Still blazing after all these years: Mel Brooks at 100

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The director of The Producers hits his century as a uniquely beloved entertainer who embodies his conviction that ‘comedy is the opposite of death’ Mel Brooks’ story is that of the US and Jews and American Jewish comedy. He was born on the kitchen table of a tenement in Brooklyn a century ago in the same month Marilyn Monroe made her own entrance on the opposite coast. The son of European immigrants, Brooks was brought up by his mother after his father died when Melvin was just two years old. He was a small, sickly child and the youngest of four brothers, perhaps an explanation for an almost pathological desire for attention. In the words of his colleague Larry Gelbart : “Mel thought when he got slapped in the ass by the doctor who delivered him that was applause, and he has not stopped performing since.” In his youth, Brooks’ preferred method of making a noise was playing the drums and he was actually taught the instrument by Buddy Rich. Neither could possibly have known at the time t...
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‘Cosmetic surgery? Just wear a hat!’ US sitcom legends Jane Curtin and Harriet Sansom Harris on AI, ageing and aliens

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They are veterans of everything from Frasier to 3rd Rock from the Sun. As the duo make the leap into sci-fi with alien caper Jules, they reveal the secrets to a long career – and make a plea for smarter, quieter movies

Jane Curtin and Harriet Sansom Harris are best known in the UK for their roles in big 1990s sitcoms. Curtin was Mary Albright, sceptical professor and the object of John Lithgow’s affections in 3rd Rock from the Sun. Harris played Bebe Glazer, Frasier’s purringly machiavellian agent.

In the US, both are comedy veterans. Curtin, now 76, began in the first seasons of Saturday Night Live, then won back-to-back Emmys for divorcee double act Kate & Allie. Harris, 68, has had stints on Desperate Housewives and Hacks, but spent most of her career on stage – she trained at Julliard with Kelsey Grammer, Christopher Reeves and Robin Williams and has been a Broadway fixture for 30 years, winning a Tony in 2002 for Throughly Modern Millie.

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