Rating: 
Summary: Super!Tolkien would say,"Groucho is 'hobbit' forming!"
Review: As delightful a Marxist account as can be found anywhere (Groucho would probably say that Karl is no Engel!:-))!Groucho's rapier wit is contagious; the book lends an insight into the man as well,at times the humor is ironical without ever being cynical;his respect for other literary personae comes through strongly-a classic case in point is his legendary correspondence with T. S. Eliot. The book abounds with bon mots and his hilarious correspondence with Warner Brothers is an excellent introduction to the book.This is the type of book that everybody should have as it easily elicits a laugh, chuckle and guffaw (which,as Groucho says, is a good name for a law firm)! All in all, 'grouching' around should begin with this book-full marx to Groucho for that!And after reading this book, you don't have to beware of the Ides of Marx!
Rating: 
Summary: It loses one star because I want more!
Review: For some, a criterion of great art is: it makes you feel creative. Reading Groucho's letters makes one look around for pen and paper. It is a pity Groucho Marx's prose isn't better known, because it was quite good. He found a voice all his own, with due influence or inspiration from Robert Benchley and, most certainly, S.J. Perelman. This collection of letters ranges from warm and teasing, to wry and satirical, to scathing (a section entitled "Short Shrift" showcases letters designed to sting and fly away, like a wasp). Yet throughout, Marx's wit is belied by a language that is literate and witty but uses an ordinary vocabulary. They reflect the man himself, who had a third-grade education and hit the books in later years. His willingness to address himself to unknown corporate officers, well-known politicians, or to put on a major film studio work the way much of Groucho's humor worked: he comes from the level of the ordinary person, caring not a whit for ceremony or status; and he is willing to talk circles around just about anybody, to their vexation and our delight.
Rating:
Summary: It loses one star because I want more!
Review: For some, a criterion of great art is: it makes you feel creative. Reading Groucho's letters makes one look around for pen and paper. It is a pity Groucho Marx's prose isn't better known, because it was quite good. He found a voice all his own, with due influence or inspiration from Robert Benchley and, most certainly, S.J. Perelman. This collection of letters ranges from warm and teasing, to wry and satirical, to scathing (a section entitled "Short Shrift" showcases letters designed to sting and fly away, like a wasp). Yet throughout, Marx's wit is belied by a language that is literate and witty but uses an ordinary vocabulary. They reflect the man himself, who had a third-grade education and hit the books in later years. His willingness to address himself to unknown corporate officers, well-known politicians, or to put on a major film studio work the way much of Groucho's humor worked: he comes from the level of the ordinary person, caring not a whit for ceremony or status; and he is willing to talk circles around just about anybody, to their vexation and our delight.
Rating:
Summary: A must-have for Groucho fans!
Review: Groucho's letters (to him and from him) are many in number, and the correspondents he had...wow! Famous authors, politicians, his family, and his numerous friends...it's a huge list, believe me, and the result is a book full of the many moods of Groucho Marx, and his correspondence with some of the most famous people in the world. Don't miss it!
Rating:
Summary: Great gift for a fan (and his girlfriend who still reads it)
Review: I bought this book for my boyfriend and he LOVED it. It's easy to read, filled with interesting tales and a must-have for any Groucho Marx fan. I, while not a Marx Brothers fan for all my life, found myself picking up the book again and again. Very enjoyable. Very easy to digest. It was read by us both within a couple of days of his unwrapping the gift.
Rating:
Summary: This book will cure what ails you!
Review: I received this book after major surgery some years back and Groucho's wit really helped pick up my spirits and take my mind off of my body. This was one of the best gifts that I've ever received and I'm pleased to see that it's back in print. If you could have a dinner party and invite any historical figures that you wanted, wouldn't Groucho be on the list? This collection of his intimate correspondence is the next best thing.
Rating:
Summary: It's for an international audience.
Review: Marx Brothers were vaudeville and film comedians. Their style of acting is a byword of non sense and mish mash. I'm sure Groucho --the leader of a host of Marx Bros.-- would greet an international audience like yours with this sentence: "Meanwhile goodbye, so long, skol, prosit, salud, hasta la vista, à bientôt and ciao ciao. (Ciao ciao, if you don't know it, is an Italian greeting. It's too a dog breed that bites into your buttocks without any reason on the world)". So he wrote as from one of 'The Groucho Letters', a book offering scores of remarks about the forthcoming radio and tv marketing age. Enjoy it! PS. Italian word 'ciao' derives from the Venetian dialect meaning 'slave (of yours)'. We are after all --after the Internet too-- slaves to the language!
Rating:
Summary: Not The Screwtape Letters
Review: The biggest compliment I can give this collection is that reading it made me wish I wrote more letters and had more celebrities among my circle of potential letter-receivers. Of course, inherent laziness being what it is (and the fact that I have so far been frustrated in all such attempts to gain the favor of our nation's collection of celebrities), I'll have to be content reading Groucho's correspondence. And, as alternatives go, it's not bad at all. The book is divided into ten sections: "Movie Business", "Private Life", "Touching On Television", "Groucho and Other Men of Letters", "Grouchy", "Broadway and Hollywood", "For Publication", "Friends Abroad", "The Faintly Political Scene", and "Short Shrift". Of course, there's quite a lot of overlap involved; Groucho had a tendency to ramble, so there isn't a simple way to categorize each individual letter. There are many highlights and surprises. Groucho's communications with the Warner Brother's legal division over the title "A Night In Casablanca" is probably one of the better known exchanges in Hollywood, and deservedly so as it's utterly hilarious. (In short, Warner Brothers claimed that the title violated their copyrights; Marx replies with typical nonsense and wit, claiming, among other things, to have a prior claim on the word "Brothers".) In a letter that I found surprising, Groucho chides the President of the Chrysler Corporation, suggesting that the car company paying more attention to safety concerns would be in everyone's interests as well as saving thousands of lives a year. Groucho Marx as a precursor to Ralph Nader? Who would have guessed it? Groucho's public persona was that of a sarcastic and wisecracking character. Naturally, that personality comes through in his letters. A few passages do put some balance on that. While about 90% of the mentions of his daughter are jokes about her annoying him and absorbing his money in vast quantities, there remains a slight 10% where an almost sweet nature comes through. In a similar vein, he writes a heartfelt letter to Jerry Lewis (of all people), imploring him to take a good hard look at whether he really wants to split with his comedy partner, Dean Martin. To Groucho's credit, he writes a follow-up letter a few years later apologizing for his earlier advice. It's hard to describe the bulk of these letters without simply summarizing them, so I will stop doing so, and will confine myself to simply recommending the book. Groucho corresponded with a wild variety of people in his day, and some of the biggest laughs come for people you wouldn't expect to be quite so witty.
Rating:
Summary: Not The Screwtape Letters
Review: The biggest compliment I can give this collection is that reading it made me wish I wrote more letters and had more celebrities among my circle of potential letter-receivers. Of course, inherent laziness being what it is (and the fact that I have so far been frustrated in all such attempts to gain the favor of our nation's collection of celebrities), I'll have to be content reading Groucho's correspondence. And, as alternatives go, it's not bad at all. The book is divided into ten sections: "Movie Business", "Private Life", "Touching On Television", "Groucho and Other Men of Letters", "Grouchy", "Broadway and Hollywood", "For Publication", "Friends Abroad", "The Faintly Political Scene", and "Short Shrift". Of course, there's quite a lot of overlap involved; Groucho had a tendency to ramble, so there isn't a simple way to categorize each individual letter. There are many highlights and surprises. Groucho's communications with the Warner Brother's legal division over the title "A Night In Casablanca" is probably one of the better known exchanges in Hollywood, and deservedly so as it's utterly hilarious. (In short, Warner Brothers claimed that the title violated their copyrights; Marx replies with typical nonsense and wit, claiming, among other things, to have a prior claim on the word "Brothers".) In a letter that I found surprising, Groucho chides the President of the Chrysler Corporation, suggesting that the car company paying more attention to safety concerns would be in everyone's interests as well as saving thousands of lives a year. Groucho Marx as a precursor to Ralph Nader? Who would have guessed it? Groucho's public persona was that of a sarcastic and wisecracking character. Naturally, that personality comes through in his letters. A few passages do put some balance on that. While about 90% of the mentions of his daughter are jokes about her annoying him and absorbing his money in vast quantities, there remains a slight 10% where an almost sweet nature comes through. In a similar vein, he writes a heartfelt letter to Jerry Lewis (of all people), imploring him to take a good hard look at whether he really wants to split with his comedy partner, Dean Martin. To Groucho's credit, he writes a follow-up letter a few years later apologizing for his earlier advice. It's hard to describe the bulk of these letters without simply summarizing them, so I will stop doing so, and will confine myself to simply recommending the book. Groucho corresponded with a wild variety of people in his day, and some of the biggest laughs come for people you wouldn't expect to be quite so witty.
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Wit Of All
Review: These letters are a treasure. I'm glad someone saved all of these. I wonder if Groucho copied all of them, or if all these people kept them after all of these years? Groucho's wit shines through in these letters. He is a good writer, and you learn a little about history while you read these entertaining letters.
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