Gummo Marx
Gummo Marx | |
|---|---|
| File:Gummo Marx, Tonight Show.jpg Gummo at a reunion of his brothers on the Tonight Show | |
| Born | Milton Marx October 23, 1892 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | April 21, 1977 (aged 84) Palm Springs, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Glendale, California, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1899−1918 |
| Spouse |
Helen von Tilzer
(m. 1929; died 1976) |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Sam "Frenchie" Marx Minnie Schönberg |
| Relatives | Chico Marx (older brother) Harpo Marx (older brother) Groucho Marx (older brother) Zeppo Marx (younger brother) Al Shean (maternal uncle) Gregg Marx (grandson) |
Milton "Gummo" Marx (October 23, 1892 – April 21, 1977) was an American vaudevillian performer, actor, comedian, and theatrical agent.[1] He was the second youngest of the five Marx Brothers. Born in Manhattan, he worked with his brothers on the vaudeville circuit, leaving the act when he was drafted into the US Army in 1918 during World War I and replaced by his brother Zeppo. He had no taste for the theatre, never appeared in any of his brothers' films, and became a successful businessman.
Early life
[edit | edit source]Marx was born in Manhattan, New York City, on October 23, 1892.[note 1] His parents were Sam Marx (called "Frenchie" throughout his life), and Minnie Schoenberg Marx. Marx's family was Jewish. His mother was from Dornum in East Frisia, and his father was a native of Alsace and worked as a tailor.[2][3][4]
Career
[edit | edit source]
Gummo was the first of his brothers to make his debut on stage, pretending to be a dummy in an act with his uncle Henry Shean (né Heinemann Schoenberg), the brother of Al Shean, in 1899.[citation needed] Milton was put into a costume with a papier-mâché head and pretended to be a dummy while Henry pretended to work him.[citation needed] The act may have only been performed once and was not helped by Shean's deafness or Milton's stammer.[5]
Gummo, who in an interview said he never liked being on stage,[citation needed] left the group and joined the military during World War I. He was not sent overseas because the armistice was signed shortly afterward.[citation needed] Gummo's younger brother Zeppo took his place in the group. After his Army career, Gummo went into the raincoat business.[6] He later joined with Zeppo and operated a theatrical agency.[7] After that collaboration ended, Gummo represented his brother Groucho and worked on the television show The Life of Riley, which he helped develop.[citation needed]
Gummo represented other on-screen talent and a number of writers, and was well-respected as a businessman. He rarely required contracts, believing that if the people he represented liked his work, they would stay with him.[8] Around the time he left his brothers' Vaudeville act, Marx applied for a patent for a clothes-packing rack. On October 28, 1919, Marx was granted patent US1320335A.[9]
Gummo may have received his nickname because he had a tendency to sneak around backstage, creeping up on others like a "gumshoe" private detective. Another explanation cited by biographers and family members is that Milton, the sickliest of the brothers, often wore rubber overshoes, also called "gumshoes", to protect himself in inclement weather.[10] According to Zeppo in a much later BBC TV interview, Gummo may have received his nickname because he was usually chewing gum.[11]
Personal life and death
[edit | edit source]Marx married Helen von Tilzer née Theaman (who had a two-year-old daughter, Karlyn "Kay" von Tilzer, from her previous marriage), on May 3, 1929.;[12] they remained married until her death in January 1976.[citation needed] Their son, Robert Stuart, was born on August 19, 1930.[13] Gummo's grandson Gregg Marx is an actor.
Gummo died on April 21, 1977, at his home in Palm Springs, California, aged 84, from a cerebral hemorrhage.[1] His death was never reported to Groucho, who by that time had become so ill and weak that it was thought the news would be a further detriment to his health. Groucho died four months later on August 19, at age 86.
Gummo and his wife Helen are interred next to each other in the Freedom Mausoleum at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.[14] Gummo's brother Chico is in a crypt across the hall from them.[citation needed] Gummo's only biological child, Robert, served in the United States Coast Guard for two years and later worked as an architect. He died on May 21, 2023, aged 92.[15]
Notes
[edit | edit source]- ^ The 1900 United States Census shows his birth as "October 1892". His World War I and World War II draft registrations uses "October 21, 1892". His death certificate and his grave use the year 1893. The documents originating closest to the birth date are usually more accurate.
References
[edit | edit source]Lua error in mw.title.lua at line 392: bad argument #2 to 'title.new' (unrecognized namespace name 'Portal').
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ La famille paternelle des Marx Brothers (in French)
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).[permanent dead link]
- ^ Simon Louvish (2000) Monkey Business: The Lives and Legends of the Marx Brothers. New York: Thomas Dunne, 337–8. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Patent US1320335A: Devices facilitating the insertion of articles or materials into bags e.g. guides or chutes, US Patent Office, 1919.
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ BBC Archives
- ^ Index to New York City Marriages, 1866-1937. Marriage License Date: May 3, 1929; License Number: 10208
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Celebrities in Los Angeles Cemeteries
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
External links
[edit | edit source]
- Gummo Marx at IMDb
Lua error in Module:Authority_control at line 153: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
- 1890s births
- 1977 deaths
- Marx Brothers
- American people of German-Jewish descent
- Jews from New York (state)
- 20th-century American Jews
- 20th-century American comedians
- 20th-century American male actors
- American male comedians
- American vaudeville performers
- Comedians from Manhattan
- Jewish American male actors
- Jewish American comedians
- Jewish male comedians
- Jewish American film people
- Male actors from Manhattan
- United States Army soldiers
- United States Army personnel of World War I
- Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)