SPOOKS investigating British comedy legend Charlie Chaplin could not find out where he was born — and even considered he may have been French. Baffled MI5 chiefs drew a blank when looking for records of where the actor came from. The startling puzzle came as they probed his alleged communist sympathies. Newly released files show they were asked to investigate the film star by US authorities worried about his political leanings. British intelligence officers could find no documents confirming the silent film star was born in London in April 1889. Scotland Yard's Special Branch added to the intrigue by passing on a tip from a source who claimed the actor was born near Fontainebleau, just south of Paris. A police memo to MI5 said: "There may or may not be some truth in this, but in view of the fact that no documentary proof has been obtained that Chaplin was born in the United Kingdom it may well be that he was in fact born in France." Spies quickly dismissed this but could find no evidence proving widely-accepted knowledge that he was born on April 16 1889 in East Street, South London. They scoured files at Somerset House in London for his birth certificate, including checks for his supposed alias "Israel Thornstein". But they concluded: "It would seem that Chaplin was either not born in this country or that his name at birth was other than those mentioned." John Marriott, head of MI5's counter-subversion branch, added at the time: "It is curious that we can find no record of Chaplin's birth. "But I scarcely think that this is of any security significance."
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