The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000: The Book

In 1960, two young, little-known comedians released an album of largely improvised sketches in which a journalist interviews a 2,000-year-old man. The journalist was Carl Reiner; the crotchety Jewish Methuselah was Mel Brooks. The album was a hit, giving a huge boost to both of their careers. It was followed by three more records over the next 13 years, as well as numerous "2,000-year-old man" TV appearances by the pair. Now, after a 24-year hiatus, Brooks and Reiner have revived the 2,000-year-old man in honor of the millennium, soliciting his views on everything from voice-mail trees to rap music--from the Mars landing to infomercials. While the format doesn't have the breakthrough freshness it did in 1960--and while jokes about being old may have a more poignant edge now coming from these two--Brooks and Reiner are still very funny men, and The 2,000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000 is a welcome visit with them.