April 1921 Marx Brothers Item
Every once and awhile I write a post that suggests ways to appreciate where our (if you’re U.S. based like myself) taxes go. The Library of Congress is a fine example of our taxes being used in a delightful (to me, at least) manner.
On New Year’s Eve, TCM aired a Marx Brothers marathon. For whatever reason, seeing the films again (I grew up in the 1970s in a family that made you respect the Marx Brothers from birth) made me wonder: “What kind of documents does the Library of Congress have on the Marx Brothers?”
A quick search turned up this collection of Library of Congress details. What really caught my attention, though, was an April 10, 1921 New York Tribune piece covering the Marx Brothers first film (which was lost seemingly forever, after only one public screening), Humor Risk. As noted by IMDb, the silent film was written by Jo Swerling, who would go on to write Pennies from Heaven, The Pride of the Yankees, and It’s A Wonderful Life. The Marx Brothers would not make another film until 1929’s The Cocoanuts.
