Gorham makes Marx on world

Staff photo by Shawn Patrick Ouellette

A large crowd celebrates Sunday at the Gorham Family Fair after it was announced that they had unofficially broken the Guinness Book of World Records mark for the most people wearing Groucho Marx disguises at one time - 1,489, apparently breaking the previous record by 52.

Staff photo by Shawn Patrick Ouellette

Leo and Dolly Leighton of Gorham join in the fun Sunday. They're wearing two of the 2,016 sets of glasses purchased with donated funds by the town for 81 cents each.

GORHAM — Forgive some young Australian rugby players if they're having a bad day. Their coveted world record apparently has fallen. The new record setters - all 1,489 of them - gathered Sunday, on the final afternoon of an annual summer festival, in front of Town Hall in Gorham. When an official gave the word over the public-address system, everybody put on their Groucho Marx disguises, each one complete with trademark glasses, oversized nose, eyebrows and mustache.

That's right, the people who showed up in Gorham now unofficially own the Guinness World Record for the greatest number of Groucho Marx glasses worn in one place at the same time.

Evidence of the feat will be boxed up and shipped to Guinness headquarters in London for verification.

"We did it," said Cindy Hazelton, director of Gorham Recreation and the mastermind behind the attempt. "We didn't do it as big as I thought, but we still did it."

The previous record stood at 1,437 disguises. It was set on June 4, 2005, by members of the Toukley Hawks Junior Rugby League, mostly teenagers from the Australian state of New South Wales. Hazelton said Gorham will be ready for the challenge if the young Hawks try to exceed the new record.

"You get these zany ideas and you throw it out there, and you never know how people are going to respond," Hazelton said. "I think it's just a hoot. People have called us all spring, saying they would be here."

Back in January, Hazelton was looking for another event to add to the Gorham Family Fair lineup. The town worked with St. Anne's Church to expand the festival this year, from one day to three. Hazelton imagined an event that would capture the public's imagination and reflect the oddball humor preferred by Recreation Department staffers.

"I've really always wanted to attempt a Guinness World Record," Hazelton said. She asked Natalie Bell, the department intern, to research records. Bell reported back with 10 options, along with the guidelines for making an attempt official. The Groucho Marx glasses record, along with a teeth-brushing record and eight others, appeared on Bell's list.

Using donated money, the department ordered 2,016 sets of glasses, at 81 cents each. Then they started putting the word out around town. Hazelton also used donated money to auction off a new canoe and other prizes on Sunday, to attract as many people as possible. She even brought in a local attorney to sign off on the process.

"I was deeply honored to be asked to participate," said John Sawyer, watching the crowd, tongue firmly planted in cheek.

By 3 p.m. Sunday, long lines of people snaked back at several check-in points around the lawn. People had to sign in, and each Groucho disguise had an identification number. The official photo of the group was taken around 4:05 p.m. from atop a Fire Department ladder.

"We've lived all our lives in Gorham, so we thought we'd come down and be part of this," said Mary Jo Lyons, standing alongside her mother, Ethel Johnson. Lyons brought her children, 5-year-old Cooper and 12-year-old Rachel, Groucho numbers 363 and 392, respectively.

"It's great," Lyons said, her mouth half-visible beneath a black mustache. "How many kids in Gorham get to break a world record?"

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