Episode 10: The Marx Brothers in the 21½ Century

Here we are again, friends, hoping everyone had a Marxy Christmas and is ready for a Harpy New Year. Our tenth proper episode (but our twelfth if you count our two highly improper bonus episodes), and our final episode of 2018, looks to the future.

Here's Bob's official description: "Hmmm…what could this be? Chico leading a Mars expedition? Zeppo getting a talent transplant? No, actually we take a look at the Marx fandom, past, present and future. Where are the new fans coming from, where are the older fans going? Does their humor hold up, and is it becoming too politically incorrect? We promise you won’t be surprised by our answers. Later, we pepper each other with questions that we haven’t prepared for…and see how much of the show Bob can save in editing."

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Referenced in this episode:

Bonus Episode: Holiday Minicast

Here's a stocking stuffer -- just a quick mini-episode to look backward and forward, wish you a happy everything, and tell you about the hottest holiday gifts of 2018. (Links galore at the bottom of this post.)

Episode Description: "After a recap of feedback to the Big Store episode, Matthew and Noah talk about the Marx Brothers books they have authored which, coincidentally, are available as holiday gifts. Later, Bob makes a bold proclamation for 2019."

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And here are the essentials for everyone on your holiday gift list:

The Annotated Marx Brothers:
A Filmgoer's Guide to In-Jokes,
Obscure References, and Sly Details
by Matthew Coniam

That's Me, Groucho!
The Solo Career of Groucho Marx
by Matthew Coniam

Gimme a Thrill:
The Story of I'll Say She Is,
The Lost Marx Brothers Musical,
and How it Was Found
by Noah Diamond

And, in the world beyond the Marx Brothers: Egyptomania Goes to the Movies and Jane Austen: Inside Her Novels by Matthew; and Love Marches On and 400 Years in Manhattan by Noah.

All of this and more can be found on the Store page at noahdiamond.com, as well as in that phantom location, "wherever books are sold!"

We'll be back soon with our final episode of 2018, and soon thereafter, with our first episode of 2019! That will be shortly followed by our second episode of 2019, then our third, and so on, forever and ever. Until then, best wishes to you and yours for the holidays, and a happy new year.

Visit us anytime in The Marx Brothers Council Facebook Group.

Episode 9: A Good Buy From MGM

Why, we didn't know you cared! But since you do, here's our ninth episode, in which friend-of-the-podcast and Council stalwart Nick Santa Maria drops by to discuss The Big Store, which we all agree was made by MGM in 1941 and stars the Marx Brothers and Tony Martin.

Episode Description: "Actor, writer, and singer Nick Santa Maria joins us to defend The Big Store…not the funniest of the latter-MGM films, but (in our opinion) the most likable. We speculate on the secret life of Hiram Phelps and love life of Mr. Grover, plus hear a rare audio clip of Tony Martin and his version of reality. We're also treated to the death stories of a couple of cast-members! Finally, everyone is rewarded by us not playing 'The Tenement Symphony.'  Note that your enjoyment of this episode will be greatly enhanced by watching the film first, as we get into detail that you might not remember..."

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This episode's end music is Nick Santa Maria's sweet rendition of "If It's You," by Ben Oakland, Artie Shaw, and Milton Drake, featured in The Big Store.

Get your copy of The Misadventures of Biffle and Shooster, featuring Nick, right here!

And here's MGM's original trailer for The Big Store, referenced in our episode title:



And there you have it, folks! As always, you can find us everywhere on the web, and join us in the Marx Brothers Council Facebook group to discuss this episode and all other Marxian matters.

See you next month!

Episode 8: Gentlemen, Question Mark

Well, we asked you to ask us questions, and you asked us questions, and now, we answer some of the questions we asked you to ask us. Thanks to all who asked, and please let us know if you have any questions.

Episode Description: "For this installment, we kill a couple of hours answering listener questions as well as attempting to pronounce names of various Council members…one of whom won’t be happy at all with our open-mindedness. Plus, Matthew looks for stuff."

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 And here is this:

Any Questions? Any Answers? Any Rags, Any Bones...

What will be the content of Episode Eight of The Marx Brothers Council Podcast?

This is much too important a question to leave in the hands of such unsavory characters as the show’s  producers and co-hosts. For that reason, and also because we couldn’t think of anything else, we’re leaving it all up to you, and will spend Episode Eight answering whatever questions you'd care to ask — about the Brothers and their career; the podcast; the co-hosts and their middling achievements and infuriating opinions; or anything else that may warrant, or not warrant at all, an answer.

You can ask questions anonymously, or send us a video or audio file, here.

You can ask questions publicly in the Marx Brothers Council Facebook group, here.

You can even ask questions in the comments section of this very blog post.

And of course, just because we’re asking for questions doesn’t mean you have to give us one. Feel free to offer an observation, a thesis, a conversation-starter, or anything else you’d like us to respond to, and let’s just see what happens, okay?

noahdiamond.com/gentlemen-question-mark

Episode 7: Too Late, That's Monkey Business Already

Matthew, Noah, and Bob over-analyze Monkey Business, the Marxes' first film shot in Hollywood and first written exclusively for the screen. You’ll learn how many stowaways are singing, if Siri knows who played Alky Briggs, and in what century the portable lighter was invented. Musicologist and Zeppocologist Andrea Orlando stops by to offer some much-needed informed insight.

End Music: “I’m Daffy Over You,” performed by Josh Max.

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Here's the still referred to by Bob in this episode -- apparently showing an elaborate deleted gag from the barbershop scene in Monkey Business:

And here's the beloved "Theatrical Agency" sketch, written by Herman Timberg for On the Mezzanine, later included in I'll Say She Is, and thankfully committed to film in 1931 (with some small adjustments) for Paramount's promotional feature The House That Shadows Built:

Episode 6: The Missing Marx Brothers

Marx Brothers scholar Rodney Stewart Hillel Tryster joins the guys for a look into now-lost moments from the Marxes' career. Some are legendary, some are obscure...and some may never have occurred. Bob interviews Thomas Racz, who details his exciting discovery of a unique print of A Night at the Opera at the Hungarian Film Archive. Rodney and Matthew talk about why the odds of finding Humor Risk may be greater than Groucho would have you believe.

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Referenced in this episode:

The Marx Brothers’ Lost Film: Getting to the Bottom of a Mystery
by Matthew Coniam, brentonfilm.com, 2015

More on  Tom Racz and the Hungarian National Film Archive's print of A Night at the Opera can be found here, at Mikael Uhlin's excellent site Marxology.