Summary

BACK IN STUDIO - INTERVIEW CONTINUES: David Susskind 20:49 before pushing on, I can't help wondering before you became famous celebrity how did your mother get to brighten up gentlemen were on. Before you became an international celebrity Mel Brooks 20:49 By the way, did you read Judith Christie? review of the 12 chairs? The lowest salaries? Oh, yes, I did. Yeah, it was lousy, wasn't it? Now she gave us a very good review. She said it was a complete joy. And she said that I am. I'm the best thing that ever happened to film I did everything on that picture possible everything. I put them Sprockets at the side of the film, say the projectionists could thread it up. David Susskind 21:39 Your modesty is overpowered Mel Brooks 21:41 I lead you to your seat. You can see me there.Right to your seat. I wish you a good time and a hearty appetite. You bet chewing about David Susskind 21:54 I was wondering, before you became a world figure of renown. How did your mother your mother get how did your mother get to where she was going? Mel Brooks 22:05 I don't know what you mean. David Susskind 22:07 She couldn't speak the language. She Mel Brooks 22:09 just a little Jewish aggression. She pushed away through as a matter of fact. My mother lives in Miami now. And she just moved down and I said Are you afraid? You know, it's a completely different environment. Your children are not there. You don't have enough relatives. You know, I know that. It's fraught with people of your persuasion mom. But still, I mean, aren't you, you know, fight and scared. She said I came from Russia. That was a move already. From Russia to the United States. From New York to Florida. There's not such a big move. I mean, it's you know, so she really is a gutsy little Jewish lady. You know, she's a marvelous person. You know, my father died when he was 34. Dan. And my mother raised four, four boys sent us off to college. did a fantastic job. David Susskind 23:05 Is your mother alive at the moment? Does she visit you often from Kansas City? Larry Goldberg 23:10 Well, she took a long schlep up to see me in Kansas from Kansas City was about a 30 hour train ride. She was afraid to fly. She came in the pizzeria and she didn't touch the pizza. You know when in truth. It's not true. We have locks Goldilocks pizza locks and onions. Really Goldilocks Goldilocks pizza locks. We have a heart shaped feel about you're running a pizzeria. She doesn't talk a lot about it. I mean, I'm sure she'd rather me be a doctor lawyer. Mel Brooks 23:36 Why did she say she said my son's in food? Larry Goldberg 23:41 No, she says my son works in New York and he's a pizza schleper Mel Brooks 23:44 A pizza schleper George Segal 23:48 what's it like in Kansas City? Mel Brooks 23:51 everything's up to date in Kansas City. well, they've gone about as far David Steinberg 23:57 Do they have a ghetto there? Larry Goldberg 23:59 no the Jews I said there's only 23,000 Jews who everybody Gentile I didn't meet a Jew till I was 25 is not because they're spread out over about 800 miles in Kansas City. I'm a hillbilly Mel Brooks 24:10 I'll bet they together during pogroms. One big jew seller watch the Gentiles thunder by David Susskind 24:26 One of the things one of the things I wondered about in his book is that section devoted to that moment in time when a Jewish mother discovers her son is engaged or about to make a commitment to you that's one of the tragic moments in the Jewish mother's life isn't Dan Greenburg 24:42 Yeah well it's time for a complete about face I mean for the preceding in my case 30 years it's so when you're ready you know it's really and then the moment comes and and you introduce your intended to her and she says it's very nice, very nice girl. A lot of makeup wears a lot of makeup. She drinks I noticed she was drinking, drink before. I have nothing against drinking. Don't get me wrong, but I did see notice she was putting it away. I did notice you were putting it in. My mother is amazed that I will have a drink or two before dinner. And as a matter of fact, when we come Chicago to visit them, she will I'm now married to Nora Ephron Greenberg. She calls herself Nora Ephron. But actually she's my friend Greenberg. And she will say to my wife, am I talking to you? If you don't know me? No. This is George Segal. Yeah, she does know that. I don't know how she feels about that. But she will say to my wife, when I'm out of earshot. Is Dan still drinking? Does he drink a lot? Is it a problem? But anyway? What was your question David Susskind 25:56 The reaction of the Jewish David Steinberg 25:57 I haven't answered any question. David Susskind 26:02 David. When you? Are you married? David Steinberg 26:06 No, I'm not. David Susskind 26:06 Have you ever been engaged? David Steinberg 26:08 No, I haven't i i play around, you know. Fairly easy. I have to be asked. And that's pretty much it. But I want to talk about my mother. Yes. David Susskind 26:19 How old are you? David Steinberg 26:20 I'm 28. Yeah, the thing about my mother that you all care is my mother spoke Russian in Yiddish only in the house. And we're a very poor family. We came from very poor family now. Lately, it's been kind of nice to me. And I send a little money home. My mother doesn't speak English and she doesn't know any words. But now in the Yiddish you start to hear filtering through words like is that a network show?Today when I was in California, just yesterday, she said something totally in Yiddish and the end of the sentence was visa gates and the residual understands those things and she learns to adapt although Mel Brooks 27:11 they do throw in and that is yiddish you know when she was spoken in Russia I'm sure they pick up some Russian words and poland the same and and in New York you hear it Haagen often subway Yeah, suddenly, you know, it's true that you get a smattering of a different language George Segal 27:26 Are you both fluent in Yiddish? Mel Brooks 27:32 I used to work in the Fourth Circuit as a as a an MC in a pool David Susskind 27:36 thats how you started so I was just so I learned Mel Brooks 27:39 but you're talking about David Susskind 27:40 what's it like being an MC Mel Brooks 27:41 shut up David? Got a heavy Jews, it got dynamite here. Okay, when I when I introduced my mother to my present wife who was not Jewish, I said, David Susskind 27:54 oh, there must have been an interesting Mel Brooks 27:55 yes, I said Mom, I want you to meet Annie and. And she knew that my wife was Catholic and not Jewish. And she said, sit down, make yourself comfortable. You know, take a piece of food and relax and now I'll be in the kitchen. My head will be in the oven. A big disaster. And then they came to know each other and my mother is head over heels in love with Annie in they are best friends David Susskind 28:21 His wife is one of the gracious beautiful talented and Ann Bancroft I mean Mel Brooks 28:27 It was nothing Did She convert you kidding. She don't have to convert she's a star. Yes, I converted I Brooks was I'll tell you why I converted I no longer a Jew. And I'll tell you the reason I'm no longer a Jew. Because when a Jew is in trouble when we when we panic, but we're in trouble. And we want to say, oh my god, I got Can you talk about you know, one of our expletives? And then we follow it with a sign. Now how are we going to follow it? Like if you're Catholic with like a Catholic says, oh my god, like you know, the right look of it. But what did you What do you come out? I mean, where do you go to triangle? That's a lot of work. By the time you're finished the second triangle? David Susskind 28:38 Yes, David. David Steinberg 29:21 I was just suggesting that we get off of Mel because he's so hot. Now. You don't want to see him fade right in front. So I thought if I made this gesture, perhaps I get the focus. I'll talk until I get to a point. Here is here's the point. The point is, what your mind is the curses in a Yiddish home are very, very special and especially the curses that you get from a mother. They're unlike anything that you get in a Gentile home. They're very specific, and they sucker you in so as to give you the impression that it's not a curse. They say May you inherit a huge estate and on that huge estate, have 100 mansions In 100 mentions 100 beds and may you flip from bed to bed with malarial fever lovely May a barracks grow in your stomach barracks and army barracks oh but funny but it works Mel Brooks 30:25 there is another one that says something about the true Jewish things lots of oxen Viet symbol if you cut into that David Steinberg 30:30 grow like an onion with your head in in the earth Mel Brooks 30:33 Alright now do this translate this okay zones to Esna trolley car David Steinberg 30:46 you should eat a trolley car and steal the transfers Mel Brooks 30:49 and steal the transfers actually add more to do with I believe David Susskind 30:56 We'll be back with translations of all of this in a minute