Mel Brooks at 100: A Century of Comedy That Changed America
NEW YORK — The 2000 Year Old Man is turning 100. Mel Brooks, the legendary comedian, filmmaker and EGOT winner, celebrates his centennial birthday on Sunday, June 28, marking a milestone that few entertainers in history have reached — and none with quite so many punchlines still to deliver.
Born Melvin Kaminsky in Brooklyn, New York, on June 28, 1926, Brooks has spent nearly a century making people laugh, from his early days in the Borscht Belt and Sid Caesar’s “Your Show of Shows” to his landmark films of the 1970s and his ongoing presence in American culture. As AP News reports, the milestone arrives amid a wave of tributes that underscore his immeasurable impact on comedy.
From Brooklyn to the Big Screen
Brooks grew up in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, in a working-class Jewish family during the Great Depression. He has frequently described his early childhood as the happiest period of his life — a time of joy he sought to recreate through his comedy. After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, he began performing in the Catskill Mountains resorts of the Borscht Belt, where Sid Caesar discovered him and hired him as a writer for television.
It was on “Your Show of Shows” that Brooks met Carl Reiner, who would become his lifelong friend and comedy partner. Together, they created the iconic “2000 Year Old Man” sketches — an improvisational routine in which Reiner interviewed Brooks’ ancient character. The sketches became a cultural phenomenon, winning a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Comedy Album in 1998 and earning a place in the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry.
Brooks went on to direct and write some of the most audacious comedies ever produced by a major Hollywood studio. “The Producers” (1967) won him an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Then came 1974 — arguably the greatest single year in comedy film history — when he released both “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein,” two films that remain benchmarks of the genre.
A Centennial Celebrated
The American Film Institute marked the eve of Brooks’ 100th birthday by naming “Blazing Saddles” the funniest film of all time on June 26, displacing “Some Like It Hot” from the top spot. AFI President and CEO Bob Gazzale said in a statement: “He’s right! 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.”
Earlier this year, Judd Apatow’s documentary “Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!” debuted on HBO and HBO Max, offering an exhaustive two-part, 216-minute look at Brooks’ life and career. As AP News noted in its review, the film features tributes from comedy legends including Dave Chappelle, Jerry Seinfeld, Sarah Silverman and Conan O’Brien, all of whom credit Brooks as an influence.
In May, Brooks announced he was donating thousands of documents and photographs to the National Comedy Center in Jamestown, New York. According to Smithsonian Magazine, the archive includes materials spanning his entire career — from jokes he kept while serving in the Army to handwritten lyrics for “Springtime for Hitler” and notes from every film he directed or produced.
“I’ve always been proud to say that I make people laugh for a living,” Brooks said 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.”
The Man Behind the Laughter
Brooks is one of fewer than three dozen entertainers to achieve EGOT status — winning at least one Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award. His Broadway adaptation of “The Producers” won a record 12 Tony Awards in 2001. He received an honorary Academy Award in January 2024.
Yet for all his accolades, Brooks has always maintained that his greatest joy came early in life. In a 2021 interview with the Associated Press, he recalled being asked about the happiest part of his life. “Was it winning the Academy Award? Was it marrying Anne Bancroft?” he said. “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.”
That philosophy — that comedy is rooted in joy rather than cynicism — has defined his approach. “Comedy is lively. Comedy is joy,” Brooks says in the Apatow documentary. “And that’s what keeps us going. We have to look forward to little happinesses, little joys.”
A Legacy That Keeps Growing
Even at 100, Brooks shows no signs of stopping. A “Spaceballs” sequel was previewed at CinemaCon in April 2026, and Brooks had previously announced plans for a sequel to “History of the World, Part I.” He submitted a video message to honor Eddie Murphy at the AFI Life Achievement Award ceremony just two months before his birthday.
Laura LaPlaca, head of the National Comedy Center archive, captured the significance of preserving Brooks’ legacy: “It is challenging to imagine the American 20th century without the vital voice of Mel Brooks — his work helped us understand one another and endure.”
As Brooks himself once put it when asked about death: “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.”
He added: “I enjoy living. I’d like to do it as long as I can.”
At 100 years old, the 2000 Year Old Man is still going strong — still making us laugh, still reminding us that comedy, at its best, is a celebration of life itself.