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"The Kid" 125
spent on any previous picture; and over a half a million feet of film was exposed.
The scene in which Jackie makes pancakes and Chaplin rises from his bed in the suddenly improvised blanketlounging robe, is said to have taken two weeks and fifty thousand feet of film to shoot. Even counting in the fact that two cameras were used (one negative was for Europe), this is exceptional footage for a scene scarcely a minute in length. But perfect timing and precision were desired and achieved.
Jackie Coogan was an unusually bright youngster and had had some acting experience, but he still required careful training for the demanding scenes he had to perform before the camera. The training itself called for patience, tact, and the infinite charm Chaplin was capable of. Jackie came to adore his mentor and the affection is communicated on the screen. Possessed of a decided personality — the kind that registers well — the child acquired an unfailing ease before the camera.
When the picture was completed, Chaplin felt that it deserved more money from First National than the §15,000 per extra reel above the two stipulated in the contract, a sum which would not have covered production costs. Negotiations were prolonged, and finally, after the flight to Utah to keep his wife from attaching the picture, Chaplin showed the film before the company's directors in New York. They viewed it in silence and professed to see nothing exceptional in it. To them it was merely a comedy stretched out beyond the customary two reels. One official declared coldly he had not found a single interesting or moving sequence in the film! Chaplin sarcastically replied that if he thought it would improve the film, he would add a train wreck or an explosion.
Fully cognizant of the value of his picture Chaplin persisted until he won out. First National gave him $600,000 for "The Kid" and the company's earnings from