Rating: 
Summary: Revealing
Review: A fascinating, detailed look at the private and professional lives of the Marx Brothers, with many black and white photos throughout. The prose style was a bit much at times, but still I think this is a valuable work which sheds light on not only the Marx Brothers but also life in early 20th century America, and the immigrant experience.
Rating: 
Summary: A window into their world
Review: An excellent book not only for its analysis of their films, but for their homelife, which is where their unique humor originated. Like their onscreen characters, the brothers were distinguised by personality in real-life. Groucho was penny-pinching and yes, grouchy; Harpo, unlike his on-screen persona did not chase women, but was married and monagamous; Chico did chase women, was an inveterate gambler(at one point, he owed money to the mob) who couldn't remember his lines. The best part of the book is the author's description of their cruel, but always funny practical jokes on Margaret Dumont.
Rating:
Summary: A window into their madcap world
Review: An excellent book not only for Louvish's analysis of their films but for showing how their homelife at turn of the century New York influenced their humor. The author highlights the personality differences in each brother: Groucho was penny-pinching, cynical, and yes grouchy; Unlike his cinematic woman-chasing (literally) image, Harpo was happily-married and monogamous; and Chico was an inveterate gambler and womanizer.The author does a good job of highlighting their hilarous off-screen antics; of particular value is his recounting of their cruel but always hilarious practical jokes on the stiff and dignified Margaret Dumont.
Rating:
Summary: Well, "Monkey Business" IS my all time fave Marx movie......
Review: And I must say that this book of the same title is right up there too. I thought Simon Louvish did an excellent job of digging up the truth on the Marxian tales that have swirled around for many, many years. His research of the ancestral roots of Minnie and Sam "Frenchy" Marx are impeccable.....and Louvish's way of putting the "ages" of the brothers in their proper timeframe is first rate. I think he captured each brother perfectly. I was impressed at his case for giving Chico a hell of lot more credit in steering the brothers to superstardom. Chico was a go-getter, just like his mother Minnie, and I was happy to see Chico portrayed as something more than just the gambling, womanizing, loose cannon type of a guy we all know about (or thought we knew about). That's not to say Chico wasn't like that, it's just good to hear something else about him for a change (I'd kill to have the mathematical mind that guy had!). Harpo is always just the Harpo we all know (just like in "HARPO SPEAKS!") and love. He definitely marched to a beat of a different drummer (Louvish captures that perfectly), Harpo was his own man to say the least. That's a good thing. Groucho, is displayed (like usual) as cantankerous, moody and insulting (well, this IS Groucho we're talking about!). But Louvish gets into the reasons WHY Groucho was that way (let's just say insecurities MIGHT have played a small part in Groucho's disposition). For me, reading of Zeppo's burden of being so much younger and feeling he was always an afterthought is sad. To be bearing the middle name of his deceased eldest brother, you have to feel some sympathy towards the poor guy. Zep's talents lie elsewhere, as subsequent chapters explain. Louvish's use of prime Marxist dialogue is superb, and he really outdid himself in research at the Libary of Congress, finding several vintage manuscripts just lying there waiting to have their moment in print.......speaking of moments, I was really intrigued by the true story of Margaret Dumont. This woman managed to pull off the ultimate lifelong-practical joke on GROUCHO of all people. Read the book to see what I'm talking about. Everything you'd want to know about the Marxes is here, and there's so much irony in the stories, it's mind boggling. What really got me was the sad way each of their lives ended. None of them (except maybe Gummo) just went along peacefully. Chico died of arteriosclerosis, with practically nothing to show for all the glory years in the movies, Harpo had a heart attack during open-heart surgery (on his 28th wedding anniversary no less), Zeppo died of lung cancer. Groucho's surviving relatives' feud with Erin Fleming (even after Grouch was gone) was a sad closing to an amazing, but sometimes painful life. But it's the laughter that kept the brothers (and brought all of us) together. That's what this book celebrates more than anything. The genius of their comedy, their anarchistic style, they brought THEMSELVES to us, the movie goer. That's why almost 80 years later, we're still interested in them, because there was no one else like them, probably never will be. But it's the legacy of laughter they left behind, the legacy that Louvish writes about so beautifully. First rate book, get this one.
Rating: 
Summary: not worth plodding through
Review: As a new fan of the Marx Brothers, I raced to the library to learn more about their history. I stumbled upon "Monkey Business: The Lives and Legends of the Marx Brothers" and eagerly brought it home to devour. Much to my dismay, I found the book laden with dates (several of which, as the author meticulously points out) are incorrect. Mr. Louvish has deemed himself the debunker of Marx Brothers myths and goes through great pains to do so. He has a nasty habit of tossing out dates and name dropping when he is at a loss for words, and this annoys me to no end. I have found his dull style of writing to be as enticing as poking my eyes out with a blunt object. Do I really need to know how many times the Marx family was visited by the census taker? And is it entirely necessary for Mr. Louvish to discuss every erroneous legend the Marx Brothers ever created? I think that this book is frightfully dull and that it is best used as an instrument for keeping one's coffee table level. Stick to reading autobiographies of the Marx Brothers if you want to be able to finsh reading. But if you are a fan of superfluous writers, then perhaps Mr. Louvish is someone you would enjoy. Either way, I think the author needs to learn the fine art of self editing and verbal spring cleaning. Enough said.
Rating: 
Summary: A disapointment
Review: Considering an autographed picture of Groucho graces my office wall, I eagerly looked forward to a new look at the Brothers. Yet this volume is largely a disappointment. Louvish's stylistic flourishes (attempts at Marxesque puns, constant repetition of phrases throughout the book) distract from what should be a meaty read. The background on Margaret Dumont is interesting, but that's only a small portion of a 400 plus page book. I ended up skimming the last 200 pages in less than an hour. Ultimately this is a rehash of material better found elsewhere (Try Joe Adamson, Hector Arce, Harpo's autobiography, The Groucho Phile or Stefan Kanfer's flawed but fascinating Groucho bio)
Rating:
Summary: A disapointment
Review: Considering an autographed picture of Groucho graces my office wall, I eagerly looked forward to a new look at the Brothers. Yet this volume is largely a disappointment. Louvish's stylistic flourishes (attempts at Marxesque puns, constant repetition of phrases throughout the book) distract from what should be a meaty read. The background on Margaret Dumont is interesting, but that's only a small portion of a 400 plus page book. I ended up skimming the last 200 pages in less than an hour. Ultimately this is a rehash of material better found elsewhere (Try Joe Adamson, Hector Arce, Harpo's autobiography, The Groucho Phile or Stefan Kanfer's flawed but fascinating Groucho bio)
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing!
Review: Extremely well-researched but the writing is awful. His relentlessly jokey prose not only made reading difficult, but it sometimes made his points impossible to comprehend (e.g., the oft-told mule in Texas anecdote). Stick with the infinitely superior "Harpo Speaks!", by far the best book on the Brothers, and give this one a pass unless you are a total Marxist!
Rating:
Summary: Very Enjoyable
Review: I found "Monkey Business" very enjoyable and interesting. I had trouble putting the book down. It reads very quickly and is not dull or academic in the least. The one drawback I found was that the book is not as focused as Louvish's bio of W. C. Fields, but then here he is following five people as opposed to one. Still, this was a very good book. I liked the way Louvish challenged some old stories about the Marx Brothers, and I liked the way he made a case for Chico being the chief "behind the scenes" brother in business matters. His assessment of the films seemed quite fair to me, and I found it interesting that the Marxes (or their writers) originally intended "Duck Soup" to be more political, and that they made it after plans to film "Of Thee I Sing" fell through. Still, this is perhaps not the best "first book to read" on the Marx Brothers. I would nominate Joe Adamson's "Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Sometimes Zeppo" for that.
Rating:
Summary: Top Quality Biography
Review: I found "Monkey Business" very enjoyable and interesting. I had trouble putting the book down. It reads very quickly and is not dull or academic in the least. The one drawback I found was that the book is not as focused as Louvish's bio of W. C. Fields, but then here he is following five people as opposed to one. Still, this was a very good book. I liked the way Louvish challenged some old stories about the Marx Brothers, and I liked the way he made a case for Chico being the chief "behind the scenes" brother in business matters. His assessment of the films seemed quite fair to me, and I found it interesting that the Marxes (or their writers) originally intended "Duck Soup" to be more political, and that they made it after plans to film "Of Thee I Sing" fell through. Still, this is perhaps not the best "first book to read" on the Marx Brothers. I would nominate Joe Adamson's "Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Sometimes Zeppo" for that.
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