Jewish comedy legend Mel Brooks celebrated his 100th birthday on Sunday, June 28, as he prepares to release the long-awaited sequel to his 1987 movie, “Spaceballs.”

“Spaceballs: The New One,” which will feature Brooks as two characters, Yogurt and President Skroob, is scheduled to be released on April 23, 2027.

Josh Gad, who produced the film alongside Brooks, said that getting to spend time with the award winner the week of his birthday “is truly the greatest gift in the world.”

“He has made us laugh and hurt on the big screen, the small screen, the stage, even on our record players,” Gad said. “There is nothing he hasn’t won, nothing he hasn’t achieved, nothing he hasn’t proven, and yet at 100, he continues to surprise and thrill us.”

From Catskills to movies

Born Melvin James Kaminsky in Brooklyn on June 28, 1926, Brooks decided at age 9, after seeing the movie “Anything Goes,” that he was going to go into show business. At age 14, he began working as a poolside entertainer at the Butler Lodge.

He served as a combat engineer for the U.S. Army during World War II, where he famously rigged a sound system and played the music of Jewish singer Al Jolson to taunt German soldiers on the battlefield.

After the war, Brooks worked in resorts and nightclubs in the Catskill Mountains as a musician and stand-up comic. In 1949, he found work as a comedy writer for television.

His popular films include “The Producers,” “Young Frankenstein” and “Blazing Saddles.”

The filmmaker announced the “Spaceballs” sequel in 2025 while wearing a sweatshirt that read: “Spaceballs, the sweatshirt.”