Bert Kalmar
Writer · Died September 18, 1947, aged 63 · New York City, New York, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Bert Kalmar (February 10, 1884 – September 18, 1947) was an American lyricist, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. Kalmar, a native of New York City, left school at an early age and began working in vaudeville. He appeared on stage as a magician, comedian and dancer before switching to songwriting after a knee injury ended his performing career. By this time he had earned enough to start a music publishing company, Kalmar and Puck, where he collaborated with a number of songwriters, including Harry Puck (1891–1964) and Harry Ruby. The publishing firm also operated under the name Kalmar, Puck, Abrahams, Consolidated, Inc., the other named partner being Maurice Abrahams (1883–1931) By 1918 Kalmar and Ruby had formed a permanent songwriting team. Together, they wrote the musical score for the Marx Brothers' stage production of Animal Crackers (1928) and subsequent film version. Their songs were also featured in the Marx Brothers' films Horse Feathers (1932) and Duck Soup (1933). Kalmar's partnership with Ruby was portrayed in the 1950 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical Three Little Words, starring Fred Astaire and Red Skelton. Kalmar did, however, occasionally work with Oscar Hammerstein II, Ted Snyder and other songwriters. Bert Kalmar was married to Jessie Brown, with whom he had two children. The couple were later divorced. He died in Los Angeles, California and was interred at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale, California.
Read moreShow less
Biography from TMDB.
- February 10, 1884
- September 18, 1947 (aged 63)
- New York City, New York, USA
- Writer
- 9 on MovieCove · 19 credits in all
What are Bert Kalmar's films like?
Across their 5 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Society.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
A split, not a type: Ironic 4 · Wry 0 · Earnest 1
Light 5 · Serious 0 · Dark 0
Grounded 0 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 2
Gentle 2 · Charged 2 · Intense 1
Steady 4 · Shifting 1 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 5
Slow burn 0 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 3
Casual 4 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 5 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 0
Resolved 5 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy4
- Ambiguous1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Bert Kalmar's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 9 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (2).
Subscription and free streaming for Bert Kalmar's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
19 credits, 9 with a MovieCove page.
Three Little Words(1950)
Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films
A Night in Casablanca(1946)
Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films
The Life of the Party (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1937)
Walking on Air (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)
Bright Lights (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1935)
A Night at the Opera(1935)
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
Kentucky Kernels(1934)
Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films
The Circus Clown (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1934)
Hips, Hips, Hooray! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1934)
Duck Soup(1933)
Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films
So This Is Africa(1933)
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
The Kid from Spain (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1932)
Horse Feathers(1932)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
Broadminded (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1931)
The Life of the Party (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1930)
Check and Double Check (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1930)
Animal Crackers(1930)
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films
The Cuckoos (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1930)
Career shape
A full career of 18 titles from 1930 to 1950.
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Bert Kalmar's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 77th percentile, the median of all 9; across their 5 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 89th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up7
- 25th to 49th2
Shape of the crowd
None of their 9 titles divides audiences: 4 are Universally Loved.
- Universally Loved4
- Crowd Pleaser3
- Mixed2
Reviewers score the dialogue 80/100 and the plot and story 35/100 in their films, across 5 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Bert Kalmar's work okay for kids?
Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.
Who does Bert Kalmar work with?
People who share at least 2 of Bert Kalmar's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Harry Ruby shares the most, 5.
Writers
- Harry RubyShared titles: A Night at the Opera (1935), Kentucky Kernels (1934), Duck Soup (1933), Horse Feathers (1932), Animal Crackers (1930)See all 5 shared titles with Harry Ruby
- George S. KaufmanShared titles: A Night at the Opera (1935), Animal Crackers (1930)See all 2 shared titles with George S. Kaufman
- Morrie RyskindShared titles: A Night at the Opera (1935), Animal Crackers (1930)See all 2 shared titles with Morrie Ryskind
- Arthur SheekmanShared titles: Duck Soup (1933), Horse Feathers (1932)See all 2 shared titles with Arthur Sheekman
Actors
- Chico MarxShared titles: A Night at the Opera (1935), Duck Soup (1933), Horse Feathers (1932), Animal Crackers (1930)See all 4 shared titles with Chico Marx
- Groucho MarxShared titles: A Night at the Opera (1935), Duck Soup (1933), Horse Feathers (1932), Animal Crackers (1930)See all 4 shared titles with Groucho Marx
- Harpo MarxShared titles: A Night at the Opera (1935), Duck Soup (1933), Horse Feathers (1932), Animal Crackers (1930)See all 4 shared titles with Harpo Marx
- Margaret DumontShared titles: A Night at the Opera (1935), Kentucky Kernels (1934), Duck Soup (1933), Animal Crackers (1930)See all 4 shared titles with Margaret Dumont
Composers
- John LeipoldShared titles: Duck Soup (1933), Horse Feathers (1932)See all 2 shared titles with John Leipold
Producers
- Herman J. MankiewiczShared titles: Duck Soup (1933), Horse Feathers (1932)See all 2 shared titles with Herman J. Mankiewicz
