NEW YORK — A comedic legend is set to mark an incredible milestone. Mel Brooks, the mastermind behind “The 2000 Year Old Man,” will celebrate his 100th birthday this Sunday.
Anticipation for this landmark occasion has been building throughout the year. Earlier, acclaimed director Judd Apatow paid tribute to Brooks with a documentary aptly titled “Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!”
In the film, Brooks offers a candid insight into his lifelong vocation, declaring, “I was born to make people laugh. So, I do that.”
Born Melvin Kaminsky in Brooklyn, New York, on June 28, 1926, Brooks’ roots extend deep into the heart of comedic history. After serving in World War II, he honed his craft performing in the Borscht Belt before being hired by Sid Caesar as a writer for “Show of Shows.” It was there he forged a lasting friendship with Carl Reiner, culminating in the creation of the beloved “2000 Year Old Man” sketches.
A standout moment from these sketches involved Reiner’s historical probing of Brooks’ ancient character about his experiences with Jesus. Brooks would humorously respond, “Jesus… yes, yes. Thin lad. Wore sandals. Always walked around with 12 other guys.”
Brooks went to make classic comedies like “The Producers,” “Blazing Saddles,” “Young Frankenstein” and “High Anxiety.” It all started, Brooks told The Associated Press in 2021, with his childhood in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
“I wanted to keep the party going. I wanted to keep the happiness and joy and explosions of laughter going into a dour part of our lives, not our childhood anymore,” Brooks recalled. “I was once interviewed and the guy said, ‘What was the happiest part of your life? Was it winning the Academy Award? Was it marrying Anne Bancroft?’ I said no, not at all. It was my childhood. From about 4 or 5 to 9, it was the most exciting, happiest, joyous life that anyone could experience.
“The guy said, ‘What happened at 9?’ I said, ‘Homework.'”
Even now, Brooks hasn’t retired. In April, Brooks submitted a video message to Eddie Murphy to honor him for his AFI life achievement award. In May, he announced that he was donating thousands of his documents and photographs to the National Comedy Center in Jamestown, New York.
“I’ve always been proud to say that I make people laugh for a living,” Brooks said then in a statement. “So, knowing that my work will have a home at comedy’s national archive and continue making people laugh leaves me with a deep sense of pride.”
To mark the occasion of Brooks’ centennial, the American Film Institute on Friday named 1974’s “Blazing Saddles” the funniest film of all time. It has previously ranked sixth on its list of 100 greatest movies. Brooks’ film displaced “Some Like It Hot” – which Brooks had long held wasn’t as funny as his movies – from the top spot.
“He’s right!,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI president and chief executive. “We’re happy to right this wrong as Mel celebrates his centennial. It’s good to be the king, and may he live to be a 2,000 year old man. Happy birthday, Mel!”
Brooks has sometimes made mortality a joke, too. In a 1980s sketch, he created a coin-operated gravestone for himself that played a videotaped message. It began: “I was Mel Brooks, one of the funniest little Jews to walk the Earth.”
When asked in that AP 2021 interview if he thought much about death, Brooks said no.
“I gave up after 60 thinking about it because if I did, I’d be thinking about it all the time. So I don’t think about it much. When and if it happens it’s going to be a sad day – for everybody but me,” Brooks said, laughing.
“I enjoy living,” he added. “I’d like to do it as long as I can.”
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