Before film made them international comedy legends; the Marx Brothers developed their comic skills on stage for twenty-five years. In Four of the Three Musketeers: The Marx Brothers on Stage; Robert S. Bader offers the first comprehensive history of the foursome’s hardscrabble early years honing their act in front of live audiences.From Groucho’s debut in 1905 to their final live performances of scenes from A Night in Casablanca in 1945; the brothers’ stage career shows how their characters and routines evolved before their arrival in Hollywood. Four of the Three Musketeers draws on an unmatched array of sources; many not referenced elsewhere. Bader’s detailed portrait of the struggling young actors both brings to vivid life a typical night on the road for the Marx Brothers and also illuminates the inner workings of the vaudeville business; especially during its peak in the 1920s.As Bader traces the origins of the characters that would later come to be beloved by filmgoers; he also skillfully scrapes away the accretion of rumors and mythology perpetuated not only by fans and writers but by the Marx Brothers themselves. Revealing; vital; and entertaining; Four of the Three Musketeers will take its place as an essential reference for this iconic American act.
#2051404 in Books 2012-10-18Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.00 x .70 x 5.00l; .60 #File Name: 0809332175144 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. The Southern Illinois Press has done a magnificent job in bringing Lincoln to life through this wonderful series. Frank's book rBy Paul W. Schanher; IIIFrank Williams has hit the proverbial "nail on the head." A master Lincoln scholar; Frank has inspired me into further Lincoln studies. The Southern Illinois Press has done a magnificent job in bringing Lincoln to life through this wonderful series. Frank's book ranks at the top!!!1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Lincoln as Hero - So?By B BarnesThis is a rehash of events in Lincoln's career that are very familiar. How "Hero" is defined is not clear or challenging. How these events made him a hero is pedestrian in explanation. Those events were remarkable requiring much more character than just "heroism".2 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Fess Parker; step aside.By Dr. TomLincoln as Hero is the eighth volume in Southern Illinois University's Concise Lincoln Library series; which will extend to 21 volumes when completed in 2016. Generally; no serious new ground is broken in this series; but readers are given the opportunity to quickly engage at a sophisticated level with selected and sometimes overlooked topics by noted Lincoln scholars. I have; since a child; held Abraham Lincoln in high esteem; the penultimate role model. The first two pictures I can remember from my Galena; Ohio elementary classrooms were those of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. The Centennial of the Civil War arrived in 1961; my father took our family to Gettysburg for the first time in 1964. My interest in Lincoln grew accordingly. After all; at that time; only one; long lifetime separated me from the Civil War era. I did not know it yet; but my great; great grandfather had fought in the Civil War with the 81st Illinois infantry. It was also at about this time that I bought the Penguin Library edition of Carl Sandburg's Lincoln from the list of books that we could periodically order and I came to very much admire Sandburg's poetic Lincoln. But I never thought of him as a hero. That title was reserved for the likes of Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone. In this volume Judge Williams raises precisely that possibility; and does break new ground as he brings his extensive legal experience and finely attuned judgment to bear upon the question of why Lincoln continues to hold our attention. Why Lincoln is a hero. William's answer is not simple; but a complex mosaic of factors: Lincoln's humble beginnings; his insatiable desire to learn; his intelligence; his integrity and growing skill as first a politician and then a lawyer; his finely tuned utilization of the English language; his timing; his ability as a persuader and debater; his willingness to adapt to necessary changes; his growing competence as a military strategist; his ever-present humility; his clear moral sense; his genius as a writer; his judgment; his humanity; and above all his courage. To Richard Hofstadter's charge that the Emancipation Proclamation contained; "all the moral grandeur of a bill of lading" which; "did not in fact free any slaves;" Williams responds; "No matter how many slaves were actually freed under the auspices of the Emancipation Proclamation; what proved essential to the war was that Lincoln; by issuing it; made slave liberation a goal of the Union government." (p. 65) As Williams notes; even Lincoln could not have solved all of the postwar problems but; "His untimely death . . . robbed the nation of this prospect." (p. 78) Lincoln as Hero is an admiring but indisputably fair assessment of a president that almost everyone agrees was a great man. To Hofstadter's assertion that Lincoln was a self-made myth I can almost hear Williams responding; "Balderdash! He is a hero!" All of which makes for a delightful and enlightening read. Buy it.
