|
|
Article: ELSON'S COLUMN: Groucho Marx the spot.(Features)
- Article from:
- Daily Post (Liverpool, England)
- Article date:
- February 2, 2004
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 MGN Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
Byline: PETER ELSON
LAST week's column devoted to the centenary of SJ Perelman has flushed a number of fans out of the woodwork. Several peoplehavecalled me to ask about why the character ofGroucho Marx, who was the arch -purveyor of many of Perelman's most famous lines, has survived so memorably.
My own conc lusion is that his comic persona seems to have two main pr eoccupations: firstly that he's either the perpetualoutsider,or wants to exclude himself. Perhaps this is best exemplified by his remark: ``I'd ne ver belong to a club that would have me as a member.''
After all, the outsider is the essence of comedy. Sec-ondly, theGroucho figure ...