Original artwork, not a still
One morning I shot an elephant in my pajamas. How he got in my pajamas, I don't know.
— Animal Crackers · 1930
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The joke is Groucho's trademark trick: a boast of heroic big-game hunting, then a sudden swerve into absurd domestic confusion that he refuses to explain. The first sentence sets the trap and the second springs it, which is why it still works as a template for the shaggy-dog one-liner. It is the most famous of the Marx Brothers' lines and the first thing quoted in any list of old-school comedy.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Animal CrackersShow the scene
In Animal Crackers (1930), society hostess Mrs Rittenhouse throws a party for the famous explorer Captain Spaulding, who arrives on a sedan chair carried by African porters. Groucho's Spaulding later gives the guests a lecture on Africa. In the middle of it he drops the elephant gag, then explains how they tried to remove the tusks, jokes about Alabama's Tuscaloosa, and ends on the native girls whose photographs were not developed. The film is the Marx Brothers' Paramount comedy with Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Zeppo.
Sources (2)
- Animal Crackers (1930 film), WikipediaPlotReference checked
- Animal Crackers (film), WikiquoteCaptain SpauldingReference checked
Context reviewed