Albert Brooks

Your parents know and love Albert for being a loveable schlemiel in many movies. But you know and love him because he was the dad-fish in Finding Nemo. And if you think finding one fish in a whole ocean is a fun search, his new movie is called Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World.

Asked by a Muslim paper why a Jewish guy would make this movie, he said, "Jews are forced to retain an ability, a mechanism for survival, and that is the ability for finding out means to live with other people. Or else they land up in trouble. I think my film is driven by that survival instinct." He said he even was welcomed to film in a real mosque!

Alberts' latest toon voice was as the evil government official in The Simpsons Movie, which also starred Julie Kavner, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer. He also voiced the sick, depressed tiger in the new version of Doctor Dolittle.

Like Woody Allen, Harold Ramis, and Mel Brooks (no relation!), Albert writes, directs, and stars in his own movies. He did this triple-duty in Looking for Comedy, The Muse, Defending Your Life, Mother with Lisa Kudrow (but NOT as his mother), and Lost in America, his first hit. In most of his movies, Albert plays a decent guy who tries to do his best in a weird situation.

This is also true of the many movies he acted in. He was in the remake of The In-Laws with Michael Douglas, in which Michael is a spy and Albert, whose daughter marries his son, gets swept up in one of his capers. In an Oscar-nominated turn in Broadcast News, he plays a reporter who doesn't get to be anchorman, while this idiot hunk coworker of his does. He also helps Goldie Hawn manage being in the army in Private Benjamin and provides comic relief in the very gloomy movie Taxi Driver.

Albert went to high school with Rob Reiner. After college, he did stand-up, recorded some comedy albums, wrote for Saturday Night Live, and started making movies. Now you do it!

Bonus:

Albert Brooks is his stage name. His real name: Albert Einstein! So even his parents had a sense of humor.

We know for sure because his dad, Harry, was a famous comic; his stage name was Parkyarkarkus, which just means "park your carcass" or "sit your body down." Ask your grandparents if they remember him!

Also, Albert's brother Bob does a character, "Super Dave Osbourne," who has been on David Letterman's show a lot. Super Dave is a stuntman whose stunts never quite work out as planned…