The Canterbury Tales in 1972.
She first appeared on screen in the 1952 film Limelight, aged three, which was written, directed by and starred her father. She went on to star in British, Italian, German and Canadian films, but was best known for her work in French cinema.
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This included work in films such as 1974's Nuits rouges and 1976's À l’ombre d’un été. She also appeared in French television series including Les enquêtes du commissaire Maigret, Hemingway and Le masque.
She was a long-time resident of Paris and managed the Chaplin office there on behalf of her siblings for years. She also sponsored a a statue of her father in Waterville, Ireland, where the family often visited on holidays over the years.
In 1978 Josephine and her family entered the headlines when two men stole her father's body and coffin, following his death in Switzerland on Christmas Day 1977. The men attempted to extort the family but they refused to pay the ransom, and Charlie Chaplin's remains were recovered 11 weeks later.
Chaplin was married to Greek businessman Nicholas Sistovaris from 1969 until 1977 when they divorced. She subsequently lived with French actor Maurice Ronet until he died in 1983. She then married archeologist Jean-Claude Gardin in 1989, and the couple stayed together until his death in 2013.
Chaplin is survived by her her sisters, Geraldine, Victoria, Jane and Annette, brothers Michael, Eugene and Christopher, and her sons Charly, Julien and Arthur.
