Following the success in the summer of 1925 with the release of The Gold Rush, Chaplin started work on The Circus in 1926. The production, like The Kid, was stonewalled numerous times with various situations, chief among them was a fire at Chaplin studios and divorce proceedings brought on by his second wife: Lita Grey. Chaplin forged on, and The Circus was released in January of 1928. In The Circus, the tramp happens upon a failing circus and inadvertently becomes a huge success when he unknowingly interrupts the show. He befriends a girl, the proprietor's daughter, played by Merna Kennedy in her film debut. The proprietor puts increasing pressure on Chaplin to make good, and complicating matters is a handsome tightrope walker interested in the daughter. It's a great combination of Chaplin's trademark sight gags and pathos. The highlight of the film occurs when the tramp decides to impress the girl by substituting for the no-show tightrope walker. Chaplin filmed this scene several hundred times to get it just right. Three Chaplin regulars appear as clowns in the film: Albert Austin, Henry Bergman, and Chester Conklin. Chaplin edited, wrote, directed, and produced the film and received a special Oscar for doing so. That's Chaplin singing at the beginning of the film, which is very poignant. The singing was added to the film by Chaplin some 40 years later. ***1/2 of 4 stars.