Shoulder Arms is Charlie Chaplin's second film for First National Pictures. Released in 1918, it is a silent comedy set in France during World War I. The main part of the film occurs in a dream. It co-starred Edna Purviance and Sydney Chaplin, Chaplin's brother. It is Chaplin's shortest feature film.

Shoulder Arms proved to be Chaplin's most popular film, critically and commercially, up to that point. A review in the October 21, 1918 New York Times was typical:

"'The fool's funny,' was the chuckling observation of one of those who saw Charlie Chaplin's new film. Shoulder Arms, at the Strand yesterday — and, apparently, that's the way everybody felt. There have been learned discussions as to whether Chaplin's comedy is low or high, artistic or crude, but no one can deny that when he impersonates a screen fool he is funny. Most of those who go to find fault with him remain to laugh. They may still find fault, but they will keep on laughing."

In the scene where Chaplin (in his tree costume) is being pursued through the forest, cars can be seen traveling on a highway in the background. Although highways in the United States existed when this film was made, they did not exist in Germany. Germany's first highway was built in 1921. Of course, the Western Front was in France, not Germany.

Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE (16 April 1889 – 25 December 1977) was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I. Chaplin used mime, slapstick and other visual comedy routines, and continued well into the era of the talkies, though his films decreased in frequency from the end of the 1920s. His most famous role was that of The Tramp, which he first played in the Keystone comedy Kid Auto Races at Venice in 1914. From the April 1914 one-reeler Twenty Minutes of Love onwards he was writing and directing most of his films, by 1916 he was also producing them, and from 1918 he was even composing the music for them. With Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and D. W. Griffith, he co-founded United Artists in 1919.

Chaplin was one of the most creative and influential personalities of the silent-film era. He was influenced by his predecessor, the French silent film comedian Max Linder, to whom he dedicated one of his films. His working life in entertainment spanned over 75 years, from the Victorian stage and the music hall in the United Kingdom as a child performer, until close to his death at the age of 88. His high-profile public and private life encompassed both adulation and controversy. Chaplin was identified with left-wing politics during the McCarthy era and he was ultimately forced to resettle in Europe from 1952.

Denise Austin (born February 13, 1957) is an American fitness instructor, author, columnist, and former member of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.

Austin was born Denise Katnich in San Pedro, California. She started gymnastics at the age of 12, which led to an athletic scholarship at the University of Arizona.

In 1983, Denise married sports attorney Jeff Austin, brother of US Open champion Tracy Austin. Denise and Jeff have two daughters, Kelly (b. 1990) and Katie (b. 1993). The Austin family resides in Alexandria, Virginia.

Austin initially attended the University of Arizona on a gymnastics scholarship, reaching the rank of No. 9 in the NCAA on balance beam. She later transferred to California State University, Long Beach, graduating with a bachelor's degree in physical education, and a minor in exercise physiology.

Since then, she has been teaching classes, producing fitness shows, creating exercise video tapes, and writing books and columns on exercise and staying fit. Examples include Shrink Your Female Fat Zones, Pilates for Every Body, and Eat Carbs, Lose Weight. In 2002, she was named as a member of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, and began her second term in 2006.