The Marx Brothers humor killed but didnt lead to the deaths of tens of millions of people.
I have a confession to make.
I am a Marxist.
Some of those who populate the comments page might be inclined to say What do you expect? Goldsteins always been a socialist." But before anyone refers to me as a red diaper baby" it isnt the Marx youre thinking of.
No the Marxism I espouse wasnt written by Karl but rather by Groucho Harpo Chico and sometimes Zeppo. These men named Marx were a lot funnier than their German counterpart and their material didnt lead to the deaths of tens of millions of people.
For most people the New Year chimes in at midnight. But for me the calendar doesnt turn over for another twelve hours. You see every year at noon on January 1 the annual Marx Brothers Movie Marathon commences in the heart of Harvard Square at the Brattle Theater in The Peoples Republic of Cambridge.
After reflecting on the previous years disappointments I need to begin the New Year with a laugh. Actually I need about seven hours worth of laughter. It readies me for yet another years worth of setbacks and falling short. The Marx Brothers are the perfect tonic even if you dont have a hangover.
I first saw the Marx Brothers on Magic Shadows and Saturday Night at the Movies. Both programs aired on TVOntario and were hosted by the late Elwy Yost. Indeed Groucho Harpo and Chico appear prominently in the opening credits of Magic Shadows. Elwy never saw a movie he didnt love. But he absolutely glowed when it came to the Marx Brothers. And who wouldnt be aglow after seeing Harpo climb the curtain in the climactic scene of A Night at the Opera?
Although The Marx Brothers largely took an anarchistic approach to their brand of humor it nevertheless retains both a sense of timelessness and reassurance. I am confident that a thousand years from now people will still be laughing at Grouchos wisecracks Chicos puns and Harpos facial expressions.
No matter how old these films are they never really get old. I remember watching Monkey Business to start off 2009. Of course this was only a few months after the financial collapse. So when Groucho said Dont forget that the stockholder of yesteryear is the stowaway of today" the crowd erupted in applause. One man exclaimed You said it Groucho!!!"
Another reason they dont get old is that the pacing is so frenetic its impossible to remember every single funny line. So even if youve seen Animal Crackers Horse Feathers or A Night at the Opera a dozen times the jokes are still fresh after multiple viewings. Chico telling Groucho there aint no sanity clause" will be funny until the end of time. This simply cannot be said for contemporary comedy which all too often confuses vulgarity with wit.
But perhaps the funniest Marx Brothers skit never made it to celluloid. Shortly after moving from Paramount Pictures to MGM in 1935 the Marx Brothers requested a meeting with MGM studio head Irving Thalberg. However Thalberg was notorious for either not showing up at the meeting or turning up only to be called away on urgent studio business never to return to his office.
Needless to say the Marx Brothers took umbrage at this impropriety. The next time Thalberg walked out of his meeting they had a plan. Harpo got some potatoes from the studio kitchen while Groucho and Chico built a fire in the office fireplace. After Harpo returned with the potatoes they stripped completely naked and proceeded to peel spuds right in Thalbergs office.
When Thalberg finally returned and saw the spectacle before him he did the only thing a rational man could do under the circumstances. He ordered butter from the commissary. Thalberg also never kept the Marx Brothers waiting ever again.
I must admit that I have been sorely tempted to use this tactic to resolve matters in the workplace. Yet somehow I doubt the targets of such a tactic would have possessed Irving Thalbergs sense of humor.
In 2013 aside from our individual trials and tribulations we have the beginning of President Obamas second term to look forward to or more accurately to dread. As Grouchos Rufus T. Firefly sang upon assuming the presidency of Freedonia in Duck Soup If you think this countrys bad off now just wait till I get through with it!"
Its going to be a long four years. They can take away the Constitution and they can take away our guns. But they cant take away the laughter.