Mae West and Minnie Marx, Dirty Blonde and Broadway Mom
- Chicago Movie Tours
- May 4, 2023
- 2 min read
Updated: Jul 22
Learn more about the "dirty blonde" and Broadway mom who worked alongside the Marx Brothers.
In my talk Comedy in Chicago: The Marx Brothers and Bob Newhart, I briefly cite two women who worked alongside the Marx Brothers comedy team:
Mae West was an actress who made movies at the same time as the Marx Brothers.
Minnie Marx was a harpist and the matriarch of the Marx family; she served as the Marx Brothers' manager until her death in 1929.
Learn more about these women through a 2020 documentary and a (failed) Broadway production.
Mae West: Dirty Blonde
The 2020 documentary Mae West: Dirty Blonde (PBS) dives into the life and career of American actress, playwright, screenwriter, and sex symbol Mae West.
West was active in the entertainment industry from the 1910s until the 1970s. Like the Marx Brothers, she began her career as a vaudeville performer before transitioning to the stage and eventually to the movies.
As you learn in my talk, Mae West was known for her wit, double entendres, and suggestive dialogue. Some of her most famous films include She Done Him Wrong (1933), I'm No Angel (1933), and My Little Chickadee (1940), which she co-wrote and starred in.
West's dialogue, we should note, often got the actress into trouble with censors.
In addition to her work in entertainment, West was an outspoken advocate for women's rights and sexual freedom, and she challenged traditional gender roles and societal norms through her work.
Mae West died November 22, 1980, in Los Angeles, at the age of 87.
The film runs for about 90 minutes. Check out the trailer below:
Minnie Marx on Broadway
Minnie's Boys is a Broadway musical comedy that tells the story of the Marx Brothers.
Written by Arthur Marx, the son of Groucho Marx, the musical focuses on the early years of the Marx Brothers and their journey to becoming one of the most popular and influential comedy teams in American history.
The story begins with the arrival of the Marx family in New York City from Germany in the late 19th century. The family would also live in Chicago for about a decade.
Minnie Marx, the mother of the Marx Brothers, is determined to turn her sons into successful performers. She enlists the help of a famous theatrical agent, who sees potential in the young boys and helps them launch their career in vaudeville.
Shelley Winters played Minnie Marx.
Minnie's Boys ran for only 80 performances.
During its brief run, Groucho appeared on the Dick Cavett Show with Shelley Winters and the five actors who portrayed the Marx boys in the show. Here they are:
Chicago Connections
You'll find one of Mae West's cars in Chicago's Klairmont Kollections Automotive Museum.
Minnie Marx was the one who decided to move the entire Marx family from New York to Chicago. After all, Chicago was a major vaudeville center, home to newly emerging film companies, and a hub for railway travel.
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