| The Cocoanuts | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Robert Florey Joseph Santley |
| Produced by | Monta Bell Walter Wanger (uncr.) |
| Written by | George S. Kaufman (play) Morrie Ryskind |
| Starring | Groucho Marx Harpo Marx Chico Marx Zeppo Marx |
| Music by | Irving Berlin Victor Herbert (uncr.) Frank Tours (uncr.) Georges Bizet (uncr.) |
| Cinematography | George J. Folsey |
| Editing by | Barney Rogan (uncr.) |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | May 3, 1929 |
| Running time | 96 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $500,000 (estimated) |
The Cocoanuts (1929) is the first feature-length Marx Brothers film, produced by Paramount Pictures. The musical comedy stars the four Marx Brothers, Oscar Shaw, Mary Eaton, and Margaret Dumont. Produced by Walter Wanger and the first sound movie to credit more than one director (Robert Florey and Joseph Santley), and was adapted to the screen by Morrie Ryskind from the George S. Kaufman Broadway play.
Five of the film's tunes were composed by Irving Berlin including "When My Dreams Come True," sung by Oscar Shaw and Mary Eaton.
As one of the earliest examples of a transfer of a stage musical to the new medium, The Cocoanuts highlights the imperfect production methods of early sound films.[1]
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The Cocoanuts is set in the Hotel de Cocoanut, a resort hotel, during the Florida land boom of the 1920s. Mr. Hammer (Groucho Marx) runs the place, assisted by Jamison (Zeppo Marx), who would rather sleep at the front desk than actually help him run it. Chico and Harpo arrive with empty luggage, which they plan to fill by robbing and conning the guests. Mrs. Potter (Margaret Dumont, in the first of seven appearances with the Marxes) is one of the few paying customers. Her daughter Polly (Mary Eaton) is in love with struggling young architect Bob Adams (Oscar Shaw). He works to support himself as a clerk at the hotel, but has plans for the development of the entire area. Mrs. Potter wants her daughter to marry Harvey Yates (Cyril Ring), whom she believes to be of higher social standing than the clerk. This suitor is actually a con man out to steal the dowager's diamond necklace with the help of his conniving partner Penelope (Kay Francis).
The plot is almost beside the point, and the story and setting are little more than an excuse for the brothers to run amok. The film is notable for its musical "production numbers" similar to those used in the 1930s by Busby Berkeley, including techniques which were soon to become standard, such as overhead shots of dancing girls imitating the patterns of a kaleidoscope. The musical numbers were recorded live on the soundstage as they were shot, rather than pre-recorded, with an off-camera orchestra. The main titles are superimposed over a negative image of the "Monkey-Doodle-Do" number photographed from an angle that does not appear in the body of the film.
One of the more famous gags in the film has Groucho giving directions to Chico, who keeps misunderstanding "viaduct" as "why-a-duck". In another sequence Groucho is the auctioneer for some land of possibly questionable value ("You can have any kind of a home you want to; you can even get stucco! Oh, how you can get stuck-oh!") He has hired Chico to artificially "bid up" during the auction. To Groucho's frustration, Chico keeps outbidding everyone, even himself. Still another sequence has Groucho, and later the necklace thief, perform a formal speech. Harpo repeatedly walks off, with a grim look on his face, to the punch bowl. (It is implied that the fruit punch has been spiked with alcohol). Another highlight is when the cast, already dressed in traditional Spanish garb for a theme party, erupts into an operatic treatment about a lost shirt to music from Carmen.
Referring to directors Robert Florey and Joseph Santley, Groucho Marx remarked, "One of them didn't understand English and the other didn't understand Harpo." When the Marx Brothers were shown the final cut of the film, they were so appalled they tried to buy the negative back and prevent its release. Paramount wisely resisted — the movie turned out to be a big hit and earned close to two million dollars.
As the film was made in the early days of sound film, to eliminate the sound of the camera motors, the cameras and the cameramen were enclosed in large soundproof booths with a glass panel to allow filming fronting the booth. Before filming the cameraman was shut inside the booth with packs of ice to prevent condensation forming on the glass panel. The length of filming was therefore limited by endurance of the cameramen within the airtight booths. This practice was commonplace in the early years of sound film and is largely responsible for the static camera work of that era. For many years, Marxian legend had it that Florey, who had never seen the Marxes' work before, was put in the soundproof booth because he could not contain his laughter at the brothers' spontaneous antics.[2]
Every piece of paper in the movie is soaking wet, to keep crackling paper sounds from overloading the primitive recording equipment of the time. In fact, this did not occur to the director until 27 takes had been made (of the "Viaduct" scene) and disposed of because of the noise made by the paper. The director finally got the idea to soak the paper in water; the 28th take of the "Viaduct" scene used soaked paper, and this take was quiet and kept.[3]
The "ink" that Harpo drank from the hotel lobby inkwell was actually Coca-Cola, and the "telephone mouthpiece" that he nibbled was made of chocolate, both inventions of Robert Florey. In A Night in Casablanca, Harpo could again be seen eating "telephones."
Filming took place at Paramount's Astoria Studios in Astoria, Queens. It was the first of only two films done by the brothers in New York (the other was Animal Crackers, released in 1930). After that, production of all Marx films shifted to Hollywood.
The Cocoanuts is one of the few Irving Berlin vehicles that did not yield any particularly memorable songs. Berlin had actually written one of his eventual greatest hits, "Always", for the stage play. But George S. Kaufman, convinced that it would never be a hit, persuaded him to excise it. Reportedly, Kaufman (or Groucho) remarked, "No one will believe a lyric like 'I'll be loving you, always.' How about changing it to, 'I'll be loving you Thursday'?" The song "Always" was eventually used in the movie The Pride of the Yankees. Several songs from the stage play were omitted from the film. "Lucky Boy" was sung by the chorus to congratulate Bob on his engagement to Polly. "A Little Bungalow" was a love duet sung by Bob and Polly, and was replaced with "When My Dreams Come True" in the film.
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