Groucho Marx: You Bet Your Life Episode - Secret Word: "Food" Part 1

The Lost Episodes: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000ALFZ0?ie=UTF8&tag=doc06-20&link... Watch the full episode: http://thefilmarchived.blogspot.com/2010/10/groucho-marx-you-bet-your-life-ep...

Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (October 2, 1890 -- August 19, 1977) was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit. His rapid-fire delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers.

He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third-born. He also had a successful solo career, most notably as the host of the radio and television game shows You Bet Your Life and Tell it to Groucho. His distinctive appearance, carried over from his days in vaudeville, included quirks such as an exaggerated stooped posture, glasses, cigars, and a thick greasepaint moustache and eyebrows.

You Bet Your Life is an American quiz show that aired on both radio and television. The most well-known version was hosted by Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman. The show debuted on ABC Radio in October 1947, then moved to CBS Radio in 1949 before making the transition to the NBC Radio and NBC-TV networks in October 1950. Because of its simple format, it was possible to broadcast the show simultaneously on the radio and on television. In 1960, the show was renamed The Groucho Show and ran a further year. Most episodes are in the public domain.

The play of the game, however, was secondary to the interplay between Groucho, the contestants, and occasionally Fenneman. The program was rerun into the 1970s, and later in syndication as The Best of Groucho. As such, it was the first game show to have its reruns syndicated.

The interviews were sometimes so memorable that the contestants became celebrities: "nature boy" health advocate Robert Bootzin; hapless Mexican laborer Pedro Gonzalez-Gonzalez and his offhandedly comic remarks; a witty housewife named Phyllis Diller; author Ray Bradbury; blues singer and pianist Gladys Bentley; strongman Paul Anderson. John Barbour; and Ronnie Schell all appeared as contestants while working on the fringes of the entertainment industry.

Harland Sanders, who talked about his "finger-lickin'" recipe for fried chicken which he parlayed into the "Kentucky Fried Chicken" chain of restaurants, once appeared as a contestant. A guest purporting to be a wealthy Arabian prince was really writer William Peter Blatty; Groucho saw through the disguise, stating "You're no more a prince than I am because I have an Arabian horse and I know what they look like". Blatty won $10,000 and used the leave of absence the money afforded him to write The Exorcist. No one in the audience knew who contestant Daws Butler was until he began speaking in Huckleberry Hound's voice. He and his partner went on to win the top prize of $10,000. Cajun politician Dudley J. LeBlanc, a Louisiana state senator, demonstrated his winning style at giving campaign speeches in French. General Omar Bradley was teamed with an army private, and Marx goaded the private into telling Bradley everything that was wrong with the army. Professional wrestler Wild Red Berry admitted that the outcomes of matches were determined in advance, but that the injuries were real; he revealed a long list of injuries he had sustained.

Other celebrities, already famous, occasionally teamed with their relatives to win money for charity. Arthur Godfrey's mother Kathryn was a contestant and held her own with Marx. Edgar Bergen and his then 11-year-old daughter Candice teamed up with Marx and his daughter Melinda to win $1,000 for the Girl Scouts of the USA; Fenneman played quizmaster for this segment. Ernie Kovacs, Hoot Gibson, Ray Corrigan, John Charles Thomas, Max Shulman, Sammy Cahn, Joe Louis, Bob Mathias, Johnny Weissmuller, Sam Coslow, Harry Ruby, Liberace, Lord Buckley, Don Drysdale, Tor Johnson, and Frankie Avalon also appeared on the program, among others. Harpo Marx also appeared once to promote his just-published autobiography, Harpo Speaks.

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[TheTubePortal]

@DB3457 How did you find this out? Also, did he ever marry the girl he was dating, or did he and the girl on the show get together?

[Roamingdoc]

Youth, articulate, polite, intelligent and, yes, as said, a bit innocent. This was a clean show even if Groucho could be a bit of a flirt. Thanks for the memory!

[DB3457]

little sad fact is that Mario died last year aged 76 :( either way great show :D

[Sieist23Jahrealt]

Barbara is very sexy.

[Jsd8675]

Wow... college kids were so innocent back then.

[fromthesidelines]

You could also hear a slightly different version of this show on your local NBC radio station on Wednesdays at 9pm(et).

[h9ooo]

thank You very much for giving us such an unique entertainment

[antihostile]

Good old Groucho! The greatest comedian of the 20th Century!

[infrogmation]

Ah, back in an era when an old man could flirt shamelessly with an 18 year old "girl" on prime time tv. Fun for the whole family.

Good to see the original commercials intact. I'm sold on "the smartest of the smart cars". Where can I get a shiny new DeSoto?

[yermomsboxx]

Thanks! I love Groucho!