Room Service

film by Seiter [1938]

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July 20, 2026

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The film Room Service, released in 1938, was directed by William A. Seiter. It is notable as the only film in which the Marx Brothers' script was not specifically written for them. Based on a Broadway farce, the film's results were considered mixed. Seiter was an American director known for his musicals and light comedies, with over 100 feature films to his credit.1

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William A. Seiter
…directed the Marx Brothers in Room Service. Based on a Broadway farce, it was the only film in which the script was not written specifically for the popular comedy team, and the results were mixed. The colonial-era drama Allegheny Uprising (1939) was a box-office disappointment, despite the presence of John…
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…directed the Marx Brothers in Room Service. Based on a Broadway farce, it was the only film in which the script was not written specifically for the popular comedy team, and the results were mixed. The colonial-era drama Allegheny Uprising (1939) was a box-office disappointment, despite the presence of John…
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Marx Brothers
…adaptation of the stage hit Room Service (1938). This was the only film in which they worked with a script not written specifically for them, and the results were mixed. Back at MGM the following year, the brothers found themselves under the guidance of Louis B. Mayer, who reputedly never…
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…adaptation of the stage hit Room Service (1938). This was the only film in which they worked with a script not written specifically for them, and the results were mixed. Back at MGM the following year, the brothers found themselves under the guidance of Louis B. Mayer, who reputedly never…
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Lucille Ball
Early life and career
…movies—Carnival (1935), Stage Door (1937), Room Service (1938), Five Came Back (1939), and Too Many Girls (1940), in which she starred and which also featured the popular Cuban bandleader and actor Desi Arnaz, whom she married in 1940. For 10 years they conducted separate careers, he as a bandleader and…
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…movies—Carnival (1935), Stage Door (1937), Room Service (1938), Five Came Back (1939), and Too Many Girls (1940), in which she starred and which also featured the popular Cuban bandleader and actor Desi Arnaz, whom she married in 1940. For 10 years they conducted separate careers, he as a bandleader and…
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