Beginning as a stage act in the early part of the 20th century, the Marx Brothers were famous first for their musical act. Only after a broken up show in Texas when Groucho cracked a couple of jokes following the interruption did they ever consider comedy as a career. And it would be a long time still before they developed and perfected the characters that made them famous…

The opening scenes of Citizen Kane are like a refresher course of Humanities, its texture recalling Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa and its complexity recalling Van Gogh’s Starry Night. The camera travels up a fence, past a “No Trespassing” sign, up a different fence, and finally comes to a gate: a strong and beautifully designed gate…