The Marx Brothers

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VOICE ONE:

I'm Mary Tillotson.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Steve Ember with the VOA Special English program, PEOPLE
IN AMERICA. Today we tell about the Marx Brothers. They made many
funny movies in the nineteen-thirties and nineteen-forties that are
still popular today.

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VOICE ONE:

There were five Marx Brothers. The most famous were Julius,
Leonard and Adolph. They were born in New York City between eighteen
eighty-six and eighteen-ninety. Their father made clothing. Their
mother wanted them to become performers. Julius, Leonard and Adolph
started performing when they were children. Along with their two
brothers, they performed in stage shows called vaudeville in New
York. They sang songs, danced and told jokes.

Julius, Leonard and Adolph Marx
began making funny movies in nineteen twenty-nine. They changed
their first names. Julius became Groucho. Leonard became Chico.
Adolph became Harpo. Another brother, Herbert, appeared in the first
five Marx Brothers movies. He was called Zeppo. He did not play a
funny man like the other three. He played a good-looking young man.

VOICE TWO:

Groucho Marx looked funny. He had large black eyebrows and a
hairy mustache. But they were painted on his face. He spoke very
quickly. And he walked in a funny way. He played people with funny
names, like Rufus T. Firefly. Otis B. Driftwood. And Doctor Hugo Z.
Hackenbush.

Groucho was not a very nice person in the movies. He often
insulted or made fun of rich or important people. He made fun of
doctors, college officials, opera singers, diplomats and government
officials. He even insulted his son, played in this example by
Zeppo.

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((ZEPPO: Dad, let me congratulate you. I'm proud to be your son.

GROUCHO: My boy, you took the words right out of my mouth. I'm
ashamed to be your father. I'd have horsewhipped you if I had a
horse. You may go now. Leave your name and address for the girl
outside and if anything turns up, we'll get in touch with you. Where
are you going?

ZEPPO: Well, you just told me to go.

GROUCHO: So that's what they taught you in college. Just when I
tell you to go, you leave me. You know you can't leave a schoolroom
without raising your hand, no matter where you're going.

ZEPPO: Anything further, father?

GROUCHO: Anything further, father? That can't be right. Isn't it
"anything father, further"? The idea! I married your mother because
I wanted children. Imagine my disappointment when you arrived!))

VOICE ONE:

Chico Marx talked as if he was born in Italy. He spoke English
that was not correct. Many other funny men spoke as though they came
from other countries. They were making fun of themselves and other
immigrants who did not speak English well. Chico also made funny
jokes about words and expressions that sound alike but have
different meanings. For example, in one movie a woman sings with a
very high falsetto voice. She says "I have a falsetto voice." Chico
then says, "Well, my last student had a false set of teeth."

Chico also was known for performing what was called the comedy of
the absurd. He talked about things that were so untrue or
unreasonable that they were funny. Here is an example. Chico is
supposed to spy on someone called Rufus T. Firefly. Chico reports
his progress to the man who asked him to spy on Firefly. To "shadow"
someone is to secretly follow that person.

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((CHICO: Well, you remember you gave us a picture of this man and
said follow him?

MAN: Oh, yes.

CHICO: Well, we get on the job right away. And in one hour, even
less than one hour, we lose the fix. That's pretty good work, eh?

MAN: I want a full, detailed report of your investigation.

CHICO: All right. I tell you. Monday we watch Firefly's house.
But he no come out. He wasn't home. Tuesday we go to the ballgame,
but he fool us. He no show up. Wednesday, he go to the ballgame, but
we fool him. We no show up. Thursday was a double-header, nobody
show up. Friday it rained all day. There was no ballgame. So we
stayed home. We listened to it over the radio.

MAN: Then you didn't shadow Firefly!

CHICO: Oh, sure, we shadow Firefly. We shadow him all day.

MAN: What day was that?

CHICO: It was Shadowday (Saturday)! That's some joke, eh, Boss!))

Chico also played the piano in a funny way. Chico did to music
what he did to the English language. He made fun of it.

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VOICE TWO:

Harpo Marx had curly yellow hair, but it was not really his hair.
It was false hair, called a wig. He never said a word in any of the
movies. Instead, he acted out what he wanted to say. He could make
people laugh without saying a word. People always knew what he was
thinking. He made funny sounds with horns and whistles to express
his thoughts and feelings.

In one movie, a kind policeman tries to give him some advice to
stay away from bad people. As the policeman shakes Harpo's hand, you
can hear pieces of silver that Harpo has stolen fall out of his
clothes.

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((POLICEMAN: You better come with me, young fellow.

GROUCHO: Don't take him away, officer.

POLICEMAN: All right. I'll let him go this time. But I want to
give you some advice. You're running around with the wrong kind of
people. Why don't you go home?

CHICO: He got no home.

POLICEMAN: Go home for a few nights. Stay home. Don't you know
your poor old mother sits there, night after night, waiting to hear
your steps on the stairs?

CHICO: He got no stairs.

POLICEMAN: I can see a little light burning in the window.

GROUCHO: No you can't. The gas company turned it off.

POLICEMAN: Now, what I'm telling you is for your own good. And if
you listen to me, you can't go wrong.))

As you might have guessed from his name, Harpo Marx was famous
for playing the musical instrument called the harp. He made
beautiful music like this on the harp in several movies.

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VOICE ONE:

The three Marx Brothers -- Groucho, Chico and Harpo -- made
fourteen movies together. The movies made fun of officials in many
areas of society, like colleges, hospitals, or the government. The
Marx Brothers made most of their movies during the
nineteen-thirties. This was during the great economic Depression.
Many Americans had no jobs and not much hope. Many people went to
the movies to try to forget their troubles. The Marx Brothers
thought people might like to see funny things happen to rich and
important people.

VOICE TWO:

The Marx Brothers' first two movies were "The Cocoanuts" and
"Animal Crackers." These were based on earlier shows that they
starred in on Broadway in New York City. Some of their most famous
movies are "Horse Feathers," "Duck Soup," and "A Night at the
Opera."

In "Horse Feathers," the Marx Brothers make fun of colleges.
Groucho is a professor and the president of Huxley College. He wants
to improve the college by having a successful football team. Here,
he talks to other college officials.

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((GROUCHO: Now I say to you gentlemen that this college is a
failure. The trouble is, we're neglecting football for education.

COLLEGE OFFICIALS: Exactly, the professor is right.

GROUCHO: Oh, I'm right, am I? Well, I'm not right. I'm wrong. I
just said that to test you. Now I know where I'm at. I'm dealing
with a couple of snakes. What I meant to say was that there is too
much football and not enough education.

COLLEGE OFFICIALS: That's what I think.

GROUCHO: Oh you do, do you? Well, you're wrong again. If there
was a snake here, I'd apologize. Where would this college be without
football? Have we got a stadium?

COLLEGE OFFICIALS: Yes.

GROUCHO: Have we got a college?

COLLEGE OFFICIALS: Yes.

GROUCHO: Well, we can't support both. Tomorrow we start tearing
down the college.

COLLEGE OFFICIALS: But, professor, where will the students sleep?

GROUCHO: Where they always sleep – in the classroom!))

VOICE ONE:

Some critics say "Duck Soup," is one of the greatest comedies
ever made. Groucho is the leader of a country called Freedonia. He
declares war on a nearby country. The movie makes fun of war,
diplomats and dictators.

Other critics say "A Night at the Opera," is their finest film.
Groucho tries to get a rich woman to invest in an opera company. The
movie has many funny parts. One of the most famous is when fifteen
people are crowded into a very small room on a passenger ship.

VOICE TWO:

Experts say the Marx Brothers movies were extremely popular for
several reasons. The brothers had been performing together since
they were children. They shared a sense of what was funny.

In addition, they all loved music. Most of their movies include
music. When a song begins in their movies, everything else stops.
When Harpo plays his harp, his face shows how much he loves what he
is playing. Then, when the music is over, the Marx Brothers
immediately start being funny again.

The Marx Brothers' movies were like vaudeville shows. They
contained something for everyone. There was comedy, speeches, music
and songs. Often Groucho sang a funny song. Here is an example,
called "Hello, I Must be Going."

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VOICE ONE:

The Marx Brothers performed together and then separately for more
than seventy years until the last one died in the late
Nineteen-Seventies. Their comedy influenced many other present day
comedians including Woody Allen and Robin Williams. Critics have
called the Marx Brothers the most influential comedy team of the
twentieth century.

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VOICE TWO:

This Special English program was written by Shelley Gollust. It
was produced by Caty Weaver. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Mary Tillotson. Join us again next week for another
PEOPLE IN AMERICA program on the Voice of America.