Chapter 2: The Mountains – Summary and Analysis

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary (Complete and Chronological)

In the early 1940s, teenage Mel Brooks lived in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, dreaming of a comedy career. He and his friend Joe Gevanter tracked down Don Appell, an actor who had performed in Orson Welles’ Broadway production of Native Son at the St. James Theatre (the same theater where Brooks’ The Producers would later debut). Appell took an interest in the boys, especially after Joe moved away and Mel became his sole fan. Appell worked summers as a social director at the Avon Lodge in the Catskill Mountains – a network of Jewish resorts known as the Borscht Belt – and helped get Brooks a busboy job at the Butler Lodge in Hurleyville, New York, with a chance to understudy in the dramatic society.

Brooks’ busboy duties centered on the sour cream station, where he endlessly refilled bowls for guests who consumed the dairy product on blintzes, potato pancakes, and vegetables. He humorously notes that the guests’ dangerously high cholesterol levels were not what killed them; rather, he jokes that singing “Dancing in the Dark” in the wrong key caused strokes among the porch rockers – a bit from his stand-up act.

When a play called Uncle Harry lost its actor to a sprained ankle, Brooks was called in to play the district attorney. Despite his youthful appearance, he memorized the lines and was disguised with a white wig, goatee, and a towel hunched under his coat. Onstage, he accidentally dropped a glass of water, shattering it on a platter. In panic, he stepped to the footlights, removed his disguise, and admitted, “Sorry, folks. I’m only fourteen! I’ve never done this before!” The audience roared, and Brooks realized he was not an actor but a comedian. The social director was furious, but Brooks escaped and retained his busboy job.

Because of that laugh, the hotel owner promoted him to “pool tummler” – a performer who wakes up sleeping guests by telling jokes and doing impressions. Brooks donned a derby and alpaca coat, carried rock-filled cardboard suitcases to a diving board, and shouted, “Business is no good! I don’t wanna live!” before jumping into the pool. The suitcases sunk him; his derby floated. To his audience’s delight, he needed to be rescued by the lifeguard. Over later summers, Brooks developed an act of stolen jokes and original impressions, such as the “Man of a Thousand Faces” and a historical James Madison sketch. He also wrote an identity song: “Here I am, I’m Melvin Brooks…” The chapter concludes with Brooks’ reflection on the Borscht Belt as his comedy training ground, emphasizing the importance of failure. He shares an “Ode to Failure,” noting that setbacks (like jokes that bomb) teach you to give audiences the unexpected, and that failure – which he compares to corned beef hash – stays with you and sharpens your craft.

Key Events

Mel Brooks and Joe Gevanter meet actor Don Appell outside his Brooklyn apartment building.
Appell gets Brooks a busboy job at the Butler Lodge in the Catskills (summer 1941).
Brooks replaces an injured actor in the play Uncle Harry and accidentally drops a water glass onstage.
He ad-libs an admission of his inexperience, earning big laughs and discovering his comedic calling.
The hotel owner makes him “pool tummler,” performing stunts like a fake suicide dive.
Brooks develops a comic act including impressions and an identity song, learning from tough audiences.
He delivers an “Ode to Failure,” arguing that failure between ages twenty and thirty is vital for artistic growth.

Character Development

In this chapter, Mel Brooks transforms from a nervous fourteen-year-old wannabe into a self-aware comedian. The stage accident forces him to choose between pretending to be an actor and being honest with the audience; his natural instinct for laughter wins. He learns to read a room and adapt – essential when audiences in the Borscht Belt did not give laughs easily. His willingness to fail publicly and then analyze why a joke didn’t work becomes a cornerstone of his creative philosophy. Don Appell serves as a mentor figure, connecting Brooks to the mountain resort circuit and validating his early comic ideas.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

The Value of Failure: Brooks explicitly argues that failure is more instructive than success. He calls it “an incredibly important quotient in the equation of a career” and uses the metaphor of corned beef hash – tough to digest but lasting – versus sugar-like success that burns up quickly.
The Borscht Belt as a Crucible: The Catskills resorts are presented as a demanding proving ground where Jewish comics honed their timing. Tough audiences sharpened Brooks’ ability to survive and triumph over disasters.
Improvisation and Resilience: The broken glass incident symbolizes how a mistake can become a breakthrough. Brooks’ quick decision to break character and confess his age turns catastrophe into a career-defining moment.
Training Through Failure: Brooks’ son Max appears in a brief anecdote, telling graduates to “go forth and fail,” reinforcing the chapter’s central lesson.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 2 is foundational in Brooks’ memoir. It details his first real exposure to professional show business and his initial comedic success. The “pool tummler” job marks his first paid performance role, and the broken glass episode is the precise moment he identifies as a comedian rather than an actor. Moreover, the chapter introduces the philosophy that will guide his career: embrace failure as a teacher. For readers and aspiring artists, this chapter offers an honest, humorous look at how early stumbles build lasting craft.

Study Questions and Answers

1. How does Mel Brooks’ accidental drop of a water glass in the play Uncle Harry change his understanding of his own talents?
Answer: When the glass shatters, Brooks panics but then removes his disguise and confesses his age and inexperience to the audience. Their explosive laughter makes him realize that making people laugh comes naturally to him, whereas acting in a scripted role does not. He concludes, “I wasn’t an actor. I was a comedian.” This moment sets the direction for his entire career.

2. According to Brooks, why is failure “an incredibly important quotient in the equation of a career”?
Answer: Brooks argues that failure forces you to ask why something didn’t work and to learn what audiences truly want. He contrasts the fleeting sweetness of success with the lasting, sharpening effect of failure, which stays with you and makes you better as both a person and an artist.

3. What role did Don Appell play in Mel Brooks’ early career, and how does this chapter illustrate the importance of mentorship?
Answer: Don Appell, an actor and later a writer for Broadway and television, gave Brooks his first job in the Catskills, provided feedback on his comic impressions, and connected him to the Borscht Belt circuit. Without Appell’s influence, Brooks might never have had the busboy job that led to his stage debut and the pool tummler role. The chapter shows that even one supportive industry insider can open doors for a young talent.