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The Ritz Brothers were a comedy team who appeared in 1930s films, and as live performers from 1925 to the late 1960s. Brothers in reality, their last name was originally Joachim.

Although there were four brothers, only three of them performed together. The fourth brother, George, acted as their manager.

Al, (August 27, 1901 - December 22, 1965)
Jimmy, (October 4, 1904 - November 17, 1985)
Harry, (May 22, 1907 - March 29, 1986)

The brothers began using the name "Ritz" for their nightclub act after seeing the name on the side of a laundry truck.

Seasoned vaudevillians, the Ritzes emphasized precision dancing in their act, and added comedy material as they went along. By 1934 they were stage headliners, and were hired for a New York-filmed short subject, "Hotel Anchovy" (1934). This did well enough for the film's distributor, Twentieth Century-Fox, to sign the Ritzes as a specialty act for feature-length musicals. Their best film from this period is probably "On the Avenue", a 1937 Irving Berlin musical. That same year Fox gave the Ritz brothers their own starring series, beginning with"Life begins in College"

Their talent was also noted by Samuel Goldwyn, whom secured them on loan out from Foxfor his technicolor variety program, The Goldwyn Follies (1938), wherein they appeared with other headliners of the day including Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy. Perhaps their most successful film during this period was "The Three Musketeers" (1939), co-starring Don Ameche. In late 1939 the Ritzes staged a highly publicized walkout (complaining about the low quality of their last Fox script, "The Gorilla") culminating in the termination of their Fox contract.

They were also caricatured, along with several other then-popular Hollywood celebrities, in the 1939 Donald Duck short, The Autograph Hound.

Although they had a large following, they were unable to achieve the success or popularity of the Marx Brothers. By 1940, they had moved to Universal Studios where they made four brash B comedies with music. Their final film together was "Never a Dull Moment" (1943), although they continued to appear on stage together until Al's death. In the 1970s, Harry and Jimmy appeared together in a couple of films. They were buried in Hollywood Cemetery, now called the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

Enduring tributes to them include a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and mentions in the films My Favorite Year and Mr. Saturday Night.

The influence of the Ritz Brothers was greater than their film career, in part because of their long career as nightclub entertainers. They influenced actors including Danny Kaye, Jerry Lewis, and Sid Caesar. In his 1976 film Silent Movie, Mel Brooks paid tribute to the Ritz Brothers by casting Harry in a cameo, the actor's last role.

An article in Esquire Magazine by Harry Stein (June 1976), "Mel Brooks Says This [Harry Ritz] is the Funniest Man in the World", makes a strong case that many top comedians were influenced by, and even borrowed bits from, Harry Ritz.

The last appearance of the Ritz Brothers as a group (sans Al) was the mid-1970s film Blazing Stewardesses. The Ritzes were cast as replacements for The Three Stooges who dropped out of the film following the death of Moe Howard.

Simpsons reference

The Ritz Brothers were referenced by Mr. Burns in The Simpsons episode [4F10], "Mountain of Madness."

Burns: "What a disgraceful display. I've seen more orderly behavior in a Ritz Brothers film."

External links

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 The brothers began using the name "Ritz" for their nightclub act after seeing the name on the side of a laundry truck.
+Seasoned vaudevillians, the Ritzes emphasized precision dancing in their act, and added comedy material as they went along. By 1934 they were stage headliners, and were hired for a New York-filmed short subject, "[[Hotel Anchovy]]" ([[1934]]). This did well enough for the film's distributor, Twentieth Century-Fox, to sign the Ritzes as a specialty act for feature-length musicals. Their best film from this period is probably "[[On the Avenue]]", a 1937 Irving Berlin musical. That same year Fox gave the Ritz brothers their own starring series, beginning with"[[Life begins in College]]"
-They were enlisted by [[Darryl F. Zanuck]] to make films for [[20th Century Fox]] in the mid-[[1930s]]. Their talent was also noted by [[Samuel Goldwyn]], whom secured them on loan out from Zanuck for his [[technicolor]] variety program, [[The Goldwyn Follies]] ([[1938]]), wherein they appeared with other headliners of the day including [[Edgar Bergen]] and Charlie McCarthy. Perhaps their most successful film during this period was "[[The Three Musketeers (1939 film)|The Three Musketeers]]" ([[1939]]), co-starring [[Don Ameche]].
+Their talent was also noted by [[Samuel Goldwyn]], whom secured them on loan out from Foxfor his [[technicolor]] variety program, [[The Goldwyn Follies]] ([[1938]]), wherein they appeared with other headliners of the day including [[Edgar Bergen]] and Charlie McCarthy. Perhaps their most successful film during this period was "[[The Three Musketeers (1939 film)|The Three Musketeers]]" ([[1939]]), co-starring [[Don Ameche]]. In late 1939 the Ritzes staged a highly publicized walkout (complaining about the low quality of their last Fox script, "[[The Gorilla]]") culminating in the termination of their Fox contract.
 They were also caricatured, along with several other then-popular Hollywood celebrities, in the 1939 [[Donald Duck]] short, ''The Autograph Hound''.
-Although they had some modest success, they were unable to achieve the success or popularity of the [[Marx Brothers]].  By [[1940]], they had moved to [[Universal Studios]] where they continued to make films, although never achieving star power.  Their final film together was "Never a Dull Moment" ([[1943]]), although they continued to appear on stage together until Al's death.  In the 1970s, Harry and Jimmy appeared together in a couple of films.  They were buried in  Hollywood Cemetery, now called the [[Hollywood Forever Cemetery]].
+Although they had a large following, they were unable to achieve the success or popularity of the [[Marx Brothers]].  By [[1940]], they had moved to [[Universal Studios]] where they made four brash B comedies with music. Their final film together was "Never a Dull Moment" ([[1943]]), although they continued to appear on stage together until Al's death.  In the 1970s, Harry and Jimmy appeared together in a couple of films.  They were buried in  Hollywood Cemetery, now called the [[Hollywood Forever Cemetery]].
 Enduring tributes to them include a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]], and mentions in the films ''[[My Favorite Year]]'' and ''[[Mr. Saturday Night]]''.