Description: Born on June 28, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York, Mel Brooks has directed a number of classic (and quite disarming) film comedies, including The Producers, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein. The longtime spouse of actress Anne Bancroft, Brooks started his own production company, Brooksfilms, and has won awards in a slew of categories, including an Academy Award and multiple Emmy, Grammy and Tony awards. Mel Brooks was born Melvin Kaminsky on June 28, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York, to Kate Brookman and Max Kaminsky. The young Brooks worked as a comic in his neighborhood and learned how to play the drums as a teen from Buddy Ric Born on June 28, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York, Mel Brooks has directed a number of classic (and quite disarming) film comedies, including The Producers, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein. The longtime spouse of actress Anne Bancroft, Brooks started his own production company, Brooksfilms, and has won awards in a slew of categories, including an Academy Award and multiple Emmy, Grammy and Tony awards.

Mel Brooks was born Melvin Kaminsky on June 28, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York, to Kate Brookman and Max Kaminsky. The young Brooks worked as a comic in his neighborhood and learned how to play the drums as a teen from Buddy Rich. He served in World War II and returned home to work at resorts in the Catskills for a time, utilizing a variety of talents and skill sets.

By 1949, Brooks came to partner with legendary comedian Sid Caesar as a writer on The Admiral Broadway Revue and then, in 1950, on Your Show of Shows. He later worked with Carl Reiner, another Caesar writer, to develop the "2000 Year Old Man" skit, which they released on a series of related albums.

Mel Brooks found more television success as the co-creator with Buck Henry of Get Smart, a series starring Don Adams that debuted in 1965 and parodied the spy genre. After working on an animated short, The Critic, which won a 1964 Academy Award, Brooks made his feature-length film debut in 1968 with the comedy The Producers, starring Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder as greedy Broadway creators who knowingly put on a play—Springtime for Hitler—that's in appallingly bad taste. Producers didn't fare well at the box office initially, but would be lauded in later years, and Brooks nonetheless received the 1969 Oscar for best screenplay.

Brooks next directed the 1970 film Twelve Chairs and did screenwriting work for the animated adaptation of the musical Shinbone Alley before having two grand slams in 1974. Early that year saw the release of Blazing Saddles, a parody of westerns co-written by Richard Pryor that starred Wilder, Harvey Korman, Madeline Kahn and Cleavon Little as the first African-American sheriff of a town. The film, known for a number of mouth-dropping sequences, earned almost $120 million domestically.

Then in December, Brooks released another future classic and immediate hit, Young Frankenstein, for which Wilder developed the script and starred in. The film, also featuring Kahn, Teri Garr, Cloris Leachman and Peter Boyle, offered among its wit a show-stopping reworking of the tune "Puttin' on the Ritz."

Other films Brooks has directed and written include Silent Movie (1976), High Anxiety (1977), History of the World - Part 1 (1981), Spaceballs (1987), Life Stinks (1991), Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993) and Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995).

In addition to appearing onscreen in his own projects, Brooks started his own production company, Brooksfilms, with the desire to push forth more serious projects.

Brooksfilms has helmed fare like The Elephant Man (1980), To Be or Not to Be (1983)—in which Brooks and his wife, actress Anne Bancroft, co-starred—and The Fly (1986).

Brooks and Bancroft were married for more than four decades, from 1964 until her death in 2005. The couple's son, Max Brooks, has become the author of The Zombie Survival Guide series and World War Z, with the latter book having been turned into a 2013 film.

Brooks is one of only a handful of people to have won Oscar, Emmy, Grammy and Tony awards. He won two Grammys for the Broadway version of The Producers and another for the comedy album The 2000 Year Old Man in The Year 2000. He also received a 1967 Emmy for his variety show writing and, decades later, won three additional statues over three consecutive years for his role as Uncle Phil on the NBC sitcom Mad About You.

The new millennium has seen Brooks continue to enjoy success with the 2001 Broadway musical version of The Producers, which earned a record-breaking 12 Tony Awards and ran for six years, inspiring a 2005 film as well. He was also behind the 2007 musical version of Young Frankenstein.

More recently, it was announced that Brooks would be honored with the American Film Institute's 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award. Additionally, he is the subject of the PBS American Masters documentary Mel Books: Make a Noise. ... (more)

Tags: Actor (20), American (8), Director (8), Jewish (5), Born 1926 (5), Comedian (4), Writer (3), Male (3), 1980s (2), 1970s (2), 1990s (2), Composer (2), Oscar Winner (2), Producer (2), Songwriter (2), Consultant (2), Supporting Actor (2), Lead Actor (2), Born In June (2), June 28 (2)

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Movies

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1. Robots (2005)

Rating:

5.8

2024 Watched

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2. Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

Rating:

6.5

1924 Watched

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3. Spaceballs (1987)

Rating:

6.7

1808 Watched

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4. Young Frankenstein (1974)

Rating:

7.8

1527 Watched

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5. Look Who's Talking Too (1990)

Rating:

4.8

1618 Watched

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1. Young Frankenstein (1974)

Rating:

7.8

1527 Watched

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2. Blazing Saddles (1974)

Rating:

7.4

1028 Watched

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3. The Producers (1967)

Rating:

7.3

526 Watched

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4. The Muppet Movie (1979)

Rating:

7.2

622 Watched

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5. To Be or Not to Be (1983)

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96 Watched

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1. Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man! (2026)

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2. The Automat

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1 Watched

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3. Ronnie's

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4. Forky Asks a Question: What is Love? (2019)

Rating:

5 Watched

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5. Toy Story 4 (2019)

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6.7

479 Watched

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TV

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1. The Simpsons (1989)

Rating:

7.8

5910 Watched

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2. Frasier (1993)

Rating:

6.8

1474 Watched

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3. The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius (2002)

Rating:

735 Watched

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4. Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000)

Rating:

7.5

588 Watched

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5. Mad About You (1992)

Rating:

6.2

582 Watched

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1. Gaspard and Gaelle 2014

Rating:

9.3

38 Watched

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2. Corazón de... (1997)

Rating:

9.3

46 Watched

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3. Cinema 3 (1984)

Rating:

9.2

38 Watched

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4. CBS News Sunday Morning (1979)

Rating:

9.1

43 Watched

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5. The Ed Sullivan Show

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8.9

45 Watched

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1. History of the World: Part II

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4.8

6 Watched

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2. Little Demon

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5.1

12 Watched

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3. Stars in the House

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4. To Tell the Truth (2016)

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5. The 67th Primetime Emmy Awards (2015)

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7.8

17 Watched

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1. Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

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6.5

1924 Watched

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2. Spaceballs (1987)

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6.7

1808 Watched

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3. Get Smart (2008)

Rating:

6.1

1634 Watched

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4. Young Frankenstein (1974)

Rating:

7.8

1527 Watched

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5. Blazing Saddles (1974)

Rating:

7.4

1028 Watched

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1. Young Frankenstein (1974)

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7.8

1527 Watched

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2. Blazing Saddles (1974)

Rating:

7.4

1028 Watched

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3. The Producers (1967)

Rating:

7.3

526 Watched

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4. Silent Movie (1976)

Rating:

6.7

202 Watched

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5. History of the World: Part I (1981)

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6.7

455 Watched

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1. New Faces

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1 want to see

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2. Get Smart's Bruce and Lloyd Out of Control (2008)

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5.2

59 Watched

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3. Get Smart (2008)

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6.1

1634 Watched

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4. The Producers

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5.7

581 Watched

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5. Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995)

Rating:

5.3

809 Watched

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1. Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

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6.5

1924 Watched

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2. Spaceballs (1987)

Rating:

6.7

1808 Watched

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3. Young Frankenstein (1974)

Rating:

7.8

1527 Watched

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4. Blazing Saddles (1974)

Rating:

7.4

1028 Watched

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5. Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995)

Rating:

5.3

809 Watched

View all Mel Brooks movies (6 more)

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1. Young Frankenstein (1974)

Rating:

7.8

1527 Watched

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2. Blazing Saddles (1974)

Rating:

7.4

1028 Watched

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3. The Producers (1967)

Rating:

7.3

526 Watched

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4. Silent Movie (1976)

Rating:

6.7

202 Watched

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5. History of the World: Part I (1981)

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6.7

455 Watched

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1. Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995)

Rating:

5.3

809 Watched

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2. Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

Rating:

6.5

1924 Watched

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3. Life Stinks (1991)

Rating:

5.9

119 Watched

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4. History of the World: Part I (1981)

Rating:

6.7

455 Watched

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5. High Anxiety

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6.6

213 Watched

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1. Get Smart (1965)

Rating:

7.4

241 Watched

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2. Spaceballs: The Animated Series (2008)

Rating:

4.7

9 Watched

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3. The Dick Emery Show (1963)

Rating:

7.3

8 Watched

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4. Your Show of Shows (1950)

Rating:

8.6

5 Watched

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5. The 2000 Year Old Man (1975)

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5 Watched

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1. Get Smart (1965)

Rating:

7.4

241 Watched

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1. Mel Brooks Live at the Geffen (2015)

Rating:

8.5

2 Watched

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2. Spaceballs: The Animated Series (2008)

Rating:

4.7

9 Watched

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3. When Things Were Rotten (1975)

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2 Watched

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4. The 2000 Year Old Man (1975)

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5. "Great Performances" Recording 'The Producers': A Musical Romp with Mel Brooks

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1. The Producers (2005 Movie Soundtrack) (2010)

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2. The Producers (2001 Original Broadway Cast) (2001)

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3. Free To Be...You And Me (2014)

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4. Mel Brooks Greatest Hits Featuring the Fabulous Film Scores of John Morris

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5. The 2000 Year Old Man: The Complete History (2009)

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1. Free To Be...You And Me (2014)

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2. The Producers (2005 Movie Soundtrack) (2010)

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3. The 2000 Year Old Man: The Complete History (2009)

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5. The Producers (2001 Original Broadway Cast) (2001)

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Books

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1. Young Frankenstein: A Novel (1974)

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1. Young Frankenstein: A Novel (1974)

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"Favourite films: Spaceballs, Blazing Saddles, History of the World: Part 1, Young Frankenstein, and Higb Anxiety "

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"Blazing Saddles (1974) Young Frankenstein (1974) High Anxiety (1977) Spaceballs (1987) The Producers (1967)"

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"Must-See Movies The Producers Blazing Saddles Young Frankenstein Silent Movie High Anxiety Robin Hood: Men in Tights "

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Mel Brooks' Performs BRILLIANT Frank Sinatra Impersonation | The Dick Cavett Show

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Mel Brooks Misses Being Able to Call Gene Wilder

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Mel Brooks Wins Original Screenplay: 1969 Oscars

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Mel Brooks on British accents, Ross Noble, and Dublin

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Award Winners ...EGOT Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony (15 person items)

"Emmys: Outstanding Writing Achievement in Variety, The Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner, Howard Morris Special (1967) Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series, Mad About You (1997) Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series, Mad About You (1998) Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series, Mad About You (1999) Grammys: Best Spoken Comedy Album, The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000 (1998) Best Long Form Music Video, Recording “The Producers”: A Musical Romp With Mel Brooks (2002) Bes"

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"Gene Wilder - The Producers - Blazing Saddles - Young Frankenstein Mel Brooks - The Producers - The Twelve Chairs - Blazing Saddles - Young Frankenstein - Silent Movie - High Anxiety - History of the World: Part I - Spaceballs - Life Stinks - Robin Hood: Men in Tights - Dracula: Dead and Loving It Dom DeLuise - The Twelve Chairs - Blazing Saddles - Silent Movie - History of the World: Part I - Spaceballs - Robin Hood: Men in Tights Madeline Kahn - Blazing Saddles - Young Frankenstein - High A"

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