Posted on 06/28/2021 7:12:11 PM PDT by Rummyfan
Ask Americans—well, Jews, well, most Jews, well, some Jews—over the age of 60 who is the funniest man on Earth? The answer is “Mel Brooks.” Brooks is the last great Hollywood Jew and when he goes—kinahora not for another 25 years—something will die with him. He might be the last great American Jew, period, some cross between a Kishinev shochet and a Williamsburg ganif, with that voice so full of wryness that the mere anticipation of what it might next utter brings a smile to our lips and comfort to our hearts.
It started in Europe, where the American-born Brooks followed his brothers into the army and ended up serving in the final advance on Germany in 1945. Mel says it was the war that really connected him to a deeper sense of his Jewish identity. In Patrick McGilligan’s exhaustive biography, Funny Man, he says, “I knew what Hitler was doing to Jews, so I really did feel this was a proper and just war.” He even tells a story of being called a “dirty Jew” by a fellow GI during training and reflexively lunging at him, proud of being “a tough Jew from Brooklyn.” By the end of his tour, he was entertaining troops with what would become his signature impression: Adolf Hitler with a comb for a tiny mustache and manic German gibberish.
Upon returning to New York, and every day hence, he has carried the torch of Jewish indignation, and pride. Publicly. This torch has created gifts for the millions, Jew and gentile, but especially a subset of us Jews for whom the jokes are not only funny but deeply personal and somehow cleansing—an unabashed embrace of being one of us.
(Excerpt) Read more at tabletmag.com ...
I love his movies. It was sad seeing him wearing a blm tshirt last year.
Curly Howard by far
#55. You left out Walter Koenig/Chekov. As I told him, a few more Jews in space and we can have a minion. I don’t think I actually told him that but I might have. He was a nice person to talk to. Jimmy Doonan was very funny and George Takei, hilarious. Shatner, not much. Funny on stage, but no when he was signing autographs. Nimoy was a quiet person but very nice.
William Windom, “The Doomsday Machine”, wasn’t Jewish that I know of, but his name in the episode was “Commodore Dekker”.
My great-grandfather was a “dekker”, a roofer. Maybe it was a little Roddenberry/Shatner/Nimoy humor in scripting.
Brooks is having “fun” with Reiner and the woman. He knows that BLM is a bunch of anti-Semitic, Marxist, black extortionists.
In this photo, he looks like Ed O’Neill from “Married With Children”, another funny guy.
I need a link
Brooks had nothing to do with Frisco Kid.
“Brooks is having “fun” with Reiner and the woman. He knows that BLM is a bunch of anti-Semitic, Marxist, black extortionists.”
No.
Typical blind liberal. Clueless.
Blazing Saddles quite a BLM type movie.
Back then, though, people didn’t take it literally.
Lol
Made me chuckle....
Shatner was so non Jewish acting then.....who knew ....
Been a lot of Jews in space here and Russia
One died on Columbia and one on Challenger
Nice try, but no.the photo was taken exactly 1 year ago on Brooks 94th birthday. https://forward.com/culture/449801/of-course-mel-brooks-and-carl-reiner-support-black-lives-matter/
“It’s not all that surprising that Brooks, who directed the anti-racist romp “Blazing Saddles” would support the BLM movement. The voice of the “2,000 Year Old Man,” and his interviewer, Reiner, have been around long enough to know that systemic racism hurts everyone — but particularly people of color.”
Sorry but Jews overwealmingly support Socialists and the DNC. Histrory is a waste to a race that says ‘Never forget!’ and yet votes for the the party of the NAZI’s.
Do you know who played the bellhop? That is Barry Levinson.
His movies have a lot of gags in them that are subtle but very funny. As an example in “Blazing Saddles” with Brooks as the Apache chief surrounding Clevon Littles family, it was several years before I found out he was speaking Yiddish to his tribe.
The waiter at the Last Supper - - - “will this be separate checks?”
Expected no less!
“He vass my BOYFRIEND!”
No. Kinison was a Pentecostal preacher before turning to stand-up.
Mrs Robinson.... oh yeah.
Well, there is an old trope that the Native Americans are actually descended from one of the lost tribes of Israel. FWIW.
Oy. Schwartze. They darker than we are.
“My favorite was the Goyim half of Burns and Allen, but George would back me up on that.”
He said on several occasions that Gracie made him a star.
He also visited her grave very often, very devoted to her even after her death. I really enjoyed his resurgence in popularity in his later years.
“Say goodnight Gracie.”
“Goodnight Gracie.”
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