The Country Curmudgeon — Real Marxism
By Roy Hicks
Thursday, November 5, 2009 11:02 AM PST
Their names were Julius, Leonard and Adolph, but we remember them much better as Groucho, Chico and Harpo Marx. They delighted American audiences during the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. I was recently watching “A Night in Casablanca” from 1946.
I’ve always loved the Marx brothers’ verbal and physical nuttiness. I think being a Marx brothers fan is basically a “man thing” – much like being a fan of the Three Stooges, who most women seem to dislike. This is probably because the Marx brothers, in the days long before political correctness, cheerfully lampooned the very real differences betaween men and women in ways that were not malicious but pointedly on-target.
In those halcyon days, men chased women unabashedly. The women secretly loved it and usually managed to hold these panting suitors at arm’s length until they were chased by the one they actually wanted.
Chico was rather shy and polite with women, but Groucho and Harpo were outright lechers. Both would shamelessly pant after women, and Harpo would occasionally make such nearly obscene gestures as getting a lady to hold up an impromptu leg and honking his horn with enthusiasm.
The Marx brothers were hugely talented: not only for their comedic abilities but also for music. Groucho played the guitar, although he was never seen thus. Chico was a pretty good pianist who could play classical music. He had very strong hands, which allowed him to play his effortless glissandos and punctuate them with the distinctive pistol-shots of his index finger. It’s said he hated to practice, but he was always pretty good.
The real music star of the family was Harpo.
All Marx brothers movies came to a stop when Harpo played. During those few fleeting moments, all their vaudeville foolishness was suspended as that wonderful little Jewish man settled in behind his beloved harp. His normally wacky and rubbery face settled into sternly calm and serious lines: clearly a man totally in love with his music. He could play anything from classical to swing to jazz.
Part of the Marx brothers’ magic was playing against marvelous straight foils like the blustering pop-eyed Sig Ruman (Sergeant Schultz of “Stalag 17”) and the ever-present and lustrous Margaret Dumont, the handsome and ladylike but somewhat dim-bulbed dowager Groucho was forever plotting to seduce and hornswoggle.
It should also be noted that a Marx cousin, Sadye, was the wife of Jack Benny and went on to a comedic career of her own as “Mary Livingstone.”
With all the Marxist monkeyshines coming out of Washington these days, it’s a pleasure to occasionally see the real thing.
Roy Hicks, a Payette resident, writes a weekly column for the Argus Observer. Comments or questions for Mr. Hicks can be directed to: Roy Hicks, Argus Observer Newsroom; 1160 S.W. Fourth St., Ontario, OR 97914 . The views and opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily represent those of the Argus Observer
