…Roy Blount Jr. takes on "Duck Soup," not as a film critic or as a culture pundit or even as a comedy writer, but as a passionate amateur fan…Folksy, warm and up on his Marx lore—he seems not only to have seen every one of the brothers' movies, but to have read early drafts of every script—Blount makes for swell company.
—The New York Times
Roy Blount Jr., knows from humor…In this short, zippy tribute, he sets out to remedy the lack of a scene-by-scene commentary on the DVD of the Marx Brothers' greatest movie, the sublimely nonsensical "Duck Soup" (1933).
—The Washington Post
Hail, Hail, Euphoria! is the most lyrical, insightful, scholarly, illuminating and celebratory 144 pages I’ve ever sat down with. This book is a stream of fun.” — Wall Street Journal
“Roy Blount Jr. knows from humor. In [Hail, Hail, Euphoria!], he sets out to remedy the lack of a scene-by-scene commentary on the Marx Brothers’ greatest movie, the sublimely nonsensical Duck Soup.” — Washington Post
“An essential read for Marx Brothers fans, those curious about the melding of war and humor in film, and browsers looking for a good read.” — Library Journal
“Readers will enjoy the stories behind this iconic film and the careers of the Marx Brothers.” — Booklist
“Roy Blount Jr. deconstructs the Marx Brothers’ magic.” — Los Angeles Times
Roy Blount Jr. deconstructs the Marx Brothers’ magic.
Roy Blount Jr. knows from humor. In [Hail, Hail, Euphoria!], he sets out to remedy the lack of a scene-by-scene commentary on the Marx Brothers’ greatest movie, the sublimely nonsensical Duck Soup.
Readers will enjoy the stories behind this iconic film and the careers of the Marx Brothers.
Hail, Hail, Euphoria! is the most lyrical, insightful, scholarly, illuminating and celebratory 144 pages I’ve ever sat down with. This book is a stream of fun.
Roy Blount Jr. knows from humor. In [Hail, Hail, Euphoria!], he sets out to remedy the lack of a scene-by-scene commentary on the Marx Brothers’ greatest movie, the sublimely nonsensical Duck Soup.
Readers will enjoy the stories behind this iconic film and the careers of the Marx Brothers.
Roy Blount Jr. deconstructs the Marx Brothers’ magic.
Hail, Hail, Euphoria! is the most lyrical, insightful, scholarly, illuminating and celebratory 144 pages I’ve ever sat down with. This book is a stream of fun.
Blount (Robert E. Lee: A Life; Alphabet Juice), the renowned humorist and NPR contributor (Wait Wait…Don't Tell Me!), offers a fully entertaining part biography, part film review, and part sociocultural exploration. He readily admits that he has long been a convert to the cult of the Marx Brothers and that Duck Soup is one of the greatest films ever made. More than just a compendium of reasons the film and the Marxes are still influential nearly 80 years after its release, the narrative jumps among the film—which Blount was watching on YouTube as he was writing—the script, and the historical background of some of the film's most obscure references. VERDICT An essential read for Marx Brothers fans, those curious about the melding of war and humor in film, and browsers looking for a good read.—Teri Shiel, Westfield State Coll. Lib., MA
