In 1954, Prime Minister Zhou invited a banquet for a well-known artist Chaplin during the Geneva conference. Premier Zhou did not react at first, and thought the other party was drunk and said he was a man.

1954, Prime Minister Zhou invited a banquet for the well-known artist Chaplin during the Geneva meeting. At the banquet, the mellow national wine Moutai completely conquered Chaplin. He had never drunk this kind of wine before and was a bit drunk soon.

In Chaplin's view, this kind of Chinese wine is the wine that a real man should drink! He couldn't help but want to take a bottle home on the spot, but because he didn't understand the English translation, he replaced it with "manly" in his conversation with Zhou Enlai.

Premier Zhou did not react at first, and thought the other party was drunk and said he was a man.

After all, Chaplin directed and acted in his life and filmed dozens of comedy films. In addition to bringing joy to the people of the world, he is also not afraid of power and criticizing current problems, which is thought-provoking. It is not an exaggeration to say that such an art master is a "man".

Chaplin saw that the other party did not understand his meaning, so he couldn't help but feel anxious. He pointed to the Moutai bottle in his hand and said, "I'm not a 'man', I want a 'man' in China!"

Premier Zhou smiled after figuring it out, "No, you are also a real 'man' in the hearts of the people of the world. You ask me for a 'man', and I'll give you two 'man'."

That's it, Moutai has another alias abroad...

1. The ups and downs of Chaplin's life

Chaplin, born in 1889. A little known fact to many Chinese is that this great film artist was not an American, but a genuine British.

Thanks to the troupe's tour in the United States, Chaplin gained the opportunity to live and perform in the United States. From then on, he began his acting career in the United States.

After filming comedy films became famous in the United States, Chaplin began to no longer pursue the funny effects of the films, but instead incorporated more social care into it.

1936, Chaplin released a heavyweight work " Modern Times ". In it, he expressed his sympathy for the lower-class workers, satirized the capitalists, and criticized the evil capitalist system. Left-wing critics therefore call Chaplin "the sympathizer of the proletariat ".

In 1940, Chaplin launched the " Great Dictator " to satirize Hitler and criticize anti-Semitism. At that time, the United States, from the government to the people, respected isolationist foreign policy, and a considerable number of people supported anti-Semitism, so it was quite resistant to this film that might anger Hitler and involved the United States in the war.

In addition to sensitive factors in the topic of creation, Chaplin himself's close relationship with the Soviet Union also aroused the vigilance of the US government.

is still the 1930s. In order to develop its own film industry, the Soviet Union sent many personnel to the United States to inspect Hollywood .

At this time, the United States regarded the Soviet Union as a disaster, and the Soviet delegation naturally encountered various cold treatments.

At this moment, Chaplin extended an olive branch to the Soviet Union and gave it warm hospitality. Since then, the Soviet Union also responded to Chaplin and expressed strong praise for him, and prepared a grand fiftieth birthday commemoration for him in April 1939. After the Eastern European Front fell into war, Chaplin immediately delivered a speech expressing his support for the Soviet military and civilians, and called on the Allies to open up the second battlefield of to support the Soviet Union, which made him closer to the Soviet Union.

In summary, the US government regards Chaplin as a pro-communist with a problematic position and has been waiting for the opportunity to get rid of him at any time.

With the end of World War II , the opportunity to liquidate Chaplin comes.

After the war, the wave of McCarthyism swept across the United States. The US government and the civil right-wing forces began to "encircle and suppress" the so-called pro-communist red elements and progressive democrats in the mainland. For a moment, the United States changed red.

In this context, Chaplin, who was bold in words and deeds, was soon persecuted by the United States. No one dared to have any connection with Chaplin and his family again.

Although Chaplin repeatedly denied that he supported communism, he was still banned from entering the country by the United States on September 17, 1952, and was forced to live in a small town in Switzerland , Swiss , leaving the United States where he lived for nearly 40 years...

2. The indissoluble bond between Chaplin and China

Chaplin's break with the US government shocked the world, and many countries criticized the US government's persecution of progressives.

The sight of the new China at this time was also attracted by Chaplin, because our country needs to expand its influence on the international stage. Acquaintance with Chaplin, which has an international reputation, will inevitably greatly improve our country's impression in the hearts of the people of the world.

In fact, as early as the 1920s, Chaplin was already a household name in Shanghai, China, and had considerable influence among the intellectuals and elites in China at that time.

In October 1922, a Shanghai film company even invited a British man to play Chaplin and released a film called " Funny King Traveling to Shanghai ". In the film, Chaplin, who has not yet visited China, came to Shanghai for more than ten years in advance.

On March 9, 1936, the highly anticipated Chaplin finally knocked on the door to China. He visited Shanghai for the first time for a brief visit, which became a major event that caused a sensation in the entire Shanghai cultural circle. At that time, Chinese cultural figures were proud of attending banquets to receive Chaplin and taking photos with him.

In 1954, as a "movie fan", Prime Minister Zhou sent an invitation letter to the Chaplin family who was also in Switzerland while attending the Geneva meeting.

Chaplin was both excited and uneasy after receiving the invitation. Excited that few people have been willing to interact with him since he was forced to exile to Switzerland, but now they have the opportunity to meet with leaders of major powers like Premier Zhou; uneasy is that he has never had any contact with the mysterious Chinese Communist Party , and he also has awe of Prime Minister Zhou, who has never met before but has made a big splash at the Geneva conference.

However, when he and his family came to the villa where the Chinese delegation was located as promised, Premier Zhou's smile like a spring breeze completely dispelled his concerns.

Premier Zhou held Chaplin's hand tightly and said enthusiastically: "Mr. Chaplin, I met you on the Chinese screen 40 years ago, but unfortunately I have never seen the true face. I am really lucky to see it today, and it can be regarded as a dream I have fulfilled for many years!"

These polite words may not have any effect on others, but for Chaplin, who is suffering from political persecution and has to go far away, it is really a warm current that pours into his heart. Afterwards, he and his family walked into the living room with Premier Zhou's warm greeting and started a free conversation with Premier Zhou.

The peace-loving Chaplin first asked about the Geneva Conference. This international conference not only concerns the peace issue in Indochina, but also concerns the peaceful resolution of China and the United States on the Korean Peninsula.

When Prime Minister Zhou told Chaplin that "everything was resolved peacefully", the other party smiled knowingly and rejoicedly. He first praised Premier Zhou for his positive contribution to world peace, and also deeply admired Premier Zhou's outstanding demeanor and outstanding diplomatic talents at the meeting.

Then, Chaplin asked Premier Zhou to introduce to him the glorious history of the Chinese revolution. Before this, he had heard many rumors about the Chinese Communists, many of which were miracles that could be unimaginable to him as a filmmaker.

For example, Chaplin felt incredible about Long March . In his opinion, a revolutionary army that was "encircled and suppressed" with all efforts could break through the siege after heavy losses, spanning 25,000 miles from north to south, experiencing countless hardships, and finally regaining its military prestige in the north. These are simply fairy tale fantasies.

However, sitting in front of Chaplin was Zhou Enlai, who had participated in the Great Long March with Mao Zedong. After confirmation of Premier Zhou's remarks, he finally expressed his conviction in surprise.

Chaplin said in a pun: "It seems that you no longer have to go that far away!"

This is not only a joke to sigh at the Long March, but also a compliment of the stability of the current status of New China. Premier Zhou raised his head and laughed knowingly, and then told the grand occasion of the founding ceremony of Beijing City.

Chaplin couldn't help but recall what he saw and heard when he passed by Shanghai in 1936. Although he witnessed the prosperity of Shanghai at night, he still smelled the aura of sin hidden under the glitz from the debauchery of Shanghai. The vast majority of Chinese people still live a miserable life under the ravage of the great powers and warlords.

However, the old China in his eyes no longer exists now, and is replaced by an independent new China born under the cheers of hundreds of millions of people! Although it is still poor at the moment, its future is full of hope. He was deeply shocked by this and couldn't help but sigh, "The China in my impression has really changed. I hope I can see its changes again when I have the chance."

Premier Zhou immediately expressed enthusiastically that as long as the other party is willing, as long as he knows it in the future, he can visit China at any time.

Chaplin also accepted it happily. He vaguely felt that the hope for the future of the world lies in this emerging Eastern power.

3. Premier Zhou invited Chaplin to have a banquet for lunch. During the meal, Chaplin praised the fine Chinese wine dishes.

After tasting Moutai wine, he couldn't help but stretch out his thumb and praised it: "What a good wine! The American whiskey is not as strong as it. This kind of Chinese wine is the wine that a real man should drink!"

Then, he asked tentatively with his drunkenness: "Can I bring a bottle of 'man' back as a souvenir?"

Premier Zhou didn't understand what the other party was saying for a moment, and only after a while did he realize that this was the name Chaplin, who did not understand the translation of Moutai, was fond of it.

Premier Zhou responded and immediately agreed readily, and gave him an extra bottle, which made Chaplin very happy.

In Premier Zhou’s view, a bottle of Moutai can make friends with a good friend in China, which is too profitable.

In fact, Premier Zhou used Moutai to "make friends with" representatives, journalists and international friends during the meeting, and Chaplin was just one of them.

In addition to Moutai, Chaplin also has a special liking for Chinese crisp duck .

After tasting it, he praised it repeatedly, "This meat is fragrant and crispy, it is really good in color, fragrance, taste and shape."

After using the meal, Chaplin was obsessed with the deliciousness of crispy duck, so he said with regret: "Today is so pleasant. The only drawback is that I have a child who missed today's feast and was not as lucky as we were to appreciate the deliciousness of Chinese crispy duck." After hearing this, Premier Zhou immediately asked someone to wrap a spare crispy duck so that Chaplin could bring to the child who couldn't come at home.

Chaplin was surprised and happy. At this time, he was at the trough of his life. He did not expect that a leader of a great country who had first met could give him such sincere and meticulous care.

For this reason, he couldn't help but feel a big favor for Premier Zhou and the New China government behind him, so he gave Premier Zhou a gift the film of " Stage Career " starring him.

As the end was approaching, Premier Zhou also took a photo with Chaplin and his family.

The meeting with Premier Zhou today impressed Chaplin, thus making him firmly a good friend of the Chinese people. The news that Premier Zhou hosted Chaplin on the second day occupied an important page of major European and American newspapers, and had a huge impact. It was a legend for a while and became Premier Zhou's diplomatic masterpiece.

However, it is touching that Chaplin was unable to visit China again until his death, which became a great regret for him, but even so, his friendship with the Chinese people is still sung by future generations.