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Irving Brecher

Summary

Irving S. Brecher (January 17, 1914 – November 17, 2008) was a screenwriter who wrote for the Marx Brothers among many others; he was the only writer to get sole credit on a Marx Brothers film, penning the screenplays for At the Circus (1939) and Go West (1940). He was also one of the numerous uncredited writers on the screenplay of The Wizard of Oz (1939). Some of his other screenplays were Shadow of the Thin Man (1941), Ziegfeld Follies (1945) and Bye Bye Birdie (1963).

Irving S. Brecher
Born(1914-01-17)January 17, 1914
New York City, US
DiedNovember 17, 2008 (age 94)[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11]
Los Angeles, California, US
Resting placeHillside Memorial Park, Culver City, California
Occupation(s)Screenwriter, producer, director
Years active1937–1963
Spouse(s)Eve Bennett
(m. ?–1981; her death)
Norma Brecher
(m. 1983–2008; his death)

Early years

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Brecher was born in the Bronx, New York, and grew up in Yonkers.[1]

Career

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Brecher moonlighted as a high school sports[1] reporter for the Yonkers Herald[12][13][14] while in high school[15] As a teenager he was writing jokes, sending them to newspaper columnists Walter Winchell and Ed Sullivan on postcards.[16]

At 19, Brecher's first professional involvement with movies was as an usher at a Manhattan, New York movie theater.[17][1]

As an aspiring young comedy writer, Brecher famously placed an ad in Variety looking for work, promising he could write "jokes so bad, even Milton Berle wouldn't steal them." He was promptly hired by Berle himself.[18]

He created, produced, and was head writer for the original radio and early TV edition of The Life of Riley.[19] He also wrote for Al Jolson on radio[20] and later created and co-produced The People's Choice as well.

Brecher's career in screenwriting began in 1937.[20]

Adapting Nathaniel Benchley's novel, he wrote the screenplay for, and directed Sail A Crooked Ship starring Ernie Kovacs and a young Robert Wagner.

He received an Academy Award nomination in 1944 for his screenplay of Meet Me in St Louis.[21]

Brecher, who bore a physical resemblance to Groucho Marx, once filled in for him in Marx Brothers publicity photos for the film At the Circus, despite an almost 25-year age difference.

Works

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  • Brecher, Irving; Rosenfeld, Hank (January 2008). The Wicked Wit of the West!: The Last Great Golden-Age Screenwriter Shares the Hilarity and Heartaches of Working with Groucho, Garland, Gleason, Burns, Berle, Benny and Many More. Ben Yehuda Press. ISBN 978-0-9789980-8-0. by Irving Brecher as told to Hank Rosenfeld, published posthumously

Death

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Brecher died November 17, 2008. He was survived by his wife and three stepchildren.[17]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Weber, Bruce (19 November 2008). "Irving Brecher, 94, Comedy-Script Writer, Is Dead". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  2. ^
    • "Vaudeville vet Irving Brecher dies". Variety. Associated Press. 19 November 2008. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
    • "Vaudeville vet Irving Brecher dies". Variety. Nov 19, 2008. Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  3. ^ McLellan, Dennis (19 November 2008). "Irving Brecher dies at 94; Comedy writer got an Oscar nod for 'Meet Me in St. Louis'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  4. ^ Scovell, Nell (25 November 2008). "Irving Brecher's World of Wit". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  5. ^ Romero, Frances (8 December 2008). "Irving Brecher". TIME. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  6. ^ "Obituaries: Irving Brecher, Radio, Stage, Screen Comedy Writer, 94". Jewish Journal. 26 November 2008. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  7. ^ Bergan, Ronald (12 March 2009). "Irving Brecher". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  8. ^ Eyman, Scott. "Irving Brecher RIP". The Palm Beach Post.
  9. ^ "Irving Brecher". The Telegraph. 20 November 2008. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  10. ^ "Irving Brecher: screenwriter who wrote two Marx Brothers films". thetimes.com. 29 November 2008. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  11. ^ "Irving Brecher". The Week. 25 November 2008. Archived from the original on 10 March 2025. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  12. ^ "About The Yonkers herald. [volume] (Yonkers, N.Y.) 1889-1932". National Endowment for the Humanities. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  13. ^ "Newspapers - Yonkers, N.Y." westchester.pastperfectonline.com. Westchester County Historical Society. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  14. ^ "The Yonkers Herald (Yonkers, NY) 1889-1932". loc.gov. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  15. ^ "Irving Brecher: Prolific comedy writer who scripted two films for the Marx Brothers". The Independent. 20 November 2008. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
  16. ^ "Irving Brecher". The Telegraph. November 20, 2008. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  17. ^ a b Bergan, Ronald (March 11, 2009). "Irving Brecher". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  18. ^ O'Brian, Jack (November 24, 1948). "Broadway". Fitchburg Sentinel. Fitchburg Sentinel. p. 6. Retrieved July 14, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.  
  19. ^ Schaden, Chuck (Spring 2009). "Necrology for 2008". Nostalgia Digest. 35 (2): 55–59.
  20. ^ a b Katz, Ephraim (1979). The Film Encyclopedia: The Most Comprehensive Encyclopedia of World Cinema in a Single Volume. Perigee Books. ISBN 0-399-50601-2. P.159.
  21. ^ Brecher, Irving (October 8, 1979). "Marx Brothers Revolutionized Early Years of Film Comedies". Asbury Park Press. Retrieved August 29, 2020.

Further reading

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Articles

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  • Mok, Michael (December 27, 1936). "Without Trying, E. Cantor Found First Rate Gagman". The Indianapolis Star.
  • Press Staff (March 21, 1937). "Youth Pens Radio Gags: Fellow Who Jibbed Milt Berle Becomes His Author for Network Show". The Pittsburgh Press.
  • Kaufmann, Wolf (December 16, 1940). "Hedda Hopper's Hollywood: Who-dunit?". The Herald-News.
  • Brecher, Irving (October 8, 1979). "Marx Brothers Revolutionized Early Years of Film Comedies". Asbury Park Press.
  • Schwartz, Ben (April 2006). "Old School: Irving Brecher is the last of a generation's gagmen". Written By. pp. 38-39, 40-41, 55

Books

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  • Server, Lee (1987). "Irving Brecher". Screenwriter: Words Become Pictures. pp. 49-50, 51-52, 53-54, 55-56, 57-58, 59-60, 61-62, 63-64, 65-66.
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  • Brecher (Irving) recordings - Online Archive of California
  • Irving Brecher Obituary Published by Los Angeles Times from Nov. 18 to Nov. 20, 2008
  • podcast of Irving Brecher's life
  • https://www.gettyimages.com/photos/Irving-Brecher

Metadata

  • Irving Brecher at the Internet Broadway Database  
  • https://catalog.afi.com/Person/73259-Irving-Brecher
  • https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/21615%7C73259/Irving-Brecher
  • https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/irving_brecher
  • Irving Brecher at IMDb
  • Irving Brecher at Find a Grave

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