After the great reviews in L.A., the plan was to continue to work on the show while we toured the country over the summer. We took it on the road everywhere from Calgary, Canada to Cape Cod. I had one of the greatest times of my life, seeing the country and playing a character I loved.

While touring with the show, I had an opportunity to be always looking out at the audience. What I realized, was that we were getting a young college crowd. The Marx Brothers material was still viable and had mass appeal. At the time, I used to think, what a shame there's not one more Marx Brother's movie... something we'd never seen... to give to a whole new generation. It was then, I conceived writing a new film, "A DAY AT THE MOVIES, The Lost Marx Brother's Film."

The Movie could be done using three modern-day actors as the brothers. The verissimilitude takes over and after one minute, the audience would be willing to accept that this is really them. So with my writing partner, Jerry Rannow, a former Welcome Back, Kotter writer and producer, we set about writing the screenplay. I swear the guys were in the room with us while we did it. George S. Kaufman would have been proud. The story is... the guys take over a failing movie studio owned by Mrs. Van Arsdale, (Margaret Dumont).

After it was written, I sent it over to Arthur Marx for his feedback and blessing. Arthur immediately called me back (he sounds just like Groucho, his dad). He said, "This is a Marx Brother's movie. But we have a problem... they're all dead." I explained my concept to him and he immediately got on board.

©2005 Robert Hegyes - All Rights Reserved