#ralph barton

[thefugitivesaint]

Ralph Barton (1891-1931), ''Droll Stories'' by Honoré de Balzac, 1928 Source

[onionartsaves]

Ralph Barton (1891–1931)

frontispiece for "But Gentlemen Marry Brunettes", by Anita Loos, 1928

[dontbestingybaby]

Alla Nazimova by Ralph Barton from Photoplay, August 1921

[obsidian-sphere]

Ralph Barton - Portrait of Haddon Chambers - 1921

[bygone-hollywood]

[thedeadleafs]

Java Face Powder

Ralph Barton

Ladies' Home Journal, Sep. 1919

[chaplinfortheages]

Portraits taken by New York photographer Nickolas Muray - 1927.

Above a unique portrait by Nickolas Muray. Photographed with Charlie Chaplin friend Ralph Barton. Ralph Barton a popular cartoonist and illustrator of the day, his work displayed in Vanity Fair and the New Yorker. The portrait for me reminiscent of an ancient Roman coin.

Sadly, Ralph Barton committed suicide shortly before his 40th birthday. He was severely manic-depressive (as it was called then). In February 1931 he traveled with Charlie to attend London premiere of “City Lights”. Thereafter Chaplin decided to extended his visit in Europe. Ralph became more and more depressed finally deciding to return home to NYC, it was in May 1931 he shot himself in the head - his suicide note read: “ “Lost the only woman I ever loved”.

The woman, his ex-wife Carlotta Monterey - in a strange twist, she married Eugene O'Neil in 1929, father of Oona Chaplin, thereby Carlotta Monterey became Charlie Chaplin’s future step-mother- in-law.

Ralph Barton also the man who filmed Charlie Chaplin directing “City Lights” - an extraordinary find, when revealed to be among his personal effects, in possession of Ralph Barton’s nephew in the late 1970’s (x).

Charlie was secretive about his work, but allowed friend Ralph Barton to film him. What is truly amazing? It shows Charlie working the pivotal scene - the blind girl mistaking the tramp for a man of wealth, as far as Charlie was concerned, the entire success of the film, based off this scene.

[ierbareta]