The Producers onward. That said, Brooks’ comic sensibility can often veer into plain camp. And as we find out in the memoir, Brooks often used his considerable power to speak truth to power, making him a pretty sizeable ally.
From his decision to make Blazing Saddles a comedy about white racial ignorance to his ability to use the spectre of the Holocaust to wring giddy laughter from audiences who weren’t quite ready for it, Brooks has always been a pretty damn progressive figure.
But the best thing I’ve learned from the book so far? It concerns James “Gypsy” Haake, a legendary drag queen who is to this very day performing regularly in Palm Springs.