The Ritz Brothers were an American comedy team who appeared in films, and as live performers from 1925 to the late 1960s.
Although there were four brothers, the sons of Austrian-born haberdasher Max Joachim and his wife Pauline, only three of them performed together. There was also a sister, Gertrude. The fourth brother, George, acted as their manager. The performers were:
- Al Ritz, (August 27, 1901 – December 22, 1965)
- Jimmy Ritz, (October 4, 1904 – November 17, 1985)
- Harry Ritz, (May 22, 1907 – March 29, 1986)
The family name was Joachim (pronounced "joe-ACK-him," as Harry himself explained on a Joe Franklin TV interview) but eldest brother Al, a vaudeville dancer, adopted a new professional name after he saw the name "Ritz" on the side of a laundry truck. Jimmy and Harry followed suit when the brothers formed a team. The Ritzes emphasized precision dancing in their act, and added comedy material as they went along. By the early 1930s they were stage headliners.
Read more about Ritz Brothers: Movie Career, Movies, In Later Life, Tributes
Famous quotes containing the words ritz and/or brothers:
“I’d take the bus downtown with my mother, and the big thing was to sit at the counter and get an orange drink and a tuna sandwich on toast. I thought I was living large!... When I was at the Ritz with the publisher a few months ago, I did think, “Oh my God, I’m in the Ritz tearoom.” ... The person who was so happy to sit at the Woolworths counter is now sitting at the Ritz, listening to the harp, and wondering what tea to order.... [ellipsis in source] Am I awake?”
—Connie Porter (b. 1959)
“Whether changes in the sibling relationship during adolescence create long-term rifts that spill over into adulthood depends upon the ability of brothers and sisters to constantly redefine their connection. Siblings either learn to accept one another as independent individuals with their own sets of values and behaviors or cling to the shadow of the brother and sister they once knew.”
—Jane Mersky Leder (20th century)