Manhattan · New York County
Marx Brothers Playground
NYC Parks
- Location
- Second Avenue at East 96th Street, Upper East Side / East Harlem border
- Size
- 1.48 acres
- Hours
- 6 AM - 1 AM daily
- Type
- NYC Parks
Marx Brothers Playground is a neighborhood park at the boundary between the Upper East Side and East Harlem, named for the legendary comedy team who grew up in the Yorkville neighborhood in the early 1900s.
Harpo, Groucho, Chico, Gummo, and Zeppo Marx were all born and raised on East 93rd Street in Yorkville, just a few blocks from this playground. Their comedy revolutionized American entertainment and influenced every comedian who followed.
The playground sits precisely at the 96th Street boundary that divides the wealthy Upper East Side from East Harlem, one of the most symbolically significant socioeconomic borders in Manhattan.
The Marx Brothers grew up in poverty in a neighborhood of immigrant families, and their comedy drew on the multilingual, multicultural energy of early 20th-century New York. The playground honors their roots in this neighborhood.
Marx Brothers Playground serves the communities on both sides of the 96th Street divide with recreational space named for five brothers who turned their immigrant neighborhood's energy into some of the greatest comedy in American history.