| Captain Spaulding | |
|---|---|
| Animal Crackers character | |
,_portrayed_by_Groucho_Marx.jpg) Groucho Marx as Captain Spaulding in the film version of Animal Crackers. | |
| First appearance | Animal Crackers (musical) |
| Last appearance | Animal Crackers (film) |
| Portrayed by | Groucho Marx |
| In-universe information | |
| Full name | Jeffrey T. Spaulding |
| Alias | Geoffrey Spaulding |
| Gender | Male |
| Title | Captain |
| Occupation | Explorer |
Captain Jeffrey T. Spaulding is a fictional character in the Broadway musical Animal Crackers and the film of the same name. He was originally played by actor Groucho Marx, one of the Marx Brothers, in both productions.[1] Despite his middle name being Edgar, he is known as Jeffrey T. Spaulding; his first name is also spelled as "Geoffrey" in parts of the film.
Spaulding had a theme song entitled "Hooray for Captain Spaulding", composed by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby, which all of the guests sing upon his arrival. This song would go on to be associated with Marx for the rest of his life in public; it was the theme for his television series You Bet Your Life and was often played when he was introduced as a guest on television shows. At Marx's Carnegie Hall concert in the early 1970s, accompanist Marvin Hamlisch played the song as Marx made his entrance onstage.[2]
- ^ Dirks, Tim. "Filmsite Movie Review - Animal Crackers (1930)". Filmsite.org. AMC Networks. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
- ^ Hamlisch, Marvin (1992). The Way I Was. Scribner. ISBN 978-0684193274.