Funny man : Mel Brooks

Summary: Oscar, Emmy, Tony, and Grammy award-winner Mel Brooks was behind (and sometimes in front) of some of the most influential comedy hits of our time. Growing up in a household too poor to own a radio, Melvin Kaminsky was short and homely, a mischievous child whose birth role was to make the family laugh. McGilligan lays bare the strengths and drawbacks that shaped Brooks' psychology, his willpower, his persona, and his comedy. From his breakthrough in early television to Hollywood and Broadway, McGilligan delivers an unforgettable life story and an anatomy of the American dream of success. -- adapted from jacket

Record details

ISBN: 9780062560957
Physical Description: 624 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 23 cm
print
Edition: First Harper Perennial Edition Published 2020.
Publisher: New York, NY : Harper Perennial, 2020.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 555-561), filmography and index.

Formatted Contents Note:

1926: Little world -- 1944: Big world -- 1949: Funny is money -- 1952: Dreams and nightmares -- 1955: Club Caesar -- 1957: The genius awakes -- 1962: The warm and fuzzy Mel -- 1965: Springtime for Mel -- 1967: Auteur, auteur! -- 1971: Blazing Mel -- 1974: Tops in taps -- 1975: Club Brooks -- 1980: Uneasy lies the head -- 1983: Why so angry? -- 1986: Frolics and detours -- 1995: He who laught last -- 2001: Unstoppable.