The Marx Brothers remain icons of comedy thanks to the mayhem they brought to cinema. Towards the end of their careers, the brothers brought the same insanity to television. Groucho hosted You Bet Your Life for several seasons, but they also had fun appearing on other shows. Shout! Factory’s The Marx Brothers TV Collection promises to be an archival treasure trove of appearances from Groucho, Harpo and Chico. This is a historical tour of TV that will brighten the day of anyone who knows the secret word. Here’s the press release from Shout! Factory:
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Los Angeles, CA – Adding to the celebration of the 100th anniversary of The Marx Brothers’ nicknames—today!–Shout! Factory announces the August 12 release of The Marx Brothers TV Collection, the first set of its kind dedicated to the comedic trio. The set features more than 50 performances on TV programs including The GE Theater, The DuPont Show with June Allyson, The Jack Benny Program, The Jackie Gleason Show, The Colgate Comedy Hour, The Dick Cavett Show, All Star Revue, The Dinah Shore Chevy Show, The Kraft Music Hall, The Red Skelton Hour, The RCA Victor Show, The Perry Como Show, The Arthur Murray Party, Championship Bridge, Celebrity Golf, Celebrity Billiards and many, many more, all here on DVD – with many not seen anywhere in decades. The collection also features a 40-page book with rare photos from the Marx Brothers family archive, program notes and an essay by Marx Brothers historian Robert S. Bader.
Customers ordering from shoutfactory.com will receive a free, limited-edition poster, free U.S. shipping, early shipping on July 15, and a free bonus DVD titled featuring 90 minutes of content, including appearances on Silver Theater: Papa Romani (5/15/50), The Christophers: It’s Your Serve (12/19/54), Hollywood Palace (4/17/65), Hollywood Palace (3/14/64), See You At the Polls (10/9/56), One Man Show (11/1/69), and the Maxine Marx Interview (1971).
As Bader writes in the essay, “the Marx Brothers became entertainment icons through a long and brilliant career on vaudeville and Broadway stages, and they sealed their immortality in a string of celebrated feature films. Nearly 50 years into their careers, the new medium of television provided them with unprecedented exposure — which meant, of course, an opportunity to bring laughter to millions of people all at once. For the next 20 years, the Marx Brothers’ appearances on television — individually and together — included sitcoms, game shows, variety programs and even the occasional drama.
“Television was like a fountain of youth for the Marx Brothers — and they discovered it in front of the largest audience they’d ever had. Groucho, Harpo and Chico had come full circle. They had arrived on America’s vaudeville stages, and said farewell by invading its living rooms.
“The Marx Brothers TV Collection presents a broad and genuinely rare array of television work from the comedy legends, who still had plenty of laughs left in them after the movies. For Marx Brothers fans — and fans of comedy in general — this is truly must–see TV.”
The Marx Brothers TV Collection
DISC 1
1. The General Electric Theater: The Incredible Jewel Robbery (March 8, 1959)
2. The Jack Benny Program (April 3, 1955)
3. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (October 20, 1962)
4. The College Bowl (March 26, 1951)
Bonus TV Clips:
1. Labatt’s Beer commercial # 1 (1960)
2. I’ve Got a Secret (April 21, 1954)
3. All-Pure Evaporated Milk commercial # 1 (Fall, 1951)
4. The Colgate Comedy Hour (March 30, 1952)
5. All-Star Revue (October 4, 1952)
6. All-Pure Evaporated Milk commercial # 2 (Fall, 1951)
7. All Star Revue (October 4, 1952)
8. Showtime (October 4, 1959)
9. Foster’s Freeze commercial # 1 (Fall, 1951)
10. U.S. Royal Showcase (January 20, 1952)
11. The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (October 4, 1959)
12. Labatt’s Beer commercial # 2 (1960)
13. Kraft Music Hall with Milton Berle (January 14, 1959)
Bonus Short Films:
1. You Bet Your Life Stag Reel # 7 (1960 – 1961)
2. Showdown at Ulcer Gulch (1958)
3. The Marx Brothers Home Movie Collection, with music and narration by Harpo’s son Bill Marx
DISC 2
1. The Red Skelton Hour (September 25, 1962)
2. The General Electric Theater: The Hold Out (January 14, 1962)
3. Celebrity Golf (April 23, 1961)
4. Championship Bridge with Charles Goren (October 16, 1960)
5. Groucho (July 1, 1965)
Bonus TV Clips:
1. The Colgate Comedy Hour (March 30, 1952)
2. All-Pure Evaporated Milk commercial # 3 (Fall, 1951)
3. The RCA Victor Show (February 1, 1952)
4. The Swift Show Wagon (May 21, 1955)
5. All-Pure Evaporated Milk commercial # 4 (Fall, 1951)
6. U.S. Royal Showcase (January 20, 1952)
7. McCall’s Magazine commercial (May 1961)
8. The Colgate Comedy Hour (March 30, 1952)
9. Labatt’s Beer commercial # 3 (1960)
10. The Perry Como Show (December 15, 1956)
11. I’ve Got a Secret (May 3, 1961)
12. Pepsi Cola Refreshment Musicale (November 27, 1957)
13. The Sunday Spectacular: Inside Beverly Hills (January 29, 1956)
DISC 3
1. The DuPont Show with June Allyson: A Silent Panic (December 22, 1960)
2. The Arthur Murray Party (November 16, 1953)
3. The DuPont Show of the Week: The Wonderful World of Toys (November 12, 1961)
4. Who Said That? (May 10, 1955)
Bonus TV Clips:
1. Labatt’s Beer commercial # 4 (1960)
2. The Colgate Comedy Hour (March 30, 1952)
3. Foster’s Freeze commercial # 2 (Fall, 1951)
4. The Sunday Spectacular: Inside Beverly Hills (January 29, 1956)
5. I’ve Got a Secret (August 17, 1955)
6. All-Pure Evaporated Milk commercial # 5 (Fall, 1951)
7. The Jackie Gleason Show (October 14, 1967)
8. Celebrity Billiards (July 19, 1968)
9. Candid Camera (May 14, 1961)
10. The Martha Raye Show (April 17, 1956)
11. The Dick Cavett Show (March 20, 1970)
12. Right Guard Commercial (May 1972)
Bonus Short Films:
1. Skidoo trailer (1968)
2. Beds (1976)
