Charlie Chaplin’s ‘Little Tramp’ boots to be auctioned in March
A pair of boots worn by Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator (1940) are set to go under the hammer at Propstore’s auction on March 26.
The footwear, associated with Chaplin’s iconic "Little Tramp" character, has a pre-sale estimate of $125,000–$250,000.
While it is possible that the boots were used in multiple Chaplin Studios productions, they have been screen-matched to The Great Dictator through distinctive sole cracking and leather creasing. Additional distress points on the left shoe align with production stills, making them among the earliest verified screen-matched costume pieces in film history.
The boots were preserved by Alfred Reeves, general manager of Chaplin Film Corporation, from 1918 to 1946 before becoming part of the collection of Ted and Betty Tetrick. In 1987, a decade after Chaplin’s death, they were sold at Christie’s as part of a Charlie Chaplin memorabilia auction that also included a bowler hat and cane.
