WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?!?!

Posted: 8/29/16 at 12:01am

HELLO EVERYONE, 

I was cast as Banjo in The Man Who Came to Dinner. It has been very fun studying this character, especially once I learned from my director that he is based off of Harpo Marx. 

I've been doing some research on the plethora of 1930s references, and there is one Banjo line that is bugging me. 

The line is "Come to my room in half an hour, and bring some rye bread" 

Is there any reason for this line other than it re-affirms that Banjo is insane? Is there a reason rye bread is chosen? 

It's a disturbingly funny and odd line and maybe there's nothing more to it, but any insight from y'all is appreciated! 

 

[gallerygirl]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 12:26am

I'm sure it's meant to be a non-sequitur typical of Marx Brothers' humor. The script of ONCE IN A LIFETIME  (same authors) is also dotted with them.

[AHLiebross]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 1:04am

Congrats on getting the role. I agree that there's probably a meaning. Could it be found in a Marx brothers movie?

[A Director]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 2:05am

I don't think the choice of rye bread has any special meaning.  The Marx Brothers were Jewish and some Jews like rye bread, so perhaps that is why Kaufman and Hart picked rye bead.  However, this is probably stretching things a bit.

A word of caution - Banjo is not insane. There is nothing in the script to support this idea.  None of the Marx Brothers were insane.  The use of non-sequiturs is not a sign of insanity.  If you play Banjo as insane, you will not be a success.

To gain some understanding of the Marx Brothers comic style, watch these three films: The Cocoanuts, Animal Crackers and A Night At The Opera.  The first two are based on the musical of the same title.  Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind wrote the books for both.  The screenplay for the third was written by Kaufman and Ryskind.  Do not watch the movie version of The Man Who Came To Dinner.  Jimmy Durante plays Banjo and is all wrong for the part.

If you have any free time, find a copy of Harpo's autobiography, Harpo Speaks.  It's wonderful.

Here's one of my favorite Harpo stories.  Harpo and others were visiting Kaufman and his wife, Bea, at their farm in Bucks County, PA.  There was one guest nobody liked, but they couldn't think of a way to get rid of him.  Harpo went into the kitchen, put on a long white apron and poured a bottle of ketchup on it.  He walked out holding a large knife and said to Bea, "I just killed the cat.  How many did you say there were for lunch?"  The unwanted guest left.

[DooWahDiddy]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 2:06am

Looks like it's from Animal Crackers.

 

Also, someone wrote a book about the Marx Brothers' jokes, and he thinks it might be a reference to rye whiskey.

[chewy5000]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 2:26am

I'd hazard a guess that its a simple  case of  noodle implements?

[John Adams]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 8:19am

Typical of Marx brothers humor, it's meant to sound lascivious. To try and pinpoint a specific meaning would be killing the humorous, open-ended, sexual innuendo, but something along the lines of, "I'm gonna eat you like a sandwich". The humor comes from implying a lewd act by saying something fairly common or tame.

And as mentioned earlier, rye bread was/is considered an especially tasty treat, so whatever happens in his room is going to be good... (at least for him, since she's supplying the rye bread!)

If you want to go overboard to drive the line home to the audience, lick or smack your lips after you say the line (but I think that really is overkill, and wouldn't be representative of the time period, or Marx brothers delivery of sexual innuendo).

If Banjo were based on Moe Howard of the Three Stooges, he would probably bark and snap at her (like a dog) after delivering the line.

Updated On: 8/29/16 at 08:19 AM

[followspot]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 8:29am

Although "rye bread" was also code for "Jewish" in Yiddish-based comedy of the time (as opposed to "white bread"/Protestant), the humor in the line quoted primarily comes from the non sequitur of "rye bread" being made lascivious in the audience's mind through its comically illogical context.

 

Updated On: 8/29/16 at 08:29 AM

[LuminousBeing]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 8:50am

"Duck Soup" "A Night in Casablacca,"  and "A Day at the Races" are wonderful Marx Brothers films, too! "A Night at the Opera" is probably my favorite, but every film has at least a few priceless moments. 

[wonkit]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 9:18am

Congratulations on getting the part. I agree with previous posters that no Marx Brothers character is "insane" or even "disturbing." This is fast, frequently silly word play, and you don't want to hit any line too hard. Groucho was a master of the pause, too - maybe "Meet me in my room in half an hour ... and bring rye bread"?  The audience can then react to the additional information as surprising (non-sequitur) or suggestive (hunger, sexual or otherwise). But keep it light. They had censors in the 1930's, and they were pretty dumb, but anything too obvious would have been a problem. 

[John Adams]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 10:21am

I would disagree that the line is a non-sequitur because a non-sequitur would imply a lack of intent or meaning ['absurdity']. I definitely think Banjo is cheekily expressing his "intentions" with the Nurse.

But dispensing with "right" or "wrong", how great is it to have these options? Enjoy your journey!

[PalJoey]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 10:31am

In the Marx Brothers/George S. Kaufman world, rye bread is good, white bread is bad.

I'll bring the rye bread!" or "Bring some rye bread!" or "You bring the rye bread!" are just expressions that mean, "We're gonna have a good time" or "Let's have a party!"

A Jewish mother might say her son is such a good boy, "He's like a nice slice fresh rye bread."

It even became a baseball expression for cheering the team on to get a home run: "Bring on the rye bread and mustard, Grandma--it's grand salami time!" (Grand salami = grand slam.)

So I wouldn't worry too much about the "meaning"--it's just means "This is gonna be good!"

[Mike Bevel]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 8:56pm

PalJoey said: "In the Marx Brothers/George S. Kaufman world, rye bread is good, white bread is bad.

I'll bring the rye bread!" or "Bring some rye bread!" or "You bring the rye bread!" are just expressions that mean, "We're gonna have a good time" or "Let's have a party!"

A Jewish mother might say her son is such a good boy, "He's like a nice slice fresh rye bread."

It even became a baseball expression for cheering the team on to get a home run: "Bring on the rye bread and mustard, Grandma--it's grand salami time!" (Grand salami = grand slam.)

So I wouldn't worry too much about the "meaning"--it's just means "This is gonna be good!""

Literally none of these things is true.

 

[PalJoey]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 9:55pm

Kiss my kishkes.

Updated On: 8/29/16 at 09:55 PM

[Drewski Vanderbilt]

Posted: 8/29/16 at 10:43pm

When I was banjo, we didn't really get that either, we played it more of him just making a joke than anything. Now that I've typed my post, I've realized how it doesn't really make any contribution to anything.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 12:50pm

It's a funny line by a comic who understands that sometimes the funniest things are the most unexpected and only vaguely explicable.  Detachment from meaning and very loose if any attachment to meaning are features of comedy.   

If you, like me, agree that this line is very funny, you probably realize that it's funny because it defies all expectation, it's completely unpredictable and doesn't have an easy explanation, nor is it meant to.

Drewski, I disagree that you made no contribution by offering that Banjo is joking.  That's exactly correct.

Banjo is entertaining Miss Preen, Sheridan, and perhaps most of all himself by being zany and preposterous.  (Of course he could also be really hitting on Preen, a choice the actor can easily make, given that Banjo is a lothario, whether in antic, earnest, or both the actor can decide).   

Whippersnapper, I would suggest you need to take the "why" of this behavior and text as serious as any other behavior and text from any other character.   You need to discover what about Banjo makes him need to be the way he is, how far he will go for a laugh, what he gets out of it, etc..   And what makes him so confident that the line is not only amusing but the ideally funny line for that moment.  And, as your question indicates, you are taking it seirously.   

But if you are looking for any kind of intended literal meaning, e.g. what the rye bread would have to do with any actual tryst between Preen and Banjo, you might well be asking the wrong question.  Because, as Banjo knows better than anyone, the charm of Preen bringing rye bread when she would come to his room has only an amusingly wacky, disconnected relationship to reality.  

Updated On: 8/30/16 at 12:50 PM

Posted: 9/1/16 at 7:16pm

Thanks for all the advice, everyone! I had a feeling the line had no significance other than being a whacky line to catch people off guard. But with there being a TON of other period specific references I just had to ask. 

I agree that Banjo isn't crazy per say, but rather zany in a way and very thought out in his movements. 

 

Now, how do you take a character like Harpo who doesn't talk at all in his movies and give him a voice? What kind of mannerisms do you think he has?