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So many people miss that, but it cracks me up! I admit though that I don't get a couple of jokes, and those are the ones that didn't go over my head. lol
I appreciate that you understood the point. That the movie was highlighting the idiocy of racism and making fun of racist people. Many can’t get past the language to see that.
"Hey, where the white women at?" Insanely brilliant comedy that everyone needs to watch at least once. 😎 👍 Fun Fact: The scene in which Cleavon Little aims his gun at his own head to save himself from the townspeople's wrath was based on an incident from Mel Brooks' childhood. He said that once, to his disbelief, he stole some gum and a water pistol from a drugstore; when a store worker tried to stop him, Brooks held the worker at bay with the very water pistol he had just taken from the store. Music Enthusiast Fact: When Mel Brooks advertised in the show business trade papers for a "Frankie Laine-type" voice to sing the film's title song, he was hoping for a good imitator. Instead, Frankie Laine himself showed up at Brooks' office two days later, ready to do the job, but nobody told him the movie was a parody. Apparently, Laine did not take offense at the deception considering he reportedly was pleased with the film upon seeing it on release. Unwanted Extra Fact: At the end of the movie when the whole group is running out of the Warner Brothers studio front gates, there is a man in a sweater standing on the sidewalk, watching the action. Mel Brooks has said that the man was not part of the movie, and had simply wandered into the scene. They shooed him away and then went to film the scene. The guy came back into the shot, and is seen standing next to a light pole as the characters stream past him down the street. Brooks had asked the man to move, as they were getting ready to shoot that scene. The man, not understanding their requests, stood there. So Brooks sent out a waiver for him to sign, and left him in the movie.
@@RLucas3000 There's a paperback book from the early eighties or late 70s with a caricature of Mel Brooks on the cover and it's his biography. I remember there being a chapter on Blazing Saddles. The one memory I have of that chapter was Mel receiving angry letters thinking Mongo was short for mongoloid. It turned out Mongo was used solely for the one line "Mongo! Santamaria!" as Mongo Santamaria was a jazz percussionist. I honestly don't know if you can find this paperback today but there has to be something online giving background to the making and filming of Blazing Saddles.
Since it's almost Halloween, I would highly recommend the Mel Brooks movie Young Frankenstein! 🙂 Not only does Gene Wilder & Madeleine Kahn return, but also Cloris Leachman (the dominatrix nurse from High Anxiety) in one of her most memorable roles. The movie does not only spoof the Universal movie starring Boris Karloff, but also the sequels Bride of Frankenstein & Son of Frankenstein.
If it hasnt been mentioned yet. That "Farting Scene" is actually THE first scene in Movies or TV to ever include farting. Before Blazing Saddles flatulence was too "uncouth" for Movies or TV. Well that all changed after Blazing Saddles Also the "You Know Morons" speaches was adlibed by Gene. That is Clevon Littles honest expression and laugh
@@dr.burtgummerfan439 well think it wasnt the context just it wasnt somthing done in tv or movies. Farting back then was scene as disgusting and somthing to not do around others. Likely why the scene caused such a "stink".
The censors back in the day were so out of touch. I remember on the show All in the Family, they had the first sound of a toilet flushing, and Mike and Carol Brady on the Brady Bunch were the first married couple to be seen in the same bed, under the covers. Before that, it was all twin beds.
Mel knew perfectly well what the reaction to the farting scene would be. He urged the sound man to turn up the gain on the farts, insisting, "Trust me. It has to be louder." And he was right. I saw this when it first came out, and after that first fart, it was hard to hear the rest because everyone was laughing so dam hard. It was this enormous shared catharsis, unstoppable - within seconds, the entire audience transformed into six-year-olds. One of the most awesome nights of my life.
I noticed in your Letterboxd that you've already seen Men in Tights, which I imagine was so long ago that you didn't recognize Robert Ridgely. He played the hangman, with the joke being that he's wearing a lovingly detailed medieval costume that doesn't fit the western setting at all. Then two decades later Brooks brought him back for Men in Tights, playing a hangman again in the same costume, which of course now fits the setting perfectly. He also played the fake cop flasher in the opening scene of High Anxiety. Watching all his films in order reveals a ton of rewarding long-term callbacks and running gags like this (Men in Tights also has Achoo's final line as everyone is surprised at a black man becoming sheriff: "And why not? It worked in Blazing Saddles!" with Dave Chappelle doing a perfect impression of Cleavon Little).
25:24 "They did their 'Farewell' scene and then _in_ the car they go." And then, to pay _one final homage_ to the genre they're lampooning, they ride that Cadillac into the _sunset._
If i remember right, the "Yes" and "No" on the bull is an old joke. Basically the joke is 'the answer to every question is Yes or No, everything in between is BS'
well, it's really because big trucks had that, to tell people which side to pass on, because trucks need 2 lanes when turning, & make wide right turns, but your idea is funny LOL i.redd.it/tdmsi4ag73r01.jpg
that was one of the lines written by Richard Pryor ...but, when they were in LA writing this, Pryor phoned. He was in Detroit doing cocaine with a woman.
Nice to see you recognize Madeline Kahn through her giving such different performances in this film and High Anxiety. You've also seen her as Mrs. White in Clue (the vastly different costumes can make her hard to recognize, but there's no mistaking that voice).
Please catch Harvey Corman (Hedly Lamar) on the old Carol Burnett show. One of my favorite skits is when Madeline Kahn is a guest star and plays a has been (never was) actress and tries to help Eunice with a part in a local play. Those "Family" skits must have been written after the writers spied on my family.
I watched the Carol Burnett show as kid all the time. Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Lyle Waggoner, Tim Conway, what a crew. Kids could watch TV without a parental control app.
@@bintheredonethat When I was in jr. hi and hi school, I wanted nothing more in my life than to be a combination of Carol Burnett and Julie Andrews. I wanted to sing like Julie and be funny like Carol. Two classy ladies.
@@maryrichardson1318 Julie Andrews is someone you don't hear a lot about anymore, shameful. She and Carol corroborated on a few occasions doing specials. I thought of Carol Burnett as the cool mom in the neighborhood. Funny, the mom everybody liked to be around. In my opinion, as idols go for young women they were far superior to the likes of Madonna, The Kardashians, Lady Gaga & the rest of that ilk. I'm a guy, an older one, but most of us sane ones would much rather spend time with sophistication and genial wit than trashy look at me.
The quicksand sequence doesn't get a lot of fanfare but it's very important to the plot. Due to the aforementioned quicksand, the railroad needs to be rerouted through the town of Rock Ridge. Hedley (not Hedy) sees an opportunity to make millions by acquiring as much town property as possible before the news gets out. But first he needs to get all the Johnsons to leave. You know the rest.
Harvey Korman and Madeline Kahn were brilliant comedic actors, grew up watching Harvey on The Carol Burnett show, the entire cast was perfect and Sheriff Bart was the coolest character ever written for the big screen, thanks again enjoyed your reaction and thoughts
Madeline Kahn actually guest starred on the Carol Burnett Show in a skit about "The Family". One of the funniest things I a have ever seen. Miss Cat Woman on Mars.
This is one of my favorite movies lol I used to hate it and be offended by it (as a teenager) and after rewatching it as an adult and finally understanding it, I've come to appreciate the genius of Mel Brooks and the cast. So glad you watched it too! ^_^
Mel Brooks has a few recurring actors in his movies. Madeline Khan, Harvey Korman, and Dom Deluise are also in History of the World part 1. Dom has also been in The Twelve Chairs, and Silent Movie, Spaceballs, and Robin Hood Men in Tights. Boris the hangman, is the same actor who plays the hangman in Robin Hood Men in Tights. With same outfit and an eyepatch over the other eye. And Gene Wilder came up with idea for Young Frankenstein while filming Blazing Saddles.
"What in the world was that?" One of the greatest movies ever made :D I wish I could write a really out of nowhere ending like that, bloody genius. Not so much breaking the fourth wall as much as burning down the whole set :D
So many jokes have gotten lost over the years - "this laurel, and hardy handshake" refers to the comedy team of Laurel & Hardy: Howard Johnson restaurants were famous for having 31 flavors of ice cream, he only has one flavor in the movie. This film is one of the few that ever reached the level of surrealism that so many of the Marx Brothers movies did.
In golf they call a score of 8 a snowman. I call a score of 10 a Laurel and Hardy because you have the skinny one, the round one and its funny to your playing partners who are taking your quarters.
Back in the day, Howard Johnson's Restaurants and Hotels were as ubiquitous as today's Starbucks. That also ties in with the "all the Johnsons" joke. BTW - Howard Johnson's had 28 ice cream flavors. Baskin-Robbins outdid them with 31 flavors.
Old, semi trucks had crappy mirrors, so they had yes and no (and usually arrows), indicating which side of the truck to pass on safely. No one born after the 1950's will likely get that joke.
He wanted to set the entire movie in the year 1974 but Warner Brothers told him he couldn't make a satire on racism and set it in present time. So instead he set the flim in 1874 which was fine with Warner Brothers and then used the crane shot pulling back to the Warner Brothers lots to move the film into present time.
Another awesome Mel Brooks classic. Just a small trivia, in the scene where Gene Wilders character was trying to cheer Cleavon Little's character up, he improvise the ending "you know... morons". Cleavon's laugh reaction was authentic.
Fun Fact: Actress & singer Hedy Lamarr actually did sue over the Hedley Lamarr jokes. Mel Brooks's response: "Pay her. She's Hedy Lamarr, just pay her."
Mel Brooks best-known films include The Producers (1967), The Twelve Chairs (1970), Blazing Saddles (1974), Young Frankenstein (1974), Silent Movie (1976), High Anxiety (1977), History of the World, Part I (1981), Spaceballs (1987), and Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993). AND for his feature films, Brooks developed his own repertory company of actors, which included Dom DeLuise, Harvey Korman, Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman, Madeline Kahn, and Gene Wilder.
Back in high school band in the 80s, we had a football game in a town where a known klansman had just unsuccessfully run for mayor. When we got to the school, one of the black guys in the band stepped off the bus and yelled, "Hey, where the white women at?" Everybody cracked up, including the band director and parents.
21:24 This actually works! This ruse first appeared in Harvard Lampoon's _Bored of the Rings_ (1969) to prevent the Black Riders from crossing the Ford of Rivendell.
Sam, Harvey Korman (of Carol Burnett Show) played Hedley LaMarr, a play on Hedy LaMarr, Hollywood star. Olson & Johnson was a comic Vaudeville team of yesteryear. “Laurel & Hardy handshake” Laurel & Hardy made very funny films. Yes/No on ox: like trucks. Pass on the left.
i had never seen Blazing Saddles but i'm automatically a fan of any movie that sends you into your high pitch squeal vocal range 😂 and it looks like a hilarious film. looking forward to watching the whole thing now
@ 13:08 ..... it avoids car accidents, tractor-trailer drivers used to mark their trailers in a similar fashion to remind drivers that it was safer to pass on the driver's side than the passenger side due to visibility.
Mel Brooks had to cut one line to avoid an X rating. When it goes dark and Lilly says, "Is it true what they say about you people? Oh it's twue. It's twue it's twue." the sheriff originally answered, "Your sucking my arm." The studio was like, "That's beyond an X rating! Gotta cut that!"
He did a two hour interview with Bob Costas where he talked about the studio demanding all sorts of cuts that he ignored but that that was the one cut they demanded.
Here is the interview. The first part details the studio wanting cuts he ignores. At 7:55 they talk about his having to cut that line. th-cam.com/video/E-EfQ_28Ueo/w-d-xo.html
In case you weren't aware, Howard Johnson's used to be a giant hotel/motel and restaurant franchise in the 60s and 70s. The restaurants went through the 80s into the 90s. The last restaurant closed in 2022.
Fabulous movie :-) As ridiculous as the final fourth-wall-break fight scene is, it’s also very thematically relevant - tying racism to homophobia and then fascism. Mel brooks passionately believed in making fun of those stupid attitudes. :-)
@@Isleofskye It means "relating to the themes" of the movie. The biggest theme (or underlying idea) of the movie is to make fun of racism. In the end, the Hollywood dancers in tuxedos are all acting very flamboyantly homosexual (on purpose) to bring in a second theme, homophobia (hating gay people). So even though it's an absolutely ridiculous and hilarious and bizarre and fun scene, when a bunch of cowboys start beating up a bunch of gay dancers and we realize the whole thing is just on a hollywood set -- it's ALSO making a really important point, about how racism and homophobia are the same kind of hateful bigotry. I just love how it's so hilariously stupid AND so meaningful at the same time.
I will add. My favorite bit of trivia for this film as one of the screen writers of the film Richard Pryor largely and loved to write material for the character of Mongo played by Alex Karras.. something about imagining Pryor just writing that character makes me smile and laugh.
When this movie came out, I saw it in the theater. When the dance number with Dom DeLuise appeared, I immediately thought the projectionist had switched to the wrong film reel. Then, when the fight broke through the wall, I finally realized that there had been no mistake.
I love the meme, that say's "as a child I thought quicksand was going to be a much bigger problem in my life, than it turned out to be" lol. Quicksand was in a hell of a lot of movies back then. lol
In case you're wondering, Harvey Korman unfortunately didn't get an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor as Hedley Lamarr for this film as he was hoping. However, Madeline Kahn did get a nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Lili Von Shtupp.
By the way, your point about there being "so many Johnsons" in the town is exactly right. They are all named Johnson for the reason you noticed - they are, in fact, a town of johnsons. 😂
Other Mel Brooks movies I'd recommend are "Young Frankenstein", "Robin Hood: Men in Tights", and "Space Balls". The last one has the fourth wall break to end all fourth wall breaks. From the titles alone, you can probably guess the genres that he's spoofing in these films, now that you've seen a few of his other ones.
The best description I've heard of the ending is that the movie does such a good job building up genuine sympathy for Bart and Jim and a desire to see them win in the end, that the only way to stop their victory from being inappropriately dramatic and sentimental was to take a nuclear bomb to the fourth wall.
Hey, Sam, Fun Fact for you in regards to the theme music: The person who sang the theme for this movie didn't know that the movie was a comedy, so he sang it like it was a legitimate western movie as opposed to a parodied western
He'd performed a ton of western theme songs, and Brooks initially just asked for someone who sounded like him, never dreaming he could get the real thing.
That person was the great Frankie Laine. My favorite Laine song is from TV's Rawhide (the show that co-starred a young Clint Eastwood) - see th-cam.com/video/AKC8pSFg1Vw/w-d-xo.html.
Check out Brooks' other films from this period (Young Frankenstein, Silent Movie, History of the World Part 1, and to a lesser extent The Twelve Chairs) for plenty more fun with recurring actors.
Mel Brooks doesn't just break the fourth wall, he blows it up, burns it, and roasts marshmallows over the flames. Also, when Hedley was molesting that statue, it was a statue of Lady Justice. So he was, in effect, screwing justice. Literally.
It wasn't until I became and adult and grew an interest in really old movies that I got the joke about the "Laurel, and Hearty (Laurel and Hardy-old comedy team from the silent movie and early talkie days) handshake.
Mel Brooks was asked if he could make this movie in current day and his response was I couldn’t make it back then. The scene where Gene Wilder says “you know morons” was improvised by him and Clevon Littles reaction was real. The fart scene was the first time in film the sound was used. Mel Brooks sat with the editor recording fart sounds and grabbing anyone who passed by the room to participate. The yes and no on the back of the ox was in reference to what side of the school bus is acceptable to pass. Mel Brooks has a new movie out that’s supposed to be a remake of this movie called “Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank”
I grew up a Welsh Monty Python fan so when I first discovered Mel Brooks movies it really reminded me of them. Mel had his own amazing band of comic actors and both groups would break the fourth wall normally once a movie to take you down an odd little rabbit hole that was as hilarious as it was pointless. I feel sad when I think of how many of them are left but happy that their work keeps finding new fans
when this first started airing on TV, they'd leave in all the racial slurs but cut out the farts. I can't think of anything that better sums up American media sensibility.
Mel Brookes always used the same actors basically. The more you watch the more you'll see. The brilliant Madelyn Kahn, Harvey Korman, Gene Wilder, etc.
Always wondered why they didn't grab on to the handcart handle to get pulled out instead of just staring, lol. The Laurel & Hardy handshake line always cracks me up.
1. Mel Brooks played the Governor and the Indian Chief and one of the thug roundup. 2. Mel Brooks doesn't just break the 4th wall he shatters, steps on and grinds it into the ground. 3. The preacher/Liam Dunn plays in Young Frankenstein as an old man that gets racked by Dr. Frankenstein. Madeline Kahn also had a smallish role in it. 4. Yes, Bart and Jim were smoking wacky tobacky. 5. The line, "You know morons" was ad lib by Wilder. Little's reaction was real. 6. The guy that was supposed to play Jim showed up the first day drunk so he was let go. Wilder agreed to do this movie for Mel Brooks only if Mel would direct Young Frankenstein for him. 7. Richard Pryor was supposed to play Bart but he was going through his addictions at the time and they thought it wouldn't be a good idea. However, he did some of the writing. 8. Jim still has his popcorn from the theater. Movie suggestion "Young Frankenstein" with Gene Wilder
Remember, this was 1972! Blazing Saddles set a standard for breaking the fourth wall that still plays well in movies like Deadpool. Could it be made today? Probably not.
One of my favorite childhood dogs we had who was a big beast and not very bright Rottweiler German Shepherd and Malamute mix was named after Mongo in this... We only had him a year or so before someone stole him and we never saw him again 😞
I enjoyed your take on this one. I saw it in a large theatre when it came out. The audience reaction was fun. Most really liked it everyone understood he was skewering racism. One or two thought it was too risqué. I think they were old maid English composition teachers. A 1975 musical comedy with Wilder, Kahn, Marty Feldman and Dom DeLuise that didn't get the love it deserved was "The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes Smarter Brother" . Another underrated action/mystery/comedy with Wilder and Richard Pryor that came out around then was "Silver Streak".
"A 1975 musical comedy with Wilder, Kahn, Marty Feldman and Dom DeLuise that didn't get the love it deserved was "The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes Smarter Brother" YES!!!!!
A bunch of us went as seniors graduating high school to see this in the theaters. To this day, the hardest I ever laughed in a theater. I thought I had muscle damage!
I had to think for a minute. The hardest I ever laughed in a theater was during the movie Tootsie. Dustin Hoffman plays an actor, Michael Dorsey, who is so opinionated that no one left in NY wants to work with him, despite his talent. He ends up disguising himself as ‘actress’ Dorothy Michaels to get an acting roll. There is a scene where, as Dorothy, he has to babysit for a friend, and that, not really that funny on wifi, was screamingly funny in the theater. Every time the baby threw food, and it’s all over her, in her wig, Hoffman switching back and forth between his Aunt Dorothy and Uncle Michael voices. Everyone in the theater was just dying laughing. When it was over I felt like I had sprinted 5 miles, my chest muscles aches like crazy. 2nd hardest was probably at the opening credits at MP’s Holy Grail in college.
Interesting fact: There was a deleted line, When Lili went 'Its twoo its twoo', Bart replied "I hate to disillusion you, ma'am. But you're sucking on my arm."
The first time I watched this movie was on a church event with a church elder and his sons when i was like 16. They tricked him into renting it. He wasn't happy
Interestingly if you watch the new animated movie Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank they lifted a lot of the jokes and premises from Blazing Saddles. Obviously, cleaned up for a kid’s movie. Mel Brooks appears in the film and is credited as a screenwriter.
The best way to destroy horrible ideologies is to mock them relentlessly, Mel himself used to do a Hitler impersonation saying if we can't laugh about it they win. For me my father first showed me this movie when I was 8 or 9 and it helped teach me never to use the N word. I also loved the campfire farting scene, but maybe I was a 9 year old boy.
Yes, you are supposed to take the, “that’s a lot of Johnson’s,” to the place it intends. They are so backwards,small town that there has been inbreeding…lol. Very few people catch that and find the humor. But back then peoples families stayed within certain towns so cousins married.
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Best anti-racism movie ever. It simply shows how ridiculous racism is.
You got that right.
My favorite jokes are "we don't want the Irish" and "where the white women at". Genius comedy.
The line from the Hitler actor kills me. "They lose me after the bunker scene."
So many people miss that, but it cracks me up! I admit though that I don't get a couple of jokes, and those are the ones that didn't go over my head. lol
@@StephenLWilson what jokes didn't you get?
@@Sarah_Gravydog316 Basically references to people - Richard Dix and also Randolph Scott. I learned about them later
I appreciate that you understood the point. That the movie was highlighting the idiocy of racism and making fun of racist people. Many can’t get past the language to see that.
"Hey, where the white women at?"
Insanely brilliant comedy that everyone needs to watch at least once. 😎 👍
Fun Fact: The scene in which Cleavon Little aims his gun at his own head to save himself from the townspeople's wrath was based on an incident from Mel Brooks' childhood. He said that once, to his disbelief, he stole some gum and a water pistol from a drugstore; when a store worker tried to stop him, Brooks held the worker at bay with the very water pistol he had just taken from the store.
Music Enthusiast Fact: When Mel Brooks advertised in the show business trade papers for a "Frankie Laine-type" voice to sing the film's title song, he was hoping for a good imitator. Instead, Frankie Laine himself showed up at Brooks' office two days later, ready to do the job, but nobody told him the movie was a parody. Apparently, Laine did not take offense at the deception considering he reportedly was pleased with the film upon seeing it on release.
Unwanted Extra Fact: At the end of the movie when the whole group is running out of the Warner Brothers studio front gates, there is a man in a sweater standing on the sidewalk, watching the action. Mel Brooks has said that the man was not part of the movie, and had simply wandered into the scene. They shooed him away and then went to film the scene. The guy came back into the shot, and is seen standing next to a light pole as the characters stream past him down the street. Brooks had asked the man to move, as they were getting ready to shoot that scene. The man, not understanding their requests, stood there. So Brooks sent out a waiver for him to sign, and left him in the movie.
I knew the last fact but not the first two. Is there a book about the making of this movie?
@@RLucas3000 There's a paperback book from the early eighties or late 70s with a caricature of Mel Brooks on the cover and it's his biography. I remember there being a chapter on Blazing Saddles. The one memory I have of that chapter was Mel receiving angry letters thinking Mongo was short for mongoloid. It turned out Mongo was used solely for the one line "Mongo! Santamaria!" as Mongo Santamaria was a jazz percussionist. I honestly don't know if you can find this paperback today but there has to be something online giving background to the making and filming of Blazing Saddles.
Since it's almost Halloween, I would highly recommend the Mel Brooks movie Young Frankenstein! 🙂 Not only does Gene Wilder & Madeleine Kahn return, but also Cloris Leachman (the dominatrix nurse from High Anxiety) in one of her most memorable roles. The movie does not only spoof the Universal movie starring Boris Karloff, but also the sequels Bride of Frankenstein & Son of Frankenstein.
Has she seen Willy Wonka yet?
@@RLucas3000 I don't know, maybe. You can always check her video list.
Also Dracula, Dead and Loving It
I have in the past, yes!
And let's not forget Kenneth Mars from 'The Producers'.
the best line in the movie, "Piss on you. I'm working for Mel Brooks."
If it hasnt been mentioned yet. That "Farting Scene" is actually THE first scene in Movies or TV to ever include farting. Before Blazing Saddles flatulence was too "uncouth" for Movies or TV. Well that all changed after Blazing Saddles
Also the "You Know Morons" speaches was adlibed by Gene. That is Clevon Littles honest expression and laugh
Mel Brooks walked up to the actor and said, Lyle I'm going to make you famous.
Mel said he didn't understand why it would be controversial since it only made sense.
@@dr.burtgummerfan439 well think it wasnt the context just it wasnt somthing done in tv or movies.
Farting back then was scene as disgusting and somthing to not do around others. Likely why the scene caused such a "stink".
The censors back in the day were so out of touch. I remember on the show All in the Family, they had the first sound of a toilet flushing, and Mike and Carol Brady on the Brady Bunch were the first married couple to be seen in the same bed, under the covers. Before that, it was all twin beds.
Mel knew perfectly well what the reaction to the farting scene would be. He urged the sound man to turn up the gain on the farts, insisting, "Trust me. It has to be louder." And he was right. I saw this when it first came out, and after that first fart, it was hard to hear the rest because everyone was laughing so dam hard. It was this enormous shared catharsis, unstoppable - within seconds, the entire audience transformed into six-year-olds. One of the most awesome nights of my life.
The Count Basie Orchestra, playing on the side of the road.
I noticed in your Letterboxd that you've already seen Men in Tights, which I imagine was so long ago that you didn't recognize Robert Ridgely. He played the hangman, with the joke being that he's wearing a lovingly detailed medieval costume that doesn't fit the western setting at all. Then two decades later Brooks brought him back for Men in Tights, playing a hangman again in the same costume, which of course now fits the setting perfectly. He also played the fake cop flasher in the opening scene of High Anxiety.
Watching all his films in order reveals a ton of rewarding long-term callbacks and running gags like this (Men in Tights also has Achoo's final line as everyone is surprised at a black man becoming sheriff: "And why not? It worked in Blazing Saddles!" with Dave Chappelle doing a perfect impression of Cleavon Little).
I know Robert from voicing Thundarr The Barbarian and the perverted Colonel from "Boogie Nights".
@@Madbandit77 wow. I never connected him playing the Colonel.. lol. Always bugged me but for some reason never looked into it I guess
Pity he didn't take the opportunity to turn the tables and dress the hangman in Western garb!
25:24 "They did their 'Farewell' scene and then _in_ the car they go."
And then, to pay _one final homage_ to the genre they're lampooning, they ride that Cadillac into the _sunset._
If i remember right, the "Yes" and "No" on the bull is an old joke. Basically the joke is 'the answer to every question is Yes or No, everything in between is BS'
well, it's really because big trucks had that, to tell people which side to pass on,
because trucks need 2 lanes when turning,
& make wide right turns, but your idea is funny LOL
i.redd.it/tdmsi4ag73r01.jpg
Other movies: rarely break the 4th wall
This movie: who needs a 4th wall?!
"Mongo only pawn in game of life"
Words to live by
that was one of the lines written by Richard Pryor
...but, when they were in LA writing this,
Pryor phoned.
He was in Detroit doing cocaine with a woman.
Bart's "Oh Baby, you are so talented...and they are *so* Dumb!" remains one of my favorite movie quotes of all time!
If you liked the end to this movie, then you’ll love the ending to ‘Monty Python and the Holy Grail’.
Monty Python is so fun!
Nice to see you recognize Madeline Kahn through her giving such different performances in this film and High Anxiety. You've also seen her as Mrs. White in Clue (the vastly different costumes can make her hard to recognize, but there's no mistaking that voice).
Have you heard her song in the Broadway musical Two By Two?
A farce about Noah from the early 70s.
She does a magnificent job in the slapstick comedy What's Up, Doc? too. Kahn was, in fact, a trained opera singer.
@@Caseytify Since that was her first role, it's pretty weird to see her in the killjoy straight role rather than the goofy one.
Please catch Harvey Corman (Hedly Lamar) on the old Carol Burnett show. One of my favorite skits is when Madeline Kahn is a guest star and plays a has been (never was) actress and tries to help Eunice with a part in a local play. Those "Family" skits must have been written after the writers spied on my family.
I watched the Carol Burnett show as kid all the time. Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Lyle Waggoner, Tim Conway, what a crew. Kids could watch TV without a parental control app.
@@bintheredonethat When I was in jr. hi and hi school, I wanted nothing more in my life than to be a combination of Carol Burnett and Julie Andrews. I wanted to sing like Julie and be funny like Carol. Two classy ladies.
@@maryrichardson1318 Julie Andrews is someone you don't hear a lot about anymore, shameful. She and Carol corroborated on a few occasions doing specials. I thought of Carol Burnett as the cool mom in the neighborhood. Funny, the mom everybody liked to be around.
In my opinion, as idols go for young women they were far superior to the likes of Madonna, The Kardashians, Lady Gaga & the rest of that ilk. I'm a guy, an older one, but most of us sane ones would much rather spend time with sophistication and genial wit than trashy look at me.
The quicksand sequence doesn't get a lot of fanfare but it's very important to the plot. Due to the aforementioned quicksand, the railroad needs to be rerouted through the town of Rock Ridge. Hedley (not Hedy) sees an opportunity to make millions by acquiring as much town property as possible before the news gets out. But first he needs to get all the Johnsons to leave. You know the rest.
"Bart" is clearly "Bugs Bunny." He handles life exactly like the "Bunny from Brooklyn."
Harvey Korman and Madeline Kahn were brilliant comedic actors, grew up watching Harvey on The Carol Burnett show, the entire cast was perfect and Sheriff Bart was the coolest character ever written for the big screen, thanks again enjoyed your reaction and thoughts
Korman rarely gets the recognition he deserves.
Madeline Kahn actually guest starred on the Carol Burnett Show in a skit about "The Family". One of the funniest things I a have ever seen. Miss Cat Woman on Mars.
This is one of my favorite movies lol I used to hate it and be offended by it (as a teenager) and after rewatching it as an adult and finally understanding it, I've come to appreciate the genius of Mel Brooks and the cast. So glad you watched it too! ^_^
Did you know that mango is Alex Karras.. he was a Detroit Lion and played the father on the TV show Webster with Emmanuel Lewis
Monthy Python: "Do you know what this '4th Wall' is everyone talks about?"
Mel Brooks: "You know, I have been wondering about that myself."
18:07 Randolph Scott was one of my Dad's favorite Western film actors.
I have over 30 of his movies.
The actor who played Mongo was a pro football player in the 60’s and then moved into acting.
Mel Brooks has a few recurring actors in his movies. Madeline Khan, Harvey Korman, and Dom Deluise are also in History of the World part 1. Dom has also been in The Twelve Chairs, and Silent Movie, Spaceballs, and Robin Hood Men in Tights. Boris the hangman, is the same actor who plays the hangman in Robin Hood Men in Tights. With same outfit and an eyepatch over the other eye. And Gene Wilder came up with idea for Young Frankenstein while filming Blazing Saddles.
"What in the world was that?" One of the greatest movies ever made :D I wish I could write a really out of nowhere ending like that, bloody genius. Not so much breaking the fourth wall as much as burning down the whole set :D
So many jokes have gotten lost over the years - "this laurel, and hardy handshake" refers to the comedy team of Laurel & Hardy: Howard Johnson restaurants were famous for having 31 flavors of ice cream, he only has one flavor in the movie. This film is one of the few that ever reached the level of surrealism that so many of the Marx Brothers movies did.
She's one of the few reactors who picked up on the "all the Johnsons" joke.
I wish some reactors would see some Marx Brothers movies. They're STILL funny and over 90 years old.
In golf they call a score of 8 a snowman. I call a score of 10 a Laurel and Hardy because you have the skinny one, the round one and its funny to your playing partners who are taking your quarters.
Back in the day, Howard Johnson's Restaurants and Hotels were as ubiquitous as today's Starbucks. That also ties in with the "all the Johnsons" joke.
BTW - Howard Johnson's had 28 ice cream flavors. Baskin-Robbins outdid them with 31 flavors.
Old, semi trucks had crappy mirrors, so they had yes and no (and usually arrows), indicating which side of the truck to pass on safely. No one born after the 1950's will likely get that joke.
And you hit the nail on the head...the ending is Mel Brooks staging one of the greatest 4th wall breaks in all of film history. 😁😁💯💯
A LITERAL wall break 😂
@@OGBReacts Break down the 4th wall, then have a riot all over the wreckage!!! LOLOLOLOL
@@OGBReacts AND...they ride off into the sunset, just like in any good western of 1974 and earlier...they just did it in a limo. 😂😂
He wanted to set the entire movie in the year 1974 but Warner Brothers told him he couldn't make a satire on racism and set it in present time. So instead he set the flim in 1874 which was fine with Warner Brothers and then used the crane shot pulling back to the Warner Brothers lots to move the film into present time.
He breaks EVERY wall he can find! And the floor and the ceiling!
Hedy Lamar was an old time actress. Surprising lady. Look up her history. Fascinating.
Wide World Of Sports. Was a Saturday
sports program, with Howard Cosell.
Gene Wilder and Madeline Kahn are also in Young Frankenstein, which came out the same year as Blazing Saddles. You would definitely enjoy that one.
If you haven’t seen it yet. Robin Hood: Men in Tights is, in my opinion, one of Mel Brooks greatest films!!
Mel Brooks: "4the wall??? What's that"😉🤣
Another awesome Mel Brooks classic. Just a small trivia, in the scene where Gene Wilders character was trying to cheer Cleavon Little's character up, he improvise the ending "you know... morons". Cleavon's laugh reaction was authentic.
It 100% seemed like an authentic laugh, I loved it!
Fun Fact: Actress & singer Hedy Lamarr actually did sue over the Hedley Lamarr jokes.
Mel Brooks's response: "Pay her. She's Hedy Lamarr, just pay her."
Mel Brooks best-known films include The Producers (1967), The Twelve Chairs
(1970), Blazing Saddles (1974), Young Frankenstein (1974), Silent Movie (1976),
High Anxiety (1977), History of the World, Part I (1981), Spaceballs
(1987), and Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993). AND for his feature films,
Brooks developed his own repertory company of actors, which included Dom DeLuise,
Harvey Korman, Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman, Madeline Kahn, and Gene Wilder.
Strange, I thought The Twelve Chairs was done _before_ The Producers, c. 1964 or '65.
Back in high school band in the 80s, we had a football game in a town where a known klansman had just unsuccessfully run for mayor. When we got to the school, one of the black guys in the band stepped off the bus and yelled, "Hey, where the white women at?" Everybody cracked up, including the band director and parents.
21:24 This actually works! This ruse first appeared in Harvard Lampoon's _Bored of the Rings_ (1969) to prevent the Black Riders from crossing the Ford of Rivendell.
Sam, Harvey Korman (of Carol Burnett Show) played Hedley LaMarr, a play on Hedy LaMarr, Hollywood star.
Olson & Johnson was a comic Vaudeville team of yesteryear.
“Laurel & Hardy handshake” Laurel & Hardy made very funny films.
Yes/No on ox: like trucks. Pass on the left.
i had never seen Blazing Saddles but i'm automatically a fan of any movie that sends you into your high pitch squeal vocal range 😂 and it looks like a hilarious film. looking forward to watching the whole thing now
😂 Hope you enjoyed!
@ 13:08 ..... it avoids car accidents, tractor-trailer drivers used to mark their trailers in a similar fashion to remind drivers that it was safer to pass on the driver's side than the passenger side due to visibility.
Campfire scene. It's pretty bad when you're afraid to light a match and you're sitting in the audience.
Mel Brooks had to cut one line to avoid an X rating. When it goes dark and Lilly says, "Is it true what they say about you people? Oh it's twue. It's twue it's twue." the sheriff originally answered, "Your sucking my arm." The studio was like, "That's beyond an X rating! Gotta cut that!"
As I've said elsewhere, I think it's dirtier with the cut. Think about it.
I've read that Brooks cut that line on his own.
He did a two hour interview with Bob Costas where he talked about the studio demanding all sorts of cuts that he ignored but that that was the one cut they demanded.
Here is the interview. The first part details the studio wanting cuts he ignores. At 7:55 they talk about his having to cut that line. th-cam.com/video/E-EfQ_28Ueo/w-d-xo.html
In case you weren't aware, Howard Johnson's used to be a giant hotel/motel and restaurant franchise in the 60s and 70s. The restaurants went through the 80s into the 90s. The last restaurant closed in 2022.
And it actually started as a chain of ice cream shops before the hotels.
Fabulous movie :-) As ridiculous as the final fourth-wall-break fight scene is, it’s also very thematically relevant - tying racism to homophobia and then fascism. Mel brooks passionately believed in making fun of those stupid attitudes. :-)
AS WE ALL SHOULD! Amen to that.
@@OGBReacts your reactions are always priceless especially at the climax, as Mel Brooks would say, some go for broke I went bankrupt.
What does thematically mean?
@@Isleofskye It means "relating to the themes" of the movie. The biggest theme (or underlying idea) of the movie is to make fun of racism. In the end, the Hollywood dancers in tuxedos are all acting very flamboyantly homosexual (on purpose) to bring in a second theme, homophobia (hating gay people).
So even though it's an absolutely ridiculous and hilarious and bizarre and fun scene, when a bunch of cowboys start beating up a bunch of gay dancers and we realize the whole thing is just on a hollywood set -- it's ALSO making a really important point, about how racism and homophobia are the same kind of hateful bigotry. I just love how it's so hilariously stupid AND so meaningful at the same time.
@@jjlonsdale5971 Also that racism and homophobia etc., are just constructs that we make up, and aren't rooted in anything real.
Some school busses back in the day had a yes/no on the rear of the bus indicating which side you could pass the bus on.
The horse was trained to fall over on command. If you watch closely you can see the rider give a pull on the reigns just before the "punch".
That’s so insane anyway 😂
Am I the only one who was astonished as a kid to learn that quicksand wasn't fucking _everywhere?_
RIGHT?? Learning that quicksand was not what it was portrayed was just as bad as finding out the Easter bunny doesn't exist 🤣
@@OGBReacts Wait? The Easter Bunny isn't real?
We've got peat bogs, which are similar...
How funny. I had a similar thought when I watched that scene just now.
I will add. My favorite bit of trivia for this film as one of the screen writers of the film Richard Pryor largely and loved to write material for the character of Mongo played by Alex Karras.. something about imagining Pryor just writing that character makes me smile and laugh.
When this movie came out, I saw it in the theater. When the dance number with Dom DeLuise appeared, I immediately thought the projectionist had switched to the wrong film reel. Then, when the fight broke through the wall, I finally realized that there had been no mistake.
Not only breaking the fourth wall. The other three came down at the end, the roof fell in and they tore up the floor too. :D
I love the meme, that say's "as a child I thought quicksand was going to be a much bigger problem in my life, than it turned out to be" lol. Quicksand was in a hell of a lot of movies back then. lol
In case you're wondering, Harvey Korman unfortunately didn't get an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor as Hedley Lamarr for this film as he was hoping. However, Madeline Kahn did get a nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Lili Von Shtupp.
At least someone did! 😂
They put 'YES' and 'NO' on the back of big trucks to let people know what side it was safe to pass on.
Mongo was the bodyguard in Victor Victroria
This is my absolute favorite Mel Brooks movie of all time! I'm so glad that you got to experience this masterpiece! More more more Mel Brooks Sam!
By the way, your point about there being "so many Johnsons" in the town is exactly right. They are all named Johnson for the reason you noticed - they are, in fact, a town of johnsons. 😂
Something many people miss is during the first town meeting when the actor Van Johnson says "Howard Johnson's right".
Other Mel Brooks movies I'd recommend are "Young Frankenstein", "Robin Hood: Men in Tights", and "Space Balls". The last one has the fourth wall break to end all fourth wall breaks. From the titles alone, you can probably guess the genres that he's spoofing in these films, now that you've seen a few of his other ones.
I'll also say ridiculous is my favorite language.
That's Rodney Allen Rippy at 11:36. He went on to do Jack in the Box commercials. Famous kid for a while.
Yay! Now on to Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein.
The best description I've heard of the ending is that the movie does such a good job building up genuine sympathy for Bart and Jim and a desire to see them win in the end, that the only way to stop their victory from being inappropriately dramatic and sentimental was to take a nuclear bomb to the fourth wall.
You would probably enjoy Young Frankenstein. Gene Wilder is in that too.
One of the great movies of our past. Thanks Sam for being here doing everything that you do 👌
Hey, Sam, Fun Fact for you in regards to the theme music:
The person who sang the theme for this movie didn't know that the movie was a comedy, so he sang it like it was a legitimate western movie as opposed to a parodied western
That's amazing, honestly.
He'd performed a ton of western theme songs, and Brooks initially just asked for someone who sounded like him, never dreaming he could get the real thing.
@@OGBReacts And apparently Mel didn't have the heart to tell him it was a parody, for the longest while :P
@@Rmlohner yeah, the ad in Variety asked for a "Frankie Lane type," and Land himself showed up.
That person was the great Frankie Laine. My favorite Laine song is from TV's Rawhide (the show that co-starred a young Clint Eastwood) - see th-cam.com/video/AKC8pSFg1Vw/w-d-xo.html.
Check out Brooks' other films from this period (Young Frankenstein, Silent Movie, History of the World Part 1, and to a lesser extent The Twelve Chairs) for plenty more fun with recurring actors.
Darling, you are by far my new favorite reactor on TH-cam. Your laugh is absolutely contagious
Thank you so much!! 😁
Mel Brooks doesn't just break the fourth wall, he blows it up, burns it, and roasts marshmallows over the flames.
Also, when Hedley was molesting that statue, it was a statue of Lady Justice. So he was, in effect, screwing justice. Literally.
Wow 😂
"JOHNSONS Lassard... Every single one of them. JOHNSONS as far as the eye could see.."
"... And what a lovely sight it was "
It wasn't until I became and adult and grew an interest in really old movies that I got the joke about the "Laurel, and Hearty (Laurel and Hardy-old comedy team from the silent movie and early talkie days) handshake.
Even now, in 2022, I still hold out hope that a random movie I watch will be interrupted by the final fight spilling onto the set.
"Oohhhhh, right in the.....".....Johnson. 😉😄
Mel Brooks was asked if he could make this movie in current day and his response was I couldn’t make it back then. The scene where Gene Wilder says “you know morons” was improvised by him and Clevon Littles reaction was real. The fart scene was the first time in film the sound was used. Mel Brooks sat with the editor recording fart sounds and grabbing anyone who passed by the room to participate. The yes and no on the back of the ox was in reference to what side of the school bus is acceptable to pass. Mel Brooks has a new movie out that’s supposed to be a remake of this movie called “Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank”
I grew up a Welsh Monty Python fan so when I first discovered Mel Brooks movies it really reminded me of them. Mel had his own amazing band of comic actors and both groups would break the fourth wall normally once a movie to take you down an odd little rabbit hole that was as hilarious as it was pointless.
I feel sad when I think of how many of them are left but happy that their work keeps finding new fans
when this first started airing on TV, they'd leave in all the racial slurs but cut out the farts. I can't think of anything that better sums up American media sensibility.
I can confirm that this is true, unbelievable as it might sound, it's true.
Mel Brookes always used the same actors basically. The more you watch the more you'll see. The brilliant Madelyn Kahn, Harvey Korman, Gene Wilder, etc.
Always wondered why they didn't grab on to the handcart handle to get pulled out instead of just staring, lol. The Laurel & Hardy handshake line always cracks me up.
Richard Pryor and mel brooks wrote the screen play.......Mongo played for the Detroit Lions mid 60's early 70's
1. Mel Brooks played the Governor and the Indian Chief and one of the thug roundup.
2. Mel Brooks doesn't just break the 4th wall he shatters, steps on and grinds it into the ground.
3. The preacher/Liam Dunn plays in Young Frankenstein as an old man that gets racked by Dr. Frankenstein.
Madeline Kahn also had a smallish role in it.
4. Yes, Bart and Jim were smoking wacky tobacky.
5. The line, "You know morons" was ad lib by Wilder. Little's reaction was real.
6. The guy that was supposed to play Jim showed up the first day drunk so he was let go.
Wilder agreed to do this movie for Mel Brooks only if Mel would direct Young Frankenstein for him.
7. Richard Pryor was supposed to play Bart but he was going through his addictions at the time and
they thought it wouldn't be a good idea. However, he did some of the writing.
8. Jim still has his popcorn from the theater.
Movie suggestion "Young Frankenstein" with Gene Wilder
Now you HAVE to react to History of the World part 1 and Spaceballs. Two more Mel Brooks classics.
Remember, this was 1972! Blazing Saddles set a standard for breaking the fourth wall that still plays well in movies like Deadpool.
Could it be made today? Probably not.
"It couldn't be made then, but we did it anyways." - Mel Brooks
One of my favorite childhood dogs we had who was a big beast and not very bright Rottweiler German Shepherd and Malamute mix was named after Mongo in this... We only had him a year or so before someone stole him and we never saw him again 😞
I enjoyed your take on this one. I saw it in a large theatre when it came out. The audience reaction was fun. Most really liked it everyone understood he was skewering racism. One or two thought it was too risqué. I think they were old maid English composition teachers. A 1975 musical comedy with Wilder, Kahn, Marty Feldman and Dom DeLuise that didn't get the love it deserved was "The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes Smarter Brother" . Another underrated action/mystery/comedy with Wilder and Richard Pryor that came out around then was "Silver Streak".
"A 1975 musical comedy with Wilder, Kahn, Marty Feldman and Dom DeLuise that didn't get the love it deserved was "The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes Smarter Brother"
YES!!!!!
A bunch of us went as seniors graduating high school to see this in the theaters. To this day, the hardest I ever laughed in a theater. I thought I had muscle damage!
I had to think for a minute. The hardest I ever laughed in a theater was during the movie Tootsie. Dustin Hoffman plays an actor, Michael Dorsey, who is so opinionated that no one left in NY wants to work with him, despite his talent. He ends up disguising himself as ‘actress’ Dorothy Michaels to get an acting roll. There is a scene where, as Dorothy, he has to babysit for a friend, and that, not really that funny on wifi, was screamingly funny in the theater. Every time the baby threw food, and it’s all over her, in her wig, Hoffman switching back and forth between his Aunt Dorothy and Uncle Michael voices. Everyone in the theater was just dying laughing. When it was over I felt like I had sprinted 5 miles, my chest muscles aches like crazy.
2nd hardest was probably at the opening credits at MP’s Holy Grail in college.
@@RLucas3000 Oh yeah...forgot that one!
Interesting fact: There was a deleted line, When Lili went 'Its twoo its twoo', Bart replied "I hate to disillusion you, ma'am. But you're sucking on my arm."
I'm honestly surprised at how well you just roll with this film.
😆 🤣You Said.... Don't Take That Out Of Context By The Way...."So Many Johnsons."..You Are Funny. And This Was A Very Good Reaction.👍🏿💯👍🏿
So glad you enjoyed! 😂
The first time I watched this movie was on a church event with a church elder and his sons when i was like 16. They tricked him into renting it. He wasn't happy
Interestingly if you watch the new animated movie Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank they lifted a lot of the jokes and premises from Blazing Saddles. Obviously, cleaned up for a kid’s movie. Mel Brooks appears in the film and is credited as a screenwriter.
11:35 A Sioux Chief speaking _Yiddish._ Not in _any_ other movie.
A friend of mine was roommates with the lady that played Mel’s secretary. I wish I was lol
Harvey Korman didn't get an Oscar nomination for this, but Madeline Kahn did. :)
Mel Brooks 1960s tv show Get Smart is good as well. Same style of humor ✌️❤️🙏🙏
The best way to destroy horrible ideologies is to mock them relentlessly, Mel himself used to do a Hitler impersonation saying if we can't laugh about it they win. For me my father first showed me this movie when I was 8 or 9 and it helped teach me never to use the N word. I also loved the campfire farting scene, but maybe I was a 9 year old boy.
Yes, you are supposed to take the, “that’s a lot of Johnson’s,” to the place it intends. They are so backwards,small town that there has been inbreeding…lol. Very few people catch that and find the humor. But back then peoples families stayed within certain towns so cousins married.
You actually watched this *after* "High Anxiety?!" You, unironically deserve praise for that, no joke.