Kid Auto Races at Venice

This first outing for the Tramp character was an improvised affair shot at an actual children's push-car race at Venice. The Tramp character spends most of the film camera-hogging and obstructing the view of the cameraman (played by Frank D Williams) and the director (Lehrman) while the (real) audience - getting their first ever sight of the Tramp - seem to think he is a genuine nuisance and not an actor. The final shot is of Chaplin in close-up, mugging at the camera. The close-up at the end is effectively the performer's bow to the audience, which was a convention of the time adopted from the stage. (Verleiher-Text)