Groucho & Cavett

I've always loved Groucho and his brothers. These were some of the first movies I watched with my kids and it was interesting to see how their zany antics still seemed fresh and appealing to children. I also liked Cavett, as he featured the more interesting kinds of people for his interviews and was less of a vacuous establishment figure than other late-night hosts.

However, Groucho's appearances on the show were, for the most part, not that interesting and were mostly a novelty act. Dick had to allow Groucho to ramble on about fairly mundane topics (like the cap he wore), and that deference to his hero detracted from the experience. Groucho was beyond challenge, beyond interruption, but his sense of humor and choice of topics was a little old-hat at this stage and there was no way for Dick to direct him.

Back when Dick Cavett had his evening talk show on TV, he was not a particularly famous man. Sure, he's written for several TV shows but his face was not something most people would have recognized. However, in these early days, one famous guy who often came on Cavett's program was the very famous Groucho Marx. This show talks about WHY...why and how did a Jewish comic become friends with some kid. It also features many clips of Groucho as well as Cavett today talking about these heady days when Cavett was in awe of one of the funniest men in America.

I can see liking or disliking the episode. Some might dislike it because the style of the program is pretty different...more intimate. Some, like me, might enjoy it because they love hearing these old stories about vaudeville and Hollywood. Well worth seeing and kind of sweet as you see some very nice moments with Groucho and Dick.

I never much cared about the comedies of the Marx Brothers. So I dont have a particular interest in this comedian legend, but I did use to watch Dick Cavett a lot and this portrait shows many appearances by Groucho Marx on The Dick Cavett Show.

The bad: however much fun it is to watch these old footage back, after half an hour I noticed this portrait became long in the tooth with many repetitive scenes and situations.

It would have been better if they had decided to make an entire portrait about Dick Cavett OR Groucho Marx. Now this portrait is a mixed bag of a lot of talking by Dick Cavett about how wonderful and funny etc Groucho Marx was.

Simply google the Dick Cavett Show for many other interesting talkshow guests that he has interviewed.

Dick Cavett recounts legendary comic and his friend Groucho Marx. At the funeral of playwright George S. Kaufman, Cavett would meet his hero. As a writer on The Tonight Show, he would write for Groucho who was one of the guest hosts in between Jack Parr and Johnny Carson. With Groucho late in life, Cavett would invite him onto his own show. The man is around 80 at the time and has lost a step. His mind is still sharp filled with his catalogue of insult jokes. I've never actually seen The Dick Cavett Show and I've only known Groucho from his movies. He is like a joking old uncle. There is something poignant about watching an old legend working his craft.