While Mel Brooks’ memoir is entitled All About Me!, it’s the subtitle, “My Remarkable Life in Show Business” that actually captures the book. Brooks does not come across as an egotistical person focusing on himself. He appears to be a generous man who credits other people, and names names, for assisting in his career. And, it’s a remarkable career, as anyone knows who recognizes names such as Sid Caesar, “The Producers”, “Blazing Saddles”, and “Young Frankenstein”.

Mel Brooks is one of those rare EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) winners. And, he started out in Brooklyn with a background that could have led to trouble. His father died when he was two, but his three older brothers and his mother worked to keep the family together, and Brooks has nothing but positive things to say about his childhood. He does admit he was a small kid, and his size opened him up to bullying, but he found a way around it – comedy. Comedy made him friends, and they protected him from bullies. At the age of nine, he told his uncle he was going into show business.

Brooks honed his skills in the Catskills, working as a busboy and understudy for the shows put on at a resort. Actor Don Appell hired him, and then later helped him get hired to write for Sid Caesar. Brooks spent over a decade writing jokes for Sid Caesar, including for “Your Show of Shows.” And, he admits he was a little crazy at times, breaking into spontaneous comic roles.

There’s nothing Brooks is afraid to cover in his book, from his outrageous meeting with his wife, Anne Bancroft, to the difficult financial years in the early sixties. Then, in 1964, with serious spy shows on TV, he wrote “Get Smart” with Buck Henry. Soon, he was better off financially.

Brooks writes about his years writing, directing, and then producing movies. He talks about the learning process, and all the people who helped him along the way. His company, Brooksfilms, produced movies such as “The Fly” and “My Favorite Year”. Then, he took his movie hit, “The Producers”, and turned it into a Broadway hit.

How do you evaluate a memoir? I don’t see how anyone can review someone’s autobiography. All About Me! is a tell-all account only in that it tells all about Mel Brooks’ life and career. He’s led a fascinating life, and achieved so much in show business. But, if you read this book, what might stay with you is that Mel Brooks comes across as a kind man who celebrates his family and friends as much as he celebrates his own career. Yes, he was successful. But, he’s also successful in that he retained friends from all arenas of his long career. I found joy in this book because Brooks is a kind man who doesn’t hesitate to praise and thank others in his life.

All About Me! My Remarkable Life in Show Business by Mel Brooks. Ballantine Books, 2021. ISBN 9780593159118 (hardcover), 460p.

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