Let's meet the man behind "The Producers"!Mel Brooks was born Melvin Kaminsky in Brooklyn, N.Y. in 1926. He attended the Virginia Military Institute and served in the United States Army during World War II.
Brooks got his start as a stand-up comedian before moving on to write for "Your Show of Shows," teaming with Carl Reiner for performances on "The Steve Allen Show," and creating the television series "Get Smart." His movie career is legendary, turning out classics like "The Producers," "Blazing Saddles," "Young Frankenstein," "Spaceballs," and "Robin Hood: Men in Tights." His movies have featured an impressive roster of talent, including Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder, Dom DeLuise, Cloris Leachman, Madeline Kahn, Harvey Korman and Dick Van Patten.
Two of his movies, "The Producers" and "Young Frankenstein," have been translated to success on the Broadway stage. Brooks is one of the few artists who have received an Oscar, Emmy, Tony and Grammy award. He was married to actress Anne Bancroft (of "The Graduate") for 41 years.
"The Producers" was Brooks's first feature film, and due to its inflammatory nature, none of the major studios would touch it. The film was produced under an independent label, and won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. "The Producers" hit Broadway in 2001, starring Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick, and won an unprecedented 12 Tony Awards. The movie musical premiered in 2005 with the original Broadway leads, as well as Will Ferrell and Uma Thurman.
Brooks commented on his satire in the U.S. News and World Report: "I was never crazy about Hitler...If you stand on a soapbox and trade rhetoric with a dictator you never win...That's what they do so well: they seduce people. But if you ridicule them, bring them down with laughter, they can't win. You show how crazy they are."
Thanks, Mel, for bringing us such a fantastic show!
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