Mel Brooks ‘Still Reeling’ From Death of Gene Wilder
Mel Brooks as a Native American Yiddish speaker.
Mel Brooks got emotional while sharing stories about the late Gene Wilder — his longtime friend and frequent collaborator — with Jimmy Fallon Tuesday on “The Tonight Show.”
“He was sick, and I knew it. He was such a dear friend,” Brooks said. “I expected it; I expected he would go. But I don’t know. When it happens, it’s still tremendous. It’s a big shock. I’m still reeling from that: no more Gene. I can’t call him. And he was such a wonderful part of my life.”
Brooks recalled first meeting Wilder when the actor was starring in a play, “Mother Courage,” with Brooks’ wife, the late Anne Bancroft. Insecure about not being taken seriously, Wilder asked “Why are they always laughing?” to which Brooks hilariously replied, “Look in the mirror, blame it on God.”
The two worked together for the first time on “The Producers,” a film they weren’t sure would ever get financing (the satirical comedy celebrated Nazi Germany).
“I took the script, and I said, ‘Gene, we got the money. We’re going to make the movie. You are Leo Bloom,’” Brooks recalled. “He burst into tears and held his face and cried. Then I hugged him. It was a wonderful moment.”
Wilder went on to nab a supporting actor Oscar nomination for the role and starred in two other iconic Brooks films: “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein.”
This marked Brooks’ first televised interview since Wilder died on Monday of complications from Alzheimer’s disease. “One of the truly great talents of our time. He blessed every film we did with his magic & he blessed me with his friendship,” he tweeted after learning about the death.—Variety.com
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a Passover gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Dive In
-
Fast Forward Language apps are putting Hebrew school in teens’ back pockets. But do they work?
-
Fast Forward Suspected arsonist intended to beat Gov. Josh Shapiro with a sledgehammer, investigators say
-
Fast Forward Trump administration can deport Mahmoud Khalil for undermining U.S. foreign policy on antisemitism, judge rules
-
Fast Forward Is the Passover Seder Zionist?
Most Popular
- 1
Opinion My Jewish moms group ousted me because I work for J Street. Is this what communal life has come to?
- 2
Fast Forward Suspected arsonist intended to beat Gov. Josh Shapiro with a sledgehammer, investigators say
- 3
Fast Forward How Coke’s Passover recipe sparked an antisemitic conspiracy theory
- 4
Politics Meet America’s potential first Jewish second family: Josh Shapiro, Lori, and their 4 kids
In Case You Missed It
-
Opinion This Nazi-era story shows why Trump won’t fix a terrifying deportation mistake
-
Opinion I operate a small Judaica business. Trump’s tariffs are going to squelch Jewish innovation.
-
Fast Forward Language apps are putting Hebrew school in teens’ back pockets. But do they work?
-
Books How a Jewish boy from Canterbury became a Zulu chieftain
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.