November 11 could be the final Veterans Day for many of the World War II vets, now well into their 90s. Filmmaker Mel Brooks, 98, is one of them.
Actor, comedian, composer and filmmaker Mel Brooks was born Melvin James Kaminsky in 1926. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York.
In 1944, he was drafted into the Army. Due to his high scores on his military entrance exam, Brooks was placed in the Army Specialized Training Program at Virginia Military Institute, where he learned combat engineering and other fighting skills.
Twelve weeks later, he was sent to basic training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
In November 1944, he arrived in France and then Belgium, serving as a forward artillery observer with the 78th Infantry Division.
A short time later, he was transferred to the 1104th Engineer Combat Group, participating in the Battle of the Bulge. He was sent to the forward edge of the battle areas, helping to clear German land mines so Allied forces could advance. On five occasions, Brooks’ unit had to fight as infantry and suffered casualties doing so.
In Germany, the unit was the first to construct a bridge over the Roer River, and they would later build bridges over the Rhine River.
By April 1945, Brooks’ unit was conducting reconnaissance missions in the Harz Mountains of northern Germany. Days later, the war ended.
In May 1945, Brooks recalled seeing starving Jewish refugees who had escaped the concentration camps. Brooks said this left an indelible impression on him as he is Jewish. He said he felt lucky to be an American.
A short time later, Brooks was honorably discharged from the Army as a corporal.
In time, Brooks’ war experience would work its way into his movies. In The Producers (1967), Max Bialystock (Zero Mostel) and Leo Bloom (Gene Wilder) aim to rip off investors by serving up a surefire flop. They buy the rights to “Springtime for Hitler,” by Nazi vet Franz Liebkind (Kenneth Mars) and hire Roger De Bris (Christopher Hewitt) by some accounts the worst director who ever lived. De Bris finds the script fascinating.
“Did you know,” De Bris explains, “I never knew that the Third Reich meant Germany. I mean it’s just drenched with historical goodies like that.” The producers cast Lorenzo St. Dubois (Dick Shawn) as Hitler, add some music and dancing, and “Springtime for Hitler” is a hit. Jump ahead to 2024, and it’s springtime for calling people Hitler, with Democrats casting Donald Trump in the role.
For many WWII vets, November 5 doubtless marked their last shot at electing a president. How many of them voted for Trump is not known, but a lot of younger people sure did. Meanwhile, the wonderful Ulla (Lee Meredith) is still around but Mel Brooks has outlived Wilder, Mostel, Shawn, Mars, Hewitt and many others. Mel Brooks is also one of the few to win Oscar, Emmy, Tony and Grammy awards. In entertainment and in war, we thank you for your service.
Notice: All comments are subject to moderation. Our comments are intended to be a forum for civil discourse bearing on the subject under discussion. Commenters who stray beyond the bounds of civility or employ what we deem gratuitous vulgarity in a comment — including, but not limited to, “s***,” “f***,” “a*******,” or one of their many variants — will be banned without further notice in the sole discretion of the site moderator.