--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We used Chaplin's formula in all my…" description: "\"We used Chaplin's formula in all my pictures. Make 'em laugh for five and a half reels, and then make 'em cry in the last half reel. But give 'em a cha..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61f/jackie-coogan-7846_chance_we-used-chaplin-s-formula-in-all-my-pict_653388.jpg" --- # We used Chaplin's formula in all my pictures. Make 'em… ![“We used Chaplin's formula in all my pictures. Make 'em laugh for five and a half reels, and then make 'em cry in the last half reel. But give 'em a chance to dry their eyes before the lights come up.” quote by Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61f/jackie-coogan-7846_chance_we-used-chaplin-s-formula-in-all-my-pict_653388.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61f/jackie-coogan-7846_chance_we-used-chaplin-s-formula-in-all-my-pict_653388.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61f/jackie-coogan-7846_chance_we-used-chaplin-s-formula-in-all-my-pict_653388.jpg) > “We used Chaplin's formula in all my pictures. Make 'em laugh for five and a half reels, and then make 'em cry in the last half reel. But give 'em a chance to dry their eyes before the lights come up.” [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Comedy should transition to tragedy, allowing audiences emotional release before the curtain rises. **In simple terms:** Make them laugh, then cry, then recover. Key Takeaway Balance humor with pathos for lasting impact. Themes storytelling emotion balance cinema audience Mood thoughtful creative Type cinematic educational When to use this quote - scriptwriting - directing - acting - film editing Key Concepts dramatic structure emotional pacing film theory Questions to Reflect On - How does emotional pacing affect audience retention? - When is laughter insufficient for impact? A Different Perspective Too formulaic for all narratives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Chaplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chaplin/) [Chaplin Formula](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chaplin-formula-5220164/) [Come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/come/) [Cry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cry/) [Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyes/) [Formula Pictures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/formula-pictures-5220165/) [Pictures Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pictures-make-778167/) [Used](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/used/) [Used Chaplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/used-chaplin-5220163/) ## Related quotes > [Everyone tells me that my pictures make little children happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/everyone-tells-me-that-my-pictures-make-little-children-happy/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [Working with Chaplin was a marvelous experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/working-with-chaplin-was-a-marvelous-experience/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [Chaplin was the greatest thing ever to hit motion pictures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/chaplin-was-the-greatest-thing-ever-to-hit-motion-pictures/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [That picture was made before there was even a union in this business. So, I don't make any money out of the 'The Kid's'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/that-picture-was-made-before-there-was-even-a-union-in-this-business/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [Chaplin himself was the greatest scene stealer of all time. No matter what was happening Charlie could draw attention to himself - if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/chaplin-himself-was-the-greatest-scene-stealer-of-all-time-no-matter/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [I was only to see Mr. Chaplin once after 'The Kid.' A great artist, one of the greatest, but I'm afraid I don't think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/i-was-only-to-see-mr-chaplin-once-after-the-kid-a-great-artist-one-of/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [Pictures can and do make a difference. Strong images of historical events do have an impact on society. They can help with change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-moore/pictures-can-and-do-make-a-difference-strong-images-of-historical/) [Charles Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-moore/) > [When I do shows, I take pictures and make the fans feel like family. All of that really matters. That's the cheat code if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-durk/when-i-do-shows-i-take-pictures-and-make-the-fans-feel-like-family/) [Lil Durk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-durk/) > [My ambition was never to make a lot of money. It wasn't to travel around the world. I was really just struggling to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-james-marshall/my-ambition-was-never-to-make-a-lot-of-money-it-wasn-t-to-travel/) [Kerry James Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-james-marshall/) > [All I need is a little creativity and pictures and I can make anything](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shar-rae/all-i-need-is-a-little-creativity-and-pictures-and-i-can-make-anything/) [Shar-rae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shar-rae/) > [Pictures make a lot of money doesn't determine whether the experience was...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-garcia/pictures-make-a-lot-of-money-doesn-t-determine-whether-the-experience/) [Andy Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-garcia/) > [The pictures I make come from every blink of my lashes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-taylor-johnson/the-pictures-i-make-come-from-every-blink-of-my-lashes/) [Sam Taylor-Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-taylor-johnson/) > [I think there are a lot of pictures to make. I sometimes question whether I'm even an artist or just a painter. To me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-mull/i-think-there-are-a-lot-of-pictures-to-make-i-sometimes-question/) [Martin Mull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-mull/) > [You have to be careful of the pictures you make. You should ask, Will it have universal appeal, will it have an appeal at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-heflin/you-have-to-be-careful-of-the-pictures-you-make-you-should-ask-will/) [Van Heflin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-heflin/) > [The fact is I'm not making a film in order to draw pictures or make images about Iran.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asghar-farhadi/the-fact-is-i-m-not-making-a-film-in-order-to-draw-pictures-or-make/) [Asghar Farhadi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asghar-farhadi/) ## More by Jackie Coogan > [My pictures of 'Oliver Twist' and 'A Boy in Flanders' are being used as school lessons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/my-pictures-of-oliver-twist-and-a-boy-in-flanders-are-being-used-as/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [That's what TV has forgotten: how to entertain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/that-s-what-tv-has-forgotten-how-to-entertain/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [I had the flu in New York and pushed the President of the United States off the front pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/i-had-the-flu-in-new-york-and-pushed-the-president-of-the-united/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [People respect drama. They don't respect comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/people-respect-drama-they-don-t-respect-comedy/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [I surfed from Baja California to San Francisco when there were only nine or 10 surfers on the entire Pacific Coast. I spent three-month…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/i-surfed-from-baja-california-to-san-francisco-when-there-were-only/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [Everyone tells me that my pictures make little children happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/everyone-tells-me-that-my-pictures-make-little-children-happy/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [Maybe I'm funny but I look forward to getting to work each day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/maybe-i-m-funny-but-i-look-forward-to-getting-to-work-each-day/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [I lost my hair, and went around wearing a hair piece.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/i-lost-my-hair-and-went-around-wearing-a-hair-piece/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [If you're known as a dramatic actor it helps you a lot. Even though to me it's simpler, it leaves a deeper impression on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/if-you-re-known-as-a-dramatic-actor-it-helps-you-a-lot-even-though-to/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [The Coogan Law had to come and it just happens that I was the goat for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/the-coogan-law-had-to-come-and-it-just-happens-that-i-was-the-goat/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [I've thrown my hair piece away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/i-ve-thrown-my-hair-piece-away/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [When you're accepted you don't have to fight for parts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/when-you-re-accepted-you-don-t-have-to-fight-for-parts/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [I used to work eight hours a day and squeeze studies in whenever I could.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/i-used-to-work-eight-hours-a-day-and-squeeze-studies-in-whenever-i/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [I've been selling myself for a long time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/i-ve-been-selling-myself-for-a-long-time/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) > [Working with Chaplin was a marvelous experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/working-with-chaplin-was-a-marvelous-experience/) [Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) [Explore all 87 Jackie Coogan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/) ## More Chance quotes > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stipe-miocic/i-understand-it-s-promotion-but-no-one-ever-gave-me-a-chance-no-one/) [Stipe Miocic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stipe-miocic/) > [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/) [Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/) [Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It's not who, it's when”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-taubas/it-s-not-who-it-s-when/) [Alejandro Taubas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-taubas/) > [Childhood is Last Chance Gulch for happiness. After that, you know too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/childhood-is-last-chance-gulch-for-happiness-after-that-you-know-too/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I thought my first few jobs would just be off, off, off, off, off broadway. And by chance and how the world works, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-thought-my-first-few-jobs-would-just-be-off-off-off-off-off/) [Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/) > [If you’re worrying about the past, you’ve got a good chance of screwing up the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-a-tullman/if-you-re-worrying-about-the-past-you-ve-got-a-good-chance-of/) [Howard A. Tullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-a-tullman/) > [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/) [Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/) [Browse all 12,460 Chance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We used Chaplin's formula in all my pictures. Make 'em laugh for five and a half reels, and then make 'em cry in the last half reel. 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