2009 Kennedy Center Honoree: Mel Brooks

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By Sonny Bunch

Oscar winner. Grammy winner. Tony winner. Emmy winner. World War II veteran. Star of stage, screen and airwaves. Master of the parody film.

Fart joke pioneer.

Mel Brooks has been rewarded with a Kennedy Center Honor for mastering every facet of the entertainment industry and bringing laughter to countless millions with his iconic brand of distinctly Jewish comedy.

"If a hurricane had a sense of humor, it would only have one name … Mel Brooks," says comedian and actor Richard Lewis via e-mail.

After serving in World War II — enlisting as a 17-year-old and entering combat just in time for the brutal Battle of the Bulge — Melvin Kaminsky returned to the United States and performed at resorts in the Catskills. He changed his last name to Brooks so people wouldn't confuse him with the trumpeter Max Kaminsky.

By 1950, he was working as a writer on early television giant Sid Caesar's programs, including the legendary "Your Show of Shows"; it was there that he met Carl Reiner, which was the start of a longtime friendship and fruitful partnership.

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Kennedy Center Honorees

Grace Bumbry, Dave Brubeck, Mel Brooks, Robert DeNiro and Bruce Springsteen are this year's Kennedy Center Honorees.

"It was more fun than it was work," Mr. Reiner said of their time writing for "Show of Shows." "The writers' room was a competitive place, where people tried to get their ideas and jokes in, and Mel Brooks was a contributor who always came up with something."

Mr. Brooks first came to national prominence with the success of his and Mr. Reiner's "2,000 Year Old Man" album. In the bit, Mr. Reiner would pose a question to Mr. Brooks, who would answer as the eponymous character; the answers — which began life as a time-waster at dinner parties — were all improvised.

"The first album, he didn't want to do," Mr. Reiner confided during a recent phone interview. But the pair performed the routine in front of some Hollywood luminaries, one of whom gave the duo a piece of sage advice.

"George Burns came up to me, and he said, 'Is there an album I can buy?' and we said, 'No,' and he said, 'You better put it on an album, or I'm going to steal it,'" Mr. Reiner reminisced.