Wacky Wednesday Comedy Special: Jackie Mason, Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner in the 1960s

Today we take a deep dive into the comedy pool and come up with an undated video clip of two performances that brought back funny memories of the early days of comedy.

A very young Jackie Mason takes the stage in the first clip showing his interaction with the audience that would become very familiar in the 1960s.  

Then Dick Shawn introduces Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner in an early episode of the 2000 year-old man. They did their shtick many times on The Ed Sullivan Show and other TV variety programs but every segment was unique.

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Enjoy!

Wacky Wednesday Comedy Special: First Appearance of 2000 Year Old Man on Ed Sullivan Show

The 2000 Year Old Man skit that Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks performed for many years on records and TV began as a joke between the two of them that they shared at parties.

After their first record album became a hit in 1960, they made a TV appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in February 1961. 

We have posted a few versions of the routine on Jewish Humor Central over the years, but today we are sharing their very first performance on Sullivan's show.

Each performance is a treasure because while Reiner had a fixed set of questions that he asked, Brooks always ad-libbed and never gave the same answer twice.

Here is their original sketch from 59 years ago. Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

Remembering Carl Reiner - Producer, Director, Actor and Interviewer

The world of tasteful, professional comedy has been in mourning since Carl Reiner died Monday at the age of 98.

Reiner, who worked extensively with Sid Caesar and Mel Brooks in Your Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour, was the quiet genius who played the straight man to the often loud and boisterous characters played by Caesar and Brooks in their innovative sketch comedy.

Reiner's career spanned seven decades. In addition to his collaborations with Caesar and Brooks, he was also best known as the creator, producer, writer, and actor on The Dick Van Dyke Show.

His contributions to Hollywood included his acting in films such as It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963); The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming (1966); and the Ocean's film series (2001–2007). He also had great success as a film director and writer and in the 1970s and 1980s. He co-wrote and directed some of Steve Martin's most successful films, including The Jerk (1979), and also directed notable comedies such as Where's Poppa? (1970), Oh, God! (1977), and All of Me (1984). 

Reiner's interviewing skills were honed on Your Show and Shows and Caesar's Hour when as an earnest roving reporter, he coaxed hilarious answers from Sid Caesar's loony characters such as The Professor, a daffy expert who bluffed his way through his interviews.
 
If we had to pick a favorite role, it would be as the interviewer of Mel Brooks in his largely ad-libbed portrayal of The 2000 Year Old Man. This now classic skit started out as a joke that Reiner and Brooks performed for their friends at parties. There are many versions of how this joke ended up as a series of live performances and records.

Reiner started bringing a tape recorder to the parties as Brooks never said the same thing twice. George Burns suggested to the two that they put their material on an album, but only Steve Allen managed to coax the two to record it in his studio.

In this video clip from The Conan O'Brien Show, Reiner recounted the chain of events that led to the worldwide success of The 2000 Year Old Man.

Enjoy!!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

Throwback Thursday Comedy Special: Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner in "The Two Hour Old Baby"

Fifty-eight years ago in 1961, Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner, riding high on the success of their comedy album The 2000 Year Old Man, couldn't resist producing a follow-on album called 2000 and One Years with Carl Reiner & Mel Brooks.

One of the funniest tracks on this album is The 2 Hour Old Baby, in which Carl Reiner finds his way into the maternity ward of the UCLA Medical Center to interview a two hour old baby who was born with the power of speech and intelligence.

The nurses have told him that the baby has been speaking nonstop since he was born and Reiner, the interviewer, has been given permission to ask questions of the baby, who is played by none other than Mel Brooks.

We don't have video for this skit, only audio, so you'll have to be content listening to the audio and looking at the album cover. It's still a riot, and we hope you'll enjoy the dialogue.

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.



#Throwback Thursday    #TBT

Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks in Another 2000 Year Old Man Skit

We're always looking for new episodes of Carl Reiner interviewing Mel Brooks as the 2000 Year Old Man, and when we find one we rush to share it with you.

Here's a part of a skit where Carl asks Mel what was the first book he ever read and the response is See Moses Run.

It's followed by some unusual facts about Moses, and then about Jesus, whom the 2000 year old man says he knew way back then.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

Throwback Thursday Comedy Special: The 2000 Year Old Man Meets Jay Leno

In 1997 Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks published a book and CD titled The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000. The 2000 Year Old Man skit was originally created in 1961 at Brooks' beachfront house in Fire Island. 

Brooks had just undergone surgery for gout. Because of his post-surgical discomfort, Brooks quipped, "I feel like a 2000-year-old man," which led Reiner to begin questioning him about what it's like to be a 2000-year-old man and to describe history as Brooks saw it.

To promote the book and CD, the duo made an appearance on Jay Leno's Tonight Show. They performed an updated version of the skit and then went on to explain how they got the famous campfire flatulence scene in Blazing Saddles past the censors.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.



#Throwback Thursday  #TBT