Its juvenile jokes and surreal parody of racism made it one of the most loved comedies of the Seventies but Mel Brooks says that he could never have made Blazing Saddles in today’s politically correct society.
The director described political correctness as “the death of comedy” and said that studio executives would have rejected his 1974 satirical take on westerns.
“It’s OK not to hurt the feelings of various tribes and groups,” he told the BBC. “However it’s not good for comedy. Comedy has to walk a thin line, take risks. It’s the lecherous little elf whispering in the king’s ear, telling the truth about human behaviour.”
Blazing Saddles has a lot of toilet humour for a film that was originally (and sincerely) titled Homage