Silent Film Star Charlie Chaplin Makes Noise After Being Stolen From His Grave

In the 19^th century grave robbers were known to steal fresh bodies and sell them to anatomists. While this line of work has faded into history, a more recent pair of ghouls tried to profit off a stolen corpse in another way: ransom.

The corpse belonged to silent-film star Charlie Chaplin, who died at age 88 on Christmas Day, 1977. The requested ransom was one million Francs (roughly $600,000).

The two eastern European men, both mechanics, got the idea after hearing about grave robbers stealing the body of a prominent Italian and receiving a ransom to return it. So, a few months after the comedian’s interment, in the dark of night, the inspired criminals spent two hours digging up the 300-pound oak coffin from its Swiss grave near Chaplin’s family home.

They loaded their prize onto a small truck and drove it to a cornfield about a mile away, near Lausanne, Switzerland, and reburied it. Then they called Chaplin’s widow, Lady Oona, and made their ransom demands. Lady Chaplin said no.

“I think Charlie would have found it rather humorous,” she reportedly said.

They lowered the ransom to $250,000, but still she refused to pay them.

Lady Chaplin did, however, get the police involved. They traced the body snatchers’ calls, tracked them down, and got a confession. Had the Chaplin family paid, their ill-conceived plan would’ve run into another issue: they couldn’t remember where they reburied the body. Police used a mine detector to search for it and by May 17, 1978, it was found.

Both men were charged with attempting to extort ransom and disturbing the peace of the dead. Chaplin was replaced in his original grave—secured with a slab of concrete over it.