Who dat man?

Before getting to my subject, and in case you were wondering (and one of you at least was), the reason for no posts recently is... well a certain amount of lack of muse, but also being busy with teaching maths, physics, electronics and statistics to a student here. Which is kind of all-consuming, because teaching reveals how little one actually understands the subject that one's life has been largely built around. In a teacher - student relationship I wonder does the teacher actually learn more than the student does?

Back to the subject. In odd moments in between lesson preparation, and for brain relief, I occasionally flip through some comedy on youtube and more often than not end up choosing the Marx brothers. Because their humour is the best and has stood the test of time. And of the Marx brothers without doubt IMHO Harpo was the most talented. Interestingly, outside of acting he seems to have been the most stable of the brothers, witness a lifelong marriage and four adopted children.

My introduction to the Marx brothers was through my best friend N at school and, once discovered, my first proper viewing was clandestine on an ancient 405-line TV hidden away in my parent's guest-room. Clandestine because my parents did not at that time want a TV in the house. Ancient because when given to me to mess with the TV did not of course work - when plugged in it would blow the mains fuse. I discovered the offending component by increasing the fuse wire gauge until the component blew rather than the fuse. A rather coarse method of diagnosis but it worked well in this particular occasion. And yes I did know, even at that tender age, that TV's back then were not isolated from the mains and also had about 20,000V flying around inside, so they were not exactly safe for a kid to be messing with. But then I was no ordinary kid. Which accolade I still maintain.

And it just so happened that, at the time, the BBC was airing a series of Marx brothers films. May the BBC be eternally blessèd. In this and other ways the BBC has moulded my career.

Of the various scenes in which Harpo is the primary actor my favourite has long been his Gabriel scene. Not that this scene is humorous but it is endearing, full of humanity, love and all things good.

And whilst we are on the subject of Harpo, here is a good compilation of his more humorous skits for those of you that will not or cannot take the time to watch the full movies.

Adolph, I salute you.  And I thank you for in some small way moulding my character for the good. I suppose some might say he was a bad influence but I cannot agree.