Created by comedy legends Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner in 1960, The 2000 Year Old Man is a fictional persona of the oldest man in the world. The duo performed a series of comedy routines on television in which Reiner interviewed Brooks as a 2,000 year old man. Brooks would improvise answers to various interview questions such as the earliest known language or “basic Rock.”

Together, Brooks and Reiner have released five comedy albums. The 2000 Year Old Man appeared on one track for each of the first three albums but commanded the entire show for the last two albums.

Brooks got his start as a stand-up comedian and television comedy writer. In 1963, Brooks wrote, directed and produced his first animated film, The Critic, which won an Academy Award for Short Subjects (Cartoons). In collaboration with Buck Henry, Brooks created the successful television series, Get Smart. Brooks also produced his first feature film, The Producers, which received an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1968.

Reiner acted in several Broadway musicals before beginning his directing career on The Dick Van Dyke Show. Reiner has been a writer, director, producer and actor in various productions throughout his career. He is best known for directing such films as Where’s Poppa? and Oh, God!. In 2000, Reiner received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.