What is it? The Marx Brothers TV Collection, 10 1/2 hours of content on three discs from Shout! Factory
How much? $39.97
When? Now
As in Groucho, Chico and Harpo? Yes indeed. They're known primarily for their movies like Duck Soup and A Night at the Opera. But when the TV industry began to pick up, the Marx Brothers joined their fellow fading big-screen stars in the exodus to the small screen.
Some adjustments were made for the change in medium, but on the whole, they brought their brand of anarchic humor and general insanity along with them.
What's on the set? Quite a bit. Groucho, Chico and Harpo made quite a few TV appearances, playing off their already established personae (in the case of Chico and Harpo) or creating a modified one (Groucho).
It should be noted that on TV, the three brothers rarely appeared together. More often than not, they're doing solo acts.
This collection pulls together full episodes of series on which one or more brother appeared, clips of guest spots, commercials and TV specials including:
The General Electric Theater: "The Incredible Jewel Robbery": Ronald Reagan introduces this short teleplay with Chico and Harpo (blink and you might miss Groucho) trying to pull off a heist in their typical zany fashion.
The Jack Benny Program: Angling for the prize money, Benny dons a disguise and sneaks on Groucho's You Bet Your Life game show program.
Groucho leads a singalong of "Schnitzel Bank" on The Swift Show Wagon With Horace Heidt.
The DuPont Show of the Week, "The Wonderful World of Toys": Carol Burnett and Harpo host a 40-minute, toy-theme ramble through Central Park that may bring back some fond memories for baby boomers.
Ravelli's Sugar Bowl: In the final episode of Chico's musical TV series, he considers selling his drugstore/college hangout to a big chain.
The Red Skelton Hour: Harpo appears in multiple sketches on the series premiere.
And two surprisingly noncomedic performances: Groucho on an episode of The General Electric Theater (playing opposite Dennis Hopper) and Harpo as a deaf-mute murder witness on The DuPont Show With June Allyson.
How are they? Fabulous. With or without each other or big-screen budgets, the brothers still display their usual lunacy and sharp silliness.
Also, a set like this is a time capsule in a way, including a variety of TV series of different styles and formats from the industry's earliest years and on into the 1970s.
Are there extras? In a way, the whole set is extras. But for non-TV content, there are 23 minutes' worth of family home movies (narrated by Harpo's son, Bill), a You Bet Your Life gag reel, a couple of short films and a trailer. The accompanying 39-page booklet contains an extensive essay and descriptions for each program.
New this week: Alpha House, Season 1; Boardwalk Empire, Season 4; The Good Wife, Season 5; The Millers, Season 1; The Mindy Project, Season 2; The Name of the Game, Season 1; NCIS: Los Angeles, Season 5; NCIS, Season 11; Newhart, Season 4; Once Upon a Time, Season 3; Parenthood, Season 5; Parks and Recreation, Season 6; Three's Company, Complete Series.
Next week: Criminal Minds, Season 9; Elementary, Season 2; The Equalizer, Season 2; Haven, Season 4; Now and Again, Complete Series; Portlandia, Season 4; Revenge, Season 3; Sons of Anarchy, Season 6; The Twilight Zone, Complete Series; The Virginian, Season 9; The Walking Dead, Season 4; Welcome Back, Kotter, Complete Series.
Style on 08/17/2014