Leonard Marx

Leonard Marx, known as Chico, (March 22, 1887 – October 11, 1961) was one of the Marx Brothers.

Originally nicknamed Chicko because in those days women were refe

Leonard Marx, known as Chico, (March 22, 1887 – October 11, 1961) was one of the Marx Brothers.

Originally nicknamed Chicko because in those days women were referred to as chicks and the guys who chased them as chicken chasers, of which he was one. A typesetter accidentally dropped the k in his name and it became Chico, but it was still pronounced as if it were Chicko. Chico developed the "Italian" accent he used to convince some roving bullies that he was Italian, not Jewish. Stereotyped ethnic characters were common with Vaudeville comedians, and all the Marx brothers sometimes performed "dialect characters" early in their careers, but Chico was the only one to continue this.