Thats because Harpo had serious tourrette's syndrome...he used to say stuff like" f.u. mr. goldwyn" and " oh groucho, yer a rat's ass in a sno- ball".......after he told carole lombard to suck off a peruvian midget, they banned him from dialogue for life
Gorgeous New York voice, very soft. Read his autobiography "Harpo Speaks," its wonderful and hilarious. His son Bill wrote an afterward for the book in which he describes how entrancing his Dad's speaking voice was.
Reportedly, Harpo's son stated that when Harpo gave his farewell performance playing harp and talking about his career, they couldn't get him to stop talking and virtually had to drag him off the stage because he had gone over the time. Ironic that someone who was a conversationalist and raconteur should have made a career out of playing a mute. A gain in one way but a definite loss in another. Also, all the kids in the Marx family loved Harpo the best.
@baxter5431 AND the only one of Harpo s childern to write anything about Harpo was Bill and in PRASE of his dad NOT a debunk or how dreadful daddy was etc etc..sounds like Harpo did something right
@SargeantFunshine - You must be one of those people who thinks foul language only developed in the last couple of decades. You ought to pick up a copy of the book "The Marx Brothers Scrapbook". There are extensive interviews with Groucho, and he uses the F-word almost as much as a gangster rap song.
I don't know where folks are hearing all of these silly stories as to why Harpo stopped talking onstage. The story Bill Marx tells is just what Harpo, Groucho, and every book ever written about the Marx Brothers ever said.
@MightyMite76 no no. read the book "harpo speaks" written by the man himself. there is the full story and its the exact same one his son is giving here.
The version I was told, Harpo told the owner of one the venue the Marx Brothers performed at "I hope your theater burns down" and there was a fire in the theater the next day. After that he stop speaking
@sumchick345 I know! It's like you build up a voice for someone who never speaks by the way the present themselves! It's totally crazy! But he has a beautiful, beautiful voice!
1 "Son Of A Bitch" and 2 "Hell"s for the first time I've ever heard him utter anything, and now I'm one hell of a satisfied son of a bitch. RIP Harpo, you made me laugh uncontrollably at times
Another version: Harpo had a growth on his throat that had to be removed surgically. After the operation, he was told not to talk until his throat totally healed. Rather than take time off from the act, where he had been playing a smart-mouthed Irish kid, he began playing a mute tramp. He got more laughs playing a mute, so after his throat healed he kept the mute tramp and ditched the Irish character.
@MFPhoto1 This version is totally false, period. His reaction to his reviews is the real thing and isn't a version at all. Any other version should be averted.
He sounds like a mix between Groucho and Chico honestly. If you still had any doubts about them being brothers after seeing them side by side, this recording would get rid of those doubts! lol Nice voice. :D
How many others agree with this thought? If you take the Marx Brothers out of any Marx Brothers movie, the movie is a piece of garbage. Every Marx Bros movie I've seen (and I've seen almost all of them) are only entertaining during those moments when the Brothers are on the screen. Only "Day At The Races" and "Night At The Opera" are even remotely watchable when the boys aren't on screen. Only their genius saves those movies from hideousness.
@143AC Harpo Marx is my most favorite comedian. Since my first viewing of Duck soup to every single movie he's ever made. He is a gentle and kind soul and his comedy and humor reflect that, if you don't find him funny at all. That just shows how you aren't gentle or kind!
@143AC I think most people would disagree with you. Harpo Marx is considered one of the funniest screen characters of all time. And he isn't cussing, he is quoting someone who is cussing.
@reichmarshall That's what happens when you become a Marxist Socialist. The State provides everything and you eat everything you can get your hands on.
I can't bring myself to listen either. I just finished his book Harpo Speaks and it was very special. I sent a letter to his son Bill Marx and he actually wrote me back, very nice guy. Bill said his father was quite a guy, indeed. Bill said when he would call his dad on the phone Harpo wouldn't answer with a normal hello; he would say "Yeah, this is Hah-po" Bill said it always cheered him up to hear his dad's voice.
Thank you so much for this upload.I am a big fan of the Marx Brothers and have always wondered what Harpo sounded like. God I love You Tube.I hope someday I can post something for others enjoyment.
Thank you so much for uploading this. I have always wanted to hear Harpo speak. If my mum was still alive, she would've love to have heard this. She always wanted to hear him speak too.
ahhh i just read this story in his autobiography...it was when he was working at a bordello..as the piano player/barman/coach rider..its good to hear harpos new york accent...tanx... i believe there is another one of his voice via wikipedia and his page
:O
raindelayshowfan1 1 day ago
I am a devote Marxist..of the Harpo church of laughter
rockinrobintweets 2 days ago
Interesting...
fjbutch 1 week ago
Wow! That was something to hear! For some reason I thought his voice would be higher! Lol
shake1shake 1 week ago
I never saw any of the movies with Karl in them.
mikolasa 1 week ago
Unlike his brothers, he never lost his NY accent!
arkady714 2 weeks ago
Thats because Harpo had serious tourrette's syndrome...he used to say stuff like" f.u. mr. goldwyn" and " oh groucho, yer a rat's ass in a sno- ball".......after he told carole lombard to suck off a peruvian midget, they banned him from dialogue for life
oreokookie1000 2 weeks ago
Thats a load of bull...
NFitalianGuy 1 week ago
Wow. He has a deeper voice than I imagined. Get down with your bad self, Harpo!
kriswright 2 weeks ago
Gorgeous New York voice, very soft. Read his autobiography "Harpo Speaks," its wonderful and hilarious. His son Bill wrote an afterward for the book in which he describes how entrancing his Dad's speaking voice was.
klo1024 3 weeks ago 2
He has a sexy voice. Haters.
Chynaash 3 weeks ago
he sounds lovely!
rajinirulez 1 month ago
Wow, what a wonderful voice.
HorrorFrogPrincess 1 month ago
Those evil jews always spreading the measles around the population.
CollectivePreference 1 month ago
@CollectivePreference Those racist morons always spreading their ignoant hatred around the population.
Aeolis7 2 weeks ago
Comment removed
CollectivePreference 1 month ago
WOW!!!
mravantgarde123 1 month ago
he has a lovely voice :)
iluvpepi 1 month ago
i thought his voice was gonna be a bit more high pitched lol guess not!
HamillJoker 1 month ago
Man, he sounds just like Groucho
BevoNation2007 1 month ago
Wow! He sounds a little like Groucho! O.O
31operafan 2 months ago 2
Reportedly, Harpo's son stated that when Harpo gave his farewell performance playing harp and talking about his career, they couldn't get him to stop talking and virtually had to drag him off the stage because he had gone over the time. Ironic that someone who was a conversationalist and raconteur should have made a career out of playing a mute. A gain in one way but a definite loss in another. Also, all the kids in the Marx family loved Harpo the best.
baxter5431 2 months ago
@baxter5431 AND the only one of Harpo s childern to write anything about Harpo was Bill and in PRASE of his dad NOT a debunk or how dreadful daddy was etc etc..sounds like Harpo did something right
rockinrobintweets 2 days ago
Not so shocking that he would have an accent like Groucho's.
princeminski47 2 months ago
One of the Goyls! I love it.
yryriza 2 months ago 4
CANNOT UNHEAR!
soaponaroapDG 2 months ago
Wow! Harpo Marx finally heard!!!!!! Every other word cursing and swearing.....
Image destroyed...
SargeantFunshine 3 months ago in playlist Liked videos
@SargeantFunshine - You must be one of those people who thinks foul language only developed in the last couple of decades. You ought to pick up a copy of the book "The Marx Brothers Scrapbook". There are extensive interviews with Groucho, and he uses the F-word almost as much as a gangster rap song.
CrackedTroyster 2 months ago
@SargeantFunshine He was QUOTING someone.
MissPickletoes 2 months ago
@SargeantFunshine He's quoting what someone else said...he isn't cursing himself.
dedbusted 1 month ago
He has the voice of a leading man rather than a comedian. Nice voice, but I can see why it wouldn't work in comedy.
gmdinformation 3 months ago
He sounds like Dustin Hoffman
MrAhejil 3 months ago
He has a nice voice but I wish I didn't listen to it
DrLeonardBonesMcCoy 4 months ago
If you don't have nothing nice to say,please just don't say anything at all.Stop talking.
Ritz84588 4 months ago
@TheBeachside21 Which is exactly why he stopped speaking when he played the Harpo roll. His voice just does not match his character's image at all.
Ithekro 4 months ago
Jesus, he doesn't sound anything like I imagined him to sound. But he had a great voice nevertheless.
TheTrohl 5 months ago 14
@TheTrohl Sounds like I always imagined him sounding. New York Jewish accent.
Cool2BCeltic 2 months ago
This is simply WONDERFUL!!!!!! *****
groucho39 5 months ago in playlist Marx Brothers Stuff
Harpo Marx was great,I'm reading his book Harpo Speaks and its good,but I think he was one of the funniest men who ever entertained.
steeplepossum39 5 months ago 2
bril
jubhbyby3213 5 months ago
I have been a fan of the Marx brothers 4 13 yrs and I thought Harpo could not speak full stop. Imagining my surprise when I listened 2 this xx
rockabeatz 5 months ago
so FREAKING cool! he has a broad NYC accent!!! not bronx, not brooklyn but pure NYC!!!
GabrielNYC1975 5 months ago
Amazing to finally be able to put a voice to the face, but it's not quite like I thought
funnyvidspd 5 months ago
wow, that's a shame we never got to hear this voice. It had a rich full tone
and very commanding. He would have done fantastic in radio.
joshanator1 5 months ago
wow, this is not what I imagined his voice to be. but damn fine voice it was.
damagejackal1 6 months ago
I can see why he never spoke. While he had a wonderful speaking voice, it just didn't fit his persona.
victorbrunswick 6 months ago
@victorbrunswick You are so right...beautiful voice.
Hawkeye752 6 months ago 3
Thanks for posting. For years I only had 24 seconds of this audio clip and I never got to hear the end of the story till now.
benthemiester 6 months ago
I see Zeppo is missing from that photo, but Pinko is in his place!
ChuckK3 6 months ago
wow. First time I've ever heard him speak... it's strange to hear the voice of someone who has made a career out of not talking
xhellonhighheels69x 7 months ago
harpo is so awesome! love the marx brothers! they were at least a million times better than stuff on tv now, like what cartoons have become.
AnimeArkansan01 7 months ago
WOW!!! He had a really good radio type voice!!! The Marx Brothers were awesome!
MissAvy17 10 months ago
He sounds a lot like Dustin Hoffman!!!!!!
sablessaint 10 months ago
I Love Harpo ! ....my friends call me Wacky! ....Some say hay don't call gary Wacky I say its a complement, were all Wacky!
astralland 11 months ago
What a gem of a voice!!!!
rockergirl83 1 year ago
I love Harpo. :)
Tabbykitten7 1 year ago 14
I don't know where folks are hearing all of these silly stories as to why Harpo stopped talking onstage. The story Bill Marx tells is just what Harpo, Groucho, and every book ever written about the Marx Brothers ever said.
iconicdog 1 year ago 2
@iconicdog And if Harpo, and in turn his CHILDERN dont know, then what makes anyone think they know more about it then they do..I mean SERIOUSLY
rockinrobintweets 2 days ago
o.O Wow. His voice was deep. ^^ Cool!
Gwens95 1 year ago 3
He had a nice voice though.
pixi2nv 1 year ago 4
I read years ago in a book about the Marx Brothers that due to a speech impediment Harpo didn't speak in any of their movies.
Hmmmm, maybe I read it wrong.
MightyMite76 1 year ago
@MightyMite76 no no. read the book "harpo speaks" written by the man himself. there is the full story and its the exact same one his son is giving here.
kyrastube 8 months ago
Great voice!
(if that was really Harpo)
MightyMite76 1 year ago
The version I was told, Harpo told the owner of one the venue the Marx Brothers performed at "I hope your theater burns down" and there was a fire in the theater the next day. After that he stop speaking
Irisheddy 1 year ago 2
The version I heard was he told a theater owner which it did the next day. After that he stop speaking
Irisheddy 1 year ago
Is that Karl Marx?
PrinceFelix146 1 year ago
damn sexy voice
h9ooo 1 year ago 3
I heard that after the Marx Brothers movies Harpo went on the charity circuit, giving a standard speech. It began:
"Unaccustomed as I am to public speaking"...
Hikikomori013 1 year ago
wow. i expected more of a silly higher pitched voice.
sumchick345 1 year ago
@sumchick345 Me too. He has the voice of a narrator though. It's ironic.
haircutbob2 1 year ago
@sumchick345 I know! It's like you build up a voice for someone who never speaks by the way the present themselves! It's totally crazy! But he has a beautiful, beautiful voice!
KashaSweet 1 year ago
1 "Son Of A Bitch" and 2 "Hell"s for the first time I've ever heard him utter anything, and now I'm one hell of a satisfied son of a bitch. RIP Harpo, you made me laugh uncontrollably at times
JahaysusKahrist 1 year ago 4
Another version: Harpo had a growth on his throat that had to be removed surgically. After the operation, he was told not to talk until his throat totally healed. Rather than take time off from the act, where he had been playing a smart-mouthed Irish kid, he began playing a mute tramp. He got more laughs playing a mute, so after his throat healed he kept the mute tramp and ditched the Irish character.
MFPhoto1 1 year ago
@MFPhoto1 This version is totally false, period. His reaction to his reviews is the real thing and isn't a version at all. Any other version should be averted.
lazurm 1 year ago
He sounds like a mix between Groucho and Chico honestly. If you still had any doubts about them being brothers after seeing them side by side, this recording would get rid of those doubts! lol Nice voice. :D
Papillion1986 1 year ago 2
Dear Red Vynil, No one in the 1950's would repeated the type of stories that Harpo Marx
would have said.That type of story would get you kicked out of show biz and
there were people..who would have been angered by such a tale.
143AC 1 year ago
@143AC If the truth gets you angry, what's wrong with the truth then?
lazurm 1 year ago
How many others agree with this thought? If you take the Marx Brothers out of any Marx Brothers movie, the movie is a piece of garbage. Every Marx Bros movie I've seen (and I've seen almost all of them) are only entertaining during those moments when the Brothers are on the screen. Only "Day At The Races" and "Night At The Opera" are even remotely watchable when the boys aren't on screen. Only their genius saves those movies from hideousness.
elc1960 1 year ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Also..Harpo's character was constantly chasing after women..with the attitude of a pervert. I don't find that being kind to women.
143AC 1 year ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Harpo Marx was a nice guy..but..I found his character cloying and annoying.
He wasn't funny..I love Curly Howard..he was gentle..kind..and zannier and
funnier than Harpo.
143AC 1 year ago
Dear Mundybloq,
Even if he is using someone else's cuss words..it's still not funny!
143AC 1 year ago
@143AC Harpo Marx is my most favorite comedian. Since my first viewing of Duck soup to every single movie he's ever made. He is a gentle and kind soul and his comedy and humor reflect that, if you don't find him funny at all. That just shows how you aren't gentle or kind!
JeffZHigs1 1 year ago 3
Personally, I like his voice, but I do have a hard time trying to put the face and the voice together.
HeartaVilleGram 1 year ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Sorry..Mr.Marx..but talking or silent..your dad is not funny and especially when he cusses here.
143AC 1 year ago
@143AC I think most people would disagree with you. Harpo Marx is considered one of the funniest screen characters of all time. And he isn't cussing, he is quoting someone who is cussing.
mundayblog 1 year ago
@mundayblog But when you DIRECTLY qoute another person then you HAVE to use THIER words hence the term DIRECT QOUTE
rockinrobintweets 2 days ago
Comment removed
mundayblog 1 year ago
@143AC You haven't gotten out much since the `50's, have you? There's nothing he said here that you won't hear on t.v. today.
RedVynil 1 year ago
Very suave...almost the opposite of what I expected it to be.
NScole6407 1 year ago 4
He sounded so sexy.
Kandizcsr83 1 year ago
His voice is very dramatic and could be used in drama flim cause he had good voice for it.
goonies3000 1 year ago
definitely the new york accent but also a very cultivated, intelligent voice
jjaniero 1 year ago
His voice sounds a lot like Chico's.
pauswa1966 1 year ago
I love that picture with Karl.
nitramgnal 1 year ago
I feel like I've cheated...
hobbithead5 1 year ago
Re, the picture: wow, Zeppo really let himself go.
reichmarshall 2 years ago 57
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
thewomandirector 1 year ago
@reichmarshall That's what happens when you become a Marxist Socialist. The State provides everything and you eat everything you can get your hands on.
TrueNovice 1 year ago
@reichmarshall That's Karl Marx..
mrgb46 10 months ago
@mrgb46 Yes I know. Therein lies the joke, you see. Try and keep up.
reichmarshall 10 months ago
@reichmarshall Yes,I will try and keep up..sorry for not catching on right away.
mrgb46 10 months ago
@reichmarshall lol. Zeppo was a socialist!
yryriza 2 months ago
oh, thank you so much. sweet!
giles422 2 years ago
HONK HONK
all4him101 2 years ago
He has a grand and lovely voice... yes, just perfect for the radio.
Lenniett29 2 years ago 35
This has been flagged as spam show
@Lenniett29 "He has a grand and lovely voice... yes, just perfect for the radio."
To which Groucho would probably respond, "That's funny, I always thought he had the perfect FACE for radio!"
TroyOi 9 months ago
I can't bring myself to listen either. I just finished his book Harpo Speaks and it was very special. I sent a letter to his son Bill Marx and he actually wrote me back, very nice guy. Bill said his father was quite a guy, indeed. Bill said when he would call his dad on the phone Harpo wouldn't answer with a normal hello; he would say "Yeah, this is Hah-po" Bill said it always cheered him up to hear his dad's voice.
moose3400 2 years ago
you say Bill Marx is a very nice guy but with a dad like Harpo what would you expect? I have also just read Harpo speaks it is a truly wonderful book
swordfish1929 2 years ago
Thank you so very much for this recording. I also love the Marx brothers who have provided me many hours of enjoyment and entertainment.
blsmitty 2 years ago 2
Thanks so much for this. I've always wanted to hear Harpo speak.
1tabt 2 years ago
Why does Karl Marx have sticking out of his head?
67nairb 2 years ago
Appropriate devil horns.
daughterrevolution 2 years ago
Because he was an atheist and his theories gave birth to devils like Lenin, Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot?
67nairb 2 years ago
I can't listen I just can't
swordfish1929 2 years ago
Certainly not what i had imagined it would sound like.
EvenEvenOdd 2 years ago 4
It was what I expected because he describes it in his book
swordfish1929 2 years ago
I'm with you on that.
TFrOcks25 2 years ago
Thank you so much for this upload.I am a big fan of the Marx Brothers and have always wondered what Harpo sounded like. God I love You Tube.I hope someday I can post something for others enjoyment.
katanakeith 2 years ago
If you want a GREAT read, read his Autobiography, "Harpo Speaks". A really wonderful and entertaining book!
Murphypaws 2 years ago 3
Thank you so much for uploading this. I have always wanted to hear Harpo speak. If my mum was still alive, she would've love to have heard this. She always wanted to hear him speak too.
puppydoglover29 2 years ago
She might of meet him in Heaven.
BottomBoosh 1 year ago
well i can check this off the things to do before i die list....hear harpo's voice. thanks!
12161euclid 2 years ago
I can absolutely agree with you. Hearing Harp's voice and finding out who Deep Throat was were the two on my list!!!
Murphypaws 2 years ago
Great stuff. Thanks for the post.
Rollin558 2 years ago
ahhh i just read this story in his autobiography...it was when he was working at a bordello..as the piano player/barman/coach rider..its good to hear harpos new york accent...tanx... i believe there is another one of his voice via wikipedia and his page
darksorcerermusic 2 years ago
Thanks for this!
vimmerman 2 years ago