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Groucho Marx, Master Detective #3
Elementary, My Dear Groucho
When a body is found in Holmes's 221B Baker Street lodgings on the set at Mammoth Studios during the shooting of The Valley of Fear , Groucho and his sidekick Frank Denby begin investigating.
The victim is the German emigre director of the movie who was found in the great detective's favorite armchair, stabbed in the chest with Holmes's pearl-handled letter opener. There is another murder but it takes more than murder to stifle Groucho's quips or to quiet the laughter this surprising reincarnation inspires.
The victim is the German emigre director of the movie who was found in the great detective's favorite armchair, stabbed in the chest with Holmes's pearl-handled letter opener. There is another murder but it takes more than murder to stifle Groucho's quips or to quiet the laughter this surprising reincarnation inspires.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published November 23, 1999
About the author
Ron Goulart
605 books99 followersPseudonyms: Howard Lee; Frank S Shawn; Kenneth Robeson; Con Steffanson; Josephine Kains; Joseph Silva; William Shatner.
Ron Goulart is a cultural historian and novelist. Besides writing extensively about pulp fiction—including the seminal Cheap Thrills: An Informal History of Pulp Magazines (1972)—Goulart has written for the pulps since 1952, when the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction published his first story, a sci-fi parody of letters to the editor. Since then he has written dozens of novels and countless short stories, spanning genres and using a variety of pennames, including Kenneth Robeson, Joseph Silva, and Con Steffanson. In the 1990s, he became the ghostwriter for William Shatner’s popular TekWar novels. Goulart’s After Things Fell Apart (1970) is the only science-fiction novel to ever win an Edgar Award.
In the 1970s Goulart wrote novels starring series characters like Flash Gordon and the Phantom, and in 1980 he published Hail Hibbler, a comic sci-fi novel that began the Odd Jobs, Inc. series. Goulart has also written several comic mystery series, including six books starring Groucho Marx. Having written for comic books, Goulart produced several histories of the art form, including the Comic Book Encyclopedia (2004).
Ron Goulart is a cultural historian and novelist. Besides writing extensively about pulp fiction—including the seminal Cheap Thrills: An Informal History of Pulp Magazines (1972)—Goulart has written for the pulps since 1952, when the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction published his first story, a sci-fi parody of letters to the editor. Since then he has written dozens of novels and countless short stories, spanning genres and using a variety of pennames, including Kenneth Robeson, Joseph Silva, and Con Steffanson. In the 1990s, he became the ghostwriter for William Shatner’s popular TekWar novels. Goulart’s After Things Fell Apart (1970) is the only science-fiction novel to ever win an Edgar Award.
In the 1970s Goulart wrote novels starring series characters like Flash Gordon and the Phantom, and in 1980 he published Hail Hibbler, a comic sci-fi novel that began the Odd Jobs, Inc. series. Goulart has also written several comic mystery series, including six books starring Groucho Marx. Having written for comic books, Goulart produced several histories of the art form, including the Comic Book Encyclopedia (2004).
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
January 31, 2013
I really wanted to like this book. I adore the Marx Brothers and humorous mysteries. The Groucho dialogue bits were quite grand, but that just wasn't enough to raise the whole book up. The plot was lacking something, and it just didn't have the zaniness that one would expect from a work that includes the Marx Brothers. It is, I believe, the third in a series (and the only one currently available on Kindle). If I ever stumble across the first one, I might sample it to see if it was more inspired; sometimes first books are.
June 11, 2019
Every self-respecting film buff is well acquainted with the Marx Brothers. Both Duck Soup and A Night at the Opera are among the top twelve comic films selected by the American Film Institute, and three others they made join them in the top 100. There were five brothers. But of all five, the only one who built a successful career on television was Groucho. You Bet Your Life, the quiz show that showcased him, ran on radio and TV from 1947 to 1961. With his obvious intelligence and wildly imaginative non sequiturs, he was a natural for the printed page as well. And popular historian and novelist Ron Goulart does him proud in the six Groucho Marx Mysteries published from 1998 to 2005.
In Goulart's imagination, Groucho teams up with a young scriptwriter named Frank Denby on a radio show in the late 1930s called Groucho Marx, Master Detective. Fiction soon turns to fact, and the pair find themselves solving first one then a second murder. But in the third book, Elementary, My Dear Groucho, the show has been canceled, and the Marx Brothers's film career is at a standstill. Groucho and Frank are attempting to peddle a script for a new film to Mammoth Pictures when Groucho and Frank discover the body of a famous director on the set of his new film about Sherlock Holmes. And the star of the film, a pompous British actor, announces that he will solve the crime. Which is how, shortly before Christmas 1938, the comedian comes to match wits with Sherlock Holmes.
Groucho Marx versus Sherlock Holmes
Well, obviously now, Groucho and Frank will beat the actor to the punch. No question about it. But getting from the discovery of the body to unmasking the killers takes readers on a hilarious romp through the upper echelons of Hollywood society during its golden age. Frank's new wife, Jane Danner ("America's best-looking cartoonist"), joins the team. Together they encounter a German spy, uniformed Nazi thugs, smug British expats, a dog who stars in films, and clueless studio executives. Along the way, they cross paths with Dashiell Hammett, P. G. Wodehouse, Conrad Nagel, and other stars of the age. And, oh, yes, they bring the murderers to justice.
Charm and humor abound in this delightful story
The charm, and humor, of this delightful story comes largely in the dialogue. There's Groucho, of course, insulting everyone around him and himself with equal abandon. When he learns that his out-of-work partner is married to a woman whose comic strip is generating a lucrative income, he can't resist commenting. "[I]t's nice that you're being kept by such a bright, attractive young lady as Jane. Now, the last woman who kept me insisted on keeping me in a very cramped duffel bag. What with me, my salt and pepper shaker collection, and all those stray duffels in there, it was far from roomy." There's lots of this. And now it's all rubbing off on Frank and Jane, both of whom hold their own with Groucho to hilarious result.
In Goulart's imagination, Groucho teams up with a young scriptwriter named Frank Denby on a radio show in the late 1930s called Groucho Marx, Master Detective. Fiction soon turns to fact, and the pair find themselves solving first one then a second murder. But in the third book, Elementary, My Dear Groucho, the show has been canceled, and the Marx Brothers's film career is at a standstill. Groucho and Frank are attempting to peddle a script for a new film to Mammoth Pictures when Groucho and Frank discover the body of a famous director on the set of his new film about Sherlock Holmes. And the star of the film, a pompous British actor, announces that he will solve the crime. Which is how, shortly before Christmas 1938, the comedian comes to match wits with Sherlock Holmes.
Groucho Marx versus Sherlock Holmes
Well, obviously now, Groucho and Frank will beat the actor to the punch. No question about it. But getting from the discovery of the body to unmasking the killers takes readers on a hilarious romp through the upper echelons of Hollywood society during its golden age. Frank's new wife, Jane Danner ("America's best-looking cartoonist"), joins the team. Together they encounter a German spy, uniformed Nazi thugs, smug British expats, a dog who stars in films, and clueless studio executives. Along the way, they cross paths with Dashiell Hammett, P. G. Wodehouse, Conrad Nagel, and other stars of the age. And, oh, yes, they bring the murderers to justice.
Charm and humor abound in this delightful story
The charm, and humor, of this delightful story comes largely in the dialogue. There's Groucho, of course, insulting everyone around him and himself with equal abandon. When he learns that his out-of-work partner is married to a woman whose comic strip is generating a lucrative income, he can't resist commenting. "[I]t's nice that you're being kept by such a bright, attractive young lady as Jane. Now, the last woman who kept me insisted on keeping me in a very cramped duffel bag. What with me, my salt and pepper shaker collection, and all those stray duffels in there, it was far from roomy." There's lots of this. And now it's all rubbing off on Frank and Jane, both of whom hold their own with Groucho to hilarious result.
June 23, 2025
On the plus side, this is the smoothest and fastest of the series so far, and Mr. Goulart's commitment to Groucho patter is thankfully not as persistent as in the first two. We have nice progress in the supporting cast as Frank and Jane are now married and she is quite successful (more than Frank is these days). There is very little of the "uh-oh, will Groucho get killed?" meaningless "suspense," since we have always known Groucho didn't die in the '30s, fortunately for us. The investigation is fairly quick and easy, with none of the last-minute delaying "twists" or "wait, we can't get out!" irritating pseudo-thrilling perils just before the revelation. There is also a brief cameo from the talkative gal we met last time, who you'd hope would become a recurring character, but she is only there for one brief scene and forgotten, which does not bode well for book four.
On the negative side, Mr. Goulart's insistence that we be constantly reminded Golden Age Hollywood was populated mostly by bigoted, mysoginistic, anti-Semites who all cursed and insulted their way through life is in full force again. The rest of the population consisted of self-important, vapid ego-maniacs who cannot tell humor from sincerity, even from Groucho Marx, whom they all know. This is a Christmas story primarily about Nazis hating Jews and the upcoming war (the year is 1938), which our characters both know is coming and don't know is coming, depending on what mood they are in. And Jane, who is still fairly smart and strong and not too much "early Doctor Who companion that is a scientist but also mostly screams at the unknown," for some reason does not want to think about her own happiness, since war and sadness are coming. While that may sound like intelligent empathy on her part, the presentation of the scene is not so humane, mainly just an odd downer right before Christmas presents that they shouldn't talk about being happy since it could stop at any moment.
It's the odd moments like this that perplex: is this gritty realism of the '30s? if so, why is Groucho Marx the lead? is Mr. Goulart trying to demystify Groucho? I think the answer to that last one is "no," but the oddness persists. Perhaps I'm reading too much into a mostly lighthearted and febrile mystery about Nazis and you-know-what on the horizon. As I said, we are in a rhythm now with these characters and the plot doesn't get in the way, so read it and enjoy.
On the negative side, Mr. Goulart's insistence that we be constantly reminded Golden Age Hollywood was populated mostly by bigoted, mysoginistic, anti-Semites who all cursed and insulted their way through life is in full force again. The rest of the population consisted of self-important, vapid ego-maniacs who cannot tell humor from sincerity, even from Groucho Marx, whom they all know. This is a Christmas story primarily about Nazis hating Jews and the upcoming war (the year is 1938), which our characters both know is coming and don't know is coming, depending on what mood they are in. And Jane, who is still fairly smart and strong and not too much "early Doctor Who companion that is a scientist but also mostly screams at the unknown," for some reason does not want to think about her own happiness, since war and sadness are coming. While that may sound like intelligent empathy on her part, the presentation of the scene is not so humane, mainly just an odd downer right before Christmas presents that they shouldn't talk about being happy since it could stop at any moment.
It's the odd moments like this that perplex: is this gritty realism of the '30s? if so, why is Groucho Marx the lead? is Mr. Goulart trying to demystify Groucho? I think the answer to that last one is "no," but the oddness persists. Perhaps I'm reading too much into a mostly lighthearted and febrile mystery about Nazis and you-know-what on the horizon. As I said, we are in a rhythm now with these characters and the plot doesn't get in the way, so read it and enjoy.
June 27, 2025
I have positive memories of the Marx Brothers, but it may be 40+ years since I saw one of their movies. Humor is a Goldylocks thing - if you figure out a joke too quick, it isn't funny; if it takes you too long to get it, it's not funny - it has to be just right. In the book, Groucho is constantly responding to what others say with some spin-off on it. But, for me, it seemed to often be too much of a tangent or too rambling or... One time, someone says Groucho doesn't look like Groucho Marx and he replies, "That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me." I don't know if I've just heard that sort of thing too many times or what, but Goldylocks wasn't satisfied. I did have some laughs, but not as much as I hoped.
The story: Groucho and Frank go to a movie studio to promote a new movie idea, but they're interrupted by a woman who's found a murder victim on the movie set for a Sherlock Holmes film. Groucho has had a radio show in which he solved mysteries. The actor playing Sherlock Holmes tells the press that Groucho can't solve mysteries and the actor will solve this case. So, the competition is on. What follows is a mystery, but not a sophisticated one.
The story: Groucho and Frank go to a movie studio to promote a new movie idea, but they're interrupted by a woman who's found a murder victim on the movie set for a Sherlock Holmes film. Groucho has had a radio show in which he solved mysteries. The actor playing Sherlock Holmes tells the press that Groucho can't solve mysteries and the actor will solve this case. So, the competition is on. What follows is a mystery, but not a sophisticated one.
August 25, 2021
As far as mystery novels go, there isn't too much to recommend this one: The mystery isn't all that mysterious, the loose ends are much too tight, and the solution is revealed several chapters before the great reveal. However, its not the mystery that makes this book a page turner, its the characters. Any fan of the dry smart-ass humor that defined Groucho Marx will have no trouble diving into the sharp dialogue and priceless situations that are the true stars of the show. There are also enough real-life 30's personalities sprinkled throughout the narrative (an alcoholic Dashell Hammett, and an annoyed Joan Crawford giving Groucho the finger, for example) to delight lovers of that golden era of entertainment. If you are a true Detective Novel buff, then there's nothing here to thrill you. But fans of Captain Spalding and Rufus T. Firefly will have found an instant favorite.
July 17, 2017
Several of these slim volumes fell into my hands recently and I am thrilled to have them as part of my life and reading. I'm a Groucho fan and was a bit dubious about the author's being able to sustain a credible, wise-cracking Marx -- but he is a dab hand with the surreal, comedic take. And a good mystery as well! I'm planning to read them all, since they breeze off the page so easily. Delightful, charming, funny, and with moments of pathos, even!
February 20, 2024
Groucho Marx, Detective #3. Groucho Marx investigating murders in Hollywood in 1938. Who Knew? Very entertaining, witty , light mystery featuring Groucho (with all his witticisms) and a friend who narrates (ala Dr. Watson) their adventures investigating a Hollywood murder which takes place on a Sherlock Holmes movie set. Very cute, fun story -- 4 stars.
August 22, 2020
So far my favorite of these, the mystery was good, the banter sharp and the looming war added the spice of a distant threat.
April 11, 2021
Of course, I love anything Marx Brothers. Goulart really managed to channel Groucho in his mystery series and they really are a delight. This may have been the best one yet.
January 10, 2023
Quick, light read. Groucho is a bit overdone - a joke in every sentence is just not funny. But I love Frank and Jane
July 13, 2016
Another excellent entry in Ron Goulart's Groucho series, this one has Groucho and his sidekick trying to discover the killer of a semi-disgraced German director, and battling some homegrown Nazis at the same time.
This one is another pleasure to read...great characterization, a well-researched backdrop, and an intriguing mystery to solve. You can't go wrong with this one!
This one is another pleasure to read...great characterization, a well-researched backdrop, and an intriguing mystery to solve. You can't go wrong with this one!
November 26, 2009
An entertaining mystery novel featuring Groucho Marx as an amateur detective. Ron Goulart is a witty writer, but I find myself a tad put off by the conversion of the recently deceased into fictional characters.
October 11, 2012
The intrigue is a bit weak and predictable, but Groucho is totally in character and his irritating way of making jokes out of everything makes him endearing in the end, specially when you peek at the weaknesses beneath. Wouldn't mind reading more novels of this series.
April 25, 2015
Jeepers Creepers as in the 1938 song.
One again, I'm amused by the Hollywood history that's integral part of book.
Also, author continues to take into account the changing world pre-WWII.
This book was not as spunky as first two, but still a fun read.
One again, I'm amused by the Hollywood history that's integral part of book.
Also, author continues to take into account the changing world pre-WWII.
This book was not as spunky as first two, but still a fun read.
April 19, 2008
started out cute but too contrived, even for me. became "same old same old" quite quickly.
March 12, 2009
When a director is murdered on his own movie set, the movie's star challenges Groucho to see who will be the first to find the murderer.
August 23, 2012
I tried. Just couldn't get into this one.
July 20, 2013
Yet another Groucho saves the day, this time taking on both Hollywood Nazis and Sherlock Holmes.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews