 The iconic depiction of Chaplin working frantically to keep up with an assembly line inspired later comedy routines including Disney's "Der Fuehrer's Face" (Donald Duck alternately assembling artillery shells and saluting portraits of Adolf Hitler) and an episode of "I Love Lucy" titled "Job Switching" (Lucy and Ethel trying to keep up with an ever-increasing volume of chocolate candies, eventually stuffing them in their mouths, hats, and blouses).The opening of a fantasy sequence in the film, in which the unemployed factory worker trips over a footstool upon entering the living room of his "dream home" with the Gamin, inspired a similar opening to "The Dick Van Dyke Show".This was Chaplin's first overtly political-themed film, and its unflattering portrayal of industrial society generated controversy in some quarters upon its initial release.