Zeppo Marx

Herbert Marx (February 25, 1901–November 29, 1979) is best known as Zeppo Marx, the name he used when he performed with his brothers, The Marx Brothers.

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There are different theories to where Zeppo got his stage name: Groucho once said that the name was derived from the Zeppelin, a new invention at the time of his birth. However, it is more commonly suggested that the name derived from that of another vaudeville performer named Mr. Zippo. It is possible that both are true and that some punning was involved. (Another story tells of the time the Marxes were pretending to be gentleman farmers in order to avoid conscription into World War I. The brothers would refer to each other by "hayseed" names like Zeke and Zeb; Zeb became Zeppo.)

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Zeppo appeared in the first five Marx Brothers movies, as a straight man and romantic lead, before leaving the team. He had sufficient comic abilities to have stood in for Groucho when the brothers performed on stage, and he was reputed to be very funny offstage; but he never invented a comic persona of his own that could stand up against those of Groucho, Harpo and Chico Marx, even though the role he used to fill would continue to exist in the brothers' remaining films.

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Offstage, Zeppo had great mechanical skills and was largely responsible for keeping the Marx family car running. Zeppo later owned a company which machined parts for the war effort during World War II including the clamps used to hold the Hiroshima bomb inside the Enola Gay. He also founded a large theatrical agency with his brother Gummo Marx, and invented a wrist watch that would monitor the pulse rate of cardiac patients and give off an alarm if they went into cardiac arrest.

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On April 12, 1927, Zeppo married Marion Benda. The couple would adopt one child, Timothy, in 1944 and would later divorce on May 12, 1954. On September 18, 1959, Zeppo married Barbara Blakeley, whose son, Bobby Oliver, he adopted and gave his surname. Zeppo and Blakely would divorce in 1972 or 1973. Blakely would later marry singer Frank Sinatra.

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The last of the Marx Brothers by 1979, he died of lung cancer at the age of 78.

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February 25: February 25 is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 309 days remaining, 310 in leap years....

1901: 1901 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar)....

1979: This page refers to the year 1979. For the Smashing Pumpkins song, see 1979 (song)....

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