Norman Steinberg dead at 83: Mel Brooks leads tributes to Hollywood screenwriter on Blazing Saddles & My Favorite Year
HOLLYWOOD legend Norman Steinberg has died at the age of 83.
The writer, who worked on Blazing Saddles, passed away on March 15 in New York.
Steinberg also worked on the films Yes, Giorgio and the 1984 comedy movie Johnny Dangerously.
It’s not yet known how Steinberg died but tributes have flooded in from the entertainment industry.
Mel Brooks said: “It’s a sad day when Norman Steinberg leaves us. From Blazing Saddles to My Favorite Year he was one of the best writers I ever worked with.
“I’m so glad I rescued him from a dull stable legal career, because he always permeated the writers’ room with his infectious comic spirit.”
Steinberg, who was born in Brooklyn in 1939, worked as a lawyer before becoming a writer.
The writer first met Brooks in 1960 and gave him a script for a program called Get Smart!, which was a James Bond spoof.
Brooks thought the script was funny, which prompted Steinberg to quit his job as a lawyer.
Their meeting came more than a decade before Blazing Saddles was released.
The movie, which starred legendary actor Gene Wilder, was nominated for three Academy Awards.
And, it was also nominated for Best Screenplay at the 1975 British Academy Film Awards.
Steinberg also won an Emmy for his work on the 1970s NBC program The Flip Wilson Show.
He also wrote the CBS sitcom Doctor Doctor, which aired between 1989 and 1991.
Steinberg was a producer on the American sitcom Raising Dad which aired between 2001 and 2002.
He was also an executive producer on the show Cosby – which starred shamed actor Bill Cosby.