Mel Brooks

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Melvin James Kaminsky (better known as Mel Brooks) is an American film director, screenwriter, composer, lyricist, comedian, actor and producer. He is well known for doing parodies and spoofs of famous classical stories and genres.

Early Life
Mel Brooks was born on June 28, 1926 in Brooklyn, New York, U.S. to James Kaminsky and his wife Kate (ne'e Brookman). His father's family were German Jews from the Baltic Sea port of Danzig (modern Gdansk, Poland). His mother's family were Ukrainian Jews from Kiev. He had three older brothers, Irving, Lenny, and Bernie. When Brooks was two years old, his father had died from kidney disease.

''There's an outrage there. I may be angry at God, or at the world, for that. And I'm sure a lot of my comedy is based on anger and hostility. Growing up in Williamsburg, I learned to clothe it in comedy to spare myself problems-like a punch in the face. ''- Mel Brooks about his father's death.

At school, Mel Brooks was often picked on by his classmates and he was a small and sickly child. Also growing up in Williamsburg, Buddy Rich taught Brooks how to play the drums and at the age of fourteen, he started to gain money from it.