http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
xiii, 504 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 26 cm.
Before film made them international comedy legends, Chico, Harpo, Groucho, Gummo and Zeppo Marx developed their comic skills on stage for twenty-five years. Bader offers the first comprehensive history of the Marx Brother'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, Bader shows how their characters and routines evolved before their arrival in Hollywood, as well as illuminating the inner workings of the vaudeville business, especially during its peak in the 1920s.
Prologue: The old country -- The Marxian prehistoric -- The house on 93rd Street -- Uncle Al, Gene Leroy, and Johnnie Morris -- On the road with Master Julius Marx -- The Nightingales, Alma Schang, and the UBO -- Ned Wayburn's Nightingales -- A Nightingale sang in Coney Island -- Four Nightingales and six mascots -- The bumpy road to the big time -- The metamorphosis : the three Marx Bros. & Company in "Fun in high school" -- Pantages, the white rats, and "Peasie Weasie" -- Changing partners : Gordon, Shean, and Lee -- And then there were four -- The four Marx Bros. and Company in Mr. Green's reception -- The sex lives of the Marx Brothers and other catastrophes of 1913 -- Chicago's only lady producer of vaudeville attractions -- Home again and broken hearts -- The bumpier road to Broadway -- Home again . . . and again and again -- The five Marx Brothers and how they became a quartet . . . again -- A show by any other name -- On the mezzanine floor with a smudge of grease paint -- On the balcony, the Mauretania, and Albee's blacklist -- From the ashes to the talkies -- I'll say she is -- The toast of Broadway -- The Cocoanuts -- Talkies, Animal crackers, and the death of vaudeville -- The end of the road -- The last of Minnie and the crash of '29 -- The four Marx Brothers and how they became a trio . . . again -- Epilogue: The end of a dream come true -- Appendix: the Marx Brothers stage chronology (1905-45).
Includes bibliographical references and index.