ROB ZOMBIE To Direct Film About GROUCHO MARX

According to The Pulse Of Radio, Rob Zombie will move way out of the horror genre with his next feature film. Zombie has reportedly acquired the rights to a memoir by Steve Stoliar called "Raised Eyebrows: My Years Inside Groucho's House". The screenplay will be written by Oren Moverman, director of "The Messenger". The book tells the bizarre story of the last years in the life of Groucho Marx, told by a young Marx Brothers fan who spent those years as his personal secretary and archivist.

Zombie admitted to The Pulse Of Radio a while back that it's been tough for him to break out of the horror genre. "The movies I've made up to this point have been pretty dark and pretty much in that world because those are the opportunities that were presented," he said. "You know, the people that put up the money for these things know that if I stick to that sort of thing, it's easily more profitable. So it's a much bigger challenge to break out of it."

The book details the legendary comedian's declining years as well as the author's interactions with Zeppo and Gummo Marx, Mae West, George Burns, Bob Hope, Jack Lemmon, Steve Allen and other entertainment icons.

Zombie, whose work has been solely in the horror genre until now, said, "I have been a huge Groucho Marx fan ever since I was a child and have read countless book on the comic legend… I immediately saw this project as Groucho's Sunset Boulevard and knew I had to bring it to the big screen. It is a sad, funny and very dark tale of a one of Hollywood's greatest stars' final years."

Zombie is currently on a short tour and in post-production on his latest horror film, "31".

The rocker/filmmaker has tried to switch film genres before with a project called "Broad Street Bullies". The film, which would chronicle the exploits of the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team during the 1970s, has been unable to find financing.