Could Harpo Marx speak

Answer 1

He never "spoke" in the Marx Brother films but he did speak in one movie. It was called Too Many Kisses (1925). But, it was a silent movie. The audience saw him move his lips and then read the title card. According to Wikipedia, this is what is said about Harpo "speaking" in the Marx brother's movies: In the Marx Brothers' movie At the Circus (1939), however, Harpo speaks in a movie with the brothers in the scene in which he visits the room of Little Professor Atom (Jerry Maren), Harpo sneezes, clearly saying "At-choo!". In A Night in Casablanca, Harpo also "speaks" in the scene where he is taste-testing Groucho's food by acting like a seal and vocalizing seal sounds. It is also implied that Harpo is singing in the opening scene of Monkey Business (1931), where the four Marx Brothers, stowed away in barrels aboard a cruise liner, sing a four-part harmony of "Sweet Adeline."

Answer 2

No. He could and often did speak. According to Wikipedia: In fact, radio and TV news recordings of his voice can be found on the internet, documentaries, and on bonus materials of Marx Brothers DVDs. In relating one story to a reporter who interviwed him in the early 1930s, Harpo had a distinguished voice like a professional announcer, and like his brothers he had a New York accent his entire life (for example: "girls" he would pronounce "giles", turkey would be "tike-ee", etc). In private, Harpo actually had a much deeper and more resonant speaking voice than Groucho, which some suspect may be the real reason he was dissuaded from ever speaking in the act. For reference, his voice was fairly similar to Chico's, perhaps too similar, which would be another reason he developed his unique silent stage persona. It is also possible that his rich voice was completely at odds with his puckish character.

Answer 3

Of course [http://www.answers.com/topic/harpo-marx Harpo] could speak. Early in his career, however, he found that his [http://www.answers.com/topic/pantomime pantomime] was better appreciated than his dialogue, and he decided to communicate on-screen only through horns and whistling. Born on [http://www.answers.com/topic/november-23 November 23], 1888, Harpo never learned to read music, but he played several instruments. His favorite was the [http://www.answers.com/topic/harp harp], and he played it in nearly all of the movies he made. Out of costume, Harpo showed a remarkable resemblance to his older brother, [http://www.answers.com/topic/chico-marx Chico]. Once, Chico appeared on the game show [http://www.answers.com/topic/i-ve-got-a-secret I've Got a Secret] in Harpo's wig and costume. His secret? "I'm Pretending To Be Harpo Marx (I'm Chico)." Chico fooled all the panelists - including his brother [http://www.answers.com/topic/groucho-marx-comedian Groucho].[http://reference.answers.com/ ]

Read more: [http://www.answers.com/#ixzz1698IKWeQ http://www.answers.com#ixzz1698IKWeQ]

Answer 4

Yes. Harpo Marx could speak, but after reading a review of one of his performances, written by a theater critic;

"Adolph Marx performed beautiful pantomime which was ruined whenever he spoke."

Harpo refrained from speech in later performances.

Answer 5

Yes, but Harp Marx was a softly spoken man. Since he didn't sound like the other brothers, they decided that in the act he would be silent.

Answer 6

Yes