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Mel Brooks

Raised in Brooklyn New York by his single Eastern European Jewish mother. After high school he joined the Army to fight Hitler, where he got to see the Europe his family always talked about. He got his start writing for Your Show of Shows alongside Sid Caesar, Imogene Cocoa, Neil Simon, Selma Diamond, and Carl Reiner. Together, they shook up the comedy world.

Still, he wanted to make movies. First came The Producers, where he became a house name. Next he was either writing, directing, acting, or producing classic comedies like Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein or serious dramas like The Elephant Man and My Favorite Year.

Yet, he says he is most proud of his marriage with Anne Bancroft. While she was regal, quiet, and elegant, he was emotional, talkative, and gaudy. When she passed away, the only thing he said was "life has gone out of me. She was my everything."

Let's talk about the great Mel Brooks.

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by Anonymousreply 50October 21, 2023 1:53 PM

He might come off as goofy, but he is one of the smartest, classiest, and most sophisticated men ever in show business. His genuine love of wine, Russian literature, Beethoven, and Anne Bancroft are just a few examples.

Of course, he would never describe himself as such.

by Anonymousreply 1September 3, 2023 4:54 PM

I love him

by Anonymousreply 2September 3, 2023 4:55 PM

Oh. Wow. Cool.

by Anonymousreply 3September 3, 2023 4:55 PM

One of the funniest & best writers there was.

Love his work.

by Anonymousreply 4September 3, 2023 4:55 PM

He has never said anything bad about anyone. A true class act

by Anonymousreply 5September 3, 2023 4:57 PM

He's Jewish?

by Anonymousreply 6September 3, 2023 4:57 PM

He used to play in my Grandfather’s poker game.

by Anonymousreply 7September 3, 2023 4:58 PM

[quote]or serious dramas like The Elephant Man and My Favorite Year.

Huh?

by Anonymousreply 8September 3, 2023 4:59 PM

R8 he produced those films

by Anonymousreply 9September 3, 2023 5:01 PM

A conversation with Mel Brooks and Ben Mankiewicz

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by Anonymousreply 10September 3, 2023 5:02 PM

[quote] He has never said anything bad about anyone. A true class act

Not even HITLER?

by Anonymousreply 11September 3, 2023 5:05 PM

He made 1983’s To Be or Not to Be in which he recited Hamlet’s famous speech. Just three years earlier Eric Porter played Polonius in a BBC television production of Hamlet.

by Anonymousreply 12September 3, 2023 5:05 PM

He is Mel Brooks!

by Anonymousreply 13September 3, 2023 5:05 PM

Mel Brooks on Desert Island Discs. Roy Plomley is in stitches the entire time.

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by Anonymousreply 14September 3, 2023 5:06 PM

[quote][R8] he produced those films

I'm aware of that, r9, but I've never considered My Favorite Year a "serious drama".

by Anonymousreply 15September 3, 2023 5:11 PM

[quote] Imogene Cocoa

Oh, dear.

by Anonymousreply 16September 3, 2023 5:11 PM

R11 No, Brooks says that laughing at them is better

by Anonymousreply 17September 3, 2023 5:12 PM

r6 Rose, are you sure you're not Homer Simpson?

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by Anonymousreply 18September 3, 2023 5:12 PM

[quote] He got his start writing for Your Show of Shows alongside Sid Caesar, Imogene Cocoa, Neil Simon, Selma Diamond, and Carl Reiner.

Imogene COCA was never a writer.

by Anonymousreply 19September 3, 2023 5:14 PM

As a Warner Bros employee, I saw Blazing Saddles before it was released along with a bunch of other employees from accounting.

Mel Brooks work really amazed me. I loved that movie.

by Anonymousreply 20September 3, 2023 5:19 PM

Springtime for Hitler is one of the funniest songs of all time.

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by Anonymousreply 21September 3, 2023 5:19 PM

Putting on the Ritz!

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by Anonymousreply 22September 3, 2023 5:23 PM

Longer Version

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by Anonymousreply 23September 3, 2023 5:23 PM

Stick Out Your Tush!

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by Anonymousreply 24September 3, 2023 5:24 PM

To Be or Not to Be

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by Anonymousreply 25September 3, 2023 5:36 PM

Brooks says he is restoration comedy and no different than Wycherley

by Anonymousreply 26September 3, 2023 7:38 PM

I can see that, r26.

by Anonymousreply 27September 3, 2023 7:44 PM

He was close friends with my husband's parents. They once came by (Bancroft and him) in a limo and picked up Rob's parents for McDonalds before a movie.

by Anonymousreply 28September 3, 2023 7:53 PM

How could you post that literal violence, R24? You brute, you brute, you brute, you vicious brute! 😉🤣

by Anonymousreply 29September 3, 2023 7:54 PM
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by Anonymousreply 30September 3, 2023 8:02 PM

I saw the Broadway version of The Producers with the original cast. I had already memorized the score by listening to the CD. What an absolutely delightful evening.

After 20 years, the score is, for me, okay; there are some real clunkers in the lyrics. But the exuberance of what Brooks' wrote, the 100% of the entire cast? Yea, I still smile and often laugh at what's playing.

He's a treasure.

by Anonymousreply 31September 3, 2023 8:24 PM

Love him and his work.

by Anonymousreply 32September 3, 2023 8:26 PM

His son Max is attractive too

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by Anonymousreply 33September 3, 2023 8:28 PM

Max wrote World War Z

by Anonymousreply 34September 3, 2023 8:46 PM

Has anyone else watched The History of the World Part 2 on HBO? We just finished watching the first series and it is really funny. Mel Brooks produced, with a lot of recognizable comedic faces playing historic characters. There were a bunch of laugh out loud moments.

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by Anonymousreply 35September 3, 2023 9:23 PM

Why do we never hear about History of the World Part 1? If there's a part 2, there's gotta be a part 1.

by Anonymousreply 36September 3, 2023 9:37 PM

tights

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by Anonymousreply 37September 3, 2023 9:38 PM

An absolute inspiration and hero of mine!!

My family has more private Mel Brooks-written jokes than I could count because we kids grew up in the 70s and my parents loved him, too: my 84-year old dad wears his “Sedagive?” tee all the time and has Young Frankenstein action figures in his office and at my mom’s memorial service, we played “Blazing Saddles”' which is absolutely what she would have wanted. Brooks’s wit and silliness are absolutely unmatched and I’m grateful to be old enough to have seen his biggest movies in the theatre with other fans.

by Anonymousreply 38September 3, 2023 9:48 PM

You already missed it R36

by Anonymousreply 39September 3, 2023 9:50 PM

There are very few people who actually qualify as National Treasures -but Mel Brooks is one of them.

I hope he know just how much he is beloved by all of us.

by Anonymousreply 40September 3, 2023 10:22 PM

Mensch

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by Anonymousreply 41September 3, 2023 11:04 PM

You knew Brooks and Bancroft really and genuinely love each other.

There is just something so wholesome and honest about being hilarious and successful, but also married to the same woman for 50 years years.

by Anonymousreply 42September 4, 2023 3:16 PM

Mel Brooks is an angel from heaven. Love how he’s more unhinged than Jiminy Glick in that clip above.

by Anonymousreply 43September 4, 2023 3:54 PM

Love him

by Anonymousreply 44September 4, 2023 4:48 PM

It seems we’ve identified another celebrity who is universally beloved on DL.

by Anonymousreply 45September 4, 2023 7:07 PM

R45 Wrong. I actually hate him. Terrible person. And he is..... *Jewish*

by Anonymousreply 46September 4, 2023 7:10 PM

Aaaaaaaand blocked.

by Anonymousreply 47September 4, 2023 9:46 PM

A friend met him in the 1970s, when we were in high school. She and her mother had stumbled over a location shoot for "High Anxiety", and she said that Mel noticed them standing there gawking. He came up and introduced himself, showed them around for 10-15 minutes, and was unbelievably nice.

Now my friend was a pretty blonde girl of 17 or so, but no, he didn't do anything inappropriate. He was just being nice, because he was a nice person.

by Anonymousreply 48September 4, 2023 10:47 PM

R48 that's sweet. Yeah he is just a good person. End of story.

by Anonymousreply 49September 22, 2023 4:26 AM

He is on a list of people I inspire to be. War, witty, and comforting, but also intelligent and successful.

It is a fine line, but Brooks pulls it off almost effortlessly.

by Anonymousreply 50October 21, 2023 1:53 PM
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