HARPO & GROUCHO MARX VINTAGE PHOTOGRAPH DUCK SOUP 1933 Start Price USD 385.00 Current Price USD 385.00 Time Left - Bid Count 1 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Monday, August 18, 2008 End Time Monday, August 25, 2008 Location WEST HOLLYWOOD CA 90069 See more about 'HARPO & GROUCHO MARX VINTAGE PHOTOGRAPH DUCK SOUP 1933' Description lloydsofhollywood Store 8x10 Gelatin silver glossy Original vintage photograph of Groucho Marx.1933 . . Please know that my e-Bay name will only appear on this scan, not the actual photograph. Very fine condition.. Buyer pays Postage and S&H. Inside USA $6.00 International $15.00 I will ship up to five photographs in one envelope for one shipping charge. I accept PayPal, Checks and Money Orders. Personal checks delay shipping 2 wks. *Your bid is a contract - Place a bid only if you're serious about buying the item. If you are the winning bidder, you will enter into a legally binding contract to purchase the item. This is a private auction your name is not shown to other bidders. A private auction prevents others from seeing what you purchase on e-Bay.* Be sure to check out my other auctions by clicking on view sellers other items. Thanks for bidding! The most famous and gleefully self-promoting of the Marx Brothers, Groucho (born Julius) was the sardonic, sometimes absurdist wit of the group. Dressed in baggy pants, with oversized glasses and painted-on eyebrows and mustache, Groucho hurled barbed insults at friends and foes alike while crouch-walking and tapping imaginary ashes from a huge cigar. Like many vaudeville cohorts, he was a human cartoon, but he outlasted them all. Marx's maternal family was theatrical and included famed vaudeville star Al Shean. Groucho got his start with Gus Edwards' kiddie review around 1904, and with his brothers (along with various relatives and hired help) worked in turn-of-the-century vaudeville with such acts as "The Four Nightingales" and "The Six Musical Mascots" and in sketches written by Al Shean like "Fun in Hi Skool" (1911) and "Home Again" (1914). By 1920, the Marx Brothers were touring on the Keith-Albee vaudeville circuit and finally honing the stage personalities which would carry them through the rest of their careers: notably the wisecracking con-man (Groucho), the dumb, fast-talking Italian (Chico) and the mute faun (Harpo). The four eldest brothers first gained national attention in the zany revue "I'll Say She Is" (1923-1925). Their long-running hit, "The Cocoanuts" (1925-1928), with its score by Irving Berlin and book by George S. Kaufman, assured the brothers' stardom. (By this time, Gummo had dropped out of the act to be replaced by Zeppo). During the run of the play, the brothers independently produced a silent comedy film. The lost picture, "Humorisk", was made in New York and New Jersey with private financing but never received public release and is presumed lost. On the strength of their next Broadway success, "Animal Crackers" (1928-1929), the team was signed to a five-picture contract by Paramount, which was scouting talent for its new sound film productions. Both "The Cocoanuts" (1929) and "Animal Crackers" (1930) were filmed on Paramount's Astoria, NY, soundstage. Although the limitations of early sound technology forced the Marxes to subdue their energetic comedy style and penchant for improvised dialogue, the movie public took to the team's brand of comic chaos. Their final three Paramount releases, "Monkey Business" (1931), "Horsefeathers" (1932) and "Duck Soup" (1933), did not perform well at the box office, although they are now regarded as the team's most inspired film comedies. The writing of George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind was replaced with that of the brilliant humorist S.J. Perelman and the direction fell to better handlers of comedy, including Norman Z. McLeod and Leo McCarey. The team's Paramount vehicles de-emphasized the usual Hollywood storylines and romantic subplots and simply provided screen space for the Marxes to perform their routines. The nearly plotless "Monkey Business" featured four nameless stowaway characters who wreak havoc on a luxury liner, then attempt to disembark by performing four Maurice Chevalier impressions. "Horsefeathers" was a similarly free-form romp through college life, with Professor Wagstaff (Groucho) cueing the mayhem with his anti-establishment anthem "I'm Against It." "Duck Soup", usually considered the team's absurdist masterpiece, was a satire on the politics of war, casting Groucho as the unlikely president of Freedonia who, with the aid of his brothers, runs the country with the musical slogan "Just Wait Till I Get Through With It." The financially troubled Paramount released the Marx Brothers following "Duck Soup" but the team (now minus Zeppo) was picked up by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer at the behest of its production chief Irving Thalberg who recast the irrepressible team in the studio's mold. Reinserting the usual Hollywood storylines, Thalberg set the brothers up as more sympathetic figures and offered love stories to appeal to audiences less enamored of the team's destructive humor. With these elements, plus classier production values, the return of Kaufman and Ryskind and MGM's lengthy pre-testing of material, the two Thalberg films, "A Night at the Opera" (1935) and "A Day at the Races" (1937), revived their popularity (though many fans find these films a dull let-down from their previous efforts.) Thalberg's death also marked the end of the well-crafted Marx films. After a quick loan-out to RKO in 1938 for the substandard "Room Service", the aging team did three flat comedies at MGM. After the war, apparently out of financial need, they reunited for the undistinguished "A Night in Casablanca" (1946) and "Love Happy" (1949). They last appeared in the same film--though separately--in Irwin Allen's all-star flop "The Story of Mankind" (1957). By the time of their last film, Groucho had already established himself as a solo act on radio and TV. Without his brothers, he had written the screenplay for Warner Brothers' "The King and the Chorus Girl" (1937) and with Norman Krasna co-wrote the play "A Time for Elizabeth" in 1946. Marx was also a regular guest on radio shows and had his own, "The Pabst Blue Ribbon Show", from 1943-1944. Groucho's six solo films--none terribly successful--included "Copacabana" (1947), "Double Dynamite" (1951), a cameo in "Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?" (1957) and finally the embarrassing Otto Preminger comedy "Skidoo" (1968). His biggest post-film success came with the quiz show "You Bet Your Life", which started on radio in 1947 and moved to TV from 1950-1961. Now minus the fake mustache, Groucho joshed with guests and became one of the most popular TV personalities of the 1950s, earning a 1950 Emmy as Outstanding Personality. He continued guesting on numerous talk and variety shows and specials until the early 1970s; his last hurrah was a Carnegie Hall appearance in 1972. By that time, Groucho had become an institution, a 20th century classic; as popular with children and teenagers as with his original, aging fans. He also lived up to his nickname--according to acquaintances, he was indeed a grouch, needling his victims with hilarious but often bitter insults. His last year was marred by a custody battle between his family and his longtime companion, Erin Fleming. Marx died in 1977 at the age of 86. Also Credited As: Julius Henry MarxBorn: October 2, 1890 in New York, New YorkDied: August 19, 1977. Job Titles: Actor, Comedian, TV host, Radio host, Writer Family Brother: Manfred Marx. died in infancy Significant Others Companion: Erin Fleming. born 1939; together from 1970 Education P S 85, New York, New York Milestones 1900 Acted with Gus Edwards' kiddie troup 1904 Left school and toured with The Larong Trio 1910 Formed The Three Nightingales with mother and aunt 1915 Played the Palace in NYC for the first time; earned $1500 per week 1920 Booked onto Keith-Albee vaudeville circuit with brothers 1923 Broadway debut in "I'll Say She Is" 1929 Film debut in "The Cocoanuts" 1947 First film without brothers, "Copacabana" 1947 Hosted "You Bet Your Life" on radio 1950 Hosted "You Bet Your Life" on TV (NBC) 1962 Served as host of the CBS gameshow "Tell It to Groucho" 1968 Last film, "Skidoo" 1972 Played Carnegie Hall in "An Evening of Groucho" 1977 Grandson Andrew named conservator of estate after lengthy battle between Marx family and Erin Fleming Place a Bid!