Mel Brooks: influences, peers and legacy

Every connection with its receipt

Mel Brooks turned Brooklyn Jewish vaudeville energy, Sid Caesar's writers' room, and a projectionist's love of Universal horror and Hollywood genre craft into the loudest parody cinema of the 1970s. This mix traces the slapstick titans and black-comedy precursors behind him, the Borscht Belt and Brooklyn roots, the songwriting and Soviet-satire detours, and the parody filmmakers who followed.

The Kynda mix for Mel Brooks

• Key Influence · Your Show of Shows by Sid Caesar (1950). Brooks got his start writing for Caesar's live NBC sketch marathon alongside Carl Reiner, Neil Simon, Larry Gelbart and Mel Tolkin — the room he later described as a screaming competition for laughs. Caesar's mock foreign-language double-talk, movie-parody sketches and operatic blowhard characters are the direct template for Brooks's genre send-ups and for the bullying, manic energy of Max Bialystock.','
• Influencia Obscura · Son of Frankenstein by Rowland V. Lee (1939). The forgotten third Universal entry supplies more of Young Frankenstein than the famous first film: Lionel Atwill's one-armed Inspector Krogh, whose wooden arm gags become Kenneth Mars's Inspector Kemp, plus the returning heir, the sulphur pit, the expressionist castle sets and Bela Lugosi's broken-necked Ygor as the ancestor of Marty Feldman's Igor. A deep-cut source most viewers never identify.
• Local Roots · Annie Hall by Woody Allen (1977). Both men came out of Brooklyn and the same postwar New York gag-writing economy — Allen wrote for Sid Caesar on Caesar's Hour just after Brooks's tenure, under the same producers. Allen's Coney Island childhood, analyst jokes and Jewish-outsider anxiety are the introverted mirror of Brooks's extroverted vaudeville, two halves of the same borough's comic inheritance reaching cinema in the same decade.
• Beyond the Medium · The Twelve Chairs by Ilya Ilf and Yevgeny Petrov (1928). Brooks adapted this Soviet picaresque about a dispossessed nobleman chasing jewels hidden in a dining set as his second feature, shooting in Yugoslavia in 1970 and writing the song 'Hope for the Best, Expect the Worst' himself. The Russian novel's cynical, scrabbling survivors gave him a template for greed-driven comic duos that runs straight back into Bialystock and Bloom.
• Peer · Airplane! by Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker (1980). The ZAZ team industrialized what Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein proved commercially viable: the gag-dense feature parody that treats a straight genre text — here the Zero Hour! disaster picture — with deadpan sincerity while jokes detonate in every frame. Working the same decade and the same studio comedy economy, they are Brooks's closest contemporaries in the parody trade.
• From the Canon · The Producers by Mel Brooks (1967). His debut as writer-director, made after years as a hired gag man, won him the Academy Award for Original Screenplay and set the career thesis: the only revenge on Hitler is to make him ridiculous. Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder's Bialystock and Bloom established the greedy-schemer duo Brooks would keep rebuilding, and in 2001 he returned to it as a Broadway musical that took twelve Tony Awards.
• Key Collaborator · The Dick Van Dyke Show by Carl Reiner (1961). Reiner was Brooks's lifelong straight man, the interviewer who improvised the 2000 Year Old Man routines with him at parties from the early 1950s and coaxed them onto record and television. His own sitcom fictionalizes the Caesar writers' room where the two met, making it the best window onto the comic rhythm — needling interrogator versus ancient windbag — that made both their careers.
• Legacy · A Million Ways to Die in the West by Seth MacFarlane (2014). MacFarlane has been open about Brooks as a formative model, and his Western comedy is a direct descendant of Blazing Saddles in setting, anachronistic dialogue and scatological nerve. Family Guy's cutaway-gag density and musical numbers likewise extend the Brooks method of stuffing a scene with jokes regardless of tonal consistency; MacFarlane also revived the old-Hollywood pastiche musical mode.

What influenced Mel Brooks

• Anything Goes by Cole Porter. Brooks credits seeing the Cole Porter musical Anything Goes as the life-changing moment that made him want to enter show business. “my Uncle Joe took me to see my first Broadway musical. And it was a Cole Porter, a wonderful show called "Anything Goes," starring Ethel Merman.” (Fresh Air (NPR/WHYY))
• Eraserhead by David Lynch. Brooks's admiration for Eraserhead led him to produce Lynch's next film. “unbelievable that Mel Brooks loved 'Eraserhead,'” (SlashFilm)
• Charlie Chaplin. Brooks names Chaplin, alongside Keaton, as a mentor. (also via The Gold Rush) “That was a great lesson for me. He and Chaplin were my mentors.” (The Keaton Chronicle)
• Buddy Rich. Brooks studied drumming under Rich. “I am grateful to Buddy for stressing to me how important rhythm was. I constantly still think in terms of rhythm, which is so important when it comes to comedy timing.” (Houston Press)
• Frankenstein by James Whale (1931). Frankenstein (James Whale) — titan for Mel Brooks “Mostly, it succeeds." When Wilder replaced Gig Young as the Waco Kid, he did so on condition that Brooks's next film would be a script that Wilder had been working on: a spoof of James Whale's Frankenstein (1931) and Bride of Frankenstei…” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Dead Souls by Nikolai Gogol. Brooks describes Gogol's book as a life-changing model of comic writing. “The book was Dead Souls by the magnificent genius Nikolai Gogol . It was a revelation. I'd never read anything like it. It was hysterically funny and incredibly moving at the same time... It was a life-changing gift” (Wikipedia)
• Buster Keaton. Brooks explicitly credits Keaton as a teacher and influence on his filmmaking. “I owe (Buster) a lot on two levels: One for being such a great teacher for me as a filmmaker myself, and the other just as a human being watching this gifted person doing these amazing things. He made me believe in make-believe.” (The Keaton Chronicle)
• To Be or Not to Be by Ernst Lubitsch (1942). To Be or Not to Be (Ernst Lubitsch) — ghost for Mel Brooks “With Anne Bancroft, he starred in To Be or Not To Be (1983), a remake of Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 film.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• The Gold Rush by Charlie Chaplin (1925). The Gold Rush (Charlie Chaplin) — titan for Mel Brooks “It features DeLuise, Feldman, Sid Caesar, Bernadette Peters and, playing themselves, Anne Bancroft, James Caan, Liza Minnelli, Paul Newman, Burt Reynolds and mime Marcel Marceau, who utters the film's only audible line of dialogue: "Non!…” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Your Show of Shows by Sid Caesar (1950). Your Show of Shows (Sid Caesar) — titan for Mel Brooks “Brooks began his career as a writer for Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows, where he worked with Mel Tolkin, Neil Simon and Carl Reiner.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Destry Rides Again. The film parodies Destry Rides Again. (via Blazing Saddles) “A spoof of Westerns , it parodies Destry Rides Again (1939), The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), High Noon (1952), Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)” (Wikipedia)
• The Treasure of the Sierra Madre by John Huston (1948). The film parodies The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. (via Blazing Saddles) “A spoof of Westerns , it parodies Destry Rides Again (1939), The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), High Noon (1952), Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)” (Wikipedia)
• High Noon. The film parodies High Noon. (via Blazing Saddles) “A spoof of Westerns , it parodies Destry Rides Again (1939), The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), High Noon (1952), Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)” (Wikipedia)
• Once Upon a Time in the West by Sergio Leone. The film parodies Once Upon a Time in the West. (via Blazing Saddles) “A spoof of Westerns , it parodies Destry Rides Again (1939), The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), High Noon (1952), Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)” (Wikipedia)
• Busby Berkeley. A sequence parodies Berkeley's musical spectaculars. (via Blazing Saddles) “Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) and, in a surreal sequence, the musical spectaculars of Busby Berkeley .” (Wikipedia)
• Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. The film especially parodies Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. (via Robin Hood: Men in Tights) “Robin Hood: Men in Tights , which gave fans a parody of Robin Hood , especially Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves .” (Wikipedia)
• The Adventures of Robin Hood by Michael Curtiz. The film references Curtiz's The Adventures of Robin Hood. (via Robin Hood: Men in Tights) “It also references Michael Curtiz 's The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) and Brooks's When Things Were Rotten .” (Wikipedia)
• Son of Frankenstein by Rowland V. Lee (1939). Son of Frankenstein (Rowland V. Lee) — ghost for Mel Brooks (themoviedb.org)
• Puttin' on the Ritz by Irving Berlin (1929). Puttin' on the Ritz (Irving Berlin) — culture for Mel Brooks “In 1974 it was featured in the movie Young Frankenstein by Mel Brooks, and was a no.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• The Twelve Chairs. The Twelve Chairs (Ilya Ilf and Yevgeny Petrov) — culture for Mel Brooks (wikidata.org)
• Die Dreigroschenoper by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht (1928). Die Dreigroschenoper (Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht) — culture for Mel Brooks (wikidata.org)

Peers and kindred spirits

• Sid Caesar. Brooks wrote for Caesar's variety show. (also via Your Show of Shows) “Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks discuss working with Sid Caesar on "Show of Shows" and collaborating on their book and CD, "The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000."” (Charlie Rose)
• Richard Pryor (1940). Brooks confirms he hired Richard Pryor as a writer on Blazing Saddles, describing their collaboration. (also via Blazing Saddles) “Mel Brooks said that, you know, he loved writing for the Mongo character. You know, things like, Mongo only pawn in game of life - that came out of Richard Pryor's mind.” (Fresh Air (NPR/WHYY))
• David Lynch (1946). Lynch recalls Brooks choosing him to direct The Elephant Man. (also via Eraserhead) “Mel called me Jimmy Stewart from Mars, but he is the crazy one – he picked me to direct THE ELEPHANT MAN.” (American Film Institute)
• Carl Reiner. Brooks and Reiner performed improvised routines together. (also via The Dick Van Dyke Show) “His 2000-Year-Old Man routines with Carl Reiner led to best-selling albums.” (The Keaton Chronicle)
• Buck Henry. Brooks and Henry created Get Smart together. “He was gifted with a great imagination. He came up with that amazingly funny concept of the ‘cone of silence’ in which no one could hear each other. I invented the shoe phone. I should have patented it.” (The Hollywood Reporter)
• The Elephant Man. Brooks produced Lynch's film. “The reason THE ELEPHANT MAN was made was that Mel committed to do a network special – even though he has said he wanted to stay out of television – in exchange for our deal.” (American Film Institute)
• Gene Wilder. Brooks and Wilder wrote Young Frankenstein together. “Everything Gene did for me as a film artist was angelic and supreme.” (PBS American Masters)
• The Miracle Worker by Arthur Penn (1962). The Miracle Worker (Arthur Penn) — collaborator for Mel Brooks “The next year she portrayed Anne Sullivan in the original Broadway production of The Miracle Worker, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother by Gene Wilder (1975). The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother (Gene Wilder) — collaborator for Mel Brooks “The Producers stars Gene Wilder and Zero Mostel as Leo Bloom and Max Bialystock, Broadway producers who realize that, under certain circumstances, you can make more money with a flop than you can with a hit.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (1961). Catch-22 (Joseph Heller) — geography for Mel Brooks “He was a close friend of Joseph Heller, author of Catch-22.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Joan Rivers (1933). Rivers voiced Dot Matrix in Spaceballs, directed by and co-starring Mel Brooks. “The film, directed by and co-starring Mel Brooks , was a critical and commercial success, later becoming a "cult classic".” (Wikipedia)
• The Dick Van Dyke Show by Carl Reiner (1961). The Dick Van Dyke Show (Carl Reiner) — collaborator for Mel Brooks “Brooks began his career as a writer for Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows, where he worked with Mel Tolkin, Neil Simon and Carl Reiner.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Brooksfilms. Brooks founded the production company Brooksfilms. “Knowing that anyone seeing a poster reading "Mel Brooks presents The Elephant Man " would expect a comedy, he founded Brooksfilms .” (Wikipedia)
• Brighton Beach Memoirs by Neil Simon (1983). Brighton Beach Memoirs (Neil Simon) — geography for Mel Brooks “Brooks began his career as a writer for Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows, where he worked with Mel Tolkin, Neil Simon and Carl Reiner.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Annie Hall by Woody Allen (1977). Annie Hall (Woody Allen) — geography for Mel Brooks “Caesar created Caesar's Hour with most of the same cast and writers, including Brooks and adding Woody Allen and Larry Gelbart.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• The Nutty Professor by Jerry Lewis (1963). The Nutty Professor (Jerry Lewis) — peer for Mel Brooks (themoviedb.org)
• Monty Python and the Holy Grail by Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones (1975). Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones) — peer for Mel Brooks
• Airplane!. Airplane! (Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker) — peer for Mel Brooks

Who Mel Brooks influenced

• Buddy Sorell by Carl Reiner. Reiner based the television character on Brooks. “Reiner, as creator of The Dick Van Dyke Show , based Morey Amsterdam 's character Buddy Sorell on Brooks.” (Wikipedia)
• Dave Chappelle (1973). Chappelle describes Mel Brooks as a mentor figure during their work together. (also via Robin Hood: Men in Tights) “it was a kind of mentor relationship in the sense that I got to watch a guy execute a vision he had” (Fresh Air (NPR))
• Ira Stone. The play's character Ira Stone is based on Brooks. “Neil Simon's Laughter on the 23rd Floor (1993) is inspired by the production of the show, and the character Ira Stone is based on Brooks.” (Wikipedia)
• A Million Ways to Die in the West by Seth MacFarlane (2014). A Million Ways to Die in the West (Seth MacFarlane) — legacy for Mel Brooks “=== Influences === MacFarlane has said that his comedy influences include Woody Allen, Jackie Gleason, Mel Brooks, Monty Python, Matt Groening, and Norman Lear; while his musical influences include Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Vic Damone,…” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery by Mike Myers (1997). Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (Mike Myers) — legacy for Mel Brooks (themoviedb.org)
• Shaun of the Dead by Edgar Wright (2004). Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright) — legacy for Mel Brooks (themoviedb.org)
• George Carlin (1937). 2000 Year Old Man (Mel Brooks & Carl Reiner) — titan for George Carlin (via 2000 Year Old Man)