Photograph was edited for publication purposes.; Title supplied by cataloger. Leonard "Chico" Marx (1887-1961) was an actor, comedian, bandleader and manager. A talented pianist, he started playing at a young age to earn money for his family, in his later years he would inject this talent into his comedic acts. When their mother - who was their manager, died, Chico took over the role. As manager, his connections opened doors for the brothers into Hollywood filmdom. Surprisingly, in the 1930s and '40s, he led a big band, the Chico Marx Orchestra, which is where Mel Torme began his professional singing career. The fact that he was a compulsive womanizer earned him his nickname, and he was also known for his lifelong gambling habit which cost him millions of dollars by his own account, inevitably the brothers were forced to put him on allowance, on which he stayed until his death. Marx was married twice: to Betty Karp in 1917, producing one daughter, and to Mary De Vithas in 1958, until his passing. Chico Marx died of arteriosclerosis on October 11, 1961 in Hollywood, and is entombed in a crypt at the Freedom Mausoleum in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Photograph caption dated October 12, 1961 reads, "Harpo Marx, Above, Mourns Brother Chico - Comic-Musician Flies Home Via American Airlines to Attend Funeral." Note: Chico Marx, the 70-year-old piano-playing member of the famed Marx Brothers comedy team - whose given name was Leonard - died of a heart attack October 11, 1961.
Type
image
Format
1 photographic print :b&w ;24 x 19 cm. on sheet 26 x 21 cm. Photographic prints
Marx, Harpo,--1888-1964 Marx, Chico,--1887-1961--Death and burial Marx Brothers American Airlines Los Angeles International Airport Comedians--United States Actors--United States Airplanes--California--Los Angeles Airports--California--Los Angeles Westchester (Los Angeles, Calif.) Herald-Examiner Collection photographs Portrait photographs
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