Young Frankenstein Written by Gene

¶ … Young Frankenstein written by Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks. Specifically it will discuss the writers' motivations and influences in writing the screenplay for the film. Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks' comic masterpiece "Young Frankenstein" is one of the funniest movies of all time, and a time honored comedic classic that has recently opened as a musical on Broadway.

Wilder says that he was influenced early on to write and be funny. When he was eight years old, his mother had a heart attack and her doctor told him not to frighten her and to make her laugh, and then he saw his sister in a dramatic recital, and decided he wanted to write and act (Braiker 3). His meeting with Brooks was totally by chance, he was acting in a Broadway play with Ann Bancroft, who was dating Brooks at the time and later became his wife. That is how the two teamed up to begin with.

Brooks and Wilder teamed up for "The Producers" in 1968, when Wilder starred and Brooks directed, and again in 1974 with "Blazing Saddles," again with Wilder starring and Brooks directing. Wilder wrote the initial screenplay to "Young Frankenstein" and then worked with Brooks to refine it.

Wilder had the original idea for the film, wrote a rough draft of the screenplay, and then became involved with Brooks, who ended up co-writing the final screenplay. Wilder was always an actor first, but wrote several other screenplays, and always seemed to be involved in the writing process as he gained fame and some attention. He and Brooks had known each other for several years even before they worked together, and their pairing seemed to become a logical choice. Another author notes, "Mel Brooks often refers to Gene Wilder as 'God's perfect prey, the victim in all of us.' He saw that aspect of Wilder's character right away, Wilder said. 'When I first met Mel Brooks, he told me that, in his eyes, I was like a sheep surrounded by wolves'" (Editors). Thus, Brooks and Wilder seemed destined to write this classic screenplay with each other. When Wilder had trouble developing the script, he turned to his comic genius friend, and the writing collaboration was born.

Wilder loves creating characters, and he created many memorable ones in "Young Frankenstein." He says, "I love creating a character in a fantastical situation, like 'Dr. Frankenstein,' like 'Leo Bloom,' a little caterpillar who blossoms into a butterfly. I love that" (Editors). Brooks on the other hand is known for his directing and producing, which brought him and Wilder together. However, when he was younger, Brooks was a TV comedy writer who worked for legend Sid Caesar. Another writer notes, "Brooks was competing to get his gags on the air alongside those from youthful contenders like Neil Simon and Woody Allen. He couldn't just be funny, he had to be funnier than anybody else. It made him fearless to the point of frantic" (Williams 1). Therefore, he was the perfect co-writer for Wilder's screenplay, he had the writing experience and the comedic experience, and the background in producing and directing to bring the screenplay to theaters.