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Mel Brooks
Creating screen comedies including The Producers, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein.
The Producers · Blazing Saddles
- Born
- 28 June 1926
- Birthplace
- Brooklyn, New York, United States
More people
Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks is an American comedian, writer and filmmaker whose parodies turn familiar genres inside out. His work combines verbal jokes, visual absurdity and jokes aimed at prejudice and authority.
Early life
Brooklyn childhood
His father died when he was young, and his mother supported the family.
Early entertainment
Learned drums and worked in Catskills resorts.
Career
- 1950s
Television writer
Wrote for Sid Caesar’s comedy programmes.
- 1960s
Records and sitcoms
Performed with Carl Reiner and co-created Get Smart.
- 1968 onwards
Film director
Built a directing career around comedies and genre parodies.
- 2001
Broadway adaptation
Turned The Producers into a successful stage musical.
Selected work
The Producers
A producer and accountant attempt to profit from a theatrical failure.
Blazing Saddles
A western parody attacking racism.
Young Frankenstein
Reworks classic horror-film conventions.
Beyond work
War service
Served in the US Army in Europe during the Second World War.
Family
Was married to actor Anne Bancroft from 1964 until her death in 2005.
Sources & photo credit
Biography ↗Life and work ↗Photo: Angela George at https://www.flickr.com/photos/sharongraphics/. CC BY-SA 3.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
