Margaret Dumont
Acting
- Born:
- 1882-10-19
- Died:
- 1965-03-06
- Place of birth:
- Brooklyn, New York, USA
Biography
Margaret Dumont would probably consider it a tragedy that she is best-known for her performances as the ultimate straight woman in seven of the Marx Brothers' films (including most of their best). By all accounts she never understood their jokes (offscreen and on), which is of course a major reason why she's so funny. Apart from a small role in a 1917 Dickens adaptation, she spent her early career on the stage, ending up with the Marxes in the late 1920s in the stage versions of The Cocoanuts (1929) and Animal Crackers (1930), and was given a Paramount contract at the same time they were. She played similar roles alongside other great comedians, including W.C. Fields, Laurel & Hardy and Jack Benny and also played straight dramatic parts (her chief love), but few of them made much impact - it is as Groucho Marx's foil that she ranks among the immortals, and she died shortly after being reunited with him on "The Hollywood Palace" (1964).
Known For
Filmography
Hidden Hollywood II: More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults
The Marx Brothers in a Nutshell
The Hollywood Clowns
That's Entertainment, Part II
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
What a Way to Go!
Zotz!
Around the World with Nellie Bly
Auntie Mame
The Donna Reed Show
Shake, Rattle and Rock!
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Stop, You're Killing Me
Three for Bedroom C
Racket Squad
The Colgate Comedy Hour
Susie Steps Out
Little Giant
Sunset in El Dorado
Diamond Horseshoe
The Horn Blows at Midnight
Bathing Beauty
Seven Days Ashore
Up in Arms
The Dancing Masters
Rhythm Parade
Tales of Manhattan
About Face
Sing Your Worries Away
Born to Sing
Never Give a Sucker an Even Break
The Big Store
For Beauty's Sake
At the Circus
Dramatic School
Wise Girl
High Flyers
Youth on Parole
The Life of the Party
A Day at the Races
Arbor Day
Song and Dance Man
Anything Goes
A Night at the Opera
Rendezvous
Reckless
Gypsy Sweetheart
After Office Hours
Kentucky Kernels
Gridiron Flash
Fifteen Wives
Duck Soup
Storm at Daybreak
Wonderland of California
Here, Prince
The Girl Habit
Animal Crackers
The Cocoanuts
Enemies of Women
A Tale of Two Cities