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Lita Grey

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Lita Grey
Grey in 1925
Born
Lillita Louise MacMurray

(1908-04-15)April 15, 1908
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
DiedDecember 29, 1995(1995-12-29) (aged 87)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting place
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
Occupation
  • Actress
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1924; div. 1927)​
Henry Aguirre
​
​
(m. 1936; div. 1938)​
Arthur Day
​
​
(m. 1938; div. 1948)​
Patsy Pizzolongo
​
​
(m. 1956; div. 1966)​
Children3, including Charles Jr. and Sydney

Lita Grey (born Lillita Louise MacMurray, April 15, 1908 – December 29, 1995), who was known for most of her life as Lita Grey Chaplin, was an American actress. She was the second wife of Charlie Chaplin, and appeared in his films The Kid, The Idle Class, and The Gold Rush.

Background

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She was born in Hollywood, California, to Lillian Carrillo Curry Grey and Robert Earl McMurray,[1][2] and christened Lillita Louise MacMurray. Her father was of Scottish descent, and her mother's family was descended from a ninth-generation Californio family, whose lineage included Antonio Maria Lugo.[3] The Lugos were mostly of Native American ancestry, but had an ancestor that originated from the region of Andalusia in Spain, and were one of the first families to bring horses into North America.[4][5] In a 1993 interview, Grey claimed to be a great-grandniece of former California governor Henry Gage.[6]

Life and career

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Grey married four times. By her own account, she first met Charlie Chaplin at the age of eight at a Hollywood café, and first worked with him at the age of 12 in the part of the "flirting angel" in The Kid.[6][7] She also appeared briefly as a maid in The Idle Class. Her one-year contract was not renewed. At the age of 15, she met Chaplin again when she heard he was testing brunettes for his next film The Gold Rush.[8] Still only 15, she was initially cast as the leading lady in the film, and then-35-year-old Chaplin started a relationship with Grey.

When Lita collapsed on the set of The Gold Rush, she was found to be 2 months pregnant. Her uncle, San Francisco lawyer, Edwin McMurray advised Chaplin that as Lita was a minor, her pregnancy could lead to him being charged with statutory rape.[9] There was also speculation over Lillian's role and motives in her daughter's relationship with Chaplin. In an interview with the LA times in 1992, Lita stated: "My mother was in a peculiar position. My grandfather forced the marriage--he was threatening to kill Charlie--and my mother and I were kind of frightened of my grandfather. Mama was mixed up. She also hero-worshiped Charlie and was really shocked when she found out we had been intimate. Charlie would keep her in a good mood--'Don’t worry, if Lita becomes pregnant I'll marry her.' "[10] They married 24 November 1924 in secret in Empalme, Sonora, Mexico, to avoid a scandal. She alleged in her divorce complaint that he "sought to have her undergo an illegal operation to prevent the birth of their first child".[11]

They had two sons, Charles Chaplin Jr. and Sydney Chaplin, born within ten months of each other in May 1925 and March 1926, respectively.[12][6]

Grey in The Kid (1921)

The marriage was troubled from the start.[13] The two had few interests in common, and Chaplin spent as much time as he could away from home, neglecting both his wife and his children, while working on The Gold Rush, and later, The Circus. They divorced on August 22, 1927,[14][15][16] due to his alleged numerous affairs with other women, and he was ordered to pay over US$600,000 ($11.1 million in 2025 dollars[17]) and US$100,000 ($1.9 million in 2025 dollars[17]) in trust for each child, the largest divorce settlement at the time. Copies of her lengthy divorce complaint, which made scandalous sexual claims against Chaplin, were published, and publicly sold,[18] and the divorce became a sensational media event.[19][20][21][22][23] Less than five months after the divorce, Grey's former butler Don Solovich was murdered in Utah, and articles speculated about connections between Chaplin and the murder.[24][25][26]

After the divorce she began a successful singing career, working with Milton Berle, and working at the Stork Club and London's Cafe de Paris. She married Henry Aguirre in September 1936, then Arthur Day in May 1938, both marriages were short-lived. The Chaplin divorce and the notoriety that came with it took their toll and she began drinking heavily, squandered the divorce settlement, had a major breakdown, and by 1943 she had hit rock bottom.[10] The 1940 United States census states that Lita and Arthur lived at 38 East 50th Street in New York City, and that in 1935 she had lived in England. The census listed her occupation as "singer", and Arthur's as "manager personal". Lita and Arthur adopted a baby boy in 1940, whom they named Robert. When they split up in 1946, Bobby went to live with his paternal grandmother, and Lita had little contact with him after that.[27]

She married her fourth husband, Patsy Pizzolongo (aka Pat Longo), on September 22, 1956, in Los Angeles, California. They were divorced in June 1966.[28]

In the 1970s and 1980s, she worked as a clerk at Robinson's Department Store in Beverly Hills. She wrote two autobiographical volumes covering her life with Chaplin. My Life with Chaplin (1966) was, by her own admission, largely a work of exaggeration and fabrication. She claimed to tell the story as it really was in her second memoir, Wife of the Life of the Party (1998).[29] She is portrayed by Deborah Moore in the 1992 film Chaplin, but Grey was depicted on screen for less than a minute in the final film.

Death

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She died of cancer on December 29, 1995, in Los Angeles, aged 87, and was buried in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery.[21][30][31]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Note
1921The KidFlirtatious AngelUncredited
1921The Idle ClassMaidUncredited
1925The Gold RushExtraUncredited
1933Seasoned GreetingsStore OwnerShort
1933Mr. BroadwayLita Grey
1949The Devil's SleepJudge Rosalind Ballentine
1953This Is Your LifeHerselfTelevision, one episode
1979The Hollywood GreatsHerselfTelevision, one episode
1983Unknown ChaplinHerselfTelevision film

Written works

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  • "Complaint of the young movie star against her elderly husband : (and famous film magnate)". search.worldcat.org. OCLC 1051461671.
  • Chaplin, Lita; Cooper, Morton (1966). My life with Chaplin; an intimate memoir. Bernard Geis Associates. OCLC 1304298.
  • Chaplin, Lita; Vance, Jeffrey (1998). Wife of the Life of the Party. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810834323. OCLC 1064282220.

References

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  1. ↑ "Lillian Grey, Descendant of Pioneer Family, Dies". Los Angeles Times. May 13, 1985. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Milestones: Feb. 7, 1927". Time. February 7, 1927. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Charlie Chaplin Jr". Hollywood Forever Cemetery. Retrieved February 23, 2022. Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (5 May 1925 – 20 March 1968) was an American actor and the son of Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin was born in Beverly Hills, California. His mother was Charlie Chaplin's second wife, Mexican-American Lita Grey, and he was the elder brother of actor Sydney Chaplin.
  4. ↑ Chaplin, Lita Grey; Vance, Jeffrey (March 5, 1998). Memoirs by Lita Grey Chaplin. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9781461674320. Archived from the original on July 13, 2015. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  5. ↑ Chaplin, Lita Grey, and Vance, Jeffrey. (1998). Wife of the Life of the Party. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, pg. 2-3; ISBN 0-8108-3432-4.
  6. 1 2 3 "Lita Grey Chaplin Interview (1993)". July 5, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2022 – via YouTube.
  7. ↑ "Charlie Chaplin : Official Website". Charlie Chaplin: Official Site. Retrieved June 25, 2026.
  8. ↑ Chaplin, Lita Grey, and Vance, Jeffrey. (1998). Wife of the Life of the Party. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, pp. 4–13. ISBN 0-8108-3432-4.
  9. ↑ Shipman, David (January 4, 1996). "OBITUARY: Lita Grey | The Independent | The Independent". The Independent. Retrieved June 25, 2026.
  10. 1 2 Thomas, Kevin (December 20, 1992). "They Remember Charlie : Was Chaplin a rascal or a great man? Here are the views of several who knew him well". LA Times. Archived from the original on December 20, 1992. Retrieved June 25, 2026.
  11. ↑ CHAPLIN'S WIFE HURLS CHARGES: Grave Accusations Made in Plea for Divorce He is Quoted as Branding Bride "Gold Digger" "Blackmailer" Also Said to be Applied to Her LITA CHAPLIN ASKS DIVORCE Serious Charges Hurled at Actor in Legal Action Prominent Picture Actress Mentioned in Suit Comedian Quoted as Calling Bride "Gold Digger”, Los Angeles Times, January 11, 1927, p. A1.
  12. ↑ "Lita Grey embrujó a uno de los genios del cine, lo esquiló y le dio una vida de perros". La Nación, Grupo Nación. July 19, 2015.
  13. ↑ "CHAPLIN ATTACKS WIFE'S COMPLAINT; Movie Actor's Attorney Argues That Document Fails to Show the Couple Were Married". The New York Times. February 8, 1927. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Settlement out of Court Ends Battle; Cost of Peace Stated Be Over Million For Charles; Lita Chaplin Given Decree; Brief Testimony Was Given in Court by Mrs. Chaplin;". Madera Tribune. California Digital Newspaper Collection. August 22, 1927. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Lita Grey Chaplin Granted Interlocutory Divorce From Charlie". Santa Cruz Evening News. California Digital Newspaper Collection. August 22, 1927. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Divorce Costs Figured Out after Decree". Santa Cruz Evening News. California Digital Newspaper Collection. August 23, 1927. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  17. 1 2 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  18. ↑ Complaint of the Young Movie Star Against Her Elderly Husband: (and Famous Film Magnate). Privately Published. 1928. OCLC 1051461671. As a warning to maidens as to what may be expected from union with a rich but much older man, we are publishing this...Being an exact and complete copy of the allegations of one of the youngest wife and mother complainants ever to place on record her grievances against an older husband: of his extraordinary and immoral demands on her before, during and after her becoming a mother: of his public and private allegations against her: altogether the most sensational divorce plea ever made before the superior court of Los Angeles, California (The legal complaint, with details of the star's sexual life, infidelities and proclivities as published here)
  19. ↑ "Bestial Acts Charged in Notorious Divorce Case of Lita Louise vs. Chas. Spencer Chaplin". CharlieChaplinArchive.org. Cineteca di Bologna. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  20. ↑ Bucktin, Christopher (April 2, 2015). "Charlie Chaplin seduced me when I was just 15 and made revolting sexual demands". Daily Mirror. Archived from the original on August 22, 2018. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
  21. 1 2 Shipman, David (January 4, 1996). "OBITUARY: Lita Grey". The Independent. Archived from the original on December 9, 2017. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
  22. ↑ "Chaplin v. Superior Court, 81 Cal.App. 367". casetext.com. February 17, 1927. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  23. ↑ "District Court of Appeal, Fourth District, California. CHAPLIN v. CHAPLIN. Civ. 1712. Decided: September 16, 1935". Findlaw. September 16, 1935. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  24. ↑ "What Was Justice: The Strange Killing of Don Solovich, Known as Hollywood's Mystery Man". New York Daily News. New York City. October 21, 1928. pp. 46–47 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ↑ "Sensational Evidence Promised in Solovich Murder Trial: Attorney Hints at Revelations". Los Angeles Times. May 7, 1928. p. 18. Retrieved May 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ↑ "Testimony Completed, Jury To Get Clark Case Tomorrow". Manti Messenger. Manti, Utah. June 8, 1928. pp. 1, 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ↑ Grey Chaplin, Lita; Vance, Jeffrey (1998). Wife of the Life of the Party: A Memoir. Scarecrow Press. p. 120.
  28. ↑ ""California, County Marriages, 1849-1957", FamilySearch Entry for Patsy Pizzolongo and Lillita Louise Day, 22 September 1956". Family Search. March 9, 2024. Retrieved June 25, 2026.
  29. ↑ Grey Chaplin, Lita; Vance, Jeffrey (1998). Wife of the Life of the Party. Scarecrow Press. p. 306. ISBN 9780810834323. Archived from the original on July 4, 2014. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  30. ↑ "Lita Grey Chaplin Actress, 88". The New York Times. December 30, 1995. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  31. ↑ Folkart, Burt A. (December 30, 1995). "Lita Grey; Married Charlie Chaplin at 16". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
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