Among the countless international celebrities who have made Switzerland their home, perhaps none has left such a legacy in the country as Charlie Chaplin (1889-1997). There is a complete museum of his work in the country, his intact mansion for visitors and his mausoleum.
Chaplin’s World opened to the public in 2016 after 15 years of planning. It sits on the same ten-acre property where the English comedian lived for the last 25 years of his life, alongside his fourth wife, Oona O’Neill, and the couple’s eight children.
The space is divided into a museum, which looks like a Hollywood studio, and the mansion built in 1840 with views of the Swiss Alps, as well as a spacious garden that hosts events throughout the year.
The museum takes great care in sets inspired by its films, creating the best “Instagrammable” experience possible. There are the gears from “Modern Times” (1936) and the barber shop and uniforms from “The Great Dictator” (1940). You can also see dozens of wax dolls of Chaplin himself and other characters, such as Carlitos and the orphan boy from “O Garoto” (1921).
But there is also a lot of educational information about how he produced his works and about his personal life, going through his impoverished childhood in London, his stardom in Hollywood and the persecution of McCarthyism that took him to Switzerland in 1953.
The museum displays practically all of his films and brings curiosities such as the story of the little mustache shared by Hitler. “I thought he was copying me, taking advantage of my success. I was so selfish,” Chaplin recalls.
Chaplin’s World is located in the village of Corsier-sur-Vevey, on the shores of Lake Geneva (or Lake Geneva), 8 km from Montreux, or 90 km from Bern or Geneva. Entry costs 21 Swiss francs, about R$113.
Charlie Chaplin, the actor, is buried next to Oona in the Cimetière de Corsier-sur-Vevey, less than 2 km from the museum. For those who are curious to do the complete tour circuit, the local bus system is a good option as it is easily decipherable, with the museum just 3 km from the train station.
