Marx Brothers
The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act that was successful in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in motion pictures from 1905 to 1949. Five of the Marx Brothers' thirteen feature films were selected by the American Film Institute (AFI) ...
Bert Kalmar
Bert Kalmar (February 10, 1884 – September 18, 1947) was an American songwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. He was also a screenwriter.
Biography
Kalmar, a native of New York City, left school at an early ag ...
and
Harry Ruby
Harry Rubenstein (January 27, 1895 – February 23, 1974), known professionally as Harry Ruby, was an American actor, pianist, composer, songwriter and screenwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.Groucho, along with
Margaret Dumont
Margaret Dumont (born Daisy Juliette Baker; October 20, 1882 – March 6, 1965) was an American stage and film actress. She is best remembered as the comic foil to the Marx Brothers in seven of their films; Groucho Marx called her "practically ...
, just before the dialogue that preceded the song "
Hooray for Captain Spaulding
"Hooray for Captain Spaulding" is a song, composed by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby originally from the 1928 Marx Brothers Broadway musical ''Animal Crackers'' and the 1930 film version. It later became well known as the theme song for the Grouch ...
". It did not feature in the earlier stage production of ''Animal Crackers'' which opened on Broadway in 1928.
In the film story the song, together with “
Hooray For Captain Spaulding
"Hooray for Captain Spaulding" is a song, composed by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby originally from the 1928 Marx Brothers Broadway musical ''Animal Crackers'' and the 1930 film version. It later became well known as the theme song for the Grouch ...
”, create a mock grand operatic entry, complete with chorus, for the famed African explorer
Captain Spaulding
Captain Jeffrey T. Spaulding is a fictional character in the Broadway musical ''Animal Crackers'' and the film of the same name. He was originally played by actor Groucho Marx, one of the Marx Brothers, in both productions. Despite his middle na ...
, played by Groucho. The song expresses Spaulding's contempt for this elaborate welcome.
The song is very closely associated with Groucho. A biography of Groucho was titled, '' Hello, I Must be Going!'' He also sang the song, with Erin Fleming, as the opening number of his Carnegie Hall concert in 1972.
Other performances
In Oliver Stone's TV mini-series '' Wild Palms (1993)'', the title of the fifth and final episode, directed by
Phil Joanou
Phil Joanou (born November 20, 1961) is an American director of film, music videos, and television programs, known in part for his ongoing relationship to the band U2.
Biography
Joanou was born in La Cañada Flintridge, California, and began m ...
, was "Hello, I Must Be Going". The Marx Brothers song itself was sung by the character Senator Anton Kreutzer (played by
Robert Loggia
Salvatore "Robert" Loggia ( , ; January 3, 1930 – December 4, 2015) was an American actor. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for '' Jagged Edge'' (1985) and won the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for ...