The Greatest Comedy Team Of All Time

Turner Classic Movies is running "A Night at the Opera". This led me to reflect on my lifelong love of the great and legendary Marx Brothers.

One of my father's best gifts to me in my youth was to pass on a deep affection for certain pieces of pop culture. James Bond (in Ian Fleming's novels as well as the Saltzman/Broccoli teams's films) is one. The British comedy series and PBS staple "Are You Being Served" is another. The work of the Marx Brothers might be the best of all that my father imparted to me. Probably my favorites were Duck Soup, Horse Feathers, A Night at the Opera, and A Night in Casablanca.

There is much about them that appeals to me. They had a well rounded comedic style which clearly bears the mark of their vaudeville roots. They engaged in physical comedy, witty rapid fire dialogue, and performed music that stood up on its own.

The nature of their comedy was often adversarial. They were not inclined to make victimless jokes, and so they were very much subversive and anti-establishment. Their targets were numerous and almost indiscriminate. They were known to throw bricks at those who had it coming, but were at their core an anarchic force of nature that was apt to turn in any direction and strike anyone in its path. I suppose that makes them sound quite nefarious and unsympathetic, but to see them in action is to know that they aren't really.

I guess I'll leave it there and just say that you should watch yourselves some Marx Brothers films. Little else is qualified to lighten your mood during these times.