Mel Brooks (born Melvin Kaminsky on June 28, 1926) became a pioneer, if not the major pioneer, of 20th-century American popular humor. He created a perspective of mankind as a greedy yet needy ball of chaotic acts, as represented in our hallowed halls of theater and film, often coated with moments of sheer and intentional bad taste. An intellectual clown, he used vaudeville techniques on a modern media canvas, a whatever-sticks-to-the-wall mixture of farce, satire, black comedy, music and surrealism. Enjoy reviews and discussions of four Brooks masterpieces, shown in the following order: The Producers (1967), Blazing Saddles (1974), Young Frankenstein (1974) and High Anxiety (1977). Subtitles will be provided if available on the disc. No class on Nov. 21.
