WEBVTT - A Place at Groucho’s Table

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<v Speaker 1>This is our American Stories, and we've already brought you

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<v Speaker 1>the story of how UCLA undergraduate Steve Stolier saved a

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<v Speaker 1>Marx Brothers movie from extinction. But here's the story of

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<v Speaker 1>how Steve called up Aaron Fleming, Groucho's manager, and landed

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<v Speaker 1>the job of his dreams.

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<v Speaker 2>In the summer of seventy four, I had two or

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<v Speaker 2>three summer jobs fall through, for which I remain eternally grateful,

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<v Speaker 2>and my dad was pressuring me, I don't want you

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<v Speaker 2>sitting around on your fanny all summer long. I want

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<v Speaker 2>you to find some job. They may need a bus

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<v Speaker 2>boy at this restaurant, or you could go get interviewed

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<v Speaker 2>at Taco Bell. And I thought, I don't want to

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<v Speaker 2>do any of that, but he's never gonna let up

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<v Speaker 2>on me. So I called Aaron Fleming, figuring I had

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<v Speaker 2>nothing to lose, and I said, is there anything at

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<v Speaker 2>all that you think maybe I could sort of help with?

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<v Speaker 3>And she said, well, actually, it's funny you call because

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<v Speaker 3>I used to be Groucho's secretary, but now i'm his

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<v Speaker 3>manager and we need someone to handle all of the

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<v Speaker 3>fan mail that's been coming in, and also to organize

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<v Speaker 3>all of his memorabilia, which is going to be donated

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<v Speaker 3>to the Smithsonian after he's gone. And we need someone

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<v Speaker 3>who really knows their marsh brothers.

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<v Speaker 2>And I'm thinking, please please please please please please please

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<v Speaker 2>with you, And in my mind's eye, I have this

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<v Speaker 2>sort of tex av cartoon image of me zipping out

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<v Speaker 2>of the house and instantly appearing on the doorstep of

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<v Speaker 2>Groucho's house while Aaron is still on the phone explaining

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<v Speaker 2>the job to me. It wasn't quite like that, but

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<v Speaker 2>that's how it felt. And I thought that I would

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<v Speaker 2>be working maybe in an office building, maybe twice a

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<v Speaker 2>month he'd come by to sign checks or something. She said, Oh, no,

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<v Speaker 2>you'll have your own room to work in at Groucho's

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<v Speaker 2>house and you can make your own hours. And I thought,

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<v Speaker 2>and they're gonna pay me to do this. And so

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<v Speaker 2>I drove to Groucho's house in Beverly Hills, and I

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<v Speaker 2>was so nervous, but it worked out, and sure enough,

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<v Speaker 2>there was a room that had been a painting studio

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<v Speaker 2>that his last wife, whom he had divorced in sixty nine,

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<v Speaker 2>had used, and came my office and Groucher would often

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<v Speaker 2>shuffle down the hall to or from his room or

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<v Speaker 2>the living room or dining room, and we would chat.

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<v Speaker 2>And it was a very egalitarian household. I was to

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<v Speaker 2>sit at the lunch table when Groucher would have lunch.

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<v Speaker 2>It wasn't a sense that the help ate in the

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<v Speaker 2>kitchen or anything that haughty, and so I would be

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<v Speaker 2>lucky enough to be there when George Burns would come over,

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<v Speaker 2>or Steve Allen would come over, or some of his

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<v Speaker 2>former writers, or if it was just just in quotes,

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<v Speaker 2>Groucho and maybe a nurse, or Groucho and Aaron, it

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<v Speaker 2>would just be us, and I could ask him all

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<v Speaker 2>these questions that I'd had that I thought if I

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<v Speaker 2>could ever meet him, I'd want to know this. And

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<v Speaker 2>he appreciated the fact that I cared about and knew

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<v Speaker 2>about all of the things that he had experience instant

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<v Speaker 2>that he cared about, and that we had similar you know,

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<v Speaker 2>we both liked tinpan Alley and George Gershwin and Irving

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<v Speaker 2>Berlin and the humorists of the Algonquin round Table. One

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<v Speaker 2>time he called me into his room and gave me

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<v Speaker 2>a twenty dollars bill, and he said, go down to

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<v Speaker 2>the record store and get me some records, you know

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<v Speaker 2>what I like. And it meant so much to me

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<v Speaker 2>that he had assumed that I would know what to

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<v Speaker 2>get instead of having to explain it. But I mean,

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<v Speaker 2>those days at the lunch table were so rich, and

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<v Speaker 2>I came to appreciate him on three different levels. First

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<v Speaker 2>of all, he was Groucho Marx, the guy in the

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<v Speaker 2>grease paint mustache, swirling around on screen, insulting Margaret Dumont

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<v Speaker 2>in Duck Soup and Night at the Opera. And second

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<v Speaker 2>he was someone who personally knew people that to me

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<v Speaker 2>didn't exist in three dimensions and in color, people like well,

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<v Speaker 2>like George Gershwin and Irving Berlin, James Thurber he was

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<v Speaker 2>friends with W. C. Fields. The idea that he knew

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<v Speaker 2>these people personally, you know, and I would get insight

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<v Speaker 2>into what they were like from him firsthand, you know,

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<v Speaker 2>not something he'd read or heard about, but he was there.

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<v Speaker 2>And then on the third level, he was a man

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<v Speaker 2>from eighteen ninety. He was a nineteenth century human being,

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<v Speaker 2>literally a Victorian, since she was on the throne when

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<v Speaker 2>he was born, although he was born in New York

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<v Speaker 2>and not in England, and his first hand memories went

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<v Speaker 2>from before the right brothers to after the moon landing,

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<v Speaker 2>which is a staggering chunk of American history, world history.

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<v Speaker 2>I asked him once, what's the earliest you remember? And

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<v Speaker 2>he thought moment, and he said, I guess probably the

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<v Speaker 2>Spanish American War, which was eighteen ninety eight. And he

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<v Speaker 2>and his brothers had initially started out as a singing

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<v Speaker 2>act in vaudeville in the early nineteen hundreds, before they

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<v Speaker 2>started adding comedy. They would sing harmony popular songs, and

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<v Speaker 2>you know, they did okay at that. But Graucho's career

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<v Speaker 2>went back so far that he actually was one of

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<v Speaker 2>the performers at a special charity benefit performance at the

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<v Speaker 2>Metropolitan Opera House in New York. Enrico Caruso was also

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<v Speaker 2>on the bill that night, and the money was to

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<v Speaker 2>go to the aid of victims of the San Francisco

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<v Speaker 2>earthquake of nineteen oh six. For a history buff like me,

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<v Speaker 2>and as I say, I had been a history major,

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<v Speaker 2>although I shifted to motion picture television after I had

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<v Speaker 2>been working at Grouchos a while because it was just

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<v Speaker 2>impossible to ignore how strongly I was drawn to that world.

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<v Speaker 2>You know, he would have health problems now and again

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<v Speaker 2>he'd have a small stroke or something like that, and

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<v Speaker 2>I would think, oh jeez, this is it. This is

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<v Speaker 2>I think about three weeks into my working there, he

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<v Speaker 2>had a slight stroke and I thought it was great

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<v Speaker 2>while it lasted, but now the coach is going to

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<v Speaker 2>turn back into a pumpkin. And you know that morning

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<v Speaker 2>that I showed up that he'd had a stroke and

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<v Speaker 2>the housekeeper said, please keep your voice down, mister Marx

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<v Speaker 2>has had a stroke. But the nurse asked that you

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<v Speaker 2>go back to his room because she needs some help.

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<v Speaker 2>And I expected him to be, you know, lying on

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<v Speaker 2>the floor, unable to speak, unable to move, and instead

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<v Speaker 2>he was sitting in bed, propped up in his pajamas

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<v Speaker 2>and muck reading the La Times. And he said, is

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<v Speaker 2>the ambulance here yet? I said no, it figures and

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<v Speaker 2>goes back to his reading and I thought, gee, he's

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<v Speaker 2>really taking this in stride. He's not banging at death's door.

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<v Speaker 2>He's reading the La Times. And it was just that

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<v Speaker 2>the nurse needed help getting him in to take a

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<v Speaker 2>leak in the bathroom because his balance was off from

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<v Speaker 2>that stroke. So I, you know, I was happy to

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<v Speaker 2>help out, and he bounced back from that and from

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<v Speaker 2>a lot of other health setbacks, even though he was

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<v Speaker 2>in his mid eighties by then.

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<v Speaker 1>And you're listening to Steve Stollier's story and in the

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<v Speaker 1>end Groucho Marx's story too, And what a lucky guy

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<v Speaker 1>indeed that those summer jobs fell through. Is what an opportunity,

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<v Speaker 1>an opportunity of a lifetime in Groucho's house, no less

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<v Speaker 1>his hero, so many Americans heroes. By the way, he

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<v Speaker 1>was a child of the Victorian Age, and his comedy

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<v Speaker 1>was rebuttal to the Victorian age its properness, and Oi

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<v Speaker 1>Groutshow was a revolutionary in his day. He really stretched

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<v Speaker 1>the boundaries of what comedians were allowed to do and

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<v Speaker 1>not do. And my goodness, what we learned listening to

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<v Speaker 1>this is that even people like Groutchow want to be appreciated, right,

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<v Speaker 1>the legends appreciate appreciation, and we can never forget that.

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<v Speaker 1>When we come back more of this remarkable story here

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<v Speaker 1>on our American Stories, And we're back with our American stories,

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<v Speaker 1>and the story of Steve Stolier, a college student who

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<v Speaker 1>saved a long lost Marx Brothers movie and then landed

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<v Speaker 1>the job of his dreams working as Groutcho marks his

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<v Speaker 1>personal assistant and archivist. Let's return to Steve and his.

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<v Speaker 2>Story, and it just became this remarkably rich experience for

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<v Speaker 2>me that ended up lasting not three weeks as I

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<v Speaker 2>had thought that morning, but three years, the last three

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<v Speaker 2>years of Groucho's life. And so I was able to

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<v Speaker 2>get to know and talk with and with Groucho, my hero.

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<v Speaker 2>I also got to meet Zeppo the night that he

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<v Speaker 2>came up there for dinner from Palm Springs. I had

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<v Speaker 2>brought the young lady I was dating, a nineteen year

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<v Speaker 2>old blonde who was very bright and very personable and

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<v Speaker 2>very attractive, and he really took a liking to her.

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<v Speaker 2>He sort of picked up where Chicko left off in

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<v Speaker 2>terms of having an eye for the ladies. And he

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<v Speaker 2>had recently lost his last wife to Frankson, who dumped

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<v Speaker 2>him and went for Sinatra, and that was Barbara Marx Sinatra.

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<v Speaker 2>So he was back to being a bachelor. And he said,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, Steve, you and Linda should visit me in

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<v Speaker 2>Palm Springs sometime. And I said, well, I don't know.

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<v Speaker 2>I was there when I was about nine and it

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<v Speaker 2>just it was sweltering. And he said, well, when we're

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<v Speaker 2>there in the summer, and I said yeah, and he said, well,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, Steve, it's also cold in Alaska in the winter.

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<v Speaker 2>It was true that Zeppo did have a great sense

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<v Speaker 2>of humor that really didn't get a chance to shine

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<v Speaker 2>on screen. I had heard that he could be very funny,

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<v Speaker 2>and I had, you know, a charm and charisma, and

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<v Speaker 2>people are always skeptical of that because he was sort

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<v Speaker 2>of wooden and didn't have the lion's share of funny

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<v Speaker 2>stuff to do. And the few movies he was in,

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<v Speaker 2>was I happy as a performer, and once he once

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<v Speaker 2>he left the act after Duck Soup in nineteen thirty three,

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<v Speaker 2>he became a very successful agent, handling such obscure has

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<v Speaker 2>beens as Clark Gable and Carol Lombard and Barbara Stanwick

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<v Speaker 2>and Robert Taylor and Lucille Ball and Landa Turner. So

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<v Speaker 2>he did really well and never looked back. But anyway,

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<v Speaker 2>a few months later Linda and I broke up. I

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<v Speaker 2>had a couple of photos that I wanted Zeppo to sign,

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<v Speaker 2>so I mailed them to his address in Palm Springs,

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<v Speaker 2>and in my cover letter, I said, by the way,

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<v Speaker 2>Lynda and I broke up. So I know you've been

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<v Speaker 2>around the block a few times. If you have any

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<v Speaker 2>advice for the love lorn And a few days later,

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<v Speaker 2>my phone rings save as Zeppo marks. I hope I'm

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<v Speaker 2>not inconveniencing. No, no, how I got the photos you sent. God,

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<v Speaker 2>I was good looking back then. But listen, I have

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<v Speaker 2>a question for you, and I don't want to step

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<v Speaker 2>on your toes. You understand that, because the last thing

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<v Speaker 2>in the world I'd want to do would be something

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<v Speaker 2>to upset you. Oh, okay, do you think that Linda

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<v Speaker 2>would go out with me? And I thought, what I mean?

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<v Speaker 2>She was nineteen, I was twenty, and he was seventy four,

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<v Speaker 2>but a young seventy four, but seventy four, And I said,

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<v Speaker 2>I don't know. I mean she enjoyed.

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<v Speaker 3>You know, she got a kick a because really, tell me, honestly, Steve,

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<v Speaker 3>if this is at all uncomfortable for no, no, no,

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<v Speaker 3>no no, I said, so let me let me ask her,

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<v Speaker 3>and okay, I would appreciate it. And again if it's any.

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<v Speaker 2>No, no, no, no no. So I saw her at

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<v Speaker 2>s and I asked her about it, and she laughed,

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<v Speaker 2>also finding it strange and funny. But thought, you know,

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<v Speaker 2>what the heck, I want to have the experience of

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<v Speaker 2>going on a date with Zeppo Marx. So they went

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<v Speaker 2>out once. He took her to dinner in San Diego

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<v Speaker 2>and then drove to Tijuana and attended a Hilai game

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<v Speaker 2>at a stadium, and then took her home. And I

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<v Speaker 2>talked to him afterwards, and he said, Steve, I want

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<v Speaker 2>to tell you I never even kissed a good night.

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<v Speaker 2>You should know that she's very nice, but all she

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<v Speaker 2>did was talk about herself. And then I saw her

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<v Speaker 2>on campus and she said, you know, Zeppa was really nice,

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<v Speaker 2>but all he did was talk about himself. And I thought,

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<v Speaker 2>that's a really interesting symmetry there. And then at parties

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<v Speaker 2>at Graucho's, whenever Zeppa would be there, he would make

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<v Speaker 2>a point of introducing is someone and say, this is Steve.

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<v Speaker 2>He's a nice young man. He and I dated the

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<v Speaker 2>same girl, but he got further with her than I did.

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<v Speaker 2>That was like my official introduction. So anyway, I have

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<v Speaker 2>the distinction of being able to say that Zeppo Marx

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<v Speaker 2>and I dated the same girl. I also got to

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<v Speaker 2>meet the other living Marx brother, Gummo, who to those

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<v Speaker 2>who aren't that familiar with the Marx brothers. It's even

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<v Speaker 2>more obscure because Gummo was the straight man before Zeppo

0:15:37.960 --> 0:15:41.120
<v Speaker 2>on the stage, and then he was drafted during World

0:15:41.120 --> 0:15:44.280
<v Speaker 2>War One and left the act. So at the time,

0:15:44.440 --> 0:15:48.280
<v Speaker 2>seventeen year old Zeppo took his place, and Gummo also

0:15:48.400 --> 0:15:52.120
<v Speaker 2>became an agent and did very He became Groucho's agent, actually,

0:15:52.480 --> 0:15:55.240
<v Speaker 2>and did very well. He was never that much interested

0:15:55.320 --> 0:15:58.560
<v Speaker 2>in performing. So I got to meet three out of

0:15:58.640 --> 0:16:02.120
<v Speaker 2>five of the March brothers, which is, you know, approximately

0:16:02.200 --> 0:16:05.240
<v Speaker 2>three more March Brothers than most people ever got a

0:16:05.320 --> 0:16:09.360
<v Speaker 2>chance to meet. Harpo and Chico had died in the

0:16:09.400 --> 0:16:13.240
<v Speaker 2>early sixties, unfortunately, so I was never able to meet them.

0:16:13.640 --> 0:16:18.560
<v Speaker 2>But when I would watch Groucho and Zeppo and Gummo

0:16:18.960 --> 0:16:23.760
<v Speaker 2>talking amongst themselves, which was great, I thought, what must

0:16:23.760 --> 0:16:26.960
<v Speaker 2>it have been like with all five brothers in their

0:16:27.080 --> 0:16:31.360
<v Speaker 2>youth sitting around the table. It must have been hysterical.

0:16:33.800 --> 0:16:38.160
<v Speaker 2>Groucho had a cook named Robin, who was tall and

0:16:38.400 --> 0:16:42.760
<v Speaker 2>thin and blonde and young. When Zeppo and Gummo had

0:16:42.800 --> 0:16:45.240
<v Speaker 2>come up for dinner and I was there for that dinner,

0:16:46.120 --> 0:16:50.480
<v Speaker 2>Zeppo said Robin said she'd marry me, but I don't know.

0:16:50.560 --> 0:16:54.360
<v Speaker 2>I think she's too tall for me. Groucho said, well,

0:16:54.360 --> 0:16:57.600
<v Speaker 2>what part of it do you want? And Zeppo said,

0:16:57.800 --> 0:17:00.200
<v Speaker 2>I'll take as high up as I can read each

0:17:01.040 --> 0:17:04.639
<v Speaker 2>and Gummo said, what do you want with her feet?

0:17:06.240 --> 0:17:10.040
<v Speaker 2>So there's a Gummo anecdote, which is extremely rare, but

0:17:10.160 --> 0:17:15.320
<v Speaker 2>evidence of the kind of goofy humor they had amongst themselves,

0:17:15.680 --> 0:17:18.680
<v Speaker 2>that quickness. It was just it was all still there

0:17:18.760 --> 0:17:25.280
<v Speaker 2>under various layers of rust. I was very fortunate because

0:17:25.320 --> 0:17:31.320
<v Speaker 2>of my Groucho association, I became friends with Dick Cavit.

0:17:31.400 --> 0:17:35.439
<v Speaker 2>That was another case where because of my insecurities, I

0:17:35.520 --> 0:17:40.119
<v Speaker 2>thought when Groucho was gone, my link to Dick Cavot

0:17:40.160 --> 0:17:46.680
<v Speaker 2>would be over. But instead he called me from New

0:17:46.760 --> 0:17:50.119
<v Speaker 2>York the week Groucho died and he said, listen, I

0:17:50.160 --> 0:17:53.199
<v Speaker 2>hope just because Groucho is gone, we're not going to

0:17:53.240 --> 0:17:56.960
<v Speaker 2>lose touch. And by the way, I hope you don't mind,

0:17:57.040 --> 0:18:00.239
<v Speaker 2>but I've shown some of your letters to Woody and

0:18:00.280 --> 0:18:03.639
<v Speaker 2>he says they're very well written. And I sort of

0:18:03.680 --> 0:18:06.600
<v Speaker 2>had to empty the urine out of my shoes that

0:18:06.800 --> 0:18:10.679
<v Speaker 2>Cabot was calling me to say, hey, don't drop me

0:18:10.720 --> 0:18:14.040
<v Speaker 2>as a friend and saying, I hope you don't mind,

0:18:14.080 --> 0:18:17.280
<v Speaker 2>but Woody Allen thinks your letters are well written. So

0:18:17.600 --> 0:18:21.400
<v Speaker 2>that was something. And in fact I did end up

0:18:22.080 --> 0:18:25.720
<v Speaker 2>moving to New York in nineteen eighty two and spending

0:18:25.760 --> 0:18:28.760
<v Speaker 2>a few years there writing for Dick Cabot at HBO,

0:18:29.520 --> 0:18:34.159
<v Speaker 2>and had many remarkable adventures in Manhattan, including getting to

0:18:34.200 --> 0:18:37.760
<v Speaker 2>meet Woody Allen and Catherine Hepburn and lots of other

0:18:37.840 --> 0:18:41.720
<v Speaker 2>stuff before I returned to LA to take another job.

0:18:45.560 --> 0:18:47.920
<v Speaker 2>And it was so great when I was working at

0:18:47.920 --> 0:18:51.840
<v Speaker 2>Groucho's to be able to comfortably meet these people and converse,

0:18:52.600 --> 0:18:56.240
<v Speaker 2>because I think they figured since I was inside the house,

0:18:56.480 --> 0:19:01.040
<v Speaker 2>I must be okay, whether I'm Groucho's grandson or something

0:19:01.119 --> 0:19:04.080
<v Speaker 2>like that. If I'm sitting at Graucho's lunch table, it

0:19:04.119 --> 0:19:07.479
<v Speaker 2>might must be okay. So there wasn't any nobody. There

0:19:07.520 --> 0:19:10.600
<v Speaker 2>were no star trips there. There was people that were

0:19:10.720 --> 0:19:15.000
<v Speaker 2>very down to earth, and I tended to find that

0:19:15.080 --> 0:19:20.160
<v Speaker 2>the old people who were legends were much more down

0:19:20.200 --> 0:19:22.480
<v Speaker 2>to earth and personable than some of the people who

0:19:22.520 --> 0:19:27.520
<v Speaker 2>had recently become famous. Aaron Fleming tended to have younger friends,

0:19:29.400 --> 0:19:33.440
<v Speaker 2>Elliott Gould and George Siegel and Budcourt and Sally Kellerman

0:19:34.400 --> 0:19:40.280
<v Speaker 2>and streisand to a lesser degree, and I found myself

0:19:40.480 --> 0:19:46.160
<v Speaker 2>instantly drawn to Groucho's old gang. I felt much more

0:19:46.200 --> 0:19:48.679
<v Speaker 2>that I belonged there, even though I was nineteen and

0:19:48.720 --> 0:19:51.960
<v Speaker 2>they were in their seventies and eighties, than I did

0:19:52.200 --> 0:19:58.880
<v Speaker 2>towards Aaron's sort of quirky group of neu veaux stars.

0:20:00.720 --> 0:20:05.440
<v Speaker 1>And especial thanks to Robbie for superb production and great storytelling,

0:20:05.680 --> 0:20:09.480
<v Speaker 1>and especial thanks to Steve Stollier as well. Steve Stollier's

0:20:09.480 --> 0:20:18.159
<v Speaker 1>story rout Jo Marx's story here on Our American Story