Jan. 22, 2026, 12:42 p.m. ET
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The wet cement impressions left by Brooks during his Hand and Footprint Ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.
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Brooks, left, met Carl Reiner through their work in the 1950s on Sid Caesar’s “Your Show of Shows,” which led to their iconic sketch the “2,000 Year-Old Man.” In the skit (here on “The New Steve Allen Show” on Oct. 18, 1961), Brooks, as a 2,000 year-old man, would improvise answers to questions by Reiner. The two became life-long best friends. “My life is fuller because I’ve had Mel in my life,” Reiner once said. “If he doesn’t come over, I don’t know what to do with myself.”
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Brooks wrote and directed the 1967 film, “The Producers,” a satire about an accountant and con artist who stage a Broadway show celebrating Hitler. It was his first collaboration with Gene Wilder (left), and also starred Zero Mostel (right) and Kenneth Mars. It initially garnered a mixed reception and just broke even at the box often, but later gained in stature as one of Brooks’ funniest films and in 1996 was added to the National Film Registry.
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After Brooks’ success with “The Producers,” his wife, Anne Bancroft, encouraged him to write the title song for his next film, “The Twelve Chairs,” based on the Russian novel of the same name. Brooks wrote “Hope for the Best, Expect the Worst” and the script, played Tikon (above), and directed the 1970 film. His costars included Frank Langella and Dom DeLuise.
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Another comedy ensemble, 1976’s “Silent Movie” starred Dom DeLuise, Marty Feldman and Brooks. Cameos included Anne Bancroft, Burt Reynolds, Liza Minnelli and Paul Newman. The movie was indeed silent, with the exception of mime artist Marcel Marceau uttering a resounding, “Non!”
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Brooks produced, directed and starred in “High Anxiety,” in 1977. The film, with Madeline Kahn (left), parodied psychoanalysis and Hitchcock movies.
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1980’s “The Elephant Man,” with John Hurt, would not have been possible without Brooks. He hired David Lynch and was the executive producer, but intentionally left his name out of the credits so that audiences would not expect a comedy instead of a serious drama.
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Brooks was again a multi-hyphenate writer/director/producer of “History of the World: Part I” in 1981. He also played five roles in the film, including King Louis XVI (above).
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As with “The Elephant Man,” Brooks withheld his name from the credits of “Frances.” Jessica Lange (left) received and Academy Award nomination for her role in the film about a real-life 1930s actress (Frances Farmer) who becomes dependent on alcohol and drugs and suffers a nervous breakdown after being blacklisted in Hollywood.
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“To Be or Not to Be,” in 1983, was the first time Brooks starred with his wife, Anne Bancroft. In the war comedy, the couple run a theater troupe trying to escape Occupied Poland. Critics received it relatively favorably, but it fizzled at the box office.
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Brooks was an uncredited producer on the 1986 sci-fi thriller “The Fly,” starring Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis and directed by David Cronenberg. He is credited with coining the famous line, “Be afraid. Be very afraid,” which became the movie’s tagline.
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A comedy but not a parody, 1991’a “Life Stinks” was an attempt to look at the issue of homelessness. While critics called it “warmhearted,” they also found it depressing, and it flopped.
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Cary Elwes led the cast of “Robin Hood: Men in Tights” in 1993. As with many of Brooks’ projects, the film united comedy greats including Richard Lewis, Tracey Ullman and Dom DeLuise — as well as a new upstart by the name of Dave Chappelle (left).
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For “Dracula: Dead and Loving It” in 1995, Brooks parodied Bram Stoker’s classic and cast Leslie Nielsen to star.
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David Geffen persuaded Brooks to adapt “The Producers” for the stage, and the show made its Broadway debut in April, 2001. Nathan Lane (left) and Matthew Broderick played the producer and accountant, respectively, and the musical was a massive hit, winning a record 12 Tony Awards.
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Impressed by Larry David’s karaoke skills, Brooks played himself in Season 4 of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and offered him the lead role in a revival of “The Producers” on Broadway.
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Mel Brooks often spoofs Hitler’s mustache by using a comb, as he did accepting the Tony for Best Musical for “The Producers,” in 2001. Mocking the dictator was a way to diminish him and rob him of “his posthumous power and myths,” he has said. “If you can make people laugh at him, then you’re one up on him.”
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