Memorializing the 2025 Marx Brothers Weekend

Well whattaya know? This is the second Memorial Day in a row that I found myself sharing memories of Marx Brothers events that took place the weekend before, over and above such other stuff as honoring America’s fallen heroes, taking note of Fleet Week, and staying on top of the Lower East Festival of the Arts, which is always scheduled for this weekend. Thanks to Norman Blake and other photographers for the pictorial record, and thanks Coney Island USA for hosting.

The raison d’etre for the weekend was Jonny Porkpie’s revival of his excellent burlesque show A Day on the Boardwalk, A Night at the Strip Show:

Scout Durwood, Porkpie, Tigger as the burlesqued Marx Brothers

On Saturday (May 24) we screened Eyepop Video’s new 3-D version of The Cocoanuts (1929) with a knowing introduction by the one and only Noah Diamond:

This was followed by my program, a mini-symposium on the topic of the Marx Brothers’ reputations as anti-authoritarians both onscreen and off. It was entitled The Marx Brothers vs. The Man. I opened with some philosophical remarks about the place of comedy in human culture, what its role today might be, both with respect to the Marx Brothers and in light of the present political moment.

Kathy Biehl spoke evocatively about the historical moment in the early ’30s with Fascism descending on Europe, when three very similar satirical comedies all came out: Million Dollar Legs (1932), Diplomaniacs (1933), and Duck Soup (1933).

Historian Steve Jaffe gave us a terrific visual presentation that hit three important slices of the story: 1) the Jewish strategy of wisecracking in the face of oppression and adversity; 2) the Marxes’ support of liberal causes during their years of stardom; and 3) the Marxes’ spiritual offspring among the counterculture of the 1960s and ’70s. (No pic of his talk but you can see him sitting with the panel in the photo below.)

This was followed by an amazingly written personal essay by Noah Diamond about how he is navigating the present moment, the use and misuse of the Marx Brothers for political purposes, and the lessons he has drawn from the Marxes’ example.

Then the four of us sat in an open forum and chatted with the audience about issues suggested by the themes of the day. The crowd was supportive and generous, and like us, full of unanswerable questions.

Our little salon was followed by Brett Leveridge’s Marx Brothers inspired quiz show program You Brett Your Life. By then the bug I had come down with a day or two earlier was taking its toll and I had to skedaddle. The next day, Sunday, I delivered my intro to the second screening of The Cocoanuts remotely.

“The Great and Powerful Oz has spoken!”

Thanks to all came out, and participated, and a special thanks to Coney Island USA, as always, for being a home away from home.