T.S. Eliot & Groucho Marx
T.S. Eliot was a pioneer of the Modernist movement. He wrote plays, poems, and essays critiquing social and literary issues. He was educated at Harvard and Sorbonne and won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1948. He was also a giant fan of the slapstick antics of the Marx Brothers, which is why he wrote to Groucho Marx in 1961, asking for a signed photograph.
Groucho was the king of gags, always with a witty comeback at the ready. However, his greatest shame was the lack of a formal education, so he was ecstatic to have such an erudite fan. He promptly wrote back to Eliot, starting what would be a three-year, long-distance friendship. The two of them became pen pals, writing to each other and praising each other’s work.
Neither man realized this was a friendship best kept at a distance. It ended abruptly once the two had their first face-to-face meeting in 1964. Marx wanted to show Eliot how educated he was by discussing his essays and quoting his poems, while Eliot wanted to talk about old Marx Brothers films. Neither one got what he wanted—Groucho couldn’t remember the stuff Eliot wanted to know, while the author wasn’t really interested in hearing his own poetry recited back to him. They stopped communicating altogether shortly after that disastrous dinner. --
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