The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000: The Book [Paperback]

Mel Brooks (Author), Carl Reiner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 7, 1998

Actually born in 1950, the 2000 Year Old Man was created out of the primal urge of all comedians to entertain and to test the limits of their talent. Mel Brooks never knew what Carl Reiner was going to ask, and Reiner only knew that he would never get the same answer twice. From subjects as diverse and everyday as religion, taxes, fried food, fad diets and film violence, much of the ground covered and subjects skewered century by the two comics are still timely. Now with the turn of the century upon us, the 2000 Year Old Man is ready to address his loyal legions and convert an audience of new ones. In this text, he attempts to do.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In 1960, two young, little-known comedians released an album of largely improvised sketches in which a journalist interviews a 2,000-year-old man. The journalist was Carl Reiner; the crotchety Jewish Methuselah was Mel Brooks. The album was a hit, giving a huge boost to both of their careers. It was followed by three more records over the next 13 years, as well as numerous "2,000-year-old man" TV appearances by the pair. Now, after a 24-year hiatus, Brooks and Reiner have revived the 2,000-year-old man in honor of the millennium, soliciting his views on everything from voice-mail trees to rap music--from the Mars landing to infomercials. While the format doesn't have the breakthrough freshness it did in 1960--and while jokes about being old may have a more poignant edge now coming from these two--Brooks and Reiner are still very funny men, and The 2,000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000 is a welcome visit with them. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The team that created the 2000-year-old man revive him for the millennium.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks (October 7, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060929928
• ISBN-13: 978-0060929923
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,068,114 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It's thin.I laughed. Call me a schlemiehl!, March 29, 2000

By 

James J. Bloom (Silver Spring, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000: The Book (Paperback)

True, it's about a two hour read for most -- five for me but I tracethe words with my finger as I read. On the plane, I laughedaloud. There was some whispering and the woman next to me changed her seat. Some of it may be recycled shtick but it still seems fresh. Most I've never seen/heard and I have listened to the Old Man CDs. I'd say there's fifty belly laughs, ten chortles, one guffaw, three titters and a smile. It will give you a few hours of delightfully outrageous grumpy old Jewish man humor. I should know. Buy it. Read it. Laugh. Eat your oatmeal and let me alone already. END

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Some things are just funnier when you hear them., November 30, 1998

By 

J. Carroll "Jack" (Island Heights,NJ) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000: The Book (Hardcover)

Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner have collected many of this character's "greatest hits" and put them in book form. Buy the audio tape. This is just one of those examples of a performance that doesn't translate well to the written word. Brooks and Reiner are very funny men but this is not a funny book. Trying to imagine inflection and timing is not a fun thing while you're trying to read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The FUNNIEST book I have ever read!!!!!, December 4, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000: The Book (Paperback)

The first time I read this book I was on a plane and everyone was staring at me because I could not stop laughing. You can try not to, but you just have to laugh. Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner have not lost their flair for funny.