The Ritz Brothers Biography

Fast Facts

• Started out as dancers, with Al winning a series of ballroom dancing prizes in Brooklyn
• First teamed up as an official dance act in 1925, performing a show on local stages that mocked a then-popular comic strip called "Harold Teen․"
• Best known as a comedy team who appeared in films and live performances for more than 30 years
• By 1929 they were in the big leagues of vaudeville and had adopted a theme song called "Collegiate․"
• Signed a contract with Darryl F․ Zanuck after Zanuck saw them perform at the Clover Club on Hollywood's Sunset Strip
• After being told that their family name, Joachim, couldn't be used on billboards, they picked the name Ritz off a passing laundry truck
• One of their favorite acts involved Harry standing in the middle of Al and Jimmy singing "The Man in the Middle Is the Funny One․"