Longtime friends of The O.F.W.T.J. (Old Men Who Tell Jokes) Society know that I tend to intersperse jokes with true stories, with the occasional “could-be” anecdote thrown in here and there for good measure. I thus present the following probably-true story about an old hoofer/movie star/curmudgeon:Julius Marx, known to most of us as Groucho, loved his cigars, whether on stage, a movie set, or just out-and-about. One day, as he boarded an airplane, he asked the stewardess – this was decades before the term “flight attendant” was introduced, as well as a long time before smoking was banned on all flights – if he could smoke a cigar on the plane.“I suppose so, Sir, if you don’t annoy the ladies,” she replied.Groucho’s eyes lit up and his brows raised. “You mean I have my choice?”
Longtime friends of The O.F.W.T.J. (Old Men Who Tell Jokes) Society know that I tend to intersperse jokes with true stories, with the occasional “could-be” anecdote thrown in here and there for good measure. I thus present the following probably-true story about an old hoofer/movie star/curmudgeon:Julius Marx, known to most of us as Groucho, loved his cigars, whether on stage, a movie set, or just out-and-about. One day, as he boarded an airplane, he asked the stewardess – this was decades before the term “flight attendant” was introduced, as well as a long time before smoking was banned on all flights – if he could smoke a cigar on the plane.“I suppose so, Sir, if you don’t annoy the ladies,” she replied.Groucho’s eyes lit up and his brows raised. “You mean I have my choice?”