Today, June 28th, is a very special day. It is the birthday of one of the most talented, brilliant comedians to ever wind up in Hollywood. The man of whom I speak is the very funny and wildly popular Mel Brooks.
Starting out as a stand-up comedian in the Catskills (from 1945 to 1949), he was first recognized as a great writer of comedy when he wrote sketches for Sid Caesar’s Show of Shows (along with Neil Simon and Mel Tolkin). He wrote and directed his first film, The Producers (starring Gene Wilder, Zero Mostel, Kenneth Mars, and Dick Shawn) in 1968. For this he won his first and only Oscar (Best Screenplay, 1968), beating out 2001: A Space Odyssey.
He then went on to make The Twelve Chairs, an adaptation of a Russian novel. Neither film did well at the box office. However, in 1974, he made two of the most popular comedy films of all time: Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein. The ’70s also gave rise to Brooks’s loving homage to the Master of Suspense, High Anxiety, and an outright parody of silent movies (aptly named Silent Movie).
During the ’80s, Brooks was still up and running, giving audiences three memorable (but not legendary) comedies: To Be or Not to Be (a remake of the 1942 Benny/Lombard masterpiece), History of the World: Part I, and Spaceballs.
The ’90s were fairly unfair, as Brooks made three films (Life Stinks, Dracula: Dead and Loving It, and the very funny Robin Hood: Men In Tights), all of which failed financially and critically.
However, Mel has made millions of us laugh over the years, and, just a spring chicken at 84, hopefully plans to continue. Thanks, Mr. Brooks, and a very happy birthday to you. I’ll send you some Raisinets.
-luke
Stay Classic 