Duck Soup
War is swell...when the Marx Brothers are in it. They'll be out of the trenches by Christmas...if the food doesn't improve!
Country
Production
Budget
$0
Box office
$0
Director
Actors
Scenario
Producer
Camera operator
Henry Sharp
Composer
Artist
Audition
Editing
LeRoy Stone
Whole Team (16)
Whole Team (16)
Short description
Rufus T. Firefly is named president/dictator of bankrupt Freedonia and declares war on neighboring Sylvania over the love of wealthy Mrs. Teasdale.
What's left behind the scenes
- One day, while standing near the set, screenwriters Harry Ruby and Bert Kalmar overheard an extra say that '...whoever wrote this should be locked up,' and that the person was 'simply not cut out for the job.' Kalmar, usually a balanced and calm man, admitted to Ruby that he wanted to 'punch that extra.' Before it came to blows, it was revealed that the extra had been paid to make those statements. This was orchestrated by Chico Marx, a comedic actor from the Marx Brothers quintet, who was also appearing in the film.
- The idea to film the mirror scene belonged to director Leo McCarey. It is claimed that filming this scene took two hours.
- In early drafts of the script, the fictional state of Sylvania was called Amnesia.
- 'Duck soup' was a slang expression of that era, meaning something easily accomplished or achievable.
- As part of the film's promotional campaign, Paramount Pictures organized a series of prank events featuring the Marx Brothers and ducks rented from a nearby bird market and local farmers.
- In early drafts of the script, the new leader of Freedonia, named Rufus T. Firefly, was a representative of a cartridge and shell company, which inspired corresponding jokes. This detail echoed the film's military themes.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
