The Producers (1968)

Episode 109 (March 29, 2024)

It’s Springtime for Laci and Matt as film historian Harry Marks joins the show to go over Mel Brooks’s first movie: the classic comedy The Producers (1968). Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder give two of the funniest performances ever… but what about the rest of the movie? Is it laugh-out-loud-funny in 2024? Or is it hopelessly dated? Or is there possibly a third option?

Time stamps:
00:12:57 — Our personal histories with The Producers and Mel Brooks
00:21:02 — Pre-movie predictions
00:25:19 — History segment: Career overviews of Mel Brooks and Zero Mostel; development and legacy of The Producers
00:42:42 — In-depth movie discussion
01:23:42 — Final thoughts and star ratings

Artwork by Laci Roth.

Music by Rural Route Nine. Listen to their album The Joy of Averages on Spotify (https://bit.ly/48WBtUa), Apple Music (https://bit.ly/3Q6kOVC), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/3MbU6tC).

Songs by Rural Route Nine in this episode:
“Your Ambition” – https://youtu.be/ZHudVTCkrQY
“Winston-Salem” – https://youtu.be/-acMutUf8IM
“Snake Drama” – https://youtu.be/xrzz8_2Mqkg
“The Bible Towers of Bluebonnet” – https://youtu.be/k7wlxTGGEIQ

Sources:

All About Me by Mel Brooks – https://amzn.to/49l2i3o

Kiss Me Like a Stranger by Gene Wilder – https://amzn.to/3TV8Wcb