Moustache Meets Moustache (Groucho meets Kovacs)

Ernie Kovacs matches wits with Groucho Marx on You Bet Your Life, March 31, 1958.

[@lauraalittle]

Two cigars? That poor young woman. That aside, these two guys are wonderful together. It's a shame Kovacs didn't live longer. He was amazing. Thanks for this posting!

[@scottmoore1614]

I often think about what kind of amazing career Kovacs would have had, if he’d lived. So very sad! He was so far ahead of his time.

[@julienielsen3746]

Had to live with my dad's smoking when I was a little kid. Didn't think about second hand smoke back in the early 60s.

[@13thcentury]

2 cigars? Where was hers?

[@patfromamboy]

@@robertlebrini7845 when there was more racism and women were treated like dogs. Heaven for Trump supporters.

[@TheBatugan77]

That poor woman didn't whine. I miss that.

[@voicegirl555]

Happy 100th Birthday Ernie Kovacs! You were soooooo funny and so very talented. Gone much too soon.

[@MosaicRose99]

Ernie was one of the best. :)

[@terrymaccarrone9927]

The Nirobi Trio Sollifreggio

[@luisreyes1963]

2 of the greatest comedic wits on the same show! It's like seeing a lunar eclipse for the first time! Thanks for the laughs, Ernie Kovacs & Groucho Marx!!

[@jubalcalif9100]

I heartily concur !

[@ahab345]

A lot of people today have forgotten Ernie Kovacs..He was a Television innovator

[@nhmooytis7058]

I’m old so I remember watching both Ernie and Groucho on TV!

[@notvalidcharacters]

@@nhmooytis7058 I'm so old we had to walk uphill both ways to watch them.

[@nhmooytis7058]

@@notvalidcharacters I’m so old my babysitter was a velociraptor. I’m lucky to still be here but she was a vegan.

[@alilacherruse]

(to be read in the ghost of Groucho's voice) "Many more people have never even heard of us"

[@sojournersblues]

This is priceless... My two favorite comedians on the same stage.

[@jubalcalif9100]

Yes !

[@loiscandler814]

Two of my very favorites of all time! Groucho & Ernie together! 🥰🤗 what a lucky lady to be in the presence of those two comedy geniuses! 😊

[@franknew9001]

She was lucky except for the cigar smoke.

[@terrymaccarrone9927]

Smile Folks That's All There Is.

[@poetcomic1]

SO COOL the way they banter and feed each other lines, each with a cigar and a moustache, totally attuned to each other.

[@jubalcalif9100]

They were both GREAT ad libbers. Two true icons of comedy.

[@ITILII]

Groucho and Ernie, 2 guys with mustaches, smoking cigars who were absolutely comedic geniuses.

[@Syncopator]

Nice one-- didn't know these two comic geniuses got to interact like this-- a real gem. The fact that Ernie saw the secret word while he was in the audience before he got pulled up to sub and then took advantage of it, was priceless...

[@jmccracken1963]

In fact, Sanita Pelkey was born on 20 November 1935 in New York City. She had bit parts in five films: PARTY GIRL (1958), MISSILE TO THE MOON (1958), GHOST OF DRAGSTRIP HOLLOW (1959), A GUIDE FOR THE MARRIED MAN (1967), and HELLO, DOLLY! (1969). She was married to Rex Reason for a little over a year (August 1962 to August 1963). She died of cancer in Las Vegas on 15 January 1994 - at the age of only 58.

[@tuxguys]

This is pure gold... Kovacs, one of the pioneers of, not just TV, but VIDEO, will die from a tragic car crash in about two years. Kovacs actually had a film career of some note: Groucho mentions "Operation Mad Ball," a favorite Jack Lemmon movie of mine, which was arguably a template for, if not "Sgt. Bilko," then, perhaps, "Hogan's Heroes;" he's also very good, and rather subtle, in a movie with Kirk Douglas and Kim Novak, "Strangers When We Meet." (Incidentally, the "Mr. Goren" he's replacing at the beginning was a world-famous authority on the card game, Bridge, Charles H. Goren.)

[@ChristopherUSSmith]

Hogan's Heroes was more a humorous Stalag 17.

[@ApartmentKing66]

Actually, Ernie Kovacs had another 4 years left. His car crash was in 1962, and this was 1958.

[@seththomas9105]

@@ApartmentKing66 Crazy isn't it? Ernie was only 43 when he died in the car crash.

[@TheRecordSaver]

The girl's name was Sanita Pelkey.. She was a beauty queen and later appeared in some films..

[@jubalcalif9100]

She's no Hope Emerson (hubba hubba!) but Ms. Pelkey was indeed one lovely young lady!

[@orchardist6529]

Ernie Kovacs always seemed to be relaxed and therefore could put people around him at ease, a great gift. If you could draw a friendly face it would look like Ernie Kovac.

[@andymassingham]

There could only have been one, but the world needs another Ernie Kovacs! Rockin the cardigan/jacket look!

[@KeithDec25]

Cigar meets cigar Classic meeting between two quick wits

[@suzihoude]

i love how they are working off each other without trying to outdo each other.

[@BrooklynJackBlue]

This is, in my experience, the only time where I can see Groucho working off of someone else at the same level on this game show. Of course he'd been on radio and film and television opposite Jack Benny and Jolson and Hope, and so on and so forth, but I have to say? I'm absolutely charmed by this interaction. Two men who operate on inspiration and improv, and to hear Groucho dish out compliments? It might not be unheard of, but it's certainly to be enjoyed. Thank you for uploading this video!

[@theoxley]

+Justin Kalman Groucho use to give out compliments all the time...problem was, the recipient of the compliment had a hard time taking him seriously because of his persona. He thought Dan Rowan and Bud Abbot were great straight men. Groucho said that in a comedy team, the straight man was the one who set up the situation....with out that, they had nothing.

[@vestibulate]

Justin Kalman Kovacs is good, but the only comedian I know who could really keep up with Groucho's unscripted quips was Fred Allen. There are recordings of the two of them riffing on live radio, and it's something to hear.

[@feralbluee]

so well put - wish i could have said that as well. salud to Ernie Kovacs :)

[@radicalross7700]

Groucho would know. He had several straight men from Zeppo to George Finneman and one straight woman, Margaret Dumont.

[@gwenniegirl50]

@@radicalross7700 agreed. Margaret Dumont didn’t realize she was the straight woman though. To her, she was acting but never understood the comedy

[@BrooklynJackBlue]

Good lord, I LOVE watching Groucho and Ernie work off each other with quips! Neither one gives up a joke!

[@Celluloidwatcher]

Thanks for uploading the video, featuring two comedic giants...Groucho Marx and Ernie Kovacs. We will never see the likes of them again, sadly. But they made people laugh hysterically in the not-so-long ago. Their comedy is timeless.

[@jubalcalif9100]

Indeed!

[@WhoFlungPoo2024]

What I would have given to be in the audience to see these two comic geniuses alibiing this irreplaceable work. RIP Groucho and Ernie.

[@TheRecordSaver]

The man who stepped aside to let Kovacs onstage was none other than Contract Bridge guru Charles Goren..

[@theoakhills]

Yes he popularized and developed the game of "bridge" b.1901....d.1991

[@stratocat69]

WOW...thought I had seen everything of my 2 favorite comics of all time.Together?...just wow.This is an amazing clip and thank you to the person who posted it.

[@michaelmapes4119]

Two of the most funniest moustaches that ever smoked a cigar!

[@zensorrow1]

5:55 classic line "It's dishonost, but since this is counterfeit money, we don't care."

[@kyokogodai-ir6hy]

This stuff is a blessing!! Thank you so very much for sharing it with us!!

[@LeonAllanDavis]

"Go over there and sit down and if I don't see you later, I'll get in touch with Edie!" Ernie Kovacs was married to Edie Adams. The blonde is pretty but Edie makes her look like a 6th Grade school kid. Less than four years after this was aired, Kovacs smashed his Corvair station wagon into a light pole and was partially ejected. Not wearing his seat belt. Edie never really got over his death. Kovacs was a special guy.

[@RingJando]

to each his own - this girl has it!

[@davhuf3496]

Jolene Brand!

[@joemancini2988]

I never got over it, either. TV was never funny again.

[@boggy7665]

I don't think 1961 cars had seat belts, did they? They may have been optional. Did Kovac's car have optional belts? California's first seat belt law took effect January 1, 1964.

[@LeonAllanDavis]

@@boggy7665 I had a Corvair with seat belts. Also an Austin Healy. A '56 VW. Both had seat belts. I cannot remember having an older car without belts. Back in the day a lot of people didn't wear seat belts even when their cars had them. They believed it was better to be "thrown clear of the wreckage" during an accident. Back in the late 60's I had a friend who never wore his belt. Only pussies wore seat belts, he said. He had an accident at high speed and was impaled on the speed limit sign. Didn't die right away. I always wore my belts. Saved my life three or four times.

[@mikec2250]

Ernie Kovacs was a favorite for many of us in the late 50's. Have a Muriel?

[@ChristopherUSSmith]

You mean Dutch Masters. :) Edie did Muriel ads. (I know, they were both made by Consolidated Cigar....)

[@jubalcalif9100]

How wonderful to see two comedy icons on the same stage! Thanks for sharing this cool clip! It's pretty good quality too!

[@auletjohnast03638]

THE GIRL BESIDE KOVACS WAS SUPER BEAUTIFUL.

[@kbchaffin53]

I was five back then and a big fan of both these guys. I remember Wondering, "Why do comedians have moustaches and smoke cigars?"

[@johnnyj0104]

I can't help think about the smell of that closed studio with all that cigar smoke!

[@frankkolton1780]

Yes, that had to smell wonderful, I appreciate and miss the smell of good cigars too. On my ninetieth birthday I will light up a nice cigar again in celebration, my doctors be damned. It gives me something to look forward to.

[@ApartmentKing66]

@@frankkolton1780 I think it was Woody Allen who said that if he had to give up things he liked in life to live to 100, he wouldn't want to live to 100.

[@jmccracken1963]

This is HILARIOUS!!!!! Thank you very much for sharing this with us!!!!!

[@woodledog]

Moustache Meets Moustache. Chaos ensues.

[@lbcharlie05]

If the comedic talents of these two GIANTS could have been bottled and preserved? I hope the 'poor young women' realized what she was a part of at the time, and not worried about those evil cigars. Thanks for posting this gem.

[@MsLilyhorse]

What a lovely young woman.

[@MsLilyhorse]

***** Yes. Nice clothes, hair and manners. Lady-like and pleasant. A rarity these days.

[@Hagfan789]

+MsLilyhorse Very much so..She looks to be good marrying material..A tough find these days.

[@BrianBattles]

Really? Where do you live?

[@jmshaw357]

amen, brother!

[@NoctilucentArts]

That's a sexy young burlesque girl named Sanita Pelkey - google her - yowza!! She knew how to strip.

[@MosaicRose99]

I love the look on their faces as Ernie first approaches in the beginning. They look star stuck. :)

[@FIREBRAND38]

I'll say Ernie Kovacs had children. A few years before this episode aired he had just recovered his two daughters after they'd been kidnapped by his ex-wife.

[@daveconleyportfolio5192]

Strangely enough, what made these two greats really click was ... George Fenneman! Somebody needed to be the straight man for this kind of pairing, and Fenneman's intrusive restatements of the obvious made him an ideal whipping boy.

[@bobthetvfan]

If you're referring to his constant reminders of how many they have right or wrong, remember that the show also aired on radio so it would have been necessary for the listening audience to know how they were doing. As for being a "whipping boy," Fenneman never minded at all; about the only thing that could rile him would be for someone to say something derogatory about Groucho.

[@PRR5406]

The two funniest men who ever delivered a response. Kovacs was my idol, but Groucho, Chico, and Harpo, were in a class of their own. No swearing, just funny juxtaposition. We have fallen so far from humor.

[@LenHummelChannel]

classic and absurdist in every sense of the word. two geniuses at what they did and loved. thanks.

[@billyshepard5514]

Kovacs lost control of his Chevrolet Corvair station wagon while turning quickly and crashed into a power pole at the corner of Wilshire and "Big" Santa Monica Boulevards in Beverly Hills. He was thrown halfway out the passenger side and died almost instantly from chest and head injuries.[128] A photographer managed to arrive moments later, and images of Kovacs dead appeared in newspapers across the United States

[@kathyvarela2215]

I recently saw an interview with one of Ernies daughter. She. Said that it appeared as he was focusing more on lighting a cigar.Plus she said that he was very tired. When they described the accident about how he died.Sounds so grizzly way to die.No seat belt

[@davidmorley1606]

We need comedians like these today

[@mickeymousebiker1]

Steven Van Zandt (The Underground Garage) sent me here. Thank you, Steven, for your tribute to Ernie Kovacs and The Marx Brothers. Where has our world gone since this show first aired? I dedicate this video to my pop, who, like Ernie Kovacs, left this world all-too-soon. My pop and I liked Ernie Kovacs and The Marx Bros.

[@JJJBRICE]

He drove Edie Adams flimsy Corvair home after a party a party and lost control . That was a man protecting his own .

[@theolamp5312]

2 of the top comedians of all time. They were both able to shoot of the hip with great success.

[@steveperry1344]

i used to watch ernie kovacs' offbeat zany show as a kid and felt a loss when he left us so soon, always watched groucho too and still do.

[@michaelg.golden7327]

I wish they had more get togethers. Two geniuses of comedy.

[@d.l.l.6578]

Amazing they could smoke cigars inside a tv studio and no one seems to mind. Those things smell to high heaven.

[@EugeneHeck]

At 1:36 Groucho gets in a plug for Operation Mad Ball (Columbia Pictures 1957). It's included in "The Jack Lemmon Film Collection", a 6-disk set of DVDs. Per liner notes: "In this wacky military spoof, Lemmon plays a terminally bored Army private waging a war of wits as he tries to throw a party under the nose of his obnoxious commanding officer." Kovacs played the officer.

[@GUITARTIME2024]

this classy lady is wonderful. take note, screaming millenial tatoo trainwrecks.

[@bobtaylor170]

Unfortunately, a woman like that is probably beyond reclamation.

[@stevebutler812]

She actually had a somewhat odd life, sadly. www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com/show/323/Sanita+Pelkey/index.html

[@josephcostello695]

GuitarGuy the train wrecks of today don’t have the time or the common sense to check this out. People had a bit more decorum back in the day.

[@skullbleu8166]

Been a fan of kovacs and Groucho since I was a kid - am happily covered in ink, so, go figure. Take refuge in your pointless stereotyping.

[@dakotab291]

My god, right! I wish women were still like this

[@ElectrologyNow]

Oh, that poor woman ... between TWO cigars! She probably "tossed it" after the show.

[@kali3665]

Cut the segue to this classic appearance. The original contestant was Charles Goren, the master Bridge player. After a few riffs with Groucho, he announced that he would step down for a substitute player who turned out to be Ernie Kovacs. Fenneman quickly slipped in, "Well, if Ernie Kovacs is coming on stage, we'd better go to commercial while we have the chance!" Which is why, at the end, Ernie started screaming out the Secret Woid since he was in the audience when it was called out earlier. Groucho: "It's dishonest, but since this is counterfeit money, we don't care." 🤣🤣 Two comic geniuses on the same stage. Fantastic.

[@csu3524]

Rip Kovacs only 42 and died in an accident.

[@jubalcalif9100]

Sad but true. He lost control of his Corvair station wagon & crashed into a pole on the rainy January streets of Los Angeles.

[@Monkofmagnesia]

Two of my heroes together! Thanks for posting this.

[@robertdiotalevi2882]

"Who is this President, Jim Clinton?" Ernie meant "Bill!"

[@bobthetvfan]

I pointed out above that Jim Clinton owned a men's clothing store in Los Angeles, and the joke is funnier now because we have had a President named Clinton. If Ernie had indeed said "Bill," all of us who have seen this clip would probably drop dead of shock at Ernie's foresight.

[@voodoo49]

@@bobthetvfan Thanks for jogging my memory. I grew up in the Valley in the 50's & 60's, and now I remember his commercials on TV, along with Vic Tanney, Earl Scheib , Cal Worthington & Ralph Williams.

[@suziemills2201]

The good old days

[@medievalman71]

Ernie Kovacs smoked cigars and drank beer on television. Standards and Practices would be apoplectic!

[@garryferrington811]

People were more laid back about some things then. Not about others. You see how everyone wears a jacket and tie, while the ladies have full makeup. You can't enjoy a good cigar anymore, but you can dress like a slob.

[@ajjackson1526]

Only a few years later Kovacs would be killed in a car wreck. sad

[@ExMachina70]

Groucho and Moustache could have been a comedy duo of the eons. They worked so well off each other I found it to be amazing. Edit Admittedly, I'm going this play by play but I laughed so hard as Groucho did at his comment. I KNEW these two had chemistry together and I know I'm not the first to see it, but it's great to see what we all can at least appreciate the moment they both had together.

[@fromthesidelines]

The March 31st air date was the RADIO version of the show [Mondays, 8:05-8:30pm(et)]- slightly different from the TV soundtrack in that it was a 25 minute show, and some exchanges had to be eliminated for "time". April 3rd was the TV edition [Thursdays, 8-8:30pm(et)], with Lever Brothers [Pepsodent, Wisk] as sponsor, as the back wall illustrates...

[@gordonmorris6359]

Thanks! Ernie's movies were great.

[@yvonnewright3527]

Groucho was a wonderful man.

[@MoonMonkeyMCM]

Love them both so much.

[@richardbuchanan7124]

It's gratifying to see someone who could actually keep up with Groucho.

[@thecursor1]

Oh this isn't just a battle of wits, it's a comedy slugfest.

[@tonybmusic1166]

When I was a kid I faithfully watched him on TV and in every single movie he was in. I remember when he sick and tired of playing military brass in movies and took out a full page ad in variety (I think) telling Hollywood to stop. Steve Allen’s tonight show was national and used to get away with stealing Ernie’s material from his local New York show. The guy was a comedic genius and his character Percy Dovetonsils was even featured in Mad magazine.

[@monsterzero9607]

NAME! NAME! NAME! NAME!

[@vanceblosser2155]

I was 7 years old when he died. I was terribly saddened to hear of his death.

[@robertszvetics210]

never mind fennniman

[@darryle-ov4oy]

The show blessed today a😊is priceless 😅

[@kurtnmia]

TV used to be so good.

[@lucycatism]

I am half Hungarian, thanks to my Mom. His last name is pronounced "kovach"

[@jaywar69]

Great clip. Ernie was a cool cat as was Groucho! Sanita Pelkey is the young beautiful girl. I swear she must have been a relative to Rachel McAdams.

[@feralbluee]

Ernie Kovacs was wonderful. why? why? why? sometimes life is just too sad. poor Edie. devastation doesn’t even start to cover it. great show!! :) 😋

[@GUITARTIME2024]

Kovaks died not long after this was filmed. Car accident in LA.

[@larryaldrich4351]

Ernie was a great guy. He left us way too early.

[@katlynlykstad5810]

You have one right. -thanks. You bet. 🤣🤣🤣 hahaha

[@ksteiger]

I love the 1950s hottie!

[@cardinalsfan8182]

2 absolute comedy legends!!!

[@Daniel-nf8pp]

People had higher standards of respectable and moral behavior. The whole world has changed.

[@ChristopherUSSmith]

And trysts are more quickly exposed now than 60 years ago too.

[@SleepyBoBos]

Yes, the way Ernie treated that girl as an object is a perfect example of that.

[@philipm06]

Just seen 'Bell Book and Candle' (1959) - and thought, who is this guy?

[@stevenj9970]

Two GIANTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@ckom0007]

Two heaters at the same time? Lucky they didn’t have smoke detectors back then!

[@stephenperretti8847]

I remember the photos of his death on thrthe front page of the newspaper. It was so painful. I watched his TV shows.

[@thepollywog1]

I don't smoke, but most of my life was spent next to smokers. At work, in bars, my parents, my friends. Cigs, cigars, pipes, quebabs (roll yer owns). One uncle even smoked a hookah. You just coughed and put up with it. I like it so much better now.

[@NellsStuff]

I believe Kovacs smoked Havanas... but don't quote me on that... Notice how quiet he could be when not quite "on", too?

[@madogblue]

Poor girl sandwiched between 2 walls of smoke. Can you imagine walking up next to someone 1 foot away and lighting up a cigar?

[@johnnyb9218]

The pretty girl has beautiful manners. Not like some cheap girls today in leotards & tats. I'm young & I probably sound old fashioned but women just seemed so much nicer back then.

[@BrianBattles]

Yeah, sure.

[@jmshaw357]

here here

[@davidfarley7285]

Sanita Pelkey, model, showgirl, actress (GHOST OF DRAGSTRIP HOLLOW). The original radio version of this episode has a lot more of her being utterly charming.

[@MarkRoberts-bj2me]

@ Johnno Women were much nicer back then. People in general were much nicer back then. The 50's, although panned these days as being conformist and boring, was actually a golden decade America experienced after the War. Ike was in the White House , a man could go to his job and his wife stay home, drugs were not a problem, and students were safe in school. How do I know, I was a kid in the 50's.

[@pneulancer]

Mark Roberts Though I was a kid during the 1980's I agree that, on balance there seems to be more civility than now. I find intelligent, literate and well mannered women far more attractive than the tattooed, foul mouthed ones I see today.

[@caddothegreat]

Great entertainment !

[@andymassingham]

The film Groucho referees to is Operation Mad Ball, which was Ernie’s first big film. He co-stars with Jack Lemmon. It’s free on KZbin. He would have gone on to a very interesting movie career had fate not intervened.

[@rodneygolden2796]

Truly a scribe for the Tribe 👍😊 Shalom. L'chaim.

[@NewMusicWeekly]

The hourglass joke was in this very episode, about the woman seen in this clip mentioning that she wore an hourglass dress for her job.

[@jeffersonianideal]

A three record set called "The Three Funniest Hours In The History Of Radio!" was released in 1977 by Nostalgia Lane. Taking up one entire side was the extracted audio track of this You Bet Your Life episode. The part (at the 0:38 mark) where Ernie Kovacs and Groucho discuss smoking cigars was edited out of the LP version. No doubt it had to do with the ban, seven years earlier of tobacco ads on radio and television. Inserted where a normal television spot would be was a public service announcement by Fred MacMurray for the American Cancer Society. It was part of the "Fight Cancer With a Checkup and a Check" campaign. Political correctness in its infancy.

[@fromthesidelines]

That was the March 31, 1958 radio edition. By that time, both radio and TV editions were edited differently to emphasize more verbal exchanges on radio, and visual images on the TV show.....and there was also the fact the radio version aired for 25 minutes [Mondays, 8:05-8:30pm(et), after five minutes of "NBC NEWS ON THE HOUR"] instead of the half-hour on TV [Thursdays, 8-8:30pm(et)].

[@jeffersonianideal]

Barry I. Grauman My suspicion is the Fred MacMurray PSA for the American Cancer Society was not originally part of the radio or television version. I base this on the way the spot sounds and was constructed. However, I can not be certain.

[@jeffersonianideal]

+jeffersonianideal Also noteworthy, Fred MacMurray acquired the bulk of his stardom after 1958. He did not become a household word as a television star until 1960, following the airing of the sitcom "My Three Sons".

[@kenlieck7756]

Well, MacMurray was enough of a household name in 1940 that Captain Marvel ("Shazam!") was modeled on him!

[@jeffersonianideal]

The resemblance is truly striking.

[@laurencesiegel9362]

What a lovely girl! Sanita Pelkey.

[@jubalcalif9100]

She was no Marie Dressler (yummy!) but Sanita was indeed one beautiful young lady!

[@tammyunger2893]

Brilliant

[@44032]

April 3, 1958. Ouite a comic summit. As AMB points out below, their comedy was different but their comic personas were similar. Too bad they didn't do more together.

[@ghostrider-ek8gu]

Genius meets genius

[@jubalcalif9100]

You got THAT right !!

[@beausie-woesieherewegoesie2548]

Remember when gameshows we're unaffected and the contestants clueless? Neither do I!

[@johnmitchelljr]

What can you say about so great. Thank you.

[@bobthetvfan]

For a real piece of genius in programming, from 1959-61 Groucho's show was on 10-10:30 Thursday nights on NBC; Kovacs' "Take A Good Look" followed on ABC from 10:30-11. Since there are a number of TAGL episodes on KZbin, you might want to catch an episode of it after watching Groucho. The format, if you don't know what it is, requires the panel (usually Edie, Hans Conried, and Cesar Romero) to identify someone who had been in the news either recently or years ago. Ernie and a troupe of actors provide the clues through short skits. I don't think they're meant to be much help, but Cesar is especially good at coming up with the right answers. Just enjoy Ernie's brand of humor and pay particular attention to the commercials for his sponsor, Dutch Masters cigars (appropriately); they ought to be considered classics.