For all of you who DON'T know who ALbert Brooks is

[ThekingoTV]

Here is his career bio.

Career Synopsis

Not everyone is aware that Albert Brooks began as a stand-up comic. After
spending a few years on the road, opening for acts such as Neil Diamond, Brooks
made his comic debut with the LP Comedy Minus One . It consisted of a mix of
live stand-up and prerecorded bits, including the eponymous "Comedy Minus One"
bit, with the listener as part of the act- script in hand and all. The LP also
featured "Another Kooky Krazy Kall" with Albert making "phony phone calls" that
are never recognized as "phony" by the victims. His next LP was the satiric
parody A Star Is Bought, for which he earned a Grammy Award nomination. This
album was a catalogue of radio modes, from contemporary call-in shows to
1940's, Jack Benny-style comedy. It included some guest stars in cameos,
playing themselves- such as Linda Ronstadt, Rob Reiner, Alice Cooper, Mickey
Dolenz & Peter Tork. However, Brooks played most of the "roles" himself (with
some help from Harry Shearer ), and quickly earned the sobriquet "comedian's
comedian."

Brooks later moved to television. He guest starred on an episode of Love,
American Style (directed by Garry Marshall), as well as a few episodes of The
Odd Couple in the early 70s. He had already been a frequent guest on the talk
show circuit, appearing on such shows as Ed Sullivan, The Tonight Show Starring
Johnny Carson, Mike Douglas, and Merv Griffin. In the mid-70s, producer Lorne
Michaels invited Albert to be the permanent host of a new show called Saturday
Night (later "Saturday Night Live").

Albert turned down the offer, deciding instead to write, direct and star in
some short films for the show. He had already written and directed a short film
entitled, "The Famous Comedians School" for a PBS special, and was interested
in pursuing that field.

His first foray into feature filmmaking was co-writing and directing Real Life,
a satire of documentaries. In it, he plays himself - attempting to make a
documentary about a "real" family in the mid-west. It was intended as a
take-off of a PBS series, "An American Family", but now can be seen as a
pre-cursor to MTV's The Real World.

Albert worked as an actor in films like Taxi Driver, Unfaithfully Yours,
Twilight Zone: The Movie, and Private Benjamin. His next writing/directing job
was Modern Romance, a romantic comedy about relationships. The type of
"on-again, off-again, drive around your lovers' house and call them at all
hours of the night to see where they are" kind of relationships. Then came Lost
In America, regarded as one of the best comedies of the 80s. Brooks and his
film wife, Julie Hagarty, sell it all and hit the road in a Winnebago, trying
to live up to Easy Rider.

Through the Eighties, Brooks did work for other directors. He was nominated for
a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award in 1987 for Broadcast News. Broadcast
News was directed by James L. Brooks, who had a small role in Modern Romance.
James Brooks produces the animated series The Simpsons, where Albert has
created numerous character voices, billed as "A. Brooks". His voice can also be
heard over the opening sequence of Terms of Endearment, as Emma's father.

The nineties brought Defending Your Life , Brooks' hilarious account of what
happens after we die. He also co-wrote The Scout, including a role for himself
as the scout.

Christmas of '96 brought us Mother , with Brooks as a newly divorced man who
moves back in with his mother, played by Debbie Reynolds, to try and straighten
out his relationships with women. It garnered wonderful reviews, as well as
some awards. Debbie Reynolds was nominated for a Best Actress Golden Globe for
her performance, and has seen a resurgance in her acting career. She is now in
line to star in several more films. Albert Brooks & Monica Johnson (with whom
he co-wrote the script), won the New York Film Critics Circle Award , the
National Society of Film Critics Award, and the ShoWest Award (an award from
theater owners and exhibitors) for Best Original Screenplay.

Fall of '97 saw Critical Care, a comedy set in a hospital starring Albert and
Anne Bancroft and directed by Sidney Lumet released, with Albert as a 65-year
old alcoholic doctor.

This summer, Albert is featured in two films- Out of Sight, starring George
Clooney, and based on an Elmore Leonard novel, and Doctor Dolittle, starring
Eddie Murphy in which Albert provides the voice for one of the animals. And
then it's on to his own film, Muse, which is set to begin production shortly.

One thing all of Brooks' films have in common are their determination to find
the truth in relationships, and in life. And compromise is not part of his
vocabulary when it comes to his work.

I hope this clears things up
From the King of TV
"Who is the King?"-The King

[Jamie]

His last name is really Einstein, that's right Albert Einstein; and his
brother is Super Dave Osborne...who has a brutal show of the same name, that
may, or may not, still be on the air.

ThekingoTV wrote in message <19981124040533...@ng18.aol.com>...