When was the film City Lights released?
City Lights premiered on the 30th of January 1931 at the Los Angeles Theater. The film had an unpublicized preview two weeks prior to this official release date.
Questions about City Lights
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Why did Charlie Chaplin make City Lights a silent film in 1928?
Charlie Chaplin chose to ignore the industry shift toward sound because he believed his character the Little Tramp could not survive with spoken dialogue. He decided to produce a silent film while talking pictures were becoming the standard after The Jazz Singer premiered in 1927.
Who played the blind flower girl in City Lights and what happened during filming?
Virginia Cherrill played the blind flower girl but tensions rose on set due to stress over achieving perfection. She was fired again in November for complaining about waiting times before Georgia Hale temporarily replaced her until Chaplin re-hired Cherrill for a raise to $75 per week.
What music is featured in the soundtrack of City Lights?
The main theme used as a leitmotif for the flower girl is La Violetera which comes from Spanish composer José Padilla. Alfred Newman arranged the recording which took five days to complete and included over one hundred musical cues written by Chaplin alongside Arthur Johnston.
How much footage was shot for City Lights compared to the final cut?
Principal photography ended in September 1930 with total footage reaching 314,256 feet. Only 8,093 feet made it into the final cut of the film.