From Publishers Weekly
Groucho Marx and his sidekick, screenwriter Frank Denby, investigate the murder of Randy Spellman, a libidinous actor who plays a Tarzan-like character called Ty-Gor, in Goulart's amusing if routine sixth outing featuring the fabled comedian as sleuth (after 2002's Groucho Marx, Secret Agent). Despite Denby's promises to his pregnant wife, Jane, to avoid any more detecting, he and Groucho are soon up to their necks in the case. Groucho greets fans, suspects and cops with quips that might have come from a Marx brothers movie or the You Bet Your Life TV show as he and straight-man Denby follow the dead Lothario's tracks through discarded starlets and a nasty blackmail sideline. Goulart fleshes out the 1940 Hollywood setting effectively with references to real stars and events of the times. Groucho as a fictional detective induces laughs, but Goulart doesn't quite capture the biting, madcap humor of the original.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Présentation de l'éditeur
Frank Denby and Groucho Marx arrive on the set of the new Ty-Gor film, a Tarzan knockoff, expecting to have Groucho do his humorous walk-on. What they find is that Randy Spellman, the star of the picture, has been murdered. Frank’s wife, Jane, is only a few weeks away from having their baby and the amateur detective team has promised to lay off on the sleuthing. But when a stuntwoman who has gone missing is suspected of the murder, Jane insists they take up the case to clear the young woman’s name.
In addition to being a horrible actor, Spellman was a womanizer and a blackmailer. Many people had reason to dislike him, or even kill him, and the investigation leads Frank and Groucho through the glamour and seediness of 1940s Hollywood, Groucho signing autographs all the while.
In this latest installment of the series, Ron Goulart is at the top of his game, reminding readers there’s no business like show business, except when this charming team is wearing its gumshoes.
In addition to being a horrible actor, Spellman was a womanizer and a blackmailer. Many people had reason to dislike him, or even kill him, and the investigation leads Frank and Groucho through the glamour and seediness of 1940s Hollywood, Groucho signing autographs all the while.
In this latest installment of the series, Ron Goulart is at the top of his game, reminding readers there’s no business like show business, except when this charming team is wearing its gumshoes.
