![]() You will probably say to yourself, 'Why the cigar?' That's a very good question. I am sending you a photo of myself at age of seven. "I am delighted," he replied, "that you are delighted that I was delighted about your book. She wrote back, thanking him for his kind words and requesting a photo of him for her wall. In 1959, he wrote Elaine Tynan, the author of The Dud Avocado, to tell her how much he enjoyed her book. Eliot, Groucho replied, "Dear Tom If this isn't your first name, I'm in a hell of a fix." ![]() In 1963, responding to an admiring letter he received from T.S. Subsequent letters from the WB lawyers were met with even more flippancy, and eventually they simply stopped writing and gave up the matter. "Professionally," he writes, "we were brothers long before you what about the Smith Brothers? The Brothers Karamazov? Dan Brothers, an outfielder with Detroit?" These letters make it seem as if Groucho actually lived it that way.Ī letter from Warner Brothers threatening legal action for the Marx Brothers' use of the name "Casablanca" in the title of their movie was met not with bluster, counterthreats or even a request for discussion, but rather with a letter from Groucho discussing the history of the name "Warner" and the word "brothers." Shakespeare wrote that life is a tale told by an idiot, signifying nothing. In his interactions with peers, children, lawyers, actors, writers and politicians, the man simply refuses to take any of it seriously. You see, I've long been of the opinion that life is too serious to be taken seriously, and if that is my religion, then Groucho is the pope. Which is why Groucho is never far away I can't do an hour shot of Beckett or Carver without an unstiff Groucho chaser. These books approach life and its myriad questions with seriousness and focus, and after just a few pages, they make me want to kill myself. On that same small table, there are also books of philosophy, theology and a few that have been blessed enough to qualify as "Literature" (the qualification process is brutal, with a $50 nonrefundable Literature Application Fee and a 17-page questionnaire that must be notarized by James Wood). These are just some of the questions not answered in The Groucho Letters: Letters from and to Groucho Marx - which is precisely why I keep a copy of it on the small table beside my bed. Why are we here? What is our purpose? Is there a God? How can we account for the presence of evil? ![]() ![]() 30 Years Later, Remembering Groucho Marx Aug. ![]()
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