Thirty Years Ago Today, We Lost One Of The Epic Entertainment Giants . . .

"The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you've got it made."

I save my maximum mourning for entertainment figures who were:

1) Consistently hilarious.

2) Able to make multiple movies that were well-crafted, entertaining, and not an insult to human intelligence -- and I'm not even counting Night at the Opera or Day at the Races.

3) Could put over a song without being particularly good-looking or having an especially-great singing voice.

4) Could write (a big point, for the professionals in the audience).

"Why should I care about posterity? What's posterity ever done for me?"

Groucho Marx's death came as no surprise. He'd slowed perceptably, over his final decade, and his actuarial number was up.

And, yes, he had benefitted from some of the great screenwriters. But as demonstrated on You Bet Your Life,
he was capable of consistent outrageousness while thinking on his feet, without a script.

"I didn't like the play, but then I saw it under adverse conditions -- the curtain was up."

The cupboard's bare of those of his calibre, and it's more evident with each passing year.

"Growing older is no problem. You just have to live long enough."

Sleep well, Julius.

 

Come on. men, we're fighting for this lady's honor, which is probably more than she's ever done for it.

For you, Ben.

 

"These are my princples; if you don't like them, I have others"

 

wow. i never realized that elvis and groucho passed within days of each other.

 

If I hold you any closer, I'll be in back of you.

 

...how he got into my pajamas, I'll never know.
I'd horsewhip you if I had a horse...

 

I got a good mind to join a club and beat you over the head with it.

 

If I didn't post and thank Ben for the reminder, I'd likely have to change my sig.

 

Why, you've got beauty, charm, money! You have got money, haven't you? Because if you haven't, we can quit right now.

 

LMAO on that Groucho Marx clip. That was great!! "Hello, I Must Be Going" ... those guys were incredible. Just think about all the vaudeville dates The Marx Brothers played across America. Damn ... that's talent, folks.

 

Why don't you go home to your wife? I'll tell you what, I'll go home to your wife, and outside of the improvement she'll never know the difference.